Denise Park has been Chief Executive of Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council since May 2019. With 30 years’ local government experience, Denise has worked with services across the local authority leading on budget strategy, several transformation programmes and key partnerships. Under Denise’s leadership, a significant programme of initiatives was developed to foster growth in Blackburn with Darwen. The development of the Council’s Corporate Plan and values was led by Denise as part of the organisational development programme. She is also overseeing the Children’s Services Improvement Plan. Denise is involved in the Lancashire & South Cumbria Integrated Care system and the BwD place based partnership for health and care and is also playing a central role in Lancashire’s devolution ambitions. Denise is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) and is the Borough’s Returning Officer and the Police Area Returning Officer for Lancashire.