Zena Brabazon's Page

With Nilgun Canver and David Browne, I’m one of the three Labour Party candidates for St. Ann’s Ward. So this profile gives:
● A bit about me - background and experience
● The present - what I’m doing now
● Why I’d like to serve on the Council and what I hope to achieve.

About Me

I was born and grew up in Hackney, first in Clapton then in Stamford Hill. I was one of the first members of my family to go to university. As I was eighteen in 1968 it was doubly special. Then I got my teaching qualification.

In 1971 I won a scholarship to work on an inner city summer camp in Boston Massachussets. After a year back in London where I worked for a voluntary organisation in Stepney, I returned to the USA.

I spent my twenties living in Boston – an amazing experience for me. I worked first as a community worker in one of the most deprived housing estates on the east coast where I was actively involved in local campaigns for welfare rights and housing advocacy. Then I became a community organiser for the Massachusetts State Office for Children. I organised a neighbourhood and community board with a State mandate to advocate and campaign for children’s services. I worked with local residents and agencies to build consensus on key local issues and we were very successful in getting improvements. Working from a shopfront office our campaign brought over $3m to our local communities.

This was in the seventies – at the height of the civil rights movement and community engagement in the U.S.A. Community development was inspired by Saul Alinsky and the work he did in Chicago to fight for improved services and conditions for local people. He’s been one of my heroes ever since!

I’ve lived in Tottenham since 1981 when I came back to London – then a single parent with a toddler. My daughter went to Haringey schools.

I worked in the voluntary sector. One enormously satisfying job involved developing and running a voluntary agency for children and adults with learning difficulties. It’s still running successfully.

In 1987 I answered a national ad and was appointed Head of Haringey’s Play Service. I later became Head of the Early Years and Play Service. I led Haringey’s trailblazer Sure Start programme and am proud that we developed Children’s Centres long before they were national policy! Then I became Head of Neighbourhood Management working to build community engagement and participation across our many communities. I worked for Haringey Council until early 2008.

From all my community experience here and in the USA, I’ve learned that working together with people is vital to build judgment, confidence and a culture of partnership. Also, that it’s essential to have ambition for change and improvement.

The Present

I now work part-time in another borough. I’ve also become a magistrate – an ambition for several years. This has given me added insight about what's happening in our society and made the need for change even clearer.

Before working for Haringey I chaired my daughter’s primary school governing body. For the past year I’ve again become a governor – at Rowland Hill Children’s Centre.

Dealing with the Council as a resident – rather than an officer – has taught me some important lessons. I understand why people can get frustrated and even angry when things take a long time to happen, or if they feel they aren’t listened to. But even the best staff can’t work well when systems let them down or when there are very limited resources available.

What I hope to offer as a councillor

Because I know how local government works (or doesn’t), if elected I believe I’ve a lot to contribute – both for St Ann’s ward and across Haringey.

People ask me which issues are important. Frankly, I don’t know many that aren’t important to some of our residents. Going round knocking on doors I’ve met people wanting to talk about an A-Z of issues. Afghanistan to parking zones. And from parks to planning.

For some residents the top issue is their kids’ education and future. Others are worried about elderly parents.

I want to see further improvements in our schools - from early years through to secondary. We need to fight for funding for Haringey to provide the health, housing, social and children’s services for everyone living here. The fair funding campaign for our schools is a start – it is simply unjust that a borough like Haringey receives less money per child than Hackney, Camden or Islington.

We need to continue working to improve our social services for children, families and adults. Understanding that anyone can face difficulties, we need as a public body to be able to respond and to support people.

Many residents in St Ann’s ward want the Council to do a better job tackling street dumping and other environmental issues. They are quite right. We need to continue trying to educate people and change their behaviour. But also to enforce the rules and prosecute offenders.

The proliferation of betting shops is destroying our high roads, causing debt, addiction and undermining our communities. It needs to be stopped and I’m delighted Labour’s national manifesto includes a commitment to begin this.

My own experience makes me passionate about housing – especially overcrowding and homelessness. A decent and stable home is vital in reducing health inequalities and improving people’s quality of life. As well as investing in new homes to house families, we need to bring more empty homes back into use. And to explore ways to adapt our existing housing.

We need to carry on improving Council properties. In St. Ann’s ward some estates have benefitted from the Decent Homes programme. I will work to make sure all the estates across the ward are improved.

I will press for the new Council to use its powers effectively to tackle slum landlords and to be ready to campaign for new legislation if needed. The Government’s changes to licensing Homes in Multiple Occupation were overdue. For a long time I’ve thought we need a dedicated team to work on this issue including a full-time lawyer, specialist enforcement officers, private sector housing experts and outreach workers to link-up with tenants. If Labour win, I’ll be proposing this.

The Council is the borough’s biggest employer and we need to be creative and resourceful in recruiting apprentices and young people through the current government job programmes. Training young people in enforcement and environmental health jobs for example where they can really develop useful and interesting careers.

More than ever, with public spending cuts apparently coming, it’s vital that we have good political leadership. We face very big challenges to retain public services and we will need to be very determined and clear about what we do to sustain them for local people.

We are publically accountable for services. But more and more frequently, councils nationally don’t deliver those services directly – they are commissioned through tendering and market competition. This wouldn’t be my personal choice but currently this is the way it is!

So, we will need to be very good and intelligent clients, making sure the services we commission really do meet local needs. We must have very clear and strong systems for monitoring providers/contractors – whether they are removing rubbish and dumping, filling in potholes or delivering home care – to make sure our money is well spent. Residents’ experiences and expectations should set the agenda.

I strongly believe we need a political culture which is far more open and transparent. Where we really do work with local people and always make sure we are outward looking, welcoming creative ideas and fresh thinking. I know people don’t always agree, and it is naïve to think everyone can have exactly what they want. But an open culture means welcoming debate, challenge and discussion to shape ideas and ambitions for our neighbourhoods. We must do this and work with people if we are to build any community consensus and way forward.

Zena Brabazon
Labour Party Candidate, St. Ann’s Ward