About the Council

Bury Metropolitan Borough lies on the northern part of Greater Manchester on the edge of the western Pennines.

The borough has a mix of beautiful rural villages and open countryside with breath taking views in the north, to urban living close to Manchester city centre in the south, and with excellent transport links and a fast and frequent Metrolink service from Bury to Manchester city centre and beyond.

Bury has a proud military history and has always had a connection with the Lancashire Fusiliers Regiment. The world famous and award winning Bury Market has been in operation for over 500 years and attracts visitors from across the UK. The town has a rich cultural offering, with museums and arts venues to explore, Bury was the Greater Manchester Town of Culture in 2021.

The borough is made up of six towns – Bury, Ramsbottom, Tottington, Radcliffe, Whitefield and Prestwich – and is one of ten councils that make up the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

Bury is a Labour Party controlled council running a large range of services from public health, education and social care, to housing, waste collection, regeneration and planning, and much more.

Bury Council is committed to being a good employer and to leading by example.

Bury was the first borough in Greater Manchester to be accredited as both a living wage employer and a member of the Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter.

This means the council has to meet set criteria on secure work, flexible work, Real Living Wage, employee engagement and voice, recruitment, people management, and health and wellbeing.

The commitment applies to directly-employed council staff, and to organisations commissioned by the council to provide services. It includes staff who work in schools and agencies that provide services such as social care.

Our Let’s Do It Bury 2030 community strategy is a single strategy for the council, police, health, other public services, the voluntary, community and faith sector and by our business communities.

The Let’s Do It Strategy sets out four clear principles which will guide our work – Local, Enterprise, Together and Strength.

We have an opportunity to develop every township in the borough to be better and stronger than before the Covid-19 pandemic.

We can tackle the causes of inequality.

We can ensure that our children have a better start in life, with access to improved education and broader horizons.

We can help every adult to have the opportunity to be their very best through access to high quality, local work.

We can make sure that older residents stay connected and independent.

We can confront the great challenges ahead of us, from supporting local businesses to recover and thrive, to delivering net zero emissions and a cleaner environment for all.

We value and celebrate the diversity that exists within Bury and embrace all people irrespective of their background for the differences, skills, abilities and experience they bring to the workforce and wider community. Our Inclusion Strategy aims to ensure every community has a voice.

Our Climate Action Strategy and Plan has been created to help enable us to reach carbon-neutrality by 2038. The Strategy is split into nine sections, each with a different focus, and highlights what we can do as a Council and as an individual. We are committed to becoming eco leaders, ensuring future generations can enjoy our green spaces and breathe clean air.

Bury’s ambition is to be one of the best boroughs in Britain in which to live, work and study.

Our work shows us how we can all play our part in local communities; with enterprising spirit; working together in a way that recognises and celebrates the assets and strengths of our communities and our residents.

And, with you as part of our team, we will do it … by connecting everyone to the plans for economic growth and public service improvement across every township.

Political composition

The current political position of Bury Council is Labour Party controlled.

There are three seats in each of the seventeen wards, which totals 51 elected seats. The breakdown of seats is:

Labour: 32 councillors
Conservative: 10 councillors
Radcliffe First: 8 councillors
Independent: 1 councillor

Leadership

Leader of the Council: Councillor Eamonn O’Brien (Labour)
Deputy Leader: Councillor Lucy Smith (Labour)
Deputy Leader: Councillor Tamoor Tariq (Labour)

Council opposition groups

Conservative Group Leader: Councillor Russell Bernstein
Conservative Deputy Leader: Councillor Jo Lancaster
Radcliffe First Group Leader: Councillor Mike Smith
Radcliffe First Deputy Leader: Councillor Carol Birchmore

Cabinet portfolios and members

Leader, Strategic Growth: Councillor Eamonn O’Brien
Health and Wellbeing: Councillor Tamoor Tariq
Children and Young People: Councillor Lucy Smith
Environment, Climate Change and Operations: Councillor Alan Quinn
Finance and Transformation: Councillor Sean Thorpe
Culture Economy and Skills: Councillor Charlotte Morris
Corporate Affairs and HR: Councillor Tahir Rafiq
Housing Services: Councillor Clare Cummins
Communities and Inclusion: Councilor Sandra Walmsley

Deputy Cabinet members

Children and Young People Services: Councillor Nikki Frith and Councillor John Southworth
Communities: Councillor Ummrana Farooq
Health and Wellbeing: Councillor Tom Pilkington and Councillor Ayesha Arif
Environment, Climate Change and Operations: Councillor Gareth Staples-Jones
Corporate Affairs and HR: Councillor Joan Grimshaw
Housing Services: Councillor Elizabeth FitzGerald

Shadow Cabinet

Leader, Corporate Core, Culture and Place: Councillor Russell Bernstein
Deputy Leader, Health and Wellbeing: Councillor Jo Lancaster
Children, Young People and Skills: Councillor Luis McBriar
Communities and Operations: Councillor Dene Vernon
Housing and Environment: Councillor Jack Rydeheard

Mayor of Bury

Councillor Khalid Hussain
Mrs Carol Bernstein (Mayoress)
Mr James Bentley (Mayor’s Consort)

Find out more about the council

Senior Leadership Structure

Greater Manchester Devolution

Greater Manchester Devolution is a pioneering move to transfer powers from the government to the ten Greater Manchester districts, including the borough of Bury.

The aim is to give local organisations more freedom to decide priorities and make decisions about £22 billion of funding which better reflect the needs of the region’s 2.8 million people.