Kathy Aston

I am married, in my 40′s and teach English for academic purposes at Sheffield University to overseas students of all nationalities and cultures. I live just outside the ward in a terraced house in Hillsborough and have stood as the Green Party candidate in West Ecclesfield in the recent elections. I am the Press Officer for Sheffield Green Party.

I am passionate about the environment and taking action on climate change. I bike to work and use the tram. I am a keen composter and I share two allotments with friends. I shop locally and have a weekly organic box of fruit and vegetables from a local supplier.

Our local communities are under threat and I support the “Living Streets” campaign for residential areas where people can reach a post office, chemist, bank and a food shop within a 15 minute walk of where they live. The council says that that it is viable to open more supermarkets in the north of Shefffield but it will mean the inevitable loss of local shops and shopping parades.

Car drivers are frustrated by gridlock with North Sheffield residents struggling to get through hotspots like Hillsborough. We all suffer from traffic pollution and noise. Keeping services local reduces the need to travel. If more journeys were made on foot, bicycle or public transport, it would help essential car users. We need better railways, trams and buses. The Green Party is pushing push for re-regulation of the bus service, public funding of any further routes axed by the commercial operators and more spending on pedestrian crossings.

Sheffield council and budget cuts

While Labour and the Lib Dems on Sheffield Council fight each other over small differences our city suffers. Green Councillors have offered real alternatives for residents eg :

• Opposition to the Highways PFI on the grounds of it’s huge, rising cost.
• Help for local people most affected by the proposed change to fortnightly bin collections.

Green councillors fought to stop the cuts from government unfairly affecting the most vulnerable. Our council budget for 2012/13 tried to cut backroom functions and the wages of top executives.

We wanted to :

• support frontline services like Citizen’s Advice and the Youth Service
• support children, elderly and disabled people
• raise standards in private-rented housing
• stop cuts to teams fighting anti-social behaviour

But we were voted down by Labour and the Lib Dems