Your Candidates

Sarah Canning, Amberley & Woodchester

“We are doing a great job within the district but there is much more to do, and these challenges will continue as we juggle the demands on our landscape – such as the need for housing and recreational space – with the need to let nature thrive.”

VAl Saunders, Stroud Farmhill & Paganhill

“I love this area for its strong sense of social justice and community ethos. I want to help the council protect all its green spaces, meet its goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2030, and get empty buildings brought back into use by the community, as affordable work/life units.”

Beki Aldam, Thrupp

“Meeting residents and working with them to resolve their problems is one of the most important things about being a councillor. Politicians should be taking our concerns in hand and finding positive ways to care for planet and people, instead of fomenting imaginary divisions whilst lining the pockets of their billionaire pals.”

Carol Kambites, Stonehouse

“I’ll continue to support the campaign to reopen Bristol Road station, which I’ve championed as Mayor. But not all the changes that communities need can be made locally. We need fundamental changes at national and international level, so that we can protect the environment and move towards a fairer society.”

Cate James-Hodges, Stroud Central

“One of my aims as a councillor will be to make residents feel better understood and heard, to help make services more accessible and to make people’s lives easier. I want to empower people to see the positive impact they can have on their communities. I want to ensure under-served voices – especially those of young people – are heard more often.” 

Catherine Braun, Wotton-under-Edge

“One of my priorities is to work with partners to bring the Greenway safe walking and cycling route project to fruition, to link the communities of Wotton, Charfield & Kingswood. I am also keen to support more home insulation projects, to help residents save money, reduce the climate impact of heating, and to create new green jobs.”

Chloe turner, Minchinhampton

“I will help the council to become a trusted partner for the farming and landowner community as they transition towards regenerative farming. Locally, I’d like to see the Independent Living Hub become more integral to Minchinhampton as a community hub. My dream for a better world is a more evolved active travel infrastructure and a viable public transport system.”

Danae Savvidou, Dursley

“I am passionate about Dursley, and as a Town Councillor I have worked really hard to make life more pleasant for residents. From adding a grit bin to putting on free concerts in the town centre, I’ve used my position to help make Dursley the best place to live, and I’ll continue and expand that work as a District Councillor.”

Gareth Kitchen, Wotton-under-Edge

“I want the council to publish more data about the economic health of the district’s towns so that residents, businesses and entrepreneurs can identify and take advantage of new opportunities. This simple, cost-effective change would nurture new localised economic growth, possibly in novel and unexpected ways.”

Gary Luff, Painswick & Upton

“In my ward my main ambition is to create better youth provision at Coopers Edge. I will also help Stroud District Council to move towards self-sustainability by using more renewable energy. In my business life I have managed large teams of people and controlled major budgets; experience that could be invaluable in helping the council to manage its major projects.”

Gill Thomas, Minchinhampton

“I love helping to promote not-for-profit organisations and collaborating with others on environmental projects that have a strong community and educational focus. I want to make changes that will have a positive impact on people’s lives, representing views from the wider community to ensure everyone’s voice is heard. Being a councillor will help me to achieve these goals.”

Helen Fenton, Chalford

“As a Green Party councillor I will be guided by the party’s core values: integrity, compassion, connection, and ambition for a fairer and more inclusive society. I will work towards improving health and quality of life, reducing the impact of inequalities, encouraging community engagement, supporting the most vulnerable, and – of course – protecting the natural environment.”

Jonathan Edmunds, Randwick, Whiteshill & Ruscombe

“I like helping constituents with their problems – which have included homelessness, fuel poverty and difficulty paying council tax – and working with them to find solutions. I will campaign to protect play areas and community assets (such as the local pubs). I will help the council continue its work to make the town centre greener and more vibrant, with more pedestrian/cycle only access and better flood protection measures.”

Lucas Schoemaker, Stroud Trinity

“I campaigned against the proposed parking permit scheme and successfully led objections to Labour’s plans to move Trinity out of the Stroud Central county council area. As a founder member of the Heavens Valley Action Group, I want to see all local open spaces, rights of way and ecological diversity protected. I will press for the neglected Highfield Rd Play area to be upgraded, and for better public transport and improved road safety measures.”

Madelaine Maraboli-Roman, Stonehouse

“I want to help improve people’s lives and the local environment. I will campaign for the reinstatement of the Bristol Road station and for a local, regular bus circuit for Stroud, Stonehouse and the Stanleys. If a better world is what we truly want, we are just going to have to do it ourselves, together, for the greater good and a better future.”

Marisa Godfrey, The Stanleys

“I have worked with extremely diverse groups of people and I am good at forming positive working relationships. I would like to use my role to help local people resolve issues that are causing them distress or inconvenience. As a Green candidate the environment is obviously fundamental to me, but I believe that environmental justice and social justice are intrinsically linked.”

Martin Baxendale, Stroud Valley

I am keen to preserve Stroud’s special rural character and I have worked to stop inappropriate development from damaging our irreplaceable landscape and wildlife. I will work with the council to achieve its aim of a carbon neutral district by 2030. On a national and international scale, I would like to see greater equality and faster action on climate change, including big reductions in investment of pension money in fossil fuels.”

Martin Brown, Bisley

“Locally, I aspire to see less car dependency, more nature habitats (including gardens), less and calmer traffic, more home insulation, and more affordable, sustainable housing. On Stroud District Council I will campaign for better public transport (in collaboration with transport authorities). On a broader level I would like to see fairer distribution of resources, less conflict and more local, organic food production.”

Martin Pearcy, Coaley & Uley

“If re-elected I will work towards a Greenway extension into Coaley & Uley to provide a safe route for pedestrians, cyclists, mobility scooters and wheelchair users, and to keep local shops and businesses thriving. Improved rural cycle routes – and better bus/train services – are vital to enabling residents to shop, take part in community events and generally feel part of the local community.”

Pete Kennedy, Painswick & Upton

“I want to end the neglect by Conservative councillors and stop them from taking people’s votes for granted. I want to see sustainable development to meet local needs, while preserving the precious character of the area. I will push for more community-owned electricity generation so that all residents can share the benefits of renewable energy. And I will help the council continue its stable management of council finances.”

Steve Hynd, The Stanleys

“I will campaign for improved rural bus services, more affordable housing and a land management plan for Selsley Common – and I will help the council bring all the council housing stock up to the highest possible standard. Stroud could lead a reduction/reuse revolution that would reduce the amount of waste being incinerated and sent to landfill. Our residents could be made happy and healthy through good sports provision, active travel and access to green space.”

Tricia Watson, Chalford

“The current approach of plundering natural resources, whatever the cost to society and the planet, isn’t working for society. We should be focused on people rather than profit, with decisions taken for the benefit of the many, not the few. The needs of communities should be prioritised over the needs of developers when it comes to the use of land. I will continue to fight for the survival of my village pub.”

Adrian Oldman, Hardwicke

“There’s so much (sometimes too much!) to get involved in. I love the community’s ability to come together to create and support new ideas and new initiatives, as well as opposing the negative effects of capitalism and racism. It’s also an incredibly beautiful area and has loads of amazing open space.”

Kate Kay, Nailsworth

“My love for my community, my skills in leading and speaking in meetings, my problem-solving abilities; my life of activism, love of the natural world and experience of farming will all be valuable as a district councillor, as will my commitment to public service and belief that you can achieve miracles at a local level.”

Liz Hillary, Rodborough

“I understand the pressures that small businesses are facing and I’m used to working with clients, government agencies and staff to get projects completed.

If elected I will campaign for measures to reduce the traffic congestion on Rodborough roads and – as a keen cyclist – to improve the Wallbridge end of the cycle path. Society as a whole needs better public transport, fewer cars on the road and less pollution, I want to help the council achieve its goal of carbon neutrality for the district by 2030.”

Natalie Rothwell-Warn, Stroud Slade

“I would like to get to the root issues of what impacts residents’ well-being and to raise awareness of this in the wider community, I would like to understand how they would like these issues to change.

“I am disappointed with what politics has become but instead of complaining about it, I would like to try and change it. Times are hard and many voters feel disempowered. I feel politics in this country has lost its moral compass and has forgotten what its role is: to represent the people fairly and transparently without manipulating them. 

John Patient, Hardwicke

I’ve lived in Stroud District for 15 years and I’m running for council because being a councillor is the best way to be able to help the local community. If elected I will support the council in its ongoing aim of building more council houses; I believe that there should be a home for every family that needs one.

Efficient, frequent, affordable public transport is vital to a thriving society and I would like to see better integration between bus and train timetables locally.”

Rod Nelson, Nailsworth

“It is a self-aware place where people think globally and act locally to promote kindness, responsibility and equality. If I am elected, it will be my chance to help strengthen these attributes even further.

The purpose of the outcomes we are trying to achieve are beyond party politics. If we are constantly mired in confrontation, there is a danger that we become less focused and less intelligent and drain our energies away from the urgency that the climate emergency requires.”

Phil Blomberg, Rodborough

I have been a councillor on Rodborough Parish Council since 2007. I’ve decided to stand for election to the District Council because of the opportunity to make a difference to the district as a whole. 

I would bring to the role of district councillor considerable experience of how local government works. On a local level I would like to see more funding for developing brownfield sites and more work on encouraging active travel and further progress towards carbon neutrality.”