Community champion Debbie becomes new elected mayor of Wigan borough

Cllr Parkinson, 67, takes up the post alongside her fellow Standish and Langtree ward member Cllr Terry Mugan who is her consort. 

Cllr Jenny Bullen will serve as deputy mayor while her husband and ward colleague Andrew Bullen is her consort.

After taking up her role from outgoing mayor Kevin Anderson, who is a councillor for the Leigh South ward, Cllr Parkinson allocated Wigan and Leigh Hospice – where she has served as a voluntary bereavement counselor for the last 13 years – and the family mediation service Talk First as her charities.

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Newly-elected mayor of the borough, Cllr Debbie Parkinson with her consort Cllr Terry Mugan (Image: Wigan Council)
Born in Hammersmith, London, Cllr Parkinson moved to Standish in 1976 when she married.

The mother-of-three is an authorised lay minister of St Wilfrid’s Church in Standish. She was first elected to Wigan council in 2019 and after being re-elected in 2023 she was appointed as Wigan’s ‘Older Persons Champion’.

She was appointed to the board of trustees of Wigan’s Citizens Advice Bureau in March this year.

Cllr Parkinson has been a volunteer in Standish since the 1970s and is a member of the Christmas market committee, and the joint churches together committee.

She told fellow council members: “I am thrilled and privileged to stand here as the elected mayor of Wigan borough.

“I wouldn’t be here without the unwavering support of my family, colleagues and council officers. I am grateful to the leader [of the council Cllr David Molyneux] for the faith that has shown in me. I am committed to the borough with honesty and integrity. I promise to represent the borough to the best of my ability.”