New senior Department of Health and Social Care role for Tom Riordan

A message from Rob Webster CBE, Chief Executive, NHS West Yorkshire Integrated Care Board

I am delighted that Tom Riordan, former Leeds City Council Chief Executive and Local Authority (LA) Partner Member on our Board has this week been appointed as Department of Health and Social Care Second Permanent Secretary.

Tom has been Chief Executive of Leeds City Council for the last 14 years, developing the Strategy to make Leeds the Best City in the UK, a Child Friendly City and a City of Sanctuary. He has also worked to ensure that we join up care around the needs of our residents. I have worked with Tom since 2011, and his ambition and energy have always been driven by a clear set of values and aspirations for local people and for our staff. He has always brought this to the work of the health and care partnership, and since 2016 has played a key role in the Sustainability and Transformation Partnership (STP) and Integrated Care System (ICS). His work and support during the pandemic was vital to the people of Leeds and West Yorkshire. In 2022, when we became a statutory body, he took up the Local Authority lead role on the Board.

Tom will leave an extremely strong legacy and plans are afoot to recruit into Tom’s role at Leeds City Council. We welcome Mariana Pexton as the interim Chief Executive from late September. For our Board, we are in the process of appointing an Interim Partner Member: Local Authorities and I hope to be able to confirm who this will be before our next Board meeting and Annual General Meeting, which takes place in public on 24 September 2024.

I will miss Tom’s significant contribution, but note that his role will be partly based in Leeds. Given the need to align the work of national, regional and local bodies, I am sure he will continue to be part of all of our lives.

Please join me in wishing Tom all the very best in his new role and thanking him for his powerful leadership and focus on addressing health inequalities and breaking down barriers to improve health and care for all.

With best wishes,
Rob