North Herts Candidates for May 2025 County Council elections

A resident of Hitchin since 1986, I would be very honoured to serve and represent the residents of Hitchin North.  I am a chemist with a scientific interest in climate change and its consequences.  I fully understand the dangers of air and water pollution, which motivates me to want to do better for our town and region.  I am passionate about community, social care, and environmental issues.

Over the years I have served in a number of local community groups.  I am keen to ensure that our county’s recycling services are fit for purpose, provide value for money, and are run safely from fires within the community.  And I believe that locally and in Hertfordshire we need to prepare to face the possibilities of future flooding events, and work with nature to minimise the damage to the community. 

I fully support the Green Party’s “Right Homes, Right Place, Right Price” charter to deliver warm and energy-efficient homes. Local councils should be in control of housing, with the aim of building quality affordable homes in the right places and with proper infrastructure. We should be building homes that serve local needs, supported by facilities such as GP surgeries, bus services, schools, shops, and leisure centres.     

“A Green voice on Herts County Council can change the debate, challenge the Conservative majority led status quo, challenge the present Labour complacency, and ensure local people concerned about climate change and social justice have an effective voice in HCC”. 

I wish to focus on the following aspects of our community life:

• Monitor Hitchin’s air quality, to improve it and reduce local air pollution
• Ensure sound council finances governance
• Demand a local flooding protection action plan
• Promote Green Investment to create jobs, reduce emissions, and promote a repurposing economy
• Investigate and stop any sewage water contaminating local rivers
• Use existing Council powers to address the problems of scrap yard fires    
• Ensure local Housing Plan meets local needs, and bring about a strict Community Infrastructure Levy
• Support healthier active travel, and accessible and affordable bus transport for all
• Protect biodiversity sensitive areas and extend re-wilding schemes
• Support the protection of Hitchin’s Green Belt from over development expansions
• Promote and support the proposed Local Electricity Bill 
• Campaign for a fairer and proportional local election’s voting system

As a Hertfordshire resident and if elected as Hitchin North councillor, I fully support a commitment to divest Herts Local Government Pension Scheme (HLGPS) from the arms trade and in particular companies complicit in Israel genocide against Palestinians, and ecocide in Palestine.

Residents need a green voice to represent Hitchin North
– Vote GREEN for a fairer, sustainable, liveable Environment! 

I have lived in Royston for 4 years with my partner Francesca. My father was a Church of England vicar.  From observing his pastoral care for the local community, I learnt that it’s important to have compassion for all people and when needed respectfully disagree with people while still working together for the greater good.  I also learnt that it is important to work and strive for a better future and to always stand-up for the voiceless and disadvantaged people.

I have worked in Royston for over 10 years in Quality Control at an electronics company, and as such I know the importance of having an eye for detail and that quality is always more important than quantity.

As your Green councillor, I will be available and commit to champion Royston Palace, its community and the whole town.  Within the North Herts Council I would call for much needed resources to develop a more sustainable community, focused on meeting present and future challenges.   

Since becoming part of the Royston community, I have worked with the Green Party due to our shared principles of environmental justice, economic equality and social wellbeing. 

I would be very honoured to represent Royston Palace in North Herts Council, and I believe that even one lone Green voice on the Council can change the debate, challenge the status quo and Labour’s complacency, and ensure local people concerned about climate change and passionate about their community have an effective voice within the District  government. 

I am enthusiastic about creating a more sustainable positive future for Royston where everyone has the opportunity to live their best life. 

My proposals for Royston Palace:

• A planned future – let’s have a neighbourhood plan for Royston. 
• Reduce pollution and improve pedestrian and cycling access – let’s have a car free High Street. 
• Affordable homes for local people – Let’s have an increase in the percentage of social and affordable housing as part of any new residential development – Don’t let developers dictate what will be built! 
• Better facilities in our town – Let’s have a  brake on out of town development until a needs assessment is done for the town.   
• A better environment – Let’s have an increase in and upgrading of green spaces, play facilities and planting in the town centre. 

Vote for the Green candidate this time:  vote for Peter Wilkin to represent you, change the debate, challenge the status quo and Labour’s complacency, and ensure local people concerned about climate change and their community have an effective voice in local government.”

Creating a happier world, a better world, a sustainable world is my motivation for life – and Hitchin. There are so many opportunities to achieve this that are made stronger if I have your vote to make change happen in the council.

To help us all transition profitably and sustainably to Net Zero, I am studying, part-time, an MSc in Marine Renewable Energy. I have a particular interest in tidal energy capture – it is completely reliable, not depending on sun or wind.

Professionally I’m a Data Protection Officer – a mix of legal and technical problem solving. Previously, I’ve been a Senior Solution Manager, designing and delivering software solutions for many years, a bit of programming and internal consultant. I moved into IT, from engineering, as many people did in the 90s, after gaining an MSc in Computer Science.

I’m married with two adult children. Together with my wife, we grow and make a lot of our own food, keep chickens, ducks, geese, quail, and bees (until they flew away!). For fun we are rebuilding a 60-year-old boat that we will convert to run on solar power.

Mary has lived in Hitchin for 25 years and works from home for an Employee Owed Company as an IT applications tester and Health and Safety Officer.  During her career in IT she has commuted to a variety of places on foot, by bicycle, motorcycle, car, bus and train, giving her a wide experience of local, regional and national transport issues.

A keen community gardener, Mary likes helping to keep Hitchin’s Quaker (Friends) Meeting House grounds in central Hitchin tidily wild. Caring for a public open space involves tackling persistent litterers, drug use, vandalism, anti social behaviour and homelessness.   Working with neighbouring Churches, local police, charities and councils she helps our community to keep these places safe for everyone to use.  Mary also helps at the Triangle Community Garden in Hitchin Bearton ward.

Working from home has allowed her to join in weekly health walks, residents’ meetings, and ringing St Mary’s church bells for traditional local event and services.

Worries about safety after watching the first charity Christmas Tractor run promoted her to volunteer for the Marshals team for this fun, noisy, lively event bringing town and country together.

In her words:  “If we are to make progress towards a greener, less polluted future we need to do so together.   This means listening to each other and acting on these and their concerns”..

Having been a Hertfordshire native for my entire life, I am seeing our beautiful countryside changing beyond recognition. I strongly believe in defending our green spaces, protecting our ecosystem and creating positive change for the most disadvantaged members of our community. The 3 main parties have compromised the future of generations to come by failing to initiate meaningful change in various empty climate promises. The youngest members of our society are already feeling the effects of poor economic strategy, meaning affordable housing and a proper living wage are unattainable goals. I believe that a society in which the populace is fairly taxed can create a sustainable and fairer environment for humans and nature alike.

I have been a Green Party member for 10 years. I have in the past been a member of the Labour Party but left because I did not believe that it was following just social and economic policies. 

I joined the Green Party when I realised the great significance of climate change to the world and peoples  lives. We will not achieve social and economic development without protecting future generations from the chaos of a warming planet.

I am married and retired, both happily.

Vote green, give us a chance.

David has lived in Letchworth Garden City their whole life. Now retired, David worked at BT, then for the last 20 years at London School of Economics prior to retirement.  If elected to represent the Letchworth Norton ward they would focus on people and the planets future, not being driven by profit motives. Seeking to support all the residents of the ward they would pursue policies through the council that would encourage more equality of opportunity and personal freedom and hopefully start the process of restoring faith and confidence in local democracy.

Dugald has spent the last 15 years living in Letchworth, where he has raised his family, run a small business and more recently studied for a Masters in Fine Arts at the University of Hertfordshire. He loves being a part of the vibrant Letchworth community, you may well have seen him helping at a local drama society, volunteering at food waste rescue charity in the town centre, or walking the greenway with his Fox Terrier, Carlo. Sustainability, community and supporting green spaces for all are the foundations of Letchworth and Dugald is passionate they should be at the heart of the approach to building a thriving town for the future.

Candidate statement TBA.