A former Royal Military Police serviceman who once worked as a council roadworker has been named Walsall Council’s Armed Forces Champion. Councillor Pete Sutton, who represents the Brownhills ward, takes on the role for the 2026/27 municipal year just weeks after being elected in May.
Councillor Sutton served with the 3rd Battalion Staffordshire Regiment and 116 Provost Company (V), 4 Regiment Royal Military Police before entering local politics. “As a proud ex-military, family man who formerly served as a council roadworker, I am honoured to have been elected to serve as Walsall’s Armed Forces Champion,” he said. The post involves advocating for serving personnel, veterans and their families so they are not disadvantaged when accessing services including housing, healthcare, employment and education.
His appointment lands ahead of the borough’s first official Armed Forces Day on Sunday 28 June 2026, running from 11am to 4pm at the Walsall Arboretum Extension off Broadway North. Walsall Council secured a share of a £430,440 Ministry of Defence grant awarded to 130 community groups and local authorities nationwide to stage events that reconnect communities with the military. The council is working alongside Short Heath Lest We Forget CIC, a community interest company that has raised more than £100,000 for projects in the Short Heath and New Invention areas since forming in 2020.
“Walsall will be holding its first Armed Forces Day event at the end of this month,” Councillor Sutton added. “It is a privilege to be working with the wider council team, and our partners, to deliver what we hope will be the first of many Armed Forces Day celebrations for the borough.” The funding forms part of the Strategic Defence Review’s push for a whole-of-society approach to defence.
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