People
Councillors set direction. Officers run services. Select a box to see who and what.
Full Council Abdul Kadir (Lord Mayor)
All 42 councillors. Decides the council’s overall policies and sets the budget each year; appoints the Leader; hears public deputations, questions and petition debates.
Leader and Cabinet Steve Pitt + 9
Decisions are taken either collectively at Cabinet meetings or by individual Cabinet Members at public "Cabinet Member decision meetings" for their portfolio. Decisions outside the budget and policy framework must go to Full Council. (Constitution Ch 1.2–1.3, Ch 13.5)
- Steve Pitt: Leader of the Council (with portfolio responsibility for Culture, Regeneration & Economic Development)
- Darren Sanders: Deputy Leader of the Council; Cabinet Member for Housing and Tackling Homelessness
- Chris Attwell: Central Services
- Kimberly Barrett: Climate Change and Greening the City
- Stuart Brown: Environmental Services
- Peter Candlish: Transport
- Nicholas Dorrington: Children, Families & Education
- Lee Hunt: Community Safety, Leisure & Sport
- Hugh Mason: Planning Policy & City Development
- Matthew Winnington: Community Wellbeing, Health & Care
Scrutiny 6 panels
Scrutiny panels question Cabinet decisions and can call them in before they take effect.
Planning, licensing and other committees 4 committees
- Planning Committee (chair Suzy Horton)
- Licensing Committee (chair Richard Adair)
- Governance & Audit & Standards Committee (chair Ian Holder)
- Employment Committee (chair Gerald Vernon-Jackson CBE)
Chief Executive Natalie Brahma-PearlHead of Paid Service
Natalie Brahma-Pearl: runs the council's workforce and makes sure decisions are carried out.
Director of Finance Chris WardSection 151
Legally responsible for the council's finances. Must warn councillors if spending would exceed resources.
City Solicitor Peter BaulfMonitoring Officer
Must report anything unlawful or maladministration, and deals with councillor conduct complaints.
Ch 12 designates the City Solicitor as Monitoring Officer. The name comes only from the December 2025 directors chart; not re-confirmed in a 2026 document. Public contact: monitoringofficer@portsmouthcc.gov.uk.
Directorates and service teams bins, housing, care, schools…
Officers deliver services and carry out lawful decisions. Which team does what.
Councillors set policy and the budget; officers deliver it. MPs are not part of the council and do not direct it. Who does what.
Cabinet: who owns which service
Three officers with legal duties
View all people
Cabinet
| Name | Role | Ward |
|---|---|---|
| Steve Pitt | Leader of the Council (with portfolio responsibility for Culture, Regeneration & Economic Development) | Milton |
| Darren Sanders | Deputy Leader of the Council; Cabinet Member for Housing and Tackling Homelessness | Baffins |
| Chris Attwell | Cabinet Member for Central Services | St Thomas |
| Kimberly Barrett | Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Greening the City | Milton |
| Stuart Brown | Cabinet Member for Environmental Services | Fratton |
| Peter Candlish | Cabinet Member for Transport | Eastney & Craneswater |
| Nicholas Dorrington | Cabinet Member for Children, Families & Education | Eastney & Craneswater |
| Lee Hunt | Cabinet Member for Community Safety, Leisure & Sport | Nelson |
| Hugh Mason | Cabinet Member for Planning Policy & City Development | St Jude |
| Matthew Winnington | Cabinet Member for Community Wellbeing, Health & Care | Eastney & Craneswater |
Committees
| Committee | Type | Chair |
|---|---|---|
| Full Council | full-council | Abdul Kadir (Lord Mayor) (Liberal Democrat) |
| Scrutiny Management Panel | scrutiny | Mary Vallely (Labour) |
| Economic Development, Culture and Leisure Scrutiny Panel | scrutiny | Russell Simpson (Reform UK) |
| Education, Children & Young People Scrutiny Panel | scrutiny | Hannah Brent (Conservative) |
| Health Overview & Scrutiny Panel | scrutiny | Mark Jeffery (Liberal Democrat) |
| Housing & Social Care Scrutiny Panel | scrutiny | Graham Heaney (Labour) |
| Traffic, Environment & Community Safety Scrutiny Panel | scrutiny | Joe Standen (Reform UK) |
| Planning Committee | regulatory | Suzy Horton (Liberal Democrat) |
| Licensing Committee | regulatory | Richard Adair (Liberal Democrat) |
| Governance & Audit & Standards Committee | regulatory | Ian Holder (Liberal Democrat) |
| Employment Committee | regulatory | Gerald Vernon-Jackson CBE (Liberal Democrat) |
| Health & Wellbeing Board | partnership | Joint Chairs: Cllr Matthew Winnington and Dr Zaid Hirmiz (HIOW Integrated Care Board) |
All 42 councillors
| Ward | Councillor | Party | Term ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baffins | Abdul Kadir Lord Mayor | Liberal Democrat | 2 May 2030 |
| Leonie Oliver | Liberal Democrat | 6 May 2027 | |
| Darren Sanders Deputy Leader of the Council; Cabinet Member for Housing and Tackling Homelessness | Liberal Democrat | 4 May 2028 | |
| Central Southsea | Kate Dorrington | Liberal Democrat | 2 May 2030 |
| Charlotte Gerada Group Leader | Labour | 4 May 2028 | |
| Suzy Horton Deputy Lord Mayor | Liberal Democrat | 6 May 2027 | |
| Charles Dickens | Cal Corkery | Independent | 6 May 2027 |
| Sam Coupland | Reform UK | 2 May 2030 | |
| Rajah Ghosh | Liberal Democrat | 4 May 2028 | |
| Copnor | Raymond Dent | Reform UK | 6 May 2027 |
| Carl Inman | Reform UK | 2 May 2030 | |
| Lee Tindal | Reform UK | 4 May 2028 | |
| Cosham | Lamara Fudge | Reform UK | 2 May 2030 |
| Derek North | Reform UK | 4 May 2028 | |
| Mary Vallely | Labour | 6 May 2027 | |
| Drayton & Farlington | Simon Bosher Group Leader | Conservative | 2 May 2030 |
| Hannah Brent | Conservative | 6 May 2027 | |
| Spencer Gardner Deputy Group Leader | Conservative | 4 May 2028 | |
| Eastney & Craneswater | Peter Candlish Cabinet Member for Transport | Liberal Democrat | 6 May 2027 |
| Nicholas Dorrington Cabinet Member for Children, Families & Education | Liberal Democrat | 4 May 2028 | |
| Matthew Winnington Cabinet Member for Community Wellbeing, Health & Care | Liberal Democrat | 2 May 2030 | |
| Fratton | Billy Ansell | Liberal Democrat | 2 May 2030 |
| Dave Ashmore | Liberal Democrat | 6 May 2027 | |
| Stuart Brown Cabinet Member for Environmental Services | Liberal Democrat | 4 May 2028 | |
| Hilsea | Matthew Cordy | Reform UK | 4 May 2028 |
| Russell Simpson | Reform UK | 2 May 2030 | |
| Emily Strudwick Group Leader | Reform UK | 6 May 2027 | |
| Milton | Kimberly Barrett Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Greening the City | Liberal Democrat | 4 May 2028 |
| Steve Pitt Leader of the Council (with portfolio responsibility for Culture, Regeneration & Economic Development) | Liberal Democrat | 2 May 2030 | |
| Gerald Vernon-Jackson CBE | Liberal Democrat | 6 May 2027 | |
| Nelson | Richard Adair | Liberal Democrat | 4 May 2028 |
| Steve Andrews | Liberal Democrat | 2 May 2030 | |
| Lee Hunt Cabinet Member for Community Safety, Leisure & Sport | Liberal Democrat | 6 May 2027 | |
| Paulsgrove | Chris Dike Deputy Group Leader | Reform UK | 6 May 2027 |
| George Madgwick | Reform UK | 4 May 2028 | |
| Joe Standen | Reform UK | 2 May 2030 | |
| St Jude | Graham Heaney Deputy Group Leader | Labour | 6 May 2027 |
| Hugh Mason Cabinet Member for Planning Policy & City Development | Liberal Democrat | 4 May 2028 | |
| Denise Perry | Liberal Democrat | 2 May 2030 | |
| St Thomas | Chris Attwell Cabinet Member for Central Services | Liberal Democrat | 6 May 2027 |
| Ian Holder | Liberal Democrat | 4 May 2028 | |
| Mark Jeffery | Liberal Democrat | 2 May 2030 |
ModernGov: Cabinet membership · ModernGov web service: GetCouncillorsByWard · review by 22 November 2026