Helen Godwin
Mayor of the West of England
Helen Godwin is the Mayor of the West of England. Elected in May 2025, she has started a new chapter for the region. Helen was born in the West, grew up and is raising her family there, and has worked as a local councillor and in business.
Committed to bringing people together to make a difference that people can see and feel across Bath & North East Somerset, Bristol, and South Gloucestershire, her priorities are clear: reliable buses and trains that connect communities, affordable homes in the right places with essential services, and pathways to green jobs that power the region’s future economy.
Since May, the West has provided free bus travel for children during the summer, with over 900,000 journeys; launched a £5 million Youth Guarantee offering jobs and training to local young people; and secured an unprecedented £752 million for transport in the region. The West has also got the green light for the Portishead Line reopening, won a £25 million devolved fund for creative places, and signed a Strategic Place Partnership with Homes England to help build more affordable homes. Before Christmas, a new regional Growth Strategy was approved including plans for 72,000 new jobs over the next ten years and a proudly interventionist Child Poverty Action Plan was published.
