It is a fantastic honour and privilege to be chosen by Mayor Cllr Karen Henshaw as her Deputy Mayor for 2024/25. I will do my upmost to support Karen during this very busy year.
A year that I know Karen hopes to have ‘Community Spirit’ as its main aim.
I was born in Ashton under Lyne, Lancashire and I moved to live in St. Annes after attending Keele University between 1981-1984, where I achieved a BA hons degree in English and Philosophy. My husband Dan and I moved here after he got a job as an Actuary at Guardian Royal Exchange Insurance. We have now been here for 40 years and have lived in St. Annes all of that time.
For most of my career I worked at the Blackpool Gazette and Lytham St. Annes Express newspapers. Starting as a telephone sales canvasser before holding many managerial titles including Classified Manager and Display Advertising Manager and eventually becoming the Advertisement Director, with overall control of the advertisement departments. Latterly I finished my career at the Lancashire Evening Post as a Regional Manager.
After taking early retirement I quickly learned that I still had to be busy. I became a volunteer at the RNLI shop in St. Annes and took on the role of Speakers Secretary for the RNLI Ladies Luncheon Club. I also became a member of the Blackpool Road North Friends’ Group and it was then that I realised helping community causes was something I wanted to be more involved in. I am the Chairman of Trustees for the Hub, a community centre in South Shore, and am a founding member of Fylde Eco Group.
I was elected onto St. Annes Town Council in 2019, where I quickly realised you really can make a difference to your area if you really want to make a difference. I became a member of CAN the Community and Neighbourhood Group, and TEN the Environment Group. I am proud of the many initiatives these groups have put in place for the residents of St. Annes.
But mostly I enjoy representing the interests of the residents in Kilnhouse Ward where I live, and to achieve more I was delighted to be elected onto Fylde Borough Council in 2023.
The year 2024-2025 will probably prove to be one of the busiest years so far, as my husband Dan (my Consort) and I support Mayor Karen Henshaw and her husband Howard with their chosen charities and Civic Events.
We aim to make it a happy and enjoyable year, where we meet many Fylde residents, volunteers and businesses and represent the Fylde and our chosen charities in the best way we can.