The candidates vying for your votes in Kentwood for the 2022 Reading Borough Council elections have been announced.
The Kentwood ward covers parts of Tilehurst.
The entirety of Reading Borough Council is being elected this year, with Kentwood being a three-member ward.
Kentwood currently has two Conservatives and one Labour member.
The two conservatives, councillors Jenny Rynn and Raj Singh are running this year, but Labour cllr Daya Pal Singh is standing down.
READ MORE: Reading local elections 2022 battlegrounds and key clashes
Former Labour cllr Glenn Dennis is hoping to reclaim his seat, and cllr David Stevens, who defected from the Conservatives to the Labour party will be hoping to keep his place on the council as well.
See all the candidates seeking your votes by party below.
Conservatives
Jenny Rynn
Cllr Jenny Rynn was born in Tilehurst and was educated at Alfred Sutton Girls School. Following a number of years living in South Africa, she worked at the National Westminster Bank and then in Blue Circle’s treasury department in London.
She was first elected as a councillor in Kentwood in 2006 and served as Mayor of Reading during the 2012/13 municipal year.
After standing down from the council following her term as Mayor, Jenny was then re-elected in 2019.
Raj Singh
Cllr Raj Singh lives in Tilehurst and was first elected as a councillor for Kentwood in 2018.
Since being elected, Cllr Singh has consistently raised important local issues and has run campaigns to fix potholes, combat fly-tipping, protect local green spaces and tackle unauthorised encampments.
Cllr Singh also worked as an NHS volunteer responder during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Nick Fudge
Nick has lived in Reading for more than 37 years and is standing for the second time in Kentwood. A proactive and committed campaigner, he is passionate about important local issues including fly-tipping, antisocial behaviour, broken amenities and poor road surfaces.
Nick regularly makes reports to the council and wants all residents’ voices to be heard and represented. He is very active holding the council to account and highlighting incidents of flytipping to Reading Borough Council on Twitter.
He is also keen to preserve and protect Reading’s environment, heritage and green spaces for future generations.
Nick has stood as a Conservative candidate for Minster ward in several elections.
Labour
Glenn Dennis
Former councillor Glenn Dennis is seeking to reclaim his Kentwood seat on the council for the Labour party.
He entered the council in 2014 but lost his place on the council to cllr Raj Singh in 2018, in a year that he was due to be mayor.
Mr Dennis said: “My parents came to the UK from Jamaica in the 1950’s as part of the ‘Windrush’ generation. I was brought up in London in a typical working-class family. I left school at 17 and went straight into an apprenticeship where I gained my qualifications as an electronics engineer.
“I am a committed Labour member, since 2001, and have been active all of that time.. As a long standing Labour party member, I absolutely believe in social democracy and fairness across our communities.
“I have lived in the Reading area since 2003 and served as a Reading Borough Councillor from 2014 – 2018 where I sat on the many committees. I currently work in the community as a trustee on the Alliance for Cohesion & Racial Equality (ACRE) and a Tilehurst Parish Councillor. My ambitions are to work hard in the council to:
- Help reduce anti-social behaviour in Kentwood.
- Increase and improve the council housing stock.
- Work with the council and local groups, like ACRE, to improve the support to our communities.”
David Stevens
Cllr David Stevens is running in the Kentwood ward for Labour having been elected as a Conservative councillor for Thames ward in 2018.
He served as mayor in 2020/21, the year of the pandemic, and crossed the floor to join the Labour party in January.
Cllr Stevens said that, during his time as mayor, he had worked closely with Labour councillors and that he ‘shared a common political outlook’ with them.
He is a committed member of the Reading Dusseldorf association.
Mark Keeping
Mark Keeping is a Labour member and candidate.
He’s supporting the party’s manifesto for the borough, which claims ‘Labour is best for Reading because Labour delivers for Reading’.
Key priorities laid out in the manifesto include making sustainable and inclusive communities, making sure the borough is aspirational and offers opportunities for everyone, and making sure it is a great place to live from the cradle to the grave.
You can read it here.
Green Party
Brent Smith
Brent Smith has lived in Reading for over 30 years. He works with computers. In his spare time he enjoys cycling. If elected he will work for a proper segregated cycle network.
Brent would like to see a fairer, greener, more affordable town. The Reading Green Party mini manifesto for 2022 is here.
Caroline Hearst
Caroline Hearst has lived in Reading for 11 years. She works for AutAngel – an autistic run community interest company supporting autistic adults. When not working she enjoys gardening.
Carolyn would like to see a fairer, greener, more affordable town. The Reading Green Party mini manifesto for 2022 is here.
Liberal Democrats
Jonathan Barker
Jonathan Barker is a retired manager in the telecoms industry and active member of the community in Kentwood, as well as being a Public Governor of the Royal Berkshire Hospital.
He is a long-standing believer in, and defender of, our NHS; his priorities for Kentwood are a fair deal for its residents and services, affordable housing in the places it’s most needed, and no development on its green spaces and woodlands.
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