The battle to become the next leader of Kent County Council will see at least four contenders vying for the role - including one who tried to oust the out-going leader eight years ago.

The candidates - three of whom are from west Kent - who have publicly confirmed they will stand in the race for what is considered one of the biggest political jobs in local government are Cllr Peter Oakford, Cllr Roger Gough, Cllr Nick Chard and Cllr Mike Whiting.

Cllr Oakford is the current deputy leader of the council and has responsibility for finance. He was first elected in 2013 and represents the Tunbridge Wells North division.

Before becoming deputy leader, he had a spell as the cabinet member in charge of specialist children’s services at a time when the authority was dealing with the challenge of looking after large numbers of unaccompanied asylum seeker children.

Cllr Roger Gough, who was elected to the council in 2005, is the cabinet member for children’s services. He represents the Sevenoaks North and Darent Valley division.

He took a key role in the creation of a new grammar school annexe in Sevenoaks, the first “new” selective school to be opened for decades.

The satellite campus of the Weald of Kent Girls Grammar School opened in 2017 but has proved controversial as campaign groups have claimed it is in breach of legislation that bans new grammars.

Cllr Nick Chard, who represents Sevenoaks West, was first elected to the council in 2005. He had a long spell as the cabinet member for finance before falling out with Cllr Carter and was unsuccessful in a leadership bid in 2011.

Cllr Mike Whiting, who represents Swale West division is currently cabinet member for roads, the environment and waste. He was first elected to the council in 2009.

The election takes place on October 4, with 67 Conservative councillors deciding who they want. Cllr Paul Carter recently announced he was to stand down after 14 years in the role.

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