Cllr Diana Morris

I have been a councillor since 2006 – this is my first term and it has been a very exciting one.  I decided to stand for the Council because I had lived in Thornton ward for around 30 years and felt that I knew the area pretty well and understood some of the issues that needed tackling.  I first lived in Thornton as a single person, working in Central London, and then latterly with a partner and a daughter.  So I have seen the area from a number of perspectives.  Having a child at a local school is certainly a very good way of finding our about people’s hopes and aspirations!  When I retired from full time work as a town planner, I had the time to devote to being a councillor.
I have always been interested in politics – I joined CND when I was 14 and stood as a Labour candidate in a mock election at school at 16.  But during my student years and beyond I was more involved in issue politics – anti-Vietnam etc – than being a member of a political party. It was only when Margaret Thatcher got elected in 1979 that I decided it was time to do something much more focused to bring about change.  So I joined the Labour Party and have been a member ever since.
The thing that most motivates me is the belief that people should have some control over their lives whatever their economic circumstances.  I try to make sure that everyone in the community has a say in the way local services are run.  I chair the Clapham Park Neighbourhood Forum which is designed to do just that.  Through the forum, we managed to ensure that the sports pitches in Agnes Riley Gardens were available free to local groups.  And there are regular surgeries before the meetings to allow Clapham Park Homes residents to talk to the CPH staff about any individual concerns they may have. (Council tenants have other ways of doing this.)  Other meetings allowed residents in the ward to get an update on youth facilities in the area and on the regeneration programme for the Clapham Park Estate and to ask questions of the staff involved.
I am very proud of what we three councillors, Lib, Michael and myself have managed to achieve since 2006.  Others have talked about the main achievements.  I think the important thing about the windows, the bus, Agnes Riley Gardens etc – is that they were all issues that had been around for a long time and the subject of lots of campaigning by local people.  What I am proud of is that we have been able to give the final push to bring them to the brink of fruition.  I’m enjoying working with Ed already and hope that we can all go on to serve beyond May this year.