I was born in Bolton to which my parents then returned after the Manchester Blitz. I went to Mount St Joseph convent school there and afterwards to Manchester University where I was Union President I graduated in English and History and later returned part time to read Economics and Government. My mother died when I was 13 and so I helped my father with my younger siblings, a bossy elder sister !!
I taught in Bolton high schools and among my pupils was our Director of Children's Services, Sue Mulvaney and at the Bolton Institute of Technology both before and after having my family. My husband, Leo who died in 1994 was a Civil Engineer, Chartered Surveyor and Town Planner and worked amongst other things on providing accessible homes for people with disabilities.
We have four children , Michael a Chartered Accountant, Judith who has a severe learning disability , Rachel who runs the NSPCC's Full Stop campaign but also has a degree in theology and Magdalen who is a Barrister, between them they have nine children from 12 to a new baby, Leo, Max, Jonathan, Marcus, Benedict, Joseph, Oscar, Phoebe and Alexander so I am kept well aware of the needs of young families .
My interest in politics started at the university as the world was then facing the threat of communism so as a Catholic I was what might be called a social democrat. I was a Vice Chairman of the Young Conservative movement and fought the Cheetham, Manchester Parliamentary seat in 1959. I served on Turton Urban District Council before my marriage and a move to Heath Charnock . It was after the depth of the handicap of our second child Judith emerged that Leo and I became involved with Barnardo's and Mencap in lobbying for services for children with learning disabilities, almost non existent at the time (they did not go to school for example just a junior training centre at the age of 7). It became clear to me that a voice was needed where decisions about services were made and with 4 young children, Parliament was out , so I went into local government again, first on Chorley Borough Council where I was briefly its leader and in 1977 on to the County Council where I remain with a gap of 4 years in 1997-2001. I was Conservative Group Leader from to 1997 and Chairman of the hung Council in 1984.
I represented Chorley on the Central Lancashire Development Corporation Board till it was wound up .
I also represented the County on the North Western Regional Health Authority from 1982/1990 and was significantly involved in preserving and developing Chorley Hospital, as well as voicing the need to retain and extend other Lancashire Hospitals, Ormskirk, Blackburn, Preston , Burnley, Lancaster threatened by possible moves of services to the big Manchester Hospitals and was very involved in the closure of the "mental subnormality "hospitals in the North West and the moveof people institutionalised for years into ordinary supported housing .
For 8 years I was a member of the Council on Tribunals which protects the independence and integrity of Tribunals and served for the last 15 on Social Security and Disability Appeal Tribunals here in Lancahire and Wigan
As a carer I have served on the body which devised and supervised Disability Allowances, the Disabilty and Attendance Allowance Board
I was Vice Chairman of the Central Lancashire Polytechnic Council and assisted in its move to corporate and independent status eventually as UCLAN. I have represented the County on Lancaster, Liverpool and Manchester University Courts and for 20 years chaired Lancashire College and when it was permitted to be on a number of Governing bodies was a Governor of Holy Cross, St Michael's, Southlands, Albany.
I am a parishioner of St Joseph's RC Church in Anderton and serve on its Primary School Governing body , I also serve on the Catholic Bishops' Commitee on Public Life which keeps them in touch with community , national and local government issues .
Now I am the Conservative Group spokesperson on services for children, in the whole field of education and care at an exiting time when the death of victoria Climbie and all that followed, the Every Child Matters agenda means ther are huge changes taking place and I serve on the natonal Local Government Association Board which assists individual councils, collates good practise , advises ministers on the practicalities of legislation , works with voluntary organisations and aims at high quality services for all children
