We asked all the candidates to provide a candidate statement of up to 750 words, which should include some background about them and why they’re standing.

I have been a civil servant for almost 40 years and have lived in Llanishen for most of my adult life after attending Llanishen High School between 1969 and 1976.

I was first elected onto Cardiff City Council for the Llanishen and Thornhill ward in 1991 and was re-elected in 1995, 1999 and 2012 spending 18 of the last 28 years as a Councillor for the ward.

For all those years I was on the Council’s Planning Committee building up a sound working knowledge of the planning and development system.

I was on the Governing Body of Thornhill Primary School when it first opened and I served for ten years on Cefn Onn’s Governing Body before the school closed. I have been on Coed Glas’ Governing Body for 28 years including a period of 15 years as Chair of Governors and have been Chair of Governors of the Court Special School on Station Road for over 10 years. The budgetary pressures on schools are intense and becoming worse and experience and knowledge of the system is needed now more than ever.

I have been Chair of the Court Field Action Group for over 10 years – a group of residents who help to administer and maintain the Court Field having negotiated a new 25 year lease with the Council 2 years ago. The Group is an example of a community functioning together and is an example of how retaining open space is functional and practical as well as aspirational.

I have also been on the Committee that has organised the Llanishen and Lisvane scouts firework display for the last two years and have been involved in the group that works alongside the local Rotary Club to organise the Llanishen Village Christmas lights.

When I was a Councillor previously I helped set up a Youth Action Project in Llanishen and Thornhill working alongside the Police and those residents interested in provisions for teenagers. It was this initiative that led to the creation of the skateboard park on the Glider Field still there today and still popular. As Councils have been forced to cut back on youth services, local initiatives have become more vital in creating facilities for the young.

In the 1990s, I set up a social inclusion unit within Cardiff Council and poverty and its manifestations and underlying causes locally, regionally, nationally and internationally remains an interest for me.

My work as a front line Civil Servant dealing directly with the public has helped me to be able to deal with personal cases with discretion and sensitivity and I have also organised and engaged with numerous local campaigns over the years against unwanted proposed developments .

I am a long suffering season ticket holder at Cardiff City and continue to have an interest in sports. One of the first community activities I engaged in was as treasurer of a local Sunday league team in the 1980s – the late and much lamented Church Park Rangers. I have always sought to maximise sporting facilities in Llanishen and Thornhill and hope to have the opportunity to continue to do so.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, My Cardiff North.

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• Local Elections