Cllr Maroof Raouf, Nether Edge and Sharrow Ward

 

Maroof is a proud immigrant and a dedicated public servant with a passion for education and skills. He can speak a number of languages, has a background in education, has worked with many different cultures around the world, and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Council Chambers; experience which has been crucial in ensuring progressive policies have been put forward during his time in post.

 

Maroof is deeply committed to serving the needs and wants of the community of NE&S and works tirelessly to improve the lives of its residents. He has shown he is dedicated to listening to the concerns of the community and taking action to address them. He has assisted residents with concerns around litter, bins, parking, public transport, parks, and many other issues.

 

Maroof champions holding people in power to account and has regularly challenged the Council Leader on his inaction in ensuring the city is listening and acting upon the concerns of its amazing residents. He strongly supports the rights of the Palestinian people to exist and their right to return to their homelands, he has been active in speaking up about the genocide being committed on Gazans by speaking at many protests and bringing their causes to wider attention.  He has said “that by actively showing my support for Gaza, I am standing up for human rights, justice, and dignity for all oppressed people around the world”. By supporting Gaza, Maroof is sending a powerful message that he will not turn a blind eye to injustice. Maroof says he “understands that I may not be able to change the world, but I can help to change minds”.

 

Maroof sees a future where education is “not seen as an assembly-driven provision, stifling creativity and the huge potential children have”. He believes that “school league tables need to be scrapped as they give an over-inflated impression of schools that have a higher ability intake. Our children’s achievements should be celebrated without turning it into a game between schools”. Instead of league tables, he suggests a more comprehensive and nuanced approach to evaluating school performances, “one that takes into account a broad range of factors and acknowledges the complexity of education”, he is committed to making this vision a reality by continuing the good work he has contributed to during his time as Vice Chair of Education, Children, and Families.