Chief Executive, Laurence Rockey

Welcome to the June edition of Inform.

Awards success

There is plenty for us to celebrate this month, with the council enjoying success at the APSE Striving for Excellence Awards 2025. These are a fantastic way to highlight the great work of Scottish councils in the fields of waste and recycling, parks, grounds and streets, and fleet services.

Transport Services received the Fleet Award in recognition of the cost effective and efficient services they provide across the county.

Meanwhile, colleagues from Facilities Management were nominated as finalists at the ASSIST FM Scottish National Awards.

Karen Kelly, a Senior Facilities Assistant who is the driving force behind a breakfast club at Meadowpark in Haddington, was nominated for the Community Focus Award. Kenny McCrorie, the janitor at St Gabriels Primary School in Prestonpans, was nominated for the Outstanding Contribution to FM Services Award. This recognised his actions when the school had to be evacuated due to an emergency last December. Also nominated was the Crookston Care Home Catering Team, reflecting their commitment to meeting the varied needs of residents.

You can find out more about their stories elsewhere in Inform.

Huge congratulations to everyone. We look forward to celebrating more colleague success stories in the months ahead!

Recent highlights

It has been a busy few weeks for me, including meetings with elected representatives as well as some really positive discussions with managers and colleagues across the council. I had a great first in-person session with senior leaders including service managers, when we had the chance to discuss some of the things we’re looking forward to working on together in the months ahead, followed by a very productive Council Management team away day at Penston House.

I’ve particularly welcomed the opportunity to get out and about and see some of the great work that is happening around the county, including a visit to Blindwells where construction work has been taking place on the new primary school (see photo, right, with Head Teacher Gemma-Rose Lansdown; and photo, below, with Executive Director Lesley Brown). This is going to provide an amazing learning environment for children living in the new community. I’m really looking forward to a return visit when the school is open.

Another highlight was attending last week’s Willie Innes Youth Games at Meadowmill. It really underlined the many strengths East Lothian has when it comes to sport development, competition and opportunities for physical activity and recreation.

A busy few weeks ahead

There are now only a few weeks until the start of the school summer holidays. I’m expecting it to be a very busy few weeks, as work continues on high-profile engagement activities, such as our place-making project and town centre parking reviews. We are also preparing for the next full Council meeting, on 24 June, when elected members will gather to consider reports on various topics.

Look out for more updates from me in the weekly vlog!

I’d like to finish by thanking you all for the warm welcome I’ve received since taking up my role. It really has been a very enjoyable and inspiring first few weeks and I’m looking forward to meeting more of you and continuing our discussions about how we ensure the council continues to be a great place to work.