The LGA and ALDC have produced a new and inspiring version of the ‘Be a Councillor’ guide for female candidates, Liberal Democrat members and supporters which you can download here.
Lib Dem councillors have long been an important democratic voice for the party. Our well-worn mottos of ‘working hard all year round’ and ‘success you can see’ really mean something to the communities we represent.
However, when just one in three councillors, and 17% of council leaders are women, we really need, as a party, to improve both our paper and target candidates’ diversity.
For some people standing as a paper candidate is the first step to standing as a target candidate and therefore just as we need to act on target candidate diversity the same needs to be true for all candidates standing as Liberal Democrats.
This guide contains information about how councils work, the role of a councillor and most importantly, what being a Lib Dem councillor looks like.
The guide is a great starting point if you have ever looked at other councillors and thought ‘I could do this’. There is also information about where to go to find out more.
You may already be a campaigner, community activist, be involved in your local church or mosque, or be a local school governor. You might help to deliver leaflets or organising events. If so, you already have a great basis for taking up public office and becoming a Lib Dem councillor.
But ultimately, if you really care about your area, and want work to make it the best place it can be, becoming a Lib Dem councillor could be for you.
We hope you find this guide useful, and if you decide to stand for election, we look forward to welcoming you into the Lib Dem local government family.