Tom Riordan took up the position of Chief Executive of Leeds City Council in August 2010.
Since 2010 Tom has overseen £300m of efficiencies across Leeds City Council and a significant transformation of the city, halfway through a £10bn investment pipeline that has delivered Trinity and Victoria Gate shopping centres and the first direct Arena. Plans are set to double the size and economic impact of the city centre through regeneration of the South Bank, developing an Innovation District with the universities and teaching hospital and connecting HS2 to a redesigned station. Tom’s top priority is for the city’s growth to be inclusive and felt across Leeds.
More recently, Tom has been instrumental in attracting Channel 4 to Leeds. This landmark decision to bring the national HQ and a major new Channel 4 News hub came from a successful campaign with the Leeds city region LEP and neighbouring councils.
After winning MJ’s Council of the Year 2016, Leeds has hosted a range of world class events such as the World Triathlon Series and Tour de Yorkshire. Ever forward-looking, sights are now on celebrating the diversity of cultures in the city, culminating in a year-long celebration in 2023.
Tom has come full-circle from a North Yorkshire state education, via Oxford University, a Civil Service fast-stream career in international environmental policy and then leading the Regional Development Agency Yorkshire Forward. For his commitment to the region, Tom was awarded Yorkshire Man of the Year 2017. He is also a trustee on the Centre for Cities Board, a patron of St Gemma’s Hospice and the Council's mental health champion.
