As a Shinfield resident, who was so fed up with not being taken seriously or having a voice in what and how my local Council was doing to my community, I stood as an Independent candidate in the last Borough Council elections.
To the surprise of many including myself I was honoured to be elected. Thank you, residents of the Shinfield South ward.
I joined 2 existing Independent Councillors, both had become disillusioned with their political party and felt they could better serve their resident’s by being Independent.
So how has the first few months as a Councillor been? On the whole I have been welcomed by fellow Councillors of all parties though I have experienced a few Less Than Friendly (LTF) Councillors and Officers who appear to be dismissive or wary of an Independent. Mainly though I have found some excellent and extremely committed Leaders, Councillors (across all parties) and dedicated Officers who really do care about making Wokingham a great place to live.
During the election one LTF incumbent openly informed me and a number of residents that voting Independent was a wasted vote as I would never be allowed to sit on Committees or have a voice in any decisions. He was wrong. As there are 3 Independents, we constitute a Group and have been welcome onto a range of Committees and are all extremely active in trying to improve what and how WBC do for residents across a range of services and topics.
I have witnessed ‘tribal’ behaviours where political party overrides doing what people believe to be the right thing. I hope that as Independents we can help reduce these behaviours.
I believe that the local election last year sent a clear message to the local political parties and as a result they are now much more open to change. There is a long way to go but I believe by working together and removing ‘tribal’ behaviours we can make Wokingham a better place to live. Having residents stand as Independents, win or lose, is sending a powerful message that ‘tribal’ behaviours are not what communities want or need.
Just in case you think this is a bit of a pipe dream read the following Guardian article that shows it can be done. The power of independence!
