Guildford Borough Council Shortlisted for Award

Published on: 27 Feb, 2026
Updated on: 3 Mar, 2026

By Martin Giles

Guildford Borough Council has been shortlisted in the prestigious 2026 MJ Achievement Awards which, according to a GBC statement, “celebrate the exceptional work and success of local government across the country”.

According to the MJ Awards website: “After a record-breaking number of nominations this year, the MJ team and category judges have been blown away by the exceptional quality of this year’s entries, making the awards more valuable than ever to celebrate the brilliance of local government.”

Guildford’s entry in the category of Senior Leadership Team of the Year acknowledged the collective effort and commitment of staff across the entire organisation.

The submission focused on the transformation the Council has undergone to deliver operational, financial and significant improvement.

The council press release states: “Today, the council is a financially resilient, well governed and values-led organisation, with a clear sense of purpose and measurable improvements in the services the council delivers for residents and customers.”

As part of the next stage in the awards process, the council will make a presentation to the judging panel, with winners announced later this summer.

Pedro Wrobel GBC’s joint CEO

Pedro Wrobel, joint CEO at Guildford Borough Council and Waverley Borough Council, said: “I’m incredibly proud that Guildford Borough Council has been shortlisted for the Senior Leadership Team Award at the MJ Awards 2026.

“This recognition means so much. It reflects the courage, determination and relentless hard work of staff across the organisation who chose to face challenges head-on, rebuild trust, and create a culture that is grounded in accountability, kindness and collaboration.

“What the Council has done over the past two years goes far beyond steadying the ship. Staff have, collectively, created the conditions for people to do their best work, empowered teams to innovate, and shown what’s possible when an organisation is ambitious and determined, and entirely focused on making Guildford a brilliant place to live, work and do business.

In addition, Waverley Borough Council has been shortlisted for Finance Team at the MJ Achievement Awards 2026, highlighting the Council’s strengthened financial management, innovative approaches to shared expertise, and the strong foundations developed to support long-term financial resilience.

Cllr Philip Brooker

The leader of the Conservative opposition at GBC, Philip Brooker (Worplesdon), said: “We congratulate the team on their hard work to get the council back on track.

“It is frustrating that it has taken over a year for the council to recover from the disastrous management under the Lib Dems, which led them being rated the worst council in the country in 2024.

“They have had to spend valuable time reversing their poor governance and mismanagement since 2019, instead of focussing on real progress for Guildford residents. It is encouraging that they have started to return the council to the strong state it was in when they took it over from the Conservatives.”

Brian Creese

And Brian Creese, former Chair Guildford Labour, said: “Guildford Labour are delighted to hear that hard-working council workers are gaining recognition for their huge contributions working for Guildford.

“However, it is hard to see how the political leadership can take much credit, given their lacklustre performance over the past few years.

“Having only just rescued itself from bankruptcy, with a police investigation still not concluded on housing fraud, and a programme of selling off assets to keep its finances afloat, I would think this Lib Dem team would be keeping well away from any outside adjudication.

“If GBC’s political leaders are seen as worthy of any sort of accolade, I would suggest that would say more about the poor state of local government than it does about this administration.”

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