HELEN FENTON
Helen Fenton has been on Stroud District Council since 2021 and during her first term representing Chalford she has served as vice-chair of the Development Control Committee.
Helen was originally elected as part of the Labour group but more recently sat as an Independent Left councillor. For the 2024 elections she will be standing for the Green Party, which she considers to be her natural home.
She originally joined the Greens as a student in 1988; she was the first Green to be elected to the NEC of the National Union of Students, and in 1991 was a Green Party candidate in local elections for Durham City Council.
She says: “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.”
She works as a self-employed psychotherapist and counsellor, and is a life-long socialist, feminist and environmentalist.
Helen has lived in Stroud District since 2007 and loves the area for its beautiful valleys and community spirit. A keen cyclist, Helen co-founded the women’s cycling network Stroud Spinderellas. If re-elected she will campaign for a good cycle route from Chalford to Stroud, believing that residents all over the district need better cycling routes for commuting to work, school and college.
She will also continue to support the council’s ambitions to build more social housing.
Among her hobbies is dancing Argentine Tango; she created the group Tango In Chalford, which offers social dance classes in the village.
She is a supporter of the Stroud Ceasefire Coalition, which calls for an end to the attacks in Gaza.
Tricia Watson
Tricia Watson is standing for re-election in Chalford, where she has been a district councillor since 2021 and where she has lived with her two children since 2008.
She works as an environmental and waste consultant, and is involved in a voluntary capacity with various waste innovations, social enterprise partnerships and environmental charities.
Tricia serves on the Gloucestershire Resources and Waste Partnership (GRWP) – a partnership between Gloucestershire’s county and district councils that coordinates waste management services across the county.
She also heads up the waste management work at the yearly Chalfest music event.
Among her achievements so far as a councillor, Tricia lists leading the Chalford bus cuts campaign, which she is optimistic could bring some much- needed services back to the village.
She also enjoys supporting residents with queries and problems on a wide range of issues, including planning matters.
Her goal is for the community to be prioritised over the needs of developers when it comes to the use of land. A great local example is the field behind former council flats that is being bought by the community. “I’m so delighted that instead of more executive home infill, we will see the community gardens and nature corridor extended along Brimscombe valley,” she says.
Her biggest ambition for Chalford is for a successful outcome to the long-running community campaign to buy the village pub. In the meantime she would like a community hub to be established elsewhere so that the villagers have somewhere to meet and take part in community activities.
Tricia loves Stroud District for its sense of community and compassionate radicalism for everyone’s benefit and hopes to be re-elected as part of a council where the Greens are the biggest single party. She would also love to see the Conservatives losing control of the County Council in 2025, and for Gloucestershire to get its first Green MP.
On a national and international level, she would like society to be focused on people rather than profit, with decisions taken for the benefit of the many, not the few. “I’d love to see more appreciation and restoration of the precious, globally interdependent planetary balance, rather than the current approach of plundering natural resources whatever the cost to society and the planet,” she says.
“We need to change the conversation from traditional social/ financial terminology to embrace new models, like circular and doughnut economics. These models benefit everyone and not just the already wealthy, within the means of our increasingly fragile planet – our only viable home.”
James Boyle
James Boyle has always felt motivated to work or volunteer in roles that progress environmental or social justice issues. Be that as a youth worker, supporting social enterprises in the homeless sector, campaigning for swift climate action or, most recently, retraining as a secondary school teacher.
He says: “If we are to solve the most significant problems facing us and our children, such as the climate crisis, we need to act, rather than sit in hope and apathy. This is my motivation for standing as a district councillor for the Green Party.”
James’s experience will enable him to support the local community, he believes. As a youth worker and teacher he has an interest in supporting young people in their development. While working in communities that were undergoing gentrification in London, he set up apprenticeships and work experience programmes so that young people in that area could take advantage of their changing place.
He believes these initiatives are vital not just for individual young people, but also to keep their collective enthusiasm and talent within communities, rather than losing it to larger cities. “With so many young people in Chalford and Stroud, we should be ensuring that they see this area as a place they can aspire to live their lives,” he says.
“With so many young people in Chalford and Stroud, we should be ensuring that they see this area as a place they can aspire to live their lives,” he says.
James would like to see more funding for local youth services, to give young people guidance and stimulation outside of school. And he would campaign for a focused work experience and apprentice programme for local young people, working with the many businesses in the Stroud area. “Such a scheme would give local young people the opportunity to train and make their lives here; and an apprenticeship programme in green and renewables industries in particular would encourage more employers to the area and boost the local economy.”
Through social enterprise support roles, and other community development organisations, James understands the power of small businesses to build up communities, whether through employment, training, or simply bringing new life to a place. “Enterprise brings people to a space, and should be encouraged,” he says. “The population of Chalford is too large to be without services and opportunities enjoyed by towns of a similar size.”
His motivation to tackle the climate crisis runs through his public campaign work; lobbying MPs and engaging harder to reach communities on the issue. This included both project managing large-scale events and running small-scale digital or letter-writing campaigns. He has taken this passion to his current teaching role, where he is also the school Environment Coordinator, engaging students in the subject through activities like tree planting, making space for nature, recycling initiatives and assemblies.
He aims to champion campaigns for active travel and public transport, including the provision of more cycle lanes and the promotion of the district as a destination for cyclists from outside the area. “The cycling opportunities around here are a great draw, but without safer routes people will be put off this option,” he says. “And the lack of a decent bus service means residents who are more vulnerable, or unable to drive, are unable to access the services in Stroud.”
He adds: “Local government has a crucial role in ensuring our communities are safe and enjoyable places to live. Funding is tight across our public sector, and although I hope for priorities to change in the long run, we have to find innovative ways to create these communities with what we have. This takes vision and some bravery, and I believe the Green Party has this. I would like to support this vision in any way I can.”
James has lived in Stroud District since July 2022 and loves the area for its unique biodiversity and beautiful valleys. He adds: “I also love the fact that it is full of people who are motivated to get involved, organise interesting events and create a culturally exciting and welcoming community.”
His vision for a better world is one where there is more justice and equality. He says: “From corporate greed to the mainstreaming of neo-liberal attitudes, I fear that the gap between the haves and have-nots in the UK will widen further, fuelled by scapegoating of the most vulnerable in society. I do not want my children growing up in that world.”
As part of this interest in environmental and social justice, James aims to understand and represent the feelings and needs of residents in his ward. In particular, he believes that Chalford needs a community solar roof project, better playground facilities and better youth services – including the reopening of Bussage youth club.
If elected he would support the council in its work improving the energy efficiency of social housing, and would campaign to ensure that local ecosystems are protected and not built upon.
Teaching has given him good organisational skills and the ability to deal with the needs and emotions of very different individuals and groups. These skills will be useful in engaging positively with residents, councils and other organisations in his role as a councillor, says James.
James is a supporter of the local Palestine Solidarity Campaign and is particularly concerned about the impact the war is having on Gaza’s children.
James has a BA degree in International Development and a postgraduate degree in Environment and Urbanisation. He is a school workplace representative for the National Education Union.