Richards to leave Stockport to lead £11bn Birmingham East MDC

Prime Minister Andy Burnham once described Stockport as “a genuine trailblazer for the mayoral development corporation model.” Now, the man who established and led the MDC is turning his attention to the Midlands, with ambitions to build 20,000 homes and create 50,000 jobs on a mammoth 1,040-acre area.

Paul Richards was the first chief executive of Stockport Mayoral Development Corporation and ran the organisation for five years until 2024, when he became deputy chief executive of the Stockport Council. He remained as a strategic advisor to the MDC as Catherine Chilvers took the reins as managing director.

As chief officer of the £11bn Birmingham East Mayoral Development Corporation, Richards will be in charge of an area that is nearly triple the size of Stockport MDC’s remit. He will work alongside Birmingham East MDC chair Dame Bernadette Kelly on the scheme.

Birmingham-born Dame Kelly, one of Whitehall’s top former civil servants who served as permanent secretary for the Department for Transport until her retirement last year, will chair the newly formed corporation.

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The pair will head up Birmingham East MDC, which includes a series of ambitious regeneration projects within its considerable borders, such as the £3bn Birmingham Sports Quarter and the 60,000-seat Powerhouse Stadium, the £4bn Birmingham Knowledge Quarter, the £2bn Smithfield development, and the future HS2 Curzon Street Station.

West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker described the Birmingham East MDC plan as “big, bold, and ambitious.”

He said: “It will be a magnet for investment, offering a once in a lifetime opportunity to end the deep-rooted deprivation that has blighted lives in East Birmingham for far too long.

“A project of this magnitude needs leaders of the highest calibre, who can harness the powers it will bring to cut through red tape and provide the stability needed for investor confidence.

“I can think of no one better than Bernadette to be chair. As a native Brummie she knows this city well and her many years’ experience at the top of Whitehall give her the expertise and strategic insight to extract the most benefit possible from these huge investments,”

Parker described Richards as having a “specialist understanding and proven track record for leading one of the first-ever mayoral development corporations,” adding that with Richards and Kelly on board the West Midlands Combined Authority was “ready to take East Birmingham from strength to strength.”

Since its establishment in 2019, Stockport’s MDC has driven the building of 1,200 homes, with planning in place for another 1,500. It has accelerated the delivery of 170,000 sq ft of offices at Stockport Exchange as well as the Stockport Interchange. The MDC has also overseen £600m brought into the borough through private investment, according to its own figures.

Regarding his appointment, Richards said: “I believe that working alongside colleagues at Birmingham City Council and West Midlands Combined Authority, we can deliver something that the residents and businesses in the city can be proud of.

“My time at Stockport has been the privilege of my career. I hope my experience and my belief in the value that MDCs can add, together with the positive changes we have been able to deliver in Stockport, will allow us to go further and faster in Birmingham East.”

Former senior civil servant Dame Kelly was previously a director general at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, having worked in the Department for Communities and Local Government, the Treasury, Cabinet Office and the Number 10 Policy Unit.

“The MDC has a unique role to play in bringing together investors, partners and communities and as a catalyst to accelerate growth and create jobs and homes. My priority now is to build the team and get to work unlocking that potential,” she said.

“As someone who grew up in Birmingham and still has strong family ties to the city, I’m excited to have a chance to make a difference to its future prosperity. I’m particularly excited about the role the BEMDC can play in creating jobs and opportunities for local communities and especially young people, harnessing the talent and potential that exists here in Birmingham and building for the future.”