Stephen is the joint Chief Executive of Suffolk Coastal and Waveney District Councils, having initially joined Suffolk Coastal as Chief Executive in 2005.  He became Chief Executive of Waveney in 2008 and is currently overseeing the creation of a new ‘super district council’ for East Suffolk which will come into being on 1 April 2019.   

Stephen’s local government career started in 1982 when he left the private sector and joined Ipswich Borough Council.  He later went on to become Chief Executive of East Northamptonshire District Council in 2002.