With an impressive background in local government, David Sidaway currently holds the post of Chief Executive of Telford & Wrekin Council, having joined the authority in 2020. A local lad, David actually began his career at Wrekin District Council. Whilst working as a Director at Telford & Wrekin, David was the driving force behind the transformation of Telford town centre through the £250 million private and public sector Southwater development. Before taking the top role at Telford and Wrekin, from 2015 David spent four years with Stoke-on-Trent City Council, where he held the equivalent City Director (CEO) post. During this time, he helped create one of the country’s fastest growing enterprise zones and the city centre Smithfield development. Since becoming Chief Executive with Telford & Wrekin Council, David has successfully steered the authority through unprecedented times, leading the council’s response to two major incidents – severe flooding in February 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic beginning in March 2020 – within only a few weeks of taking up his position. Credited as a leader “who takes a complicated situation and simplifies it”, in June 2022, David’s crisis management twinned with his focus on empowering a “can do” culture at the authority led Telford & Wrekin Council to win Local Authority of the Year at the prestigious MJ Awards.