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Helen Godwin

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Mayor
Helen Godwin
Godwin in 2025
Mayor of the West of England
Incumbent
Assumed office
5 May 2025
Preceded byDan Norris
Bristol City Councillor for Southmead
In office
May 2016 – December 2021
Personal details
PartyLabour
Children3
EducationLiverpool John Moores University (BA)
Websitehelengodwin.com

Helen Jayne Godwin is a British politician who has served as Mayor of the West of England since 2025. She is a member of the Labour Party.

Early life and education

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Helen Godwin grew up in Begbrook, near Stapleton, Bristol,[1] in what she states was a working class family,[2] and went to Cotham School and Filton College.[1][3] From 1994 to 1998 she took a degree in European Studies and Spanish at Liverpool John Moores University.[4]

Early political career

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In her 20s, Godwin was a New Labour supporter and Labour blogger, although she left the Labour party for four years in protest at British involvement in the 2003 invasion of Iraq, which she called an illegal war.[2][5]

Godwin (listed as Helen Godwin Teige) was elected to Bristol City Council, representing Southmead ward, in 2016.[6] She was re-elected in 2021,[7][8] and later served as cabinet member for women, young people and families under Marvin Rees.[9] She announced her resignation as councillor in December 2021 due to work commitments from a new job.[10]

In 2020, she ran to be the Labour candidate for the 2021 West of England mayoral election, but was defeated in a local party membership ballot by the former Labour MP for Wansdyke, Dan Norris.[11]

Mayor of the West of England

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Candidacy

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On 21 November 2024, Godwin was named as the Labour candidate for the 2025 West of England mayoral election.[12] Her candidacy was endorsed by the Member of Parliament for Bristol North West, Darren Jones MP,[13] and by the former Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees and his two deputies.[14] Godwin was elected Mayor of the West of England on 1 May 2025 with 25.0% of the vote.[15]

Mayoralty

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Godwin stated that she would take a collaborative approach in the West of England Combined Authority (WECA), and that her three main priorities were:[16]

  • reliable buses and trains;
  • affordable homes in the right locations;
  • assisting in the creation of green jobs.

WECA was allocated £752 million by the government in the 2025 Spending Review, largely to be spent on transport over the spending review four year capital spending period.[17][18]

In July 2025, Godwin authorised the recruitment of a "Head of Mass Transit", to lead on the creation of a proposal for a mass transit system, such as a tram, light rail or underground system which might extend to Bristol Airport. In 2026, she stated WECA was working on a 15-year plan for mass transit, with an ambition to start the first projects within five years.[19][20]

In the Bristol Post review of her first 15 months as mayor, they considered her greatest achievement was obtaining the agreement of constituent councils to start a mass transit project for the area, something her predecessor mayors had not achieved. This will utilise the additional expertise of the government's new Mass Transit Taskforce in creating a detailed plan to attract additional government funding.[21][22] The Post review also noted three other significant decisions: her refusal to fund Bristol's plan to ban through-traffic on Park Street because of traffic impact elsewhere,[23] refusing to fund some Liveable Neighbourhood schemes,[21] not funding a continuous bus lane on the dual-carriageway Keynsham bypass and instead supporting a 40 mph restriction and active travel path scheme.[24] The mayor is also creating a mayoral development corporation north of Bristol, which will enable her to create a new town already shortlisted in government funding plans over local objections.[21][25]

Working career

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In August 2021, Godwin started working for professional services company PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in their consulting business in the government and health sectors.[9][10]

Earlier in her working career, she worked for recruitment company Hays as business manager in the legal interims and paralegals division,[26] and later as director and co-owner with her spouse of Redland Search, a recruitment company in Bristol.[27]

Personal life

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Godwin moved back to Bristol from Tooting, London circa 2012.[28] She and her spouse have three children.[29][27] She regularly watches Bristol Rovers matches.[28]

References

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  1. 1 2 Johnson, Karen (2 May 2025). "Labour's Helen Godwin elected new West of England mayor". B24/7. Bristol24/7. Retrieved 5 May 2025.
  2. 1 2 Godwin Teige, Helen (9 July 2010). "A family story of where Labour went wrong". Labour Uncut. Retrieved 18 May 2025.
  3. ↑ "Helen Godwin – A new chapter for the West of England". Labour South West. 2025. Retrieved 5 May 2025.
  4. ↑ "Helen Godwin". LinkedIn. 2025. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  5. ↑ Godwin, Helen (3 November 2011). "So what changed? Post election 2010". Blogger. Google. Retrieved 18 May 2025.
  6. ↑ "Election results for Southmead, 5 May 2016". Bristol City Council. 5 May 2016. Archived from the original on 6 September 2026. Retrieved 22 September 2026.
  7. ↑ Green, Daniel (1 November 2024). "West of England mayor: The three aspiring Labour candidates shortlisted". LabourList. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
  8. ↑ "Southmead Ward 2021". Bristol City Council. 6 May 2021. Archived from the original on 5 December 2025. Retrieved 22 September 2026.
  9. 1 2 Kneebone-Hopkins, Isaac (25 April 2025). "Metro Mayor for the West of England: Meet the candidates (and the chaos)". The Bristol Cable. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  10. 1 2 Postans, Adam (1 September 2021). "Bristol City Council cabinet member quits for consultancy job". Bristol Post. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  11. ↑ Brooks, Becky (18 November 2020). "Labour selects Dan Norris as Metro Mayor candidate". Midsomer Norton, Radstock & District Journal. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  12. ↑ Booth, Martin (21 November 2024). "Helen Godwin is Labour's metro mayor candidate for 2025 election". B24/7. Bristol24/7. Retrieved 5 May 2025.
  13. ↑ Booth, Martin (3 November 2024). "Darren Jones endorses Helen Godwin for metro mayor". Bristol24/7. Retrieved 19 May 2025.
  14. ↑ Postans, Adam (23 October 2024). "Marvin Rees backs Helen Godwin for Labour's metro mayor candidate". Bristol Post. Retrieved 18 May 2025.
  15. ↑ McDaid, Lucy (2 May 2025). "Labour's Helen Godwin elected new West of England Mayor". ITV News. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  16. ↑ Godwin, Helen (May 2025). "West of England Mayor". West of England Combined Authority. Retrieved 18 May 2025.
  17. ↑ Wimperis, John (14 August 2025). "Reform, buses and taking over from Dan Norris: Helen Godwin's first 100 days as WECA mayor". SomersetLive. Reach. Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  18. ↑ "West welcomes record transport funding". West of England Combined Authority. 4 June 2025. Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  19. ↑ Harcombe, Chloe (11 February 2026). "New airport links could include trams or light rail". BBC News. Retrieved 13 February 2026.
  20. ↑ Tegg, Lucy (11 February 2026). "Could trams return to Bristol after 80 years?". BBC News. Retrieved 13 February 2026.
  21. 1 2 3 Cork, Tristan (30 August 2026). "'Queen of the West': How Helen Godwin became the most powerful politician in the region". Bristol Post. Reach. Retrieved 16 September 2026.
  22. ↑ Miller, Hannah; Purvis, Richard (8 September 2026). "Will Bristol ever get a tram network?". BBC News. Retrieved 16 September 2026.
  23. ↑ Seabrook, Alex (6 February 2026). "Park Street traffic ban plan bites the dust". Bristol Post. Reach. Retrieved 16 September 2026.
  24. ↑ Cork, Tristan (29 July 2026). "A4 Keynsham Bypass speed limit cut to 40mph but bus lane plan scrapped". Bristol Post. Reach. Retrieved 16 September 2026.
  25. ↑ Kendall, Ellie (20 February 2026). "Thousands of homes, hotels, shops and an arena - full list of everything planned for Brabazon New Town". Bristol Post. Reach. Retrieved 16 September 2026.
  26. ↑ Godwin, Helen (1 December 2006). "Looking after our flexible friend". Law Gazette. The Law Society. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  27. 1 2 "Audit Committee Agenda" (PDF). Bristol City Council. 25 January 2018. p. 107. Retrieved 4 May 2025.
  28. 1 2 Booth, Martin (8 July 2025). "Breakfast With Bristol24/7: Helen Godwin". B24/7. Bristol24/7. Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  29. ↑ "Weca mayoral elections: Helen Godwin". BBC News. 8 April 2025. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
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