THE OTLEY-BASED Leader of Leeds City Council has been made a CBE.

Councillor Judith Blake (Lab, Middleton Park)) says she is delighted to have received the award in recognition of her service to local government.

She is one of those named as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the Queen's Birthday Honours List 2017.

Cllr Blake, who was a member of Otley Town Council between 1995 and 1999 and is a former governor of Prince Henry's Grammar School, said: "I’m very proud to receive this recognition.

"My political career started in Otley when I served on the town council, so the town means an awful lot to me."

The first female leader of the city council, Cllr Blake has served as a Leeds councillor for 21 years.

She became executive member for the council’s Children’s Services department in 2010, leading the initiative to make Leeds a child-friendly city.

That was recognised in 2015 when, thanks to a series of city-wide partnerships, Leeds become the first core city to be judged good, with outstanding leadership and governance, by Ofsted.

Since becoming council leader in 2015 Cllr Blake has also worked to ensure Leeds hosts a programme of world class events to enhance the area's profile and strengthen the local economy.

She introduced a 50/50 gender representation in her cabinet and has overseen the council becoming a Real Living Wage employer from April, 2016.

Other recent developments under her watch have included Leeds launching a bid to be named European Capital of Culture in 2023 and being named council of the year by the Municipal Journal.