The 2023 BCP Council election is on Thursday 4th May. Around the country, the Green Party has more than tripled its number of councillors in the last five years - to over 550.
Now, the #GreenWave is coming to Bournemouth!
The Green Party has two BCP councillors already, in Bournemouth.
This election, we have great Green candidates in 31 out of 33 BCP wards [*].
In the 2019 local election, the Green Party came second (by vote share) to the Conservatives across Bournemouth's 16 wards. In 2021, the Green Party beat both Labour and the Lib Dems across Dorset County, in the Dorset Police & Crime Commissioner election won by the Conservatives.
In these four key Bournemouth wards [voting areas], your votes CAN elect these NINE fantastic local campaigning Green candidates on 4th May [click a ward name below to jump]:
Winton East: Councillor Simon Bull and Chris Rigby
Moordown: Kate Salmon and Joe Salmon
Queen's Park & Charminster: Alasdair Keddie and Nicole Nagel
East Cliff & Springbourne: Sara Armstrong, Paul Gray and Louise Kenchington
Bournemouth's two Green councilllors seek re-election
Simon Bull has lived in Winton East with his family for 18 years. He has a finance background, and is currently chief executive of a locally based national charity. Previously Simon set up and ran for 14 years an arts charity working with disadvantaged members of the Bournemouth community.
Simon is passionate about leaving a planet fit for our children.
Simon was first elected in 2015. As a hard-working councillor he has held several scrutiny roles, and served as Chair of BCP’s Planning Committee.
[Email...] [Facebook...] [Twitter...]
Chris Rigby works as technical lead for a solar energy co-operative, putting local environmental aspirations into practice every day. He is also an active member of Greenpeace UK as well as local environmental groups.
Elected in 2019 to BCP Council, he has served as Leader of its four-member Bournemouth Independent & Green Group, and in scrutiny and standards roles.
[Email...] [Facebook...] [Twitter...] [Instagram...] [YouTube archive...]
Some highlights of Simon and Chris's last four years as Winton East councillors:
[Full local track record...] [Full Climate & Ecological Emergency track record...]
[Simon and Chris's election leaflet (PDF)]
[Simon and Chris's election-time letter (PDF)]
[Simon and Chris's election-time newsletter (PDF)]
[Simon and Chris's community newsletter archive (2015-2023)]
[Simon and Chris's community video news archive]
Greens in second place, just 43 votes behind the Conservatives
Alice Kate Salmon has lived and worked in the local area since 2017, and started her and Joe's family here. She is passionate about doing what she can to improve Moordown’s services, facilities and environment for the benefit of everyone.
Kate is an experienced community campaigner and organiser, with a long track record of working for social and environmental change. Her career to date has included working for a wide range of charities, and in the public sector.
In Moordown, Kate with her volunteer team has talked and listened to hundreds of local residents over the last 18 months about what matters most to them. Kate has taken action on a range of issues, including:
raising concerns over BCP Council’s failure to make good after an arson attack at Moordown Rec in 2021
[Email...] [Facebook...] [YouTube archive...]
Joe Salmon was born and bred in Dorset. He works in the NHS, and has a background in environmental campaigning.
He is committed to making Moordown the best place it can be and creating a safe, pleasant, family-friendly area for the benefit of everyone. Along with Kate, he is raising his family here - so local concerns are his concerns.
Joe has worked with Kate to:
Joe has a proven track record of supporting local residents with their concerns, from his time campaigning in Leeds - where he first met Kate.
[Email...]
[Kate and Joe's election leaflet (PDF)]
[Kate and Joe's election-time letter (PDF)]
[Kate and Joe's election-time newsletter (PDF)]
[Kate and Joe's community newsletter archive]
[Kate and Joe's community video news archive]
Greens second to the Conservatives, campaigning hard to win this time
Alasdair Keddie has lived, worked and studied in Bournemouth for 29 years, the last 22 of these in Charminster, and it is where he has chosen to raise his young family. He knows that while Bournemouth is a naturally beautiful place to live, there are serious social problems in some areas. Alasdair says: "I am very aware of the issues that residents face on a day-to-day basis, including parking, vehicle crime, anti-social behaviour, graffiti, fly-tipping, and litter. I am committed to improving Queen’s Park and Charminster for everyone who lives here.
"I believe the Green Party’s focus on social justice and equality would serve well in addressing local issues such as housing, unlicensed drug rehabilitation and homelessness." Alasdair strongly identifies with Green Party policies opposing austerity cuts, defending the NHS, and taking real steps to address climate change.
Alasdair's background is in IT and business. After graduating from Bournemouth University in the 1990s, he worked as a technical consultant for IBM, then as a self-employed consultant working on open source software projects. He now owns his own local small business. He is a passionate environmental campaigner, and long-standing member of Greenpeace. He is experienced in organising fund-raising events and activities, and has led campaigns against rainforest destruction, oil drilling and fracking.
This is Alasdair's third time standing for the Council in Queen's Park & Charminster; in 2019 he was runner-up to the two Conservative councillors. Alasdair also stood as Green Party Parliamentary candidate for Bournemouth East in 2015, 2017 and 2019.
[Alasdair's community newsletter archive...]
[Email...] [Facebook...] [Twitter...]
Nicole Nagel has worked on a variety of charity projects over the last few years. She has built up a good rapport within the local community.
She works closely with the Dorset Children’s Foundation, Amelia’s Rainbow, Southwest Ambulance Services, local schools and Children Centres. She has raised thousands of pounds for the Ukraine Appeal and established during lockdown her own weekly surplus food distribution in Charminster. She also volunteered for Together We Can and is still doing her weekly community shopping.
Nicole had always been very passionate about her community and bringing people together.
She has been a voice for the people in her local community and she hopes to achieve much more for Queens Park & Charminster. [Email...] [Facebook...]
[Alasdair and Nicole's election-time newsletter (PDF)]
Unpredictable three-way race, energetic Green campaign needs less than a 4% swing from Conservatives for a win
Sara Armstrong: "I'm a single mum to two grown-up children. I've lived in the area for 20 years working for local charities, the council and the NHS. I'm passionate about championing community issues and I want more for our neighbourhood than the current status quo. I firmly believe that when we work together, we can all thrive." [Twitter...]
Paul Gray: "I’m a family man with a successful business but growing up, I experienced poverty and homelessness and understand the issues that can lead to this. Since opening the Firkin Shed in 2015, we have developed close connections with the local community and have regular fundraising events for the Foodbank."
Louise Kenchington: "Having spent the last 25 years working as a mental health nurse I have insights into the workings of the NHS and social care. Each day I spend my time listening to and advocating for the people I meet. My current role is supporting people living with dementia and their carers."
Sara, Paul and Louise say: "Each of your Green candidates lives within the East Cliff & Springbourne neighbourhood. As such we are 100% invested in our local community.
"We are passionate about ensuring that neighbourhood planning should enable us as the residents to have a direct say in the development and growth of our area, whilst also preserving our heritage - the parts of East Cliff and Springbourne we love.
"A Neighbourhood Plan for East Cliff and Springbourne is what's been needed for a very long time. A plan that unites all of us under one vision for East Cliff and Springbourne.
"We are the team who can make it happen.We represent real change from the political business as usual."
[Sara, Paul and Louise's campaign leaflet (PDF)]
Email: eastcliffandspringbourne@bcp.greenparty.org.uk
[East Cliff & Springbourne Greens Facebook page...]
