Andy Sawford is Chief Executive of the LGiU, a charitable organisation and thinktank that promotes democratic renewal and new approaches to public policy and public service delivery. At the LGiU Andy has championed a new balance of power between central and local government to strengthen local democracy, improve public services, and meet emerging policy challenges, such as environmental, economic and demographic change. The LGiU impact on public policy debate was recognised in 2008 when Andy collected the 'Thintank of the Year Award' on behalf of the team. Andy writes and comments regularly in the national media and public sector journals. He maintains a blog at www.lgiu.wordpress.com and tweets regularly at www.twitter.com/andysawford
Complementing his work at LGiU, Andy is also a Director of the Centre for Public Scrutiny and a Director of the Centre for Public Service Partnerships. Andy is Chair of Local Energy ltd, a new social enterprise, supported by the LGiU, that advises organisations, including public service providers, to improve energy use and reduce their carbon footprint.
Andy joined the LGiU after four years as a Director of a leading UK public affairs company. During this time Andy led a national campaign to improve public accountability in policing and in 2005 he worked with parliamentarians to found the All Party Parliamentary Local Government Group which promotes improved relations and understanding between central and local government. Prior to this Andy worked in local and central government, including periods working in Parliament and at the Local Government Association. Andy has also worked in the European Parliament and the Committee of the Regions.
Andy is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a member of the Institute of Directors. He has studied at Grey College, Durham University and recently in America at Berkeley - University of California and the Kennedy School at Harvard. In his local community Andy chairs a small cooperative organisation and is a Governor of a primary school. He is married to Jo, a primary school teacher, and they have two small children.
