VOTERS across the county will go to the polls on Thursday, May 4 to elect members of Dorset County Council.

We take a look at candidates standing in west Dorset, starting with Bridport as well as the Beaminster and Marshwood Vale wards.

The polls will be held between 7am and 10pm next Thursday. The results will be announced on May 5. The county council’s electoral divisions were updated following a boundary review of the county in 2015.

BRIDPORT WARDS

KEITH DAY - CONSERVATIVE

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Keith is now retired having had a managerial career in civil aviation and the NHS.

Elected as a District Councillor in 2011 and first elected as a Town Councillor in 2009, he is a Trustee at Chancery House and has been an Adviser at Bridport CAB. He is therefore acutely aware of the difficulties facing the people of Bridport, particularly in the current uncertain financial situation. He would like to inject a more realistic approach into the decision-making process to improve the prospects for Bridport and the surrounding areas.

His main concerns are employment, business, health and housing.

He would like to continue to use his skills, experience and common sense approach to support the people of Bridport.

MARK ROBERTS - CONSERVATIVE

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Mark moved to Powerstock in 1984 and his three daughters were born here. He has two older sons, working in London.

Formerly in agriculture, as a farms manager and then in consultancy. He is now a director of and runs Daley Home Care, providing care locally for the elderly in their own homes.

He represents the Netherbury ward as a district councillor for West Dorset District Council, has been a governor at the Sir John Colfox Academy for 18 years, and is a trustee of Bridport Museum.

ROS KAYES - LIB DEM

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Everyone knows someone who’s been helped by Ros, county councillor since 2013. She’s helped prevent local hospital cuts, stop on-street parking charges, remove the West Bay pinch point, keep the Bridport to Yeovil bus, secure £225,000 to teach green skills.

Ros helped save Bridport Youth Centre and chairs its charitable trust as well as Bridport Community Land Trust.

She helped set up Harmony mental health centre and Skills Training Bridport which runs the job club. She’s working to keep the children’s ward in Dorchester and to support the women’s refuge and is leading campaigns against closure of GP surgeries and cuts to special needs education. She’ll work with whoever it takes to get things done.

SARAH HORNIMAN - LIB DEM

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Sarah grew up in West Dorset and returned to live here 8 years ago. She works in education.

She has campaigned against building on car parks in Bridport and against over development.

Sarah was elected onto Bridport Town Council two years’ ago. She is passionate about the NHS and the retention of public services. Sarah wants these services to be the best they can. She wants affordable housing to be really affordable for local people and for villages and towns to continue to be served by buses. Sarah is against spending money on vanity projects like the refurbishment of county hall. She wants the voices of local people to be fully heard at Dorset County Council and has a practical, common sense approach.

Sarah likes to look at issues in detail as well as the broader view and aims to go on asking searching questions.

PHYLLIDA CULPIN - LABOUR

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Phyllida’s background is in social housing, and until recently she worked in South Somerset.

She believes that people deserve the opportunity to achieve the best for themselves and their families. Phyllida lives in Pymore and is committed to supporting Bridport’s economy which means bringing more jobs that pay well to the area, improving public transport so that people can get to college, work, and get out to enjoy themselves, and providing low cost housing.

Phyllida uses local shops wherever she can and volunteers on a regular basis for conservation projects. She will stand up for the people of Bridport.

BILL MELLISH - LABOUR

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Bill Mellish was born in Lewisham, south London. He is a retired senior CID officer with the Metropolitan Police, having served on the Flying Squad and at New Scotland Yard. He retired after 32 years of service and went on to be a governor at a boy's comprehensive from which he received a long service award for his contribution to education.

Bill grew up on the same council estate as the famous boxer Henry Cooper. Bill's uncle was Bob Mellish, the Labour MP. Since moving to Bridport four years ago he has been an active fundraiser for Cupboard Love and other charities. He enjoys playing golf and skittles locally.

KELVIN CLAYTON - GREEN

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Kelvin is a town councillor in Bridport and is chairman of the local Green Party.

As a trustee of the Bridport Youth and Community Centre, which he helped form following the county council’s cut in funding, he has helped save the centre from closure.

He has spent his life working in the public sector, first as a firefighter, then as a careers adviser and lecturer. He says that he is passionate about preserving our public services and protecting our environment from the damaging effects of greed and big business. He also runs the Bridport ‘Philosophy in Pubs’ group.

ROB CASEY - GREEN

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Rob is a parish councillor in Bradpole where he works to support both the long-term interests and pressing concerns of local residents.

He works in further education and is also a writer and stand-up poet. He is passionate about speaking out and regularly performs throughout the region, including as co-organiser/host of Bridport’s spoken word open mic event, ‘Apothecary’.

He says that he is committed to giving a voice to everyone, and that he is standing in this election to ensure each and every word is heard where it matters most.

BEAMINSTER WARD

REBECCA KNOX - CONSERVATIVE

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:
 

Rebecca grew up here and lives here. It's a beautiful place with good and outstanding schools, homes for families, local businesses and vital services supported close by such as health and social care support for all ages. 

You want good broadband, roads and networks to help you live independently, prosper and remain healthy enjoying the beautiful countryside we all value so much. You want more recycling and zero tolerance to kerbside litter and flytipping, better access to seamless service provision, when you need it, to stay healthier longer, being independent and using technological innovation. Rebecca is here to help and she works hard.

PETER ALLEN - LIB DEM

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

We need someone who will represent Beaminster's interests at county level, not the county’s interests in Beaminster. 
As a Foreign Office diplomat, Peter spent more than ten years promoting Britain’s interests around the world. He can and will negotiate the best deal for Beaminster. Peter will work to make our roads safer. He will oppose cuts to local bus services, especially while county hall gets yet another refit. 

Peter will work tirelessly to ensure that public services are given priority over vanity projects. He walks and mountain bikes in our landscape; his kids play in it. We must protect and preserve it. At the same time we must shape national house building targets to suit our local needs, for employment and for genuinely affordable housing. 

Peter's young family now calls Beaminster home. He cares deeply about the future of our community and has its best interests at heart.

MARK GAGE - LABOUR

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Mark believes most important things that hold a rural community together are education and transport. 

Should you elect him, Mark will work to give you back your bus services and ensure that they are regular and affordable. He will also work to resist the reintroduction of grammar schools and ensure that the funding for education for all of our children, no matter what their circumstances, is improved. A key part of this will be to refund our youth centres. These are things that the Conservatives working with the Liberal Democrats have taken away from you - voting Labour will return them.

NEIL JUDD - GREEN

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Neil is the founder and director of an international organisation, Proforest, that advises on sustainability in forestry and agriculture. His organisation now employs more than 70 people. 

Neil moved to west Dorset in 2000, and is married with three children. His children have been through local primary and secondary schools, and he has also previously run a local food charity and opened a grocery shop and café in Beaminster with his wife. 

He has consistently argued against the programme of austerity imposed by the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, as a disaster for local services, and also supports a fully public sector NHS and properly funded schools. 

He believes that Brexit under the Tories will be a calamity for our local countryside and farmers.

MARSHWOOD VALE WARD

DARYL TURNER - CONSERVATIVE

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Having represented the Marshwood Vale as your county councillor for the last four years during very difficult times, Daryl feel best positioned to take The Vale's voice forward into a unitary council. 

Daryl has continued to attend parish councils regularly to ensure an effective link between local councils, their communities and the council.

Having recently graduated from the Local Government Association's, flagship, Leadership Academy, Daryl strives to constantly improve. 

Daryl's pledge to you is simple: "I care passionately about our area and will never stop working hard to improve it."
Local man, local choice, working for you.

STEVE TREVETHAN - LIB DEM

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Find Out and Speak Up was the label of the open non-party political NHS meeting that Steve organised in Lyme Regis so we can better deal with health service changes which are being spun and forced upon us. Find Out and Speak Up is Steve's politics.

There are difficulties and changes are needed. First they must be faced and understood in clear accurate words, then we do something. Bailing out the banks would have paid for the NHS for eight years. Austerity, nationally and locally, needs checking. We suffer health and public transport cuts and yet are paying £1.5 million to refurbish county hall.
Steve is an old ex-language and special needs teacher who came to Lyme Regis, and the tourist business, from Cornwall via Berkshire and the Midlands. If you want an enquiring sharp voice at County Hall, vote for Steve.

JOY EVERINGTON - LABOUR

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Joy has been a resident of Marshwood for 35 years.

She has supported publicly-funded education by saying no to new grammar schools, transport by enabling the young and elderly to get about and social care as we may all need it some day.

Joy is a retired public servant and former local registrar of births, deaths and marriages.

She has been an Upper Marshwood Vale parish councillor for 15 years.

Joy is currently the secretary and treasurer of the Dorset Federation of Horticultural Societies, supporting member clubs in Dorset and neighbouring counties. She is also a long-standing charity shop volunteer.

She said: "As your county councillor, I would bring my considerable life skills to the complex problems now facing our county".

CHIT CHONG - GREEN

Bridport and Lyme Regis News:

Chit qualified as an engineer and started work for both large and small manufacturing businesses. Since then he has worked as an environmentalist for more than 12 years and is an expert on low energy retrofit of buildings. He has a draught-proofing and insulation business in Dorset and also works as an environmental consultant.

Since moving to Dorset six years ago, he has been involved in the local community with Charmouth Scouts and Transition Town Bridport. 

He has been active in the Green Party for 25 years and was the first Green councillor to be elected in London.

If elected, he will work to represent his constituents and use his experience to promote green industries in Dorset. He will also work to improve energy efficiency of housing to create local green jobs and to save people money.