Hi, I’m Beth and I’m standing for the City Council elections for Queen Edith’s ward.

Queen Edith’s is my home and as a local resident and parent I will make sure our community’s interests are represented on the City Council. I was born and grew up in Cambridge but moved away in my teens. I chose to move back to Queen Edith’s with my family because of the quality of life our community offers from its brilliant local schools, its green spaces and important natural environment, its world-leading medical centres to its distinct community identity. As a City Councillor I will make sure Queen Edith’s continues to be a great place to live for all of us.

I’ve spent my career working with communities to improve people’s lives and advocate for change. Most recently in 2018 I set up an award-winning charity working with child refugees stranded in camps across Europe to help them safely reunite with family. I’m proud that Cambridge is a City of Sanctuary and will use my voice on the council to make sure our city is welcoming to all communities who live here – newcomers and long-term residents alike.

At a time when many of us are struggling with the cost of living, I will work hard to make sure families are able to get help where they need it and support local community groups to access grants to reach those most in need. Decent affordable housing should be available to us all, and I will champion residents struggling with poor housing and support the council’s effort to build more social and affordable housing.

As our community grows, it must do so sustainably, which means ensuring there is the infrastructure in place to support growth, and environmental considerations are placed at the heart of new development.

As a parent with a child in a local school, I know how important good schools, nursery places, parks and facilities are, and will work with the County and City councils to make sure we have enough nursery and school places to meet our growing community’s needs as well as advocating with parents to improve SEND provision and recreational facilities.

I started my career working on environmental policy, and I care passionately about our local biodiversity, whether it’s in our local parks and allotments, or our rare natural habitats like the chalk streams. If elected I will work with the Council to hold developers to account for their environmental commitments.