Ready to respond
Hertfordshire Growth Board is the way the county is now working together to manage growth. With the Hertfordshire population expected to rise by up to 175,000 by 2031, at least 100,000 new homes and jobs will need to be created over the same period. This brings opportunities and challenges. Hertfordshire Growth Board is ready to respond.
Hertfordshire Growth Board is made up of the County Council, the 10 district and borough councils, the NHS Hertfordshire & West Essex Integrated Care System, Homes England and Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership. Working together is how we continue our ‘joint’ success and create opportunities for everyone, now and in the future.
Sustainable Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire Growth Board is working closely with the Hertfordshire Climate Change and Sustainability Partnership to deliver climate change action, reduce the carbon footprint and achieve lasting sustainable change.
Find our more: www.hccsp.org.uk
Hertfordshire Growth Board

Richard Roberts is the Conservative Leader of Hertfordshire County Council and is Chair of Hertfordshire Growth Board. He was first elected to the County Council in 2003 as the member for Kings Langley and has previously served as the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care during the Covid-19 Pandemic, Cabinet Member for Public Health, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services and Cabinet Member for Partnerships and Performance. He is Chairman of the Health and Wellbeing Board and became Leader of the Council in May 2021.
Cllr Richard Roberts
Leader, Hertfordshire County Council
Proud partners of the Hertfordshire Growth Board


Lewis Cocking was elected to the council four years ago and became the Leader in May 2019. He is the youngest leader in Hertfordshire and is very passionate about sustainability and tackling climate change with ambitions to improve the Broxbourne economy so that local people have opportunities to find employment in high value jobs without the need to travel outside the borough.
Cllr Lewis Cocking
Leader, Broxbourne Borough Council

Jeff Stack is the Chief Executive of Broxbourne Borough Council in south east Hertfordshire. He joined the Council in 2008 as the Director of Environmental Services and became Chief Executive in 2013. Prior to this, he worked for a variety of councils and in the housebuilding industry. He is a chartered town planner and has been a Member of the Royal Town Planning Institute since 1985.
Jeff Stack
Chief Executive, Broxbourne Borough Council


Andrew Williams is a county councillor for Hemel Hempstead East (Adeyfield East & Leverstock Green) and has lived in Hemel all his life. He is also a Dacorum borough councillor with 30 years’ experience of working on behalf of local residents. Andrew currently chairs the Dacorum strategic network which brings together public and voluntary groups to improve services across the borough.
Andrew Williams
Leader, Dacorum Borough Council

Claire Hamilton has over 25 years’ experience of working in the public sector, leading high-performing teams and developing positive partnerships to deliver complex regeneration initiatives. Claire’s previous role was Director of the Harlow and Gilston Garden Town, which is an exciting regeneration project, building on the heritage of Harlow to deliver 23,000 high-quality homes, 9,000 employment opportunities and sustainable travel infrastructure within the area. Claire has a background in housing development, estate regeneration and town centre regeneration and economic development.
Claire Hamilton
Chief Executive, Dacorum Borough Council


Linda Haysey has been the ward councillor for Hertford Rural North since 2005. She took over as the Leader of East Herts Council in May 2015 and has just been re-elected for her second term as Leader. Linda has lived in Hertford since 1987 with her husband and two children. She became a councillor following 25 years working in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries.
Cllr Linda Haysey
Leader, East Herts Council

Richard is the Chief Executive at East Herts Council and has a wealth of experience, having worked in local government for over 30 years in a diverse range of roles linked to supporting communities, environment and public health at councils in London, Essex, Buckinghamshire, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire.
Richard Cassidy
Chief Executive, East Herts Council


Patsy has extensive experience of leading place-based approaches to growth and development in high growth areas as Assistant Director Growth and Place with Hertfordshire County Council and, before that, in lead roles for nine years in planning and sustainable development at Oxford and Cambridge City Councils.
Patsy Dell
Director , Hertfordshire Growth Board

Owen Mapley is Chief Executive of Hertfordshire County Council and Head of Paid Service. As such, he is the principal officer responsible for all aspects of the council’s day to day operations, leading 8,000 staff and a budget of around £1bn a year as well as leading the provision of policy advice and support for the Council’s Leader, Cabinet and all councillors. He is also the Chairman of the Hertfordshire Public Sector Chief Executives - a quarterly gathering of principal officers from across local government, NHS, further and higher education, the LEP and emergency services in the county.
Owen Mapley
Chief Executive, Hertfordshire County Council


Mark Bretton is Chair of Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership and the LEP Network, the national body that brings all 38 LEPs together. He is an independent consultant with 36 years of wide-ranging business experience, including in several high profile Government programmes. Until recently Mark was a Managing Director (Partner) in the leadership team of the professional services firm Accenture. He sits on the Business Leaders’ Council of the charity Teach First.
Mark Bretton
Chair, Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership

Neil Hayes is Chief Executive of Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership. He has overseen its development from its inception, helping to ensure that its long term priorities set out in its Strategic Economic Plan (2017-2030) are delivered for the county, securing over £309m EU funding and UK government investment. The LEP’s Local Industrial Strategy continues to build on that vision by building on the county’s economic strengths to create opportunities for all its residents.
Neil Hayes
Chief Executive, Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership


Morris Bright has been the Leader of Hertsmere Borough Council since 2007 and is the Deputy Leader of Hertfordshire County Council. Morris is Chairman of the Board of Directors at Elstree Studios - the only studios in the country owned by a local authority. Morris has worked as a journalist for 25 years and is a member of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.
Morris Bright MBE
Leader , Hertsmere Borough Council

Sajida Bijle is the Managing Director of Hertsmere Borough Council. Prior to this she was the Director of Resources and Corporate Director for Hertsmere BC for over 15 years. Sajida is also Company Secretary to Elstree Film Studios Limited and an Accountant and Lawyer by profession.
Sajida Bijl
Managing Director, Hertsmere Borough Council


Elizabeth Dennis-Harburg is the Leader of North Herts District Council following the Local Elections in May 2021. First elected in 2016, Elizabeth has worked to improve the Recycling & Waste service in North Herts and is passionate about reducing food and other waste, especially single use plastics. Outside politics, Elizabeth works for the Financial Ombudsman Service, leading on emerging issues in the consumer rights and regulatory sector. A competitive figure skater since the age of five, Elizabeth is a strong advocate for sport and the arts, working to widen participation and champion their place in regeneration and growth of local enterprise.
Cllr Elizabeth Dennis-Harburg
Leader, North Herts District Council

Anthony Roche has been Managing Director of NHDC since July 2020, having previously served as Deputy Chief Executive from 2017. A lawyer by background, he started in private practice before switching to the public sector and NHDC in 2008.
Anthony Roche
Managing Director, North Herts District Council


Chris White has been Liberal Democrat councillor for Clarence Ward since 2008 and is currently Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group and Leader of the Council. He chairs the council's policy committee and is the lead member for Planning. Chris qualified as a chartered accountant in 1984. He was elected a county councillor in Hertfordshire in 1993 and group leader in 1994. Chris is Vice Chair of Hertfordshire Growth Board.
Chris White
Leader, St Albans City and District Council

Amanda Foley is Chief Executive at St Albans City and District Council. She was appointed in 2017, previously holding the post of Head of Corporate Services. Amanda, who lives in the district with her family, joined the Council in 2009 from Ofsted – the Government’s Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills. She was Ofsted’s Head of HR Strategy and has worked across a range of sectors and industries including banking, retail and the Civil Service.
Amanda Foley
Chief Executive , St Albans City and District Council


Sharon Taylor OBE is Leader of Stevenage Borough Council; a position she has held since 2006. Councillor Taylor is a member of the Local Government Association Resources Board, the District Council’s Network Board and additionally she is a Localism Commissioner and was appointed Chair of the Co-op Council’s Innovation Network in 2017. Sharon Taylor is second Vice Chair of Hertfordshire Growth Board.
Sharon Taylor OBE
Leader , Stevenage Borough Council

Matt is the Chief Executive of Stevenage Borough Council and has over 35 years local government experience in a variety of front-line and strategic leadership roles. In his current role, Matt is responsible, in conjunction with the Leader, Executive and the Senior Leadership Team, for the ongoing development and implementation of the Council’s Cooperative Corporate Future Town Future Council Plan.
Matt Partridge
Chief Executive, Stevenage Borough Council


Sarah Nelmes was appointed Council Leader for Three Rivers District Council, taking over from Sara Bedford in July 2020. Councillor Sarah Nelmes has been a councillor for over 15 years and represents the Penn and Mill End ward. She is currently Chair of the Planning Committee, and chaired the majority Liberal Democrat group.
Sarah Nelmes
Leader, Three Rivers District Council

Joanne Wagstaffe, was appointed as Three Rivers’ new Chief Executive Officer on 3 February 2020 and was shared Director of Resources with both Three Rivers District Council and Watford Borough Council from 2013. Previously, Jo was the Director of Resources at Wyre Forest District Council; Director of Resources and Transformation at Copeland Borough Council; and an Assistant Director at Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council. Jo also has extensive private sector experience.
Joanne Wagstaffe
Chief Executive, Three Rivers District Council


Peter Taylor has been the Elected Mayor of Watford since 2018 and joined Hertfordshire LEP Board in September 2019. Before becoming Elected Mayor, he worked as a teacher and Assistant Director for the Catholic Education Service. He served as a councillor in Watford since 2012 and lives in Oxhey with his wife and three young children.
Mayor Peter Taylor
Leader, Watford Borough Council

Donna Nolan joined Watford Borough Council as its first female Managing Director in February 2020. Former Deputy Chief Executive of Mendip District Council, Donna has led a range of successful regeneration and commercial programmes in both the public and private sector. Donna works closely with Watford’s Elected Mayor to ensure the council’s strategic commitments can be implemented, including its ambitious plans for sustainable regeneration.
Donna Nolan
Managing Director , Watford Borough Council


Tony Kingsbury is Leader of Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council. A near lifelong resident of the county, he worked as an electronics engineer for a large defence company. Tony has served as a councillor and Cabinet member for over a decade, overseeing a wide range of portfolios including leisure and housing.
Tony Kingsbury
Leader, Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council

Ka Ng is Chief Executive of Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council and the lead Chief Executive on Hertfordshire Growth Board. She began her career at Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council in 2009 as a management accountant. After a few periods outside the council, she returned in 2016 to take on her current role, along with being the council's chief financial officer.
Ka Ng
Chief Executive , Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council

Paul has a wide range of public policy and leadership experience. He currently holds a number of non-executive leadership roles across the health and social care sector. As the Independent Chair at Hertfordshire and West Essex Integrated Care System he is working with system partners across local government, NHS and community and voluntary sector to develop population health working and integrated care. He has also been appointed as Chair of St Andrew’s Healthcare, a charity providing specialist mental healthcare for patients with complex mental health needs. He is also Chair of the independent charity SCIE (The Social Care Institute for Excellence) which works with local government, independent sector and Government by sharing knowledge about what works, translating policy into practice and supporting transformation to improve the lives of people who use care services.
Rt Hon Professor Paul Burstow
Chair, Hertfordshire and West Essex Integrated Care System

A chartered surveyor, Charles has held various senior commercial property related roles over 15 years in the private sector, before moving to public sector housing focused delivery, latterly with Homes England. Charles has extensive experience across the south and east of England leading teams through the process of acquiring, de-risking, providing infrastructure and disposing of public sector land in the market for residential led development. Currently, Charles is leading one of Homes England’s new business and relationship management teams focused on supporting private and public sector partners in unlocking the building of new homes in the South-East and South-West. This includes working up a pipeline of opportunities where use of the Agency’s funding, people, powers and know-how can serve to overcome barriers to delivery.
Charles Amies
Acting Director, Markets Partners and Places, Homes England
FAQs
What is Hertfordshire Growth Board?
Hertfordshire Growth Board is the way the county is now working together to manage growth. With the Hertfordshire population expected to rise by up to 175,000 by 2031, at least 100,000 new homes and jobs will need to be created over the same period. This brings opportunities and challenges.
Hertfordshire Growth Board is ready to respond. The Growth Board is made up of Hertfordshire’s 10 district and borough councils, Hertfordshire County Council and Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership. Together they are committed to working together to deliver an ambitious growth agenda to support a thriving economy, with affordable housing, a sustainable transport network, excellent schools and healthcare facilities.
Who are the partners?
Broxbourne Borough Council
Dacorum Borough Council
East Herts District Council
Hertfordshire County Council
Hertsmere Borough Council
North Hertfordshire District Council
St Albans City and District Council
Stevenage Borough Council
Three Rivers District Council
Watford Borough Council
Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council
Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership
When was it formed?
Hertfordshire Growth Board was conceived in 2018 as a collective response to managing the scale and pace of growth required over the next decade. In October 2019, all 12 partners signed a Memorandum of Understanding to:
- raise awareness of their joint working intent to Hertfordshire residents, partners, businesses and central government;
- commit to continued collaborative place-based working across Hertfordshire;
- set out the joint working intention between the Partners; and
- demonstrate how they will work together as equal stakeholders with different roles to manage future growth in Hertfordshire.
Why is this so important?
This marks a significant shift in how the county manages growth. For the first time, all 10 district and borough councils, Hertfordshire County Council and Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership have overcome political and geographical boundaries to make collaboration happen and accelerate our recovery from the substantial impact of COVID-19 on our people, places and future prosperity. With its focus on skills, infrastructure, technology and accelerating housing delivery, it is united with one common purpose to grow Hertfordshire out of this crisis.
What is the scale of the growth challenge?
Hertfordshire’s population is expected to rise by up to 175,000 by 2031, with at least 100,000 new homes and 100,000 new jobs to be created over the same period. This growth will place further demand on our schools, health and social care, our already congested road and rail networks and our green belt. In addition, Hertfordshire must respond to growth pressures from areas outside its boundaries including London and the Oxford-Cambridge Arc. Delivering the necessary infrastructure to support that growth from now to 2031 is estimated to cost at least £5.70 billion.
What are Hertfordshire Growth Board’s aims?
The core objective of Hertfordshire Growth Board is to respond to the key growth challenges facing Hertfordshire. The Partners have agreed a set of place-based ambitions and agreed to work together on delivering those ambitions through the future work programme:
- Strategic planning and positioning – the need to raise Hertfordshire’s profile and secure central government support for scaled and accelerated delivery, helping to overcome the challenges faced by the local plan system, and growing strategic employment and housing corridors within Hertfordshire;
- Homes – the need to deliver the housing Hertfordshire needs. This includes more social and affordable housing; good and inclusive growth that delivers sustainable communities, housing, and places into the future; and accommodating housing and economic growth with sustainable construction and excellent design that does not compromise the attractiveness of our existing places;
- Infrastructure – the need to access sufficient forward funding to put ‘infrastructure in first’ ahead of development delivery, reduce our carbon footprint, and plan for active and sustainable travel; and
- Economy – the need to further unlock the potential of our key sectors, stimulate new sectors, and create quality local jobs growth, in alignment with the emerging Local Industrial Strategy.
How does Hertfordshire Growth Board engage with Government?
Hertfordshire Growth Board’s signing of its Memorandum of Understanding signals its joint commitment to working together and speaking with one voice to Government to achieve its ambition to continually improve life for everyone. Hertfordshire Growth Board is working with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Department for Transport and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to jointly develop its plans so that they fully realise their economic, social and environmental potential.
What is the Hertfordshire proposition?
Hertfordshire is a net contributor to the UK economy, and good growth is key to ensuring that Hertfordshire Growth Board partners continue to build on that while locally providing good quality jobs, skills, and opportunities for all Hertfordshire residents. Hertfordshire’s location between London and the Oxford-Cambridge Arc and its unique ‘offer’ make the partners perfectly placed to work with government and co-create ideas and solutions to meet the challenges and maintain the momentum and growth of UK plc that benefits all of Hertfordshire. However, in parts of Hertfordshire our productivity is falling behind the national average, and without change, we risk not being able to deliver on local and national economic objectives. Our Memorandum of Understanding builds on a history of successful partnership to achieve our collective aims and values of shared progress, responsible growth and active stewardship.
How are decisions made?
The Hertfordshire Growth Board meets six times a year. Growth Board papers and minutes since June 2020 are published on the website and its Governance arrangements can be viewed in its Integrated Governance Framework.
