david henshaw

Where he came from

A Chief Executive in local government (most recently Liverpool) and roles in central government and the wider public sector.

Why join ReConsulting?

Has used the ReConsulting approach in his transformational challenges in the public sector and knows they work.

Beyond work

Opera and music with the wide open spaces in North Wales. Some golf, a dog and endless frustration with Liverpool FC.

David has a unique “hands-on” insight into the leadership needs of both public and private organizations.

For 6½ years Sir David Henshaw was the Chief Executive of Liverpool City Council.

"Having been born and bred in Liverpool it has been a huge privilege to have served as Chief Executive at such an important time. When I joined the Council, Liverpool was third from bottom in the league table of local authority performance, and charged the highest Council tax in the country. A combination of effective political and managerial leadership by everyone on our council has resulted in a tremendous transformation.

The City of Liverpool, has undergone a radical transformation leaping from high cost, poor quality services to becoming a leading edge local authority using ICT, Best Value, EGovernment, customer centric approaches to fundamentally re-engineering the City's service delivery, community leadership, and partnering in local governance. I am also extremely proud that Liverpool has been chosen as the European Capital of Culture 2008”.

David also served as Chief Executive of Knowsley Council for 10 years. David’s public and private roles have included:

  • Chief Executive of Liverpool Culture Company
  • Deputy Chair of the Mersey Partnership
  • Chair of Liverpool Partnership Group
  • Chair of SOLACE Enterprises
  • Past President of the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives
  • An Adviser to the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit
  • A non Executive Director of the Home Secretary's National
  • Offender Management Board (Prisons, Probation and Youth
  • Justice in England and Wales)
  • An adviser to the Cabinet Office Strategy Unit
  • A Board member of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council
  • A member of the Board of Liverpool Vision
  • A member of the North Mersey Future Healthcare Project Board

Born and educated in Liverpool, he obtained a degree at Sheffield in Public Administration, and then a Master's Degree in Social Sciences at the University of Birmingham (INLOGOV).

He is also an Honorary Fellow of Liverpool John Moores University, a Fellow of Liverpool University, a Visiting Fellow of the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Australia, a Fellow of the Institute of Management and a member of the Board of the European Institute for Urban Affairs at Liverpool John Moores University.

David is married with two children and still has time for his favourite past-times including football - although he isn't prepared to divulge which Liverpool team he supports!