Meet the candidates: Hazel Keirle

Last week we emailed all five candidates standing at local elections on 3rd May inviting them to ‘have their say’ in a questionnaire.

There are 3 candidates standing in Wednesfield South and 2 in Wednesfield North and we will publish any responses in the order we receive them.

Whilst WV11 does not back any political party, we are keen to see local politicians engaging with the community online as well as offline.

The fourth candidate to respond was Wednesfield North Conservative candidate Hazel Keirle, here are her responses to our questionnaire…

Name: Hazel Keirle

Party: Conservative

Ward: Wednesfield North

Occupation: Administrator

What made you decide to stand for election?

I have been a Councillor for 4 years and don’t feel I’ve achieved enough yet. It’s a very different role to the one I thought it was before I was elected but having 4 years experience under my belt could really help me achieve more in another term.

What do you believe are the key issues to be dealt with in your ward?

I have over the past two weeks carried out a cross section survey on the Ward to make sure I am reporting here the most recent key issues.

Across the Ward we have ongoing issues with parking, speeding, overgrown trees, dilapidated fencing, not enough community policing, insufficient social housing, lack of investment in green spaces and too few employment opportunities.

Although the Council has less money to spend – one of a Councillor’s many roles is to monitor that what it has, it spends wisely and fairly and to fight for Wednesfield North residents needs and wants.

If you are elected how do you plan to keep your constituents informed of what you are doing to represent them?

Communicating with and feedback to residents is critical for inclusion. A one to one basis is far easier to manage than across a whole Ward of 8,500 voters. However, as social media increases, new opportunities arise for e-communication. So we can use texts, email, face book, twitter, live streaming, media sites and everything the web has to offer – and still use telephone calls, letters and in-touch leaflets and we can knock doors. I have always held weekly drop-in surgeries and am more than happy to do home visits. So really, I have a whole host of communication resources to keep me in touch with residents and I will use them.

How do you feel you will be able to make a difference to your constituents?

There are two aspects to this really. There are things that can be achieved that make a difference to everyone, and then there are the personal support and advocacy tasks that you take on for individuals, which can make a real difference to that person. Each is as important as the other.

I believe some of my best attributes, are being a keen listener, a persistent advocate, a confidant, and always willing to learn. I don’t mind taking on those seemingly impossible tasks – almost everything is achievable with hard work and dedication.

Anything else you would like to add?

These are local elections and voting is important. Local candidates are very much in touch with the issues that really affect local people. We are elected to represent our fellow residents, and that I have always done and will continue to do if re-elected.