Stevan Cirkovic

My name is Stevan Cirkovic and I’m running for the council because I believe Kennington deserves serious, hands-on representation - working with the whole community, not taking it for granted. If elected as your councillor, I will work hard to:

• Tackle the housing crisis, rogue landlords, empty flats and demand reliable and timely repair in council homes
• Protect green spaces, clean air and water across the ward and borough
• Give residents and communities greater democratic control over local decisions and budgets
• Stand up for openness and diversity in our borough, its many communities, and against all forms of racism, sexism, and discrimination
• Protect and grow community spaces and access to vital public services, including post offices, GP surgeries, and an NHS embedded in our neighbourhoods.

I know how to deliver public funding successfully through my day job, where I lead the £500 million national NHS capital investment programme in mental health services across the country. I want to bring my finance and estates skills from the NHS to the council and hold the administration to account.  When headline funding announcements are made I turn this into credible plans and real outcomes - with clear principles, quality standards, value for money, and a commitment to co-design with communities. Local government deserves the same seriousness. In the middle of a housing crisis we need more than promises - we need viable proposals to create more social housing, clear standards for repairs and safety, and people who understand how public money flows and how to turn it into tangible assets for our community. I will also advocate for protecting renters better and for going after rogue landlords who knowingly flout their obligations. 

Labour’s culture of ‘town hall knows best’ and tick-box consultations have failed to deliver for residents across the Borough. Instead, it has landed us with hefty bills for empty spaces and lawsuits. My Liberal Democrat colleagues and I want to reset how the Borough works with residents and as a community organiser I know participation must be meaningful. In 2022, I organised the London Queer Climate Assembly, an open forum for LGBTQ people to discuss local responses to a global crisis. I was struck by the practical, down-to-earth proposals such as protecting and planting city trees and setting up neighbourhood networks to protect vulnerable residents from extreme heat. Not only can citizen assemblies solve real problems, they also help us to come and make sense together of challenges that seem intractable. In an age where politics can feel tribal or toxic, I firmly believe entrusting residents with greater control over decisions and budgets is the antidote.

But I also stand ready to be a voice for our communities. After the Southport riots in the summer of 2024, I proactively reached out to organisations working with migrants and refugees here in Lambeth on behalf of the local Lib Dems to show solidarity and understand the practical impacts: safety concerns, trauma, pressure on services. As a naturalised British citizen with German-Serbian roots myself, what makes Lambeth vibrant and rich is our diversity, tolerance, and willingness to work together no matter our background. 

As your councillor I want to lift up our communities, get to know your hopes and fears, and put my track record of public and community service to work for you. Before joining the NHS, I was a civil servant in the Department of Health and the Cabinet Office. I helped set up a mutual aid group during the pandemic and from 2019 to 2023 served as a lay partner in my local NHS Trust, providing a citizen voice on the Greener NHS delivery plan and surgical innovations. For the past four years, I’ve initiated and organised weekly meditation sessions at the London LGBTQ Community Centre near the Tate Modern. And in my home country, Germany, I served as a district councillor in Heidelberg until 2015, and in 2014 was the country’s youngest candidate for the European Parliament. 

You can reach out to me on stevan.cirkovic@hey.com. Or feel free to say hello when I’m exercising in Kennington Park,  doorknocking or delivering leaflets around the ward. I look forward to meeting you!