Mayor - general information

The Mayoral role

The Mayor of Maidstone is the First Citizen of the Borough. The Mayor connects the present day with history, acting as a symbol of continuity.

Our First Citizen can come from any walk of life, gender or ethnic background.
 

The Mayor undertakes many social engagements within the Borough of Maidstone and acts as a link between the various bodies and organisations.
 

The Mayor presides over Full Council meetings.

For more information, please use the email us link to the right.

About Cllr Brian Mortimer

Brian was born in Folkestone in 1954; from the age of 5, due to his father’s work commitments, he and his family travelled all over England before finally settling in Maidstone in 1965.

After qualifying as an electrician, he joined his father’s building company which mainly carried out work in and around Maidstone.

Brian has been married to Dianne for 33 years and has two children, Charlotte and Christopher.

In 1990 Brian settled in Coxheath and, in 1992, became a member of Coxheath Parish Council.  In 1996 he was elected as a Maidstone Borough Councillor representing what is now known as the Coxheath and Hunton Ward.

He has served on many committees including as Chairman of the Planning Committee, Vice Chairman of the Health Committee, on Licensing Committee and as the Cabinet member for Corporate Services.

His interests outside the council are being with his family, socialising, playing 50’s and 60’s music in a band called 2BC, and raising funds for certain charities.  

              The Mayor, Cllr Mortimer     

       The Deputy Mayor, Cllr Nelson-Gracie with the Mayor

The Mayor's Charity Fund

Every year the Mayor establishes a Charity Fund and chooses charities to support during his or her time in office. 

This year's charities, selected by the Mayor, are Help for Heroes, Age UK, STARS (Syncope Trust and Reflex Anoxic Seizures and Dandelion Time.

If you would like more information about the Fund, would like to offer a raffle prize for a fundraising event, make a donation, or be considered for next year's charity fund, please contact the Mayor's office.

The Worshipful the Deputy Mayor of Maidstone

Councillor Rodd Nelson-Gracie

Rodd was brought up and educated in West Sussex. After leaving school he moved to London with his family, becoming an Articled Clerk with a West End firm of Chartered Accountants.

After qualifying, Rodd worked for Ernst & Young for three years before moving into the manufacturing industry, where he spent 25 years in a number of finance positions in the UK and overseas. For the last 15 years of his career, before retiring in 2010, Rodd was Bursar at King’s School, Rochester and later The King’s School, Canterbury.

Rodd has been married to Philippa since 1980 and they have three daughters and three grandchildren. Rodd and Philippa moved to their current home in Nettlestead Green in 1984.

Rodd joined Nettlestead Parish Council in 1995 and was elected as a Maidstone Borough Councillor for Yalding in 1997. Following the boundary changes in 2001, his ward became a three Councillor ward, now Marden & Yalding.

Rodd has served on a number of Committees in the Council, notably the Planning Committee, a number of overview and scrutiny committees and the Audit Committee. Rodd is a LEA appointed Governor at Yalding Primary School, and is also a Governor of a Preparatory School in Tonbridge.

Interests include battling to keep the garden under control, walking the dog, sports spectating and enjoying family life. When time (and Council duties) allow, Philippa and Rodd enjoy travelling overseas.

Mayors since 1974

On the 1st April 1974, local authorities around England and Wales changed to a new structure under the Local Government Act (1972). Out went parishes and counties that had been around since before the middle ages and in came a new way of running local government. Below, is a list of all Maidstone's Mayors since the changeover in 1974.