Eight candidates are standing for three seats in Moulsecoomb and Bevendean on Brighton and Hove City Council in the local elections next month. They answered questions sent in by the public via social media.
Why do you want to be a councillor?
Labour candidate Amanda Evans is a copywriter who is standing for re-election to the council.
She said: “The city and residents have suffered over the last few years with the pandemic, the ‘cost of living crisis’ and cuts and mismanagement both nationally and locally.
“I want to continue as a councillor to help restore basic services, improve our desperate housing situation and struggling education and social care sectors and build back better for our communities, hopefully with a majority Labour council and an incoming Labour government nationally too within 18 months.
“The communities here, on both sides of Lewes Road – Moulescoomb, Bevendean, Coombe Road, Bear Road, Saunders Park and Bates Estate – are pretty special and full of character, but a lot of people feel (understandably, in my view) pretty neglected and unheard, not least by the council.
“The ‘cost of living crisis’ is cutting deep and many are struggling. Alongside my ward colleagues, I want to be part of engaging with other residents to help the ward look and feel as good as it deserves to.”
Labour candidate Ty Goddard, 59, is a director of EdTech UK. He is on Twitter @Ty_goddard. He said: “I want to play my part in supporting residents, sorting out the basics and celebrating all that’s good across all our community.
“People want to be proud of this small city with a big heart. Time to get Brighton and Hove back on track, supporting people and delivering what they want.
“This is an area that needs action, not words. Building on the good work of the previous team, we need action not words from the council.
“I’m a director on the East Brighton Trust and I know we have people and organisations across Bevendean, Moulsecoomb and the Coombe Road area wanting the best for their communities.”
Labour candidate Jacob Taylor, 33, works in financial services. He said: “Brighton is my hometown – I grew up here and live here with my young family. We love it but the city has declined in recent years.
“Too often, the council doesn’t deliver the basic services that people need, like waste collections and street cleaning.
“We also have deeper problems. Educational inequality is too high and parents in Moulsecoomb and Bevendean worry about the prospects for their children. I get it. I went to Longhill and now serve there as a governor.
“I’m standing as a councillor so I can help fix these problems and rebuild some pride in our city.
“Moulsecoomb and Bevendean is a special place, with amazing and distinct communities right across the ward: Coombe Road and ‘Bear Mountain’, Bevendean, Bates Estate, Moulsecoomb and Saunders Park.
“But there are also problems and issues. Whether it’s schools, housing, bins and recycling or buses, Moulsecoomb and Bevendean often gets a bad deal from the council.
“I want to be a councillor that listens, engages and fights for our communities. I work hard, love organising and take pride in helping fix people’s problems. It would be a huge honour to serve residents as one of their councillors.”
Amanda Evans, Ty Goddard and Jacob Taylor said: “Many residents in Bevendean, Moulsecoomb and the Coombe Road area feel that the council is unresponsive and that the ward has been neglected versus central Brighton. We aim to change that.
“The streets could be cleaner, and recycling and waste collections need to improve. Potholes are a massive issue, particularly in Bevendean and Lewes Road, and we’ve already demanded and received commitments from the council on resurfacing.
“The 48 bus to Bevendean is not good enough. We’ve organised a petition, presented it to council and will challenge the bus company until this is improved.”
Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) candidate Julie Donovan, 61, is a learning support assistant.
She said: “I want to be a councillor because I believe local councillors have a vital role to play in defending ordinary people from and fighting back against the unprecedented attacks on living standards from this Tory government.
“It is not the job of local authorities to meekly pass on these attacks by cutting vital local services and increasing council taxes and service charges.
“I would fight for Brighton and Hove City Council to unite with trade unions, community, resident and tenant groups to set a budget based on local needs and resist the attacks from a government that cares only for the rich.
“I live in Coldean where there is another TUSC candidate. I want to stand in Moulsecoomb and Bevendean to ensure as many people as possible get to hear about TUSC.
“When we knocked on doors in the ward in order to find people who would nominate us, we said that we were the party who give full support to the health, education, transport, postal and other workers who are taking strike action.
“We had no problem getting nominators, people understand that strike action and other campaigns are the only way to make this government listen.
“One of the key issues facing the ward is the Moulsecoomb Hub North scheme. While TUSC is in full support of social housing being built, it will be crucial that any ward councillor ensures that the concerns of local residents and tenants are heard and addressed.
“Local facilities and traffic will be two of the issues, as well as ensuring that the council follows through with plans for outdoor and community spaces.
“While a centre for adult learning is proposed, the closure of the Bridge Community Centre and the Whitehawk Inn show that without a commitment of funding, such a plan is meaningless.
The Green Party is fielding three candidates – Frances Hunt, Anna Roberts and Ed Roberts.
The Conservatives is fielding one candidate – Gemma Powell.
What steps will you take to prioritise housing local people over those who have moved here?
Frances Hunt, Anna Roberts and Ed Roberts said: “The city is facing an affordable housing crisis and it is only getting worse. Renters are facing increasing rents and we do not have enough housing for the people living in the city.
“We are tackling this by building and buying new council homes, with nearly 500 completed in the last four years.
“If Greens continue to lead the council, we are pledging 800 new council homes in the next five years such as the Moulsecoomb neighbourhood development. Council homes are given to residents who have a local connection.”
Amanda Evans, Ty Goddard and Jacob Taylor said: “Housing is a massive issue in Brighton and Hove – it’s too expensive and there’s not enough of it.
“The way to provide housing for local people is to build more council homes and more affordable homes.
“Many of the new properties built in Brighton are bought as second homes for rich Londoners or by landlords that let them out at high rents.
“New housing should be for people who live here and need a property. Labour will introduce a ‘principal residence policy’, banning the sale of new properties as second homes.”
Julie Donovan said: “As the parent of two young adults, I am very aware of a vital question facing local families. Where are our young people supposed to live?
“We watch as state-of-the-art and extremely expensive student accommodation goes up all around us, yet there is a dearth of accommodation suitable for young people and families who live and work in the city.
“At work I hear about extortionate rents and substandard housing from my young colleagues. There is a housing crisis and the council ought to be at the forefront of fighting for decent, affordable housing for all.
What will you do to support the schools in and around your ward?
Frances Hunt, Anna Roberts, Ed Roberts said: “Schools across the city are facing a funding crisis thanks to the lack of funding provided by the Conservative government and falling pupil numbers.
“It is clear that the next council must continue to support schools through these challenges and find a route to ensure that school closures are avoided.
“On top of this, we would continue to fund and deliver programmes like the Our City Our World environmental education and anti-racist education, as well as having a relentless focus on programmes to support children and families who face additional barriers.”
Amanda Evans, Ty Goddard and Jacob Taylor said: “The outcomes for children in Moulsecoomb and Bevendean are far behind other parts of the city and this is one of the main reasons all three of us are standing.
“Primaries like Bevendean, Coombe Road, Fairlight and Moulsecoomb and secondaries like BACA and Longhill need extra support to help improve outcomes and this will be a top priority for a Labour council.
“We’ll increase support for the families of children with EHCPs (education, health and care plans). We will increase mental health counselling in schools. Labour introduced ‘school streets’ and will expand this to ensure it is easy and safe to get to school.”
Julie Donovan said: “I was part of the successful campaign to prevent Varndean High School from becoming an academy. I also supported the campaign to save Moulsecoomb Primary from the same fate.
“While that campaign was unsuccessful, the task remains to fight for proper funding for our schools, to defend staff from attacks by government and the undemocratic quango Ofsted and to work with parents to ensure that every child gets the education they deserve.”
How will you tackle our broken and weed-infested pavements and the dangers that they pose?
Frances Hunt, Anna Roberts and Ed Roberts said: “We believe that it is positive that the Labour-led council stopped the use of toxic pesticides. However, it is clear that their lack of plan to remove the weeds has caused an increase in weeds on the streets.
“The council is continuing to research and trial new methods to remove weeds and in the meantime has managed to recruit the full complement of workers to remove them this year, made more difficult by the Brexit and covid-caused worker shortages.
“Like many other councils, the city has also recently launched a volunteer scheme to help remove weeds which we support.”
Amanda Evans, Ty Goddard and Jacob Taylor said: “We all want to live in a city that looks good, with clean streets and safe pavements.
“Labour will safely wage war on the weeds that have been allowed to grow, making streets difficult and hazardous, especially with children and for the elderly and people with reduced mobility.
“We won’t return to the use of harmful glyphosates but we will work with our communities on targeted environmental and sustainable solutions, protecting human health, enabling nature to flourish and ensuring streets are managed to a high standard and are accessible to all.”
Julie Donovan said: “Broken pavements and other substandard infrastructure are the results of cuts. TUSC councillors will fight for the money to maintain pavements and other local amenities.
“While the fact that the insect population has declined by 75 per cent in the past 50 years means none of us want to see harmful chemicals used to control the weeds, there are other methods available, eg, thermal weed control.
“Local people have a wealth of knowledge and experience when it comes to gardens and allotments. This experience could be brought into good use to look for solutions to this problem.”
Polling day is Thursday 4 May. Photo ID is required for those voting in person.
Gibberish:“I want to play my part in supporting residents, sorting out the basics and celebrating all that’s good across all our community. Jiberis. Gibberish, gibberish AND MORE gibberish
Nothing from the greens on the ludicrous state of the roads or the joke transport. Bear road is a death trap for cycling with the amount of deep pot holes and patchwork repairs (it’s a main road) Lewes road outside the new uni buildings is a disgrace.
Whoever gets in needs to get a park and ride sorted at falmer thus reducing pollution across the entire ward and city, the carpark, Trainline and station are already built at amex stadium. Another train station near Sainsbury’s and another at moulscoomb way industrial estate would be a game changer for this side of the city.
It’s a cruel joke that if you live in this ward the only public transport to hove is the extremely slow 49 bus (50 mins). Does make it feel like Brighton and Hove is not really a city but still 2 different towns.