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West Yorkshire Combined Authority chief executive Ben Still has announced his departure after a decade in the role.He is to join Thames Freeport, a public-private partnership covering London and Essex, as chief executive in the autumn.Still is credited with helping secure devolution and funding deals for West Yorkshire and chaired the UK Mayors Network from 2022 until 2026.He said: ‘While I will be sad to leave, I do so with great confidence in the future of the region and with many fond memories of my time here.' Ealing LBC has appointed Jason Strelitz as its strategic director for adults and public health. He is currently an adviser to the Cabinet Office on public and neighbourhood health and has previously held roles at Newham and Camden LBCs.He will take up his new role with Ealing in October.Strelitz said: ‘Community has always been central to my work and coming to a borough where a connected communities vision runs through all our ambitions makes me genuinely energised about what we can achieve together.'Ealing chief executive Tony Clements said: ‘Jason's insight and leadership will be invaluable as we continue to embed our connected communities approach and deliver the missions in the council plan.' Victoria Smith has been appointed executive director of HR and chief people officer at the City of London Corporation.Her previous experience includes roles at the Ministry of Defence, Foreign Office and Home Office and she will join the City of London Corporation in November.Chief executive Ian Thomas said: ‘Victoria's track record speaks for itself. She has led people and transformation agendas in large, complex organisations and brings a deep understanding of how to build the capability, confidence and culture needed for long-term success.‘I know she shares our commitment to excellence and creating an environment where colleagues can thrive and perform at their very best.' Daniel Stanesby has joined Merton LBC as director of property and major projects.He was previously engagement and consultation manager at Greenwich, where he spent almost a decade, and has also worked at Essex CC for eight years.He said: ‘It has been a privilege delivering some great things for Greenwich and I am proud of the legacy. I now look forward to doing the same at Merton, thanks to the amazing team I leave behind to carry on the great work.' Border to Coast Pensions Partnership has appointed Chris Cooper as its new head of real estate. He was previously global chief executive of DTZ Investors, managing real estate portfolios on behalf of Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) clients.Chief investment officer Joe McDonnell added ‘A key element of realising the benefit of our scale for partner funds is being able to attract the very highest calibre of expertise, and Chris is a prime example of that.'

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PEOPLE

Chief executive to leave combined authority

By Martin Ford | 23 September 2026

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