Meet Luton's chief executive and corporate directors

Mark Fowler
Interim Chief Executive
Address: Town Hall, Upper George Street, Luton LU1 2BQ
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 01582 546025
Mark has worked in local government since 1991, operating at director level and above for the last 10 years. Prior to his move to Luton Council in February 2022 he was Director of Community Solutions at Barking and Dagenham Council where he supported communities, families and individuals to become more independent.
As the Corporate Director for Population Wellbeing in Luton, Mark oversees services including Housing, Adult Social Care, Public Health, Commissioning and Business Intelligence which are key to the Luton 2040 vision for the town to be healthy, fair and sustainable, where everyone can thrive and no-one has to live in poverty.
Luton 2040 is a town-wide vision built around a single-unifying mission for everyone in Luton.

Dheeraj Chibber
Corporate Director, Children, Families and Education
Address: Town Hall, Upper George Street, Luton LU1 2BQ
Email: [email protected]
Dheeraj Chibber was appointed Corporate Director for Children, Families and Education on 22 May 2023.
Prior to this, Dheeraj’s roles included:
- Assistant Director for Children’s Social Care in London Borough of Merton, which achieved outstanding status in an Ofsted ILACS inspection
- head of service roles in Hertfordshire – developing bespoke and innovative services through systems leadership
- management roles in Central Bedfordshire where he developed a tailored ‘front door’ amongst other projects
Dheeraj has worked in the caring profession in the UK for almost 20 years. His passion dates back to the late 90s where his first experiences of supporting communities on a voluntary basis in India spearheaded his trajectory into the profession.
Dheeraj oversees Children’s Social Care, Quality & Improvements and Education services all of which play a key role in the Luton 2040 vision to be a healthy, safe, sustainable child-friendly town and one where we provide exceptional services to children, young people and families.

Gerard McCleave
Corporate Director, Inclusive Economy
Address: Town Hall, Upper George Street, Luton LU1 2BQ
Email: [email protected]

Nick Platts
Corporate Director and Managing Director, Luton Rising
Address: Luton Rising, Hart House Business Centre, Kimpton Road Luton, LU2 0LA
Email: [email protected]
Nick Platts was appointed Managing Director of Luton Rising, the Luton Council company that owns London Luton Airport and associated assets, in July 2023.
Prior to this, Nick had most recently lived and worked in Saudi Arabia for three years, initially as Director of Cargo at Riyadh Airport, and then leading development of the country’s first special logistics zone.
Previously Nick worked for Heathrow Airport Ltd, in roles as Head of Ground Handling and Head of Cargo, and for FedEx Express. Before that he migrated to the UK from Australia in 2004 after serving in the Royal Australian Air Force for 10 years as a pilot.
Nick is responsible for Luton Rising’s wide-ranging development and positive social impact programmes, including sustainability, Luton DART, and leading the application for long-term growth at the company’s largest asset, London Luton Airport.