Council structure

The Harlow Council constitution sets out how we operate, how we make decisions and the procedures we follow.

The Harlow Council corporate plan 2024 to 2028 outlines the council’s vision, with our principles and priorities and how we will achieve them over the next 3 years.

Councillors and Full Council

The council is run by 33 councillors, who form the Full Council. They are elected by the local community and serve for a period of 4 years, with one third of the council being re-elected every year.

The political control of Harlow Council is Conservative. There are 17 Conservative and 16 Labour councillors.

The Full Council is responsible for setting budgets and policies.

Full Council meetings take place 6 times a year and are open to the public.

The leader of the council chairs the Cabinet which is made up of councillors appointed by them with defined responsibilities or 'portfolios'. 

The leader of the council and cabinet portfolio holders will be appointed at the Annual Council meeting each May.

The chair of the council is chosen by the council and is the Harlow's first citizen and representative.

Committees

To support the Cabinet, we have a number of other committees where councillors take decisions.

Each committee focuses on a specific council function. The committees consider issues in detail at scheduled meetings, and then decisions or recommendations are made to the Cabinet or to the Full Council.

You can view all our different committees.

Council staff and departments

Whilst elected councillors set the policies, paid employees (council officers) put them into practice.

The council employs over 400 staff. These include housing officers, customer advisors and staff responsible for a wide range of services.

The council's executive management team is made up of the Managing Director, 3 Executive Directors and 12 Assistant Directors.

Structure chart

Harlow Council structure chart (pdf)

You can find structure charts from previous years on our transparency page.

Directorates

There are 12 Directorates in Harlow Council, supported by an Executive Office providing central executive support and communications services:

  • Corporate Services and Improvement
  • Culture and Community
  • Environment
  • Facilities and Assets 
  • Finance
  • Housing Operations (People)
  • Housing Operations (Property)
  • HR and Organisational Development
  • Legal and Democratic Services
  • Planning and Garden Town
  • Public Protection
  • Regeneration

The main services and functions of each directorate are detailed below.

Corporate Services and Improvement

  • Business Continuity
  • Corporate and Governance Support
  • Customer Services
  • ICT
  • Performance management
  • Project support

 Culture and Community

  • Arts, Culture and Tourism
  • Community Engagement
  • Harlow Museum and Walled Gardens
  • Harlow Playhouse
  • Health and Wellbeing
  • Pets’ Corner
  • Sam’s Place

Environment

  • Environmental Management (including carbon management)
  • Street Scene
  • Waste and Recycling

Facilities and Assets

  • Office Facilities
  • Non-Housing Asset Property and Facilities

Finance

  • Accountancy
  • Insurance and Risk
  • Internal Audit
  • Revenues and Benefits 

Housing Operations (People)

  • Housing Needs and Options
  • Leah Manning Centre
  • Supported Housing
  • Tenant and Leaseholder Engagement 

Housing Operations (Property)

  • Home Ownership
  • Housing Asset Management and Facilities
  • Housing Assets and Business Systems
  • Housing Management
  • Housing Projects

HR and Organisational Development

  • Human Resources
  • Payroll 

Legal and Democratic Services

  • Democratic support
  • Electoral Services
  • Legal Services
  • Local Land Charges

Planning and Garden Town

  • Building Control
  • Development Management
  • Planning Policy

Public Protection

  • Community Safety
  • Environmental Health
  • Health and Safety
  • Licensing

Regeneration

  • Council Housing Delivery
  • Economic Growth and Development
  • Regeneration projects