Sophie Linden

Sophie was a Hackney councillor from 2006 until her appointment by the Mayor of London. She was Deputy Mayor of Hackney Council, with lead responsibility for crime and community safety, environmental health and trading standards, equalities and neighbourhood and civic engagement.

Sophie was part of the senior leadership that saw Hackney awarded 'Council of the Last 20 Years’ (2016) by the Local Government Chronicle (LGC) Awards, the LGC Editor’s Award for Partnership Working (2014) for their ground breaking gangs unit, and a rating of ‘excellent’ in the Local Government Equality Framework

She was a special adviser at the Home Office from 2001 to 2004. While there Sophie worked with the Home Secretary and Ministers on policy development and strategy, including: police reform, crime and antisocial behaviour reduction, neighbourhood policing and reducing the harm caused by illegal drugs. From 1997 to 2001 Sophie was a special adviser to David Blunkett in the Department for Education and Employment.

Sophie has been a member of the Local Government Association (LGA) Safer Communities Board, a peer reviewer for the LGA on community safety, and a member of the HMIC advisory board on PEEL (the police effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy programme) inspections.

Sophie has worked in the voluntary sector as a campaigns and policy manager, campaigning to end child poverty. She has also worked in the private sector as a director of public affairs.

Sophie has lived in Hackney for the last 30 years.