Croydon Council this week approved significant changes to its constitution to prepare for the arrival of the borough’s first elected mayor in May.
On 5 May 2022, Croydon voters will head to the ballot box to vote for an elected mayor for the first time, as well as 70 ward councillors to represent their local area.
The constitutional changes agreed on Wednesday (23 March) will come into force when the elected mayor comes into office as the political leader for the council. The amendments set out the role and responsibilities of Croydon’s elected mayor, and their relationship with the rest of the council.
The constitution has also been amended to reflect changes to the role of civic mayor. They will chair council meetings and will also be the ceremonial representative of the council at civic events.
Croydon is voting for an elected mayor because in a governance referendum last year, Croydon voters were asked if they would like a change in how council is run. The majority voted for an elected mayor, which is a change from the current leader and cabinet model. Information about the roles and responsibilities of an elected mayor is on the council’s mayoral webpages.
The changes to the constitution have been prepared by the council’s cross-party Constitution Working Group and were considered by the council’s General Purposes and Audit Committee on 3 March.
In addition to the changes to enable the council’s new mayoral model, the council has also made further changes to strengthen its governance arrangements and to enhance scrutiny, transparency and accountability.
This includes the creation of a new Audit and Governance Committee to create extra capacity in this area. The General Purposes Committee will continue as a separate committee and will take on the staffing functions of the current Appointments committee.
Full details of the constitutional changes can be found at item 8 and appendices of Wednesday’s council agenda.
“I want to thank members from both sides of the chamber, for their contributions to our Constitution Working Group and for helping to shape how our council will be run in the future.
“In addition to the essential amendments for a mayoral model, we are making further changes to our constitution to strengthen our decision-making and governance.
“We want to make our processes open and transparent, and encourage active scrutiny and challenge from councillors, staff and residents. In doing this we are laying solid foundations for our renewal plans and for Croydon’s future, to ensure it becomes the sustainable council we want and need it to be.”
Councillor Hamida Ali, leader of the council
