I moved here 20 years ago to study at St George's University, and it has been my home ever since.

Full statement

I have built my life here, and I care deeply about making sure local people feel heard, respected and properly represented.

I co-chair my NHS staff disability network and am a longstanding trade union representative. Through these roles I am involved in writing and shaping policy to make sure people are represented fairly and their voices are properly heard. I actively seek input from staff throughout the organisation to ensure everybody feels valued and included. Much of my work involves supporting carers and families who are too often left to fight for things they should not have to battle alone, whether that is accessibility, support for children, adaptations, social care or fair treatment at work.

At the same time, I stand for the wider community too, including people who feel isolated, and those who can easily become unseen when support is hard to reach. I want East Putney to be a place where people from all backgrounds and all walks of life know their concerns are valid and genuinely do matter. In the disability community we have a saying 'nothing about us without us', and when this is applied to everyone, equality and diversity stop being slogans and start becoming culture. I want the residents of East Putney to feel a sense of belonging and that this truly is their home.

One of the things I have particularly enjoyed while canvassing has been the good conversations with people whose politics differ from my own. Even when we disagree, those conversations have value. They reinforce that local politics works best when people are willing to listen and learn from one another and bring different perspectives to the table. We are a politically diverse borough, where even individuals in the same household support different parties. I am proud to live in a democratic country, but it's unfortunate there is an ugly side to politics where negative stereotypes are perpetuated. I say to residents that all candidates are individuals who share the same common goal to support our neighbours. Well, to the residents who don't slam the door in my face anyway!

I believe in working constructively wherever possible, but I also know there are times when someone has to speak up more firmly when people are being ignored. I am standing because East Putney deserves a representative who will act with substance, listen with care, and not let important issues be quietly pushed aside.

Whatever your politics may be, it's so important you go out to vote. There's no such thing as a wasted vote; every vote really does count.