Peter Gilroy

Board Member
former Chief Executive, Kent County Council

Peter was previously Chief Executive of Kent County Council. Kent is one of the largest local authorities in the country and has consistently been one of the top performers. He joined Local Government following a career in nursing, specialising in psychiatric social work. After further social work training, he spent the early part of his career in practice, including attachments to primary health. Over the years he has spent periods studying and working in the Health and Social Care field in the USA. His managerial career has taken him into both public and private sectors. He took a leading role on issues related to Drugs and Alcohol and Child Protection and he chaired the Kent Child Protection Committee for thirteen years.

He led nationally for ten years on asylum matters for the Association of Directors of Social Services (ADSS), chaired the National Taskforce and for five years until recently the National Register for Unaccompanied Children (NRUC). He started a network of principal gateway authorities in the European Union to discuss common problems and develop a framework of best practice. He also initiated a successful exchange programme with the US.

Peter chairs Improvement and Efficiency South East which concentrates on sharing best practice and creating a smart environment with regard to efficiency and performance. He has a national reputation for innovation and is working closely with the Government on Futures. He was nominated by The Guardian newspaper as one of the top 100 Innovators in the public sector in the UK and shortlisted for the 2006 Public Sector Power 100 Awards. He took the lead with the Health Service in Kent in commissioning what is now Europe’s largest telehealth pilot, which now involves a thousand people.

Peter is a member of the Advisory Boards of the World Health Care Congress and of Managing Long Term Conditions. He is a member of the Society of Industry Leaders and an associate member of the County Executives of America. He chairs the Kent Film and Television Board and launched the broadband TV station Kent TV. He has also been a member of Lord Darzi’s Health Innovation Council. He is in demand as an international speaker on innovation, change management, public access, e-commerce and the use of technology in the personalization of services. He continues to pursue “innovation, effectiveness and an outcome-based modern public service.” Peter is married with two children and his recreational pursuits, when he has the time, are horse riding, music and travel and he has a special interest in media and film.