Denise Headley

Councillor in Enfield

For three days a week I’m the advice and information manager at Age Concern, the rest of the time I’m a mother and a councillor.

I’ve two daughters, they’re both aged eight now but when I was first elected they were only a year old so they’ve grown up with mummy being involved in political life.  It was the same for me because my parents were both grass-root activists. One of my earliest memories is going on a demonstration against the government of the day. 

The value system I grew up in encouraged me to have political views and I’ve always been involved in politics in some way. When I was a student I was involved in the student union as its vice-chair as well as with the Afro-Caribbean students’ association. 

Being a councillor means using skills you just don’t learn at school, skills like mobilising people, co-ordinating events and understanding your community. 

To be able to smile is probably the best skill you can have as a councillor – no matter how vexed a person is or difficult the situation, if you generate a sense of wanting to listen and smile at them they’ll smile back. You’ve got to have respect and remember that everyone’s problem is important to them so it’s important to listen - even when they call you just as you need to go and pick up the kids.

You can’t be a wuss, be afraid to say what you believe, or try to bend with the wind otherwise you’ll just be blown all over the place. You have to be strong in your views and know what you stand for and why you’re there.

I think a lot of people have an illusion about what degree of skills are needed.  It’s sad to me that many women and men from the Black and minority ethnic community doubt themselves and lack basic confidence to get involved.  They say things like ‘I’m not a great orator’ or ‘I don’t have good diction’ but in reality being a councillor’s not about either of those things. Most of your time is spent helping people, campaigning on behalf of your party or doing research on an issue.  So having someone say ‘you can do it’ is really important because people don’t think that they can and so don’t consider getting involved in local government.

If I had my time over again I’d spend less time banging the table and railing at the opposition party’s councillors and spend more time doing negotiation.  Banging the desk can get attention in the short term but it doesn’t change a great deal.