Former Tameside council leader dies at 76

THE former leader of Tameside Council has lost his two-year fight against cancer.

Roy Oldham (76) held the honour of being the longest-serving council leader in the country.

During Councillor Oldham’s 30 years as council leader, the local authority was named among the highest achieving of all councils nationwide by the Audit Commission.

In 2007, the council won the Municipal Journal Best Achieving Council Award, while in 2008 the Audit Commission attributed the phenomenal success of the council to Councillor Oldham’s “widely-recognised visionary and inspirational leadership”.

He was a founder member of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities following the dissolution of the Greater Manchester County Council in 1986 and went on to chair Manchester International Airport’s board.

He was also chairman of the Greater Manchester Pension Fund for more than 23 years, turning it into the most profitable public-sector pension fund in the country, valued at over £10 billion.

More recently, Councillor Oldham was instrumental in securing over £200 million to build 10 new high schools in Tameside.

He oversaw the first large-scale voluntary transfer of council-owned homes (17,000 properties) in the country to a new social landlord, which led to £250 million of investment and record levels of tenant satisfaction.

He was awarded the CBE in the New Year’s Honours list in 1999 and was granted honorary Freeman of the Borough in 2005 in recognition of his eminent services to the borough of Tameside.