Chris Cooke | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Mayor of Middlesbrough | |
| Assumed office 4 May 2023 | |
| Deputy | Philippa Storey |
| Preceded by | Andy Preston |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1990 (age 34–35) Middlesbrough,Cleveland,England |
| Political party | Labour |
Chris Cooke (born 1990) is a British Labour Party politician. Since May 2023,he has been the directly elected Mayor of Middlesbrough. [1] By virtue of being Mayor of Middlesbrough,he is a member of the Tees Valley Combined Authority Board and the Cleveland Police and Crime Panel.
Cooke was born in 1990 in Middlesbrough,Cleveland,England. [2] [3] He grew up in care. [1] He was educated at St Peter's Secondary School,a Catholic school in South Bank,Redcar and Cleveland. [2]
After school,Cooke began an apprenticeship at Laurence Jackson School in Guisborough as an IT technician. He remained at the school after completing his apprenticeship. Some time after being elected a councillor in 2019,he left his IT job and became a community cohesion co-ordinator at Streets Ahead,a charitable help and advice centre in Middlesbrough. [2]
On 2 May 2019,Cooke was elected as one of three councillors to represent the Newport Ward on Middlesbrough Council. [4]
On 4 May 2023,he was elected Mayor of Middlesbrough with 10,956 votes,defeating the incumbent Andy Preston by 760 votes. [5]
Shortly after his election,Cooke expressed the need for a change of culture within Middlesbrough Council stating there to be “an adversarial culture between politicians and officers” [6] He vowed the council he leads would become "a service-led organisation",and that children's social care would get his full focus. [7]
As Mayor of Middlesbrough,he is a member of the Tees Valley Combined Authority Cabinet. [8] He is also a member of the [[]]. [9]
Cooke is married to Julia Cooke,who serves a councillor on Middlesbrough Council. [2] [10] He is a Christian. [2]