The Council Assembly of Southwark Council is scheduled to hold its annual and mayor making meeting on Saturday 17 May 2025. The agenda includes the election of the Mayor, reports from the Leader of the Council, and the establishment of committees, panels, and related matters for the upcoming municipal year. Councillors will also consider nominations to various London Councils committees and other external bodies.

Election of the Mayor

The meeting will begin with the election of the Mayor for the upcoming year.

Executive Functions 2025-26

Councillor Kieron Williams, Leader of the Council, is expected to present a report on executive issues for the coming year. This includes:

• Noting the appointment of cabinet members. The leader can appoint between two and nine members to the cabinet and must appoint a deputy leader.
• Noting the appointment of any deputy cabinet members and determination of their duties and responsibilities.
• Noting the establishment and appointment of any cabinet committees. The three cabinet committees are: Cabinet (Livesey Trust) Committee, Better Placed Joint Committee and Joint IT Committee (Brent, Lewisham and Southwark).
• Noting the leader’s report on the delegation of executive functions to the full cabinet, cabinet committees, individual cabinet members, chief officers and any other delegations. The report pack notes that as a consequence of recommendation 6, the proper constitutional officer will update Part 3 of the constitution in accordance with the leader’s report on the delegation of executive functions.

Establishment of Committees, Panels, and Related Matters 2025-26

The council is scheduled to establish committees for the municipal year 2025-26. These committees include:

• Appointments Committee
• Planning Committee (Major Applications) A
• Planning Committee (Major Applications) B
• Planning Committee (Smaller Applications)
• Audit, Governance and Standards Committee
• Corporate Parenting Committee
• Overview and Scrutiny Committee
• Licensing Committee

The report pack notes that the political balance rules require that the political groups represented on council have proportionate representation on council committees.

The meeting will also consider the establishment of the Health and Wellbeing Board as a committee of the council under the Health and Social Care Act 2012. The board must include six statutory members:

• At least one councillor, who will be (or be nominated by) the leader
• The director of adult social services of the local authority
• The director of children’s services of the local authority
• The director of public health of the local authority
• A representative of local Healthwatch
• A representative of the Integrated Care Board

The council is also scheduled to appoint neighbourhood champions for the following neighbourhood areas:

• North-west
• North-east
• West-central
• East-central
• South

The council will also establish the following council panels:

• Council Assembly Business Panel
• Constitutional Steering Panel
• Pensions Advisory Panel
• Voluntary Bodies Appointments Panel

Nominations to London Councils Committees, Greater London Employment Forum, Borough Lead Members, London Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) Common Investment Vehicle (CIV) Ltd and London Councils Limited 2025-26

The council is scheduled to consider and agree nominations to the London Councils committees, the Greater London Employment Forum, London Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) Common Investment Vehicle (CIV) Ltd and London Councils Limited.

The council is also scheduled to nominate borough lead members/relevant portfolio holders for the following areas:

• Children and Young People / Safeguarding and Schools
• Skills and Employment
• Housing and Regeneration
• Health, Social Care and Adult Services
• Arts/Culture, Tourism, Port and Leisure
• Crime and Public Protection
• Economic Development / Business
• Planning / Infrastructure / Development

Overview and Scrutiny Committee Annual Report 2024-25

The council is scheduled to note the scrutiny activity for the 2024-25 municipal year, as detailed in the Overview and Scrutiny Committee Annual Report.

The Overview and Scrutiny Committee established four scrutiny commissions for the 2024/25 municipal year:

• Education and Local Economy Scrutiny Commission
• Environment Scrutiny Commission
• Health and Social Care Scrutiny Commission
• Housing, Community Safety and Community Engagement Scrutiny Commission

The report details the activity of each of these commissions, including reviews of EHCPs and SEND provision in Southwark, biodiversity, environmental health, nursing care home model delivery, and cancer prevention and early diagnosis.