Wokingham Liberal Democrats

Candidates for 2008 Wokingham Borough Council Elections

The following are details of Liberal Democrat candidates in the Wokingham Borough Council local elections taking place on 1st May 2008:

BULMERSHE AND WHITEGATES WARD

Jenny Lissaman

Jenny is a committed environmentalist who started her working life as a clinical chemist in the Path Lab at the Royal Berks Hospital. She has a keen interest and experience in planning and wants to keep working for the community to make Bulmershe & Whitegates a safe and pleasant place for all. Jenny has lived in the ward for over 30 years and her children attended Earley St Peters and Bulmershe schools. She first became involved in local issues and campaigns through the Association of Central Earley Residents and was elected to Earley Town and Wokingham Borough Councils 13 years ago.

CHARVIL WARD

John Illenden

John has been a Charvil Parish Councillor since 2003, and gained many years' experience as a District and Parish councillor in Buckinghamshire before making his home in the Borough. As Chairman of the Northern Parishes Youth Committee, he is concerned about the non-appearance of the skate park promised by Wokingham Borough Council and the loss of the mobile youth provision. He is retired and so has the time to campaign for the residents of Charvil. John is married to Pauline, who works at Age Concern in Twyford, and they have six grandchildren. John is keen to promote environmental concerns and is Chair of an amenity society involved in countryside matters. He is a member of the Twyford United Reformed Church.

EMMBROOK WARD

Keith Malvern

Keith has been a Councillor for sixteen years and has in-depth expertise in planning matters. He has worked with many residents to protect Emmbrook from over-development. He is opposed to the Tory plan to concrete over Elms Field and has campaigned to save the recreation park there. Keith is married with four children and has lived in Woosehill Lane for over 20 years. Keith is well known for his tireless efforts as a committed campaigner for the Emmbrook community.

EVENDONS WARD

Jeremy Harley

Jeremy has lived with his wife and family in Evendons for over twenty years and his four children were all educated at local schools. He has served as a school governor and is currently actively involved in encouraging sport in the district. He holds the position of secretary of the Wokingham badminton club. Jeremy has campaigned with other local residents to ensure there is adequate infrastructure to support any development in the ward and is particularly concerned with the serious traffic congestion in our district. Jeremy works as a research archivist and cycles to work.

FINCHAMPSTEAD NORTH WARD

Jim May

Jim was born and raised in Finchampstead, where he has lived for over 50 years. He is a qualified civil engineer, a Parish Councillor and is a school governor at Nine Mile Ride School. He is married to former Parish and District Councillor, Celia May. In the past he was instrumental in securing Warren Wood as open public space for the community. Recently he has been campaigning locally and nationally against agricultural land exploitation by neo fraudulent "Landbanking companies" who split up fields into tiny plots and sell on to small gullible investors who have been led to believe they are investing in land which is likely to receive housing planning permission in a few years' time.

FINCHAMPSTEAD SOUTH WARD

Roland Cundy

Roland is married to teacher, Lesley, and has lived in Finchampstead for 21 years. He is a business manager at a local doctors' surgery. As Chair of Finchampstead Parish Council, a former District Councillor, governor at two local schools and treasurer for two registered charities, the local community knows Roland for his hard work and commitment to local issues. His two children are presently at university having been taught in local schools.

HAWKEDON WARD

John Eastwell

John has lived in Lower Earley for over 25 years and has three grown up children who all attended local schools. He is now semi-retired and works as an Engineering Consultant. John was a very active Earley Town Councillor for many years. His main interest is in the provision of youth and sporting facilities.

HILLSIDE WARD

David Hare

David has lived in the area for over 25 years since graduating from Reading University. He is married to Carolyn, a teacher, and they have 3 sons. David is a manager at Mencap, a charity for people with learning disabilities. He was a councillor for Hillside for 10 years, with a special interest in protecting services for the most vulnerable people in the district. With his Lib Dem colleagues, he led the campaign to oppose the Tory cuts to services for the elderly and those with special needs.

HURST WARD

Paul Trott

Paul is a graduate of London University, and a managing consultant for an information systems company. Married to a local schoolteacher, and with a son and daughter attending local schools, Paul's chief political interests lie in education, social justice and the environment. Paul and his family have lived in Twyford for over 20 years and from 1995 to 1999 he was Chairman of the Twyford Area Liberal Democrats. Away from politics, Paul is a keen cricketer and a fundraiser for charities such as Amnesty International, Debra and The Anthony Nolan Bone Marrow Trust.

LODDON WARD

Phil Challis

Phil Challis has lived in the Loddon ward since 1989 with his wife and two children and feels that Woodley has a great sense of community. Phil has enjoyed playing an active part in the community and at various times he has been a local school governor, local youth football team manager, chairman of Loddon Valley Action Group and is currently a member of the steering group of Woodley Community Partnership and a Woodley Town Councillor for the Loddon-Airfield ward. He is currently working as a part-time Management Consultant based in the Loddon Ward, which gives him time for action in the community.

MAIDEN ERLEGH WARD

Caroline Smith

Caroline has lived with her family in Earley for 24 years and her three children attended local schools. She now has three grandchildren. Caroline is a governor of a local junior and infant school. She works for a national charity and strongly believes that all sectors of society should be recognised and represented, and wants to see more facilities and services for teenagers.

NORREYS WARD

Steve Bacon

With one short break, Steve has lived in the area since 1974. He is married and has 4 children. For many years, he represented the Church on the governing body of the local Junior School that all of his children attended. Steve served on Wokingham District Council from 1994 to 1997 and knows the area and its issues well. He has a passion for history and runs a local history website. Steve has campaigned for many years to prevent over-development in Wokingham town because of the lack of infrastructure. When he stood for Norreys Ward in 2007, he increased the Party's share of the vote, making the Lib-Dems the only serious challengers for the Ward.

REMENHAM, WARGRAVE & RUSCOMBE WARD

Martin Alder

British Airways pilot, Martin Alder, has lived in the area since 1988. He is married to a headteacher and both his children went to Wargrave Piggott School. He is committed to making sure that Wokingham District Council stops ignoring the parishes in the north of the District.

SHINFIELD SOUTH WARD

Richard Mitchell

Richard has lived in the Borough for nearly 30 years and is married with two sons. He came to the University of Reading to read Cybernetics & Control Engineering all those years ago and liked it so much that he's still here - he is currently a Senior Lecturer in Cybernetics and Director of Teaching and Learning in the School of Systems Engineering. Richard and his wife, Carol, an Earley Town Councillor, have successfully campaigned for reduced speed limits around a local school. Richard says that his sons take up most of his non-work time, but he tries to find time to play badminton and is also a keen artist.

TWYFORD WARD

Stephen Conway

Stephen was first elected as a District Councillor for Twyford in 1994. He is perhaps most well-known for his work on the introduction of concessionary fares for pensioners and the disabled when the Lib Dems were in control of Wokingham District Council, and he spearheaded the Lib Dem campaign to reverse the Tory cuts to services for the elderly and those with special needs. Locally, he succeeded in getting CCTV installed in the village centre, and he is continuing his campaign for a new library in Twyford. Stephen, a History Professor at University College London, is the Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrat Councillor Group on Wokingham Borough Council.

WESCOTT

David Vaughan

David has previously served on Wokingham District Council for four years and Wokingham Town Council for seven years. He has lived with his family in Wescott for over 30 years, and has 3 grown-up children and 4 grandchildren, most of whom still live in Wokingham. David is a recently retired Air Traffic Controller and is looking forward to getting more involved in the local community. He says that his priorities are: investment in our schools, cleaning up Wokingham town centre, and providing more facilities for young people.

WINNERSH

John Peffers

John is a retired civil servant and has lived in Winnersh for nearly 20 years. He was elected to Winnersh Parish Council last year and since then has worked with his Liberal Democrat colleagues, Councillors Prue Bray and Malcolm Armstrong, to improve the quality of life in Winnersh. Since his retirement as Corporate Services Director of the Intervention Board, Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food, John has been chairman of his Old Colleagues Association. He has a grown-up family, with several grandchildren, most of whom live locally, and he is a keen golfer and bridge player.

WOKINGHAM WITHOUT

Robert May

Robert was born and bred in the Borough and attended The Emmbrook School. He works in the IT industry and has recently returned from working in Turkey and Greece to take up a job in London. Robert loves sailing and rowing and is a keen windsurfer. He is committed to protect and improve the environment for the Wokingham Without community and adjoining areas. He wants to see the introduction of more traffic calming measures in residential areas and the provision of safer roads, footways and cycleways to really encourage people to use cars less and have healthier lifestyles. He is especially keen to get more of our schoolchildren to walk or cycle to school.

Related Links

• 2008 Manifesto file in Acrobat format