Introducing the new core team in South Glos Green Party - and some of the ways you can get involved
Last month’s election opened up new opportunities for Greens in South Gloucestershire. It showed us that there is appetite for green policies - and indeed we are pleased to see that the new Lib Dem/Labour coalition now running the district has adopted some of these as its own priorities. We stood more candidates in the district than ever before and saw an encouraging vote share in the places we stood. We now have seven councillors at town and parish council level. And we have attracted many new members of the party locally.
As our party grows locally and we look ahead to the next elections, this is now a time to take stock of how we run things in South Glos Green Party. We want to put new systems in place to ensure we are ready to run effective elections campaigns, to welcome new members and engage with existing members, and to respond to the challenges and priorities in South Gloucestershire.
Against this backdrop, we are delighted to introduce our new committee, elected in our AGM earlier this month. We have taken the opportunity to reshape the structure of the committee to ensure we have robust systems in place and key people to oversee them.
Our committee
Coordinator - Siân Harris
Siân became Press and Social Media Officer in 2020 and, along with other members of the committee, was one of the core campaign coordinating team in the 2023 local elections. She works as a communications manager at University of Bristol communicating about public health research, and also does consultancy work in the international development sector. She was previously a science and technology journalist and has a PhD in chemistry. She has been a volunteer youth and children’s worker for over 25 years, along with other local volunteering, and has lived in South Gloucestershire since 1999.
Deputy Coordinator - Chris Jackson
This new role for our new committee helps to ensure we have core people to coordinate local party operations and share the duties of running the local party. Chris moved to South Gloucestershire in 2014 with his family. He works as an IT engineer and has served as a member of the armed forces in a reserve capacity for 10 years. Chris is a Councillor on Sodbury Town Council, with particular responsibilities for environment and leisure, planning and transport.
Treasurer and Co-Elections Officer - James Nelson
James took on the role of Treasurer at the start of 2023 to help ensure appropriate financial management of our local election campaign. He is a student at University of Bristol, studying law, and has lived in South Gloucestershire for most of his life. James was elected to Bradley Stoke Town Council in May 2023, aged just 18 at the time, and is involved in the finance committee, leisure youth and amenities committee and the planning and environment committee.
Deputy Treasurer - Dan Boardman
This is another new role for our 2023, recognising the importance of ensuring access to and oversight of our local finances. Dan moved to the area in 2018 and campaigned as a target candidate in the 2023 local election. Dan brings a wealth of environmental knowledge to the team, having a PhD in contaminated water bioremediation and working as a project manager for a company that uses microalgae to remove pollution from sewage effluent to protect fish in rivers.He is now in his second term as a Councillor on Filton Town Council, where he has led on projects supporting redevelopment of the local leisure centre and coordinating with South Glos Council the planting of 100 new trees.
Membership Officer - Carolina Echegaray
Carolina became Membership Officer in 2022 and continues this role in the new committee. Carolina came to the UK as a child refugee from Peru and has worked as both a teacher and, more recently, as a safeguarding advisor in the international development sector. She runs a family business with her partner making metal frames for bicycles and is about to start a PhD in public health. Carolina is a Councillor for Westerleigh and Coalpit Heath Parish Council.
Nominating Officer and Co-Elections Officer - Jenny Vernon
Jenny has been involved in South Glos Green Party since 2015, having previously served as Coordinator, and has also held roles within the national Green Party, including Local Party Support and Field Organiser, as well as voluntary positions on Conference Committee and currently, Disciplinary Committee. They are also involved with the Housing and Health & Wellbeing Working Parties. They have lived in South Gloucestershire their whole life and worked extensively as a Social Housing Consultant, focussing on organisational governance and resident engagement. They are currently head of business development for Southern Brook, a South Gloucestershire-based charity. Having previously campaigned as target candidate for Hanham in local elections and as prospective parliamentary candidate for Filton & Bradley Stoke, Jenny also campaigned as a target candidate for Filton in the 2023 local election.
Get involved
Communications team
Alongside this core team, there are a number of other important roles to play. We decided in the recent AGM to replace the Press and Social Media Officer for this year with a team of local party members with interest in supporting communications, coordinated by the Coordinator and Deputy Coordinator. We already have some great members of this team with expertise in copyediting and web design and would welcome any others who would be interested in getting involved.
Analysing election data
The recent election generated a wealth of insight that we can use to tailor our approach in future elections. We are looking for one or several people who would have time to populate and update spreadsheets with this insight. This would be an ideal role for someone who would like to be involved and support campaigning but cannot join in with canvassing or leafleting.
Join a parish or town council
Following the recent elections, there are many parish and town councils that still have vacancies and will be looking to co-opt new councillors at the moment. This is a great way to get involved in and support your local area and brings valuable insight as we develop future election strategies.
We currently have councillors on: Bradley Stoke Town Council; Charfield Parish Council; Filton Town Council; Frampton Cotterell Parish Council; Sodbury Town Council; Thornbury Town Council and Westerleigh and Coalpit Heath Parish Council. Some of these still have vacancies and we’d love to add to this list!
Spread the word!
As always, please follow us on social media, subscribe to email updates and get in touch if you have suggestions - and do encourage others to do so too.
