The former Corporate Director at Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council was appointed to his new post in August following a rigorous recruitment process and succeeds Mrs Jacqui Dixon MBE, who has stepped down after 24 years of service.
With 30 years of diverse operational and strategic experience, Mr Baker will bring a wealth of expertise to this strategic leadership role.
Following previous government and private sector employment, he joined the legacy Coleraine Borough Council as the Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Leisure and Development in 2011. When Councils merged in 2015, Mr Baker was appointed as Corporate Director for Development and Leisure at Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council
During this later appointment, he was the lead Council Officer for the 2019 Open Golf Championship at Royal Portrush. He also led the realisation of Northern Ireland’s first Enterprise Zone and delivered numerous multi-million-pound capital projects, including the initiation of the Council’s £80m Growth Deal.
Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey Councillor Mark Cooper BEM said Mr Baker’s arrival at Mossley Mill will mark a major new chapter for the Council:
While Mrs Dixon’s leadership of our Council delivered an era renowned for its positive impacts on the organisation and on our Borough as a whole, Mr Baker’s knowledge makes for an exciting prospect for us all.
I am looking forward to having Mr Baker at the helm and on behalf of my fellow Elected Members I look forward to working with him.
Speaking on his new role as Chief Executive of Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council, Mr Baker said:
It is an honour and privilege for me to lead this outstanding organisation on its ongoing journey of strategic excellence, and I have huge gratitude to my predecessor who leaves the Council in a strong and stable position.
