Who we are

Mayor

The election of a Mayor of the West Midlands was a key requirement of the devolution deal agreed between the region and Government.

On 4 May 2017, Andy Street was elected to serve an initial three-year term as Mayor, working with council leaders and the chairs of the Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) to deliver the West Midlands’ devolution programme.

A key part of Andy's role is to act as an advocate and global ambassador for the West Midlands and to chair the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA).

The Mayor has specific areas of responsibility including local transport and the region's ‘more and better homes’ agenda. From 2018-19, the Mayor will also have the ability to raise a precept and, with the agreement of the relevant LEP, a business rate supplement.

As the devolution agenda develops so the role of the Mayor is also expected to evolve, working with combined authority colleagues to deliver the best possible outcomes for the residents and businesses of the West Midlands.

Devolution

Devolution is the handing down of powers and money from central government (Whitehall) to local authorities so they are able to decide for themselves on how best to spend that money for the overall benefit of the region.

On the 17 November 2015 the Chancellor of the Exchequer agreed and signed a devolution deal with the members of the WMCA.

To read the first devolution agreement click here and to find out more about its key points click here.

The Budget of 22 November 2017 confirmed a second devolution deal for the region covering housing, skills, digital technology and more. You can read the key points here and the second devolution agreement in full here.

Governance

Leadership of the WMCA comes from the Mayor and the leaders of the seven constituent local authorities, which have full voting rights. The leadership also includes the chairs of the Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) which are business-led organisations that help build relationships between businesses and local authorities. Non-constituent authorities, which include the LEPs and ten local councils from across the wider West Midlands region, have reduced voting rights but play a crucial role at board level, helping to inform policy and drive forward the WMCA agenda.

Elected members and officers lead on key policy portfolio areas, working in partnership with LEP colleagues.

There are also observer organisations who include other councils, LEPs and bodies awaiting non-constituent membership, as well as non-voting observers.

The Chief Executive of the WMCA is Deborah Cadman, who took up the role in September 2017 and with the Mayor is building a leadership team to deliver the combined authority's agenda and policies.

To view the WMCA Constitution please click here or download the full version here.

To view the WMCA Assurance Framework, please click here.