Botterill was born and raised in Sheffield and graduated with an MSc in chemistry from Christ Church College, Oxford. He started his career working in international corporate finance at the Royal Bank of Canada Group, before co-founding a business called Teddies Nurseries.
The firm was at one stage rated among the ten fastest growing companies in the UK and expanded to over 40 sites nationwide. Sold to BUPA in 2000, it is now one of the largest childcare providers in the world. In 2005, Botterill founded another childcare firm, Active Learning, to which he is now a non-executive director.
Botterill, married with two children aged nine and seven, first moved to Hammersmith and Fulham in 1986, moving to Hammersmith before settling in Fulham. He became involved with local politics as soon as he arrived in the borough, working in the Addison ward and later holding various officer posts for the Hammersmith Association, to which he was elected chairman in 1990, a post he held for three years.
When constituency boundaries were reviewed after the 1992 general election, Botterill led the constituency liaison process for the Conservative party, covering the boroughs of Southwark, Lambeth, Wandsworth, Richmond and Kingston.
In 1996, while still living in Hammersmith, Botterill was selected to fight a council by-election in the then Sulivan ward in south Fulham. He was successful and has been in the council ever since, holding various posts while in the opposition, such as housing spokesman, environment spokesman, chief whip and, following the Conservatives’ election win in 2006, deputy leader and cabinet member for environment and asset management.
Botterill was governor of St Stephen’s Church of England Primary School between 1993 and 2001, with two of those years as chairman of the governors.
His interests include sailing, reading political biographies and travel.
