Meet the scientists!

Hello I’m Councillor Rachel Lancaster; I am the second woman from my family to be a councillor but hopefully not the last

I live and work in Holbrooks, the ward I represent, with my husband Dave and two of my three children Lawrie and Meridith.

I went to John Shelton School and then onto President Kennedy secondary school , both in Holbrooks, and I have to say I loved school but I wasn’t always a good student!

I like shopping – especially grabbing a bargain on eBay, and I network with friends & family on  Facebook.

I feel passionate about:-

Children & young people – giving them the opportunity to have safe places to meet & socialise, like dedicated youth centres & clubs, managed by young people for young people, supported by their community.

The environment – recycling & reusing waste, and how we encourage people to do more particularly in their own homes & community. Even making small changes can have big benefits.

Community involvement – getting people to stop moaning about things and get involved with making positive and lasting changes to where they live.

I believe everyone has a social responsibility to give something back to their community to help make it a better place.

Firstly there is no such thing a a typical day, every day is different. The day could start with by doing a telephone interview at 7.30 for BBC radio,  an irate phone call from a resident or straight out to a meeting or work commitment, you just never know.

Holbrooks councillors work together, discussing issues so we can provide continuity to residents, we attend regular briefings and safer neighbourhood groups which give us information about the area we represent & how we can help sort out problems.

Since I became youth champion last year I have supported youth initiatives,

• regularly volunteering on Friday night at a local youth club,
•  organising events like trips to Alton towers in partnership with the youth service
• Raising funds to provide equipment for Holbrooks youth centre
• Promoted sports & fitness by running a boxing program during the summer holidays
• held parties, disco’s, BBQ’s & open days to involve the community with the youth centre
• Attended C card training all about relationships & sexual health issues concerning young people
• Ensured other volunteers at the centre have attended that training too
• I’m a school governor & a committee member on several local charities

In short I’ve been very busy, but there is still more to do. This year I intend to source funding for a paid youth worker to support and expand the current work at Holbrooks Youth centre. I will still volunteer, hopefully getting  more young people involved & actively playing a part in the management of the centre.