Here’s the candidate profile for Rob Kenney, who is standing in the May 2023 elections. All candidates were asked ten core questions; then, there were specific questions depending on whether candidates were existing councillors or not.
All answers appear unedited, apart from maybe tweaks to formatting, as sent through by the candidates.
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- Candidate Name: Rob Kenney
- Party: Stone Independents / Stafford Borough Independents
- Election: Stone Town Council / Stafford Borough Council
- Ward: Stonefield & Christchurch / St. Michael’s and Stonefield
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Core Candidate Questions
- Do you live in Stone and within the ward(s) you’re standing in? If not, what is your motivation for standing in Stone and not your own ward?
Yes
- Are you involved in any Stone-based charities, schools, groups, sports clubs, etc.? If so, in what capacity?
Crown Wharf Theatre Trustee (Chair of Trustees),
Common Plot Trustee, Stone in Bloom (Vice Chairman),
St Michael’s Community Hall management (member) - If elected, what will you, as a councillor, bring to the council?
Hard work and dedication as I have always strived to do in my role as a Councillor
- How do you plan to engage with and represent the interests of all members of the Stone community, including those from diverse backgrounds or with differing opinions?
Anyone can contact me by phone, email and can also be messaged through Facebook. However, I don’t in general engage in trolling comments made by other candidates across social media. My contact details are publicly available from both the STC and SBC councillor pages for anyone who has a genuine concern they’d like to raise. There will be times when decisions aren’t well received by a certain subset but this shouldn’t be felt as targeted based on location, economic background, age, race or gender.
- What do you think are the three most important issues facing the Stone community, and how do you plan to address them?
Crime and anti social behaviour: Is always at the top of residents lists. I am a member of the Police Liaison Group that was recently established to help highlight these issues, as well as others, that the police have to deal with. It’s a group where police, residents associations and councillors work jointly on information and share any feedback to help address the problems that residents endure.
Keeping Stone vibrant: Is essential with investment to create new ways to attract visitors to Stone such as the new Heritage Centre and the Crown Wharf project. We can’t allow Stone to stand still!
Facilities for younger people (from 0 to 18):The long-awaited revamp of Westbridge Park’s facilities for younger visitors (or lack of) has started and will be welcomed by many residents. I’ll certainly work alongside other Councillors with their ideas to help improve facilities for younger people. Our younger candidates are focused on these types of issues.
- How do you propose to ensure that the local economy continues to thrive and support all local businesses?
By Stone Town Council continuing to run its own events, marketing the Town. To continue to support support organisations and groups who hold events in and across the town.
The new Heritage centre will also act as a Tourist Information point and attract new visitors to Stone. - How do you plan to work with other members of the council to achieve your goals?
Through the various committees and working groups within the Town Council structure. At the same time listening to others views, welcoming new councillors onboard, taking a pragmatic approach to decision making, consider the needs of the residents, business owners and visitors
- How would you balance the needs of different groups and priorities when making budget decisions?
Budget decisions are made based on investment and events that will benefit the majority of residents and businesses. For example, putting on events, making the High Street look attractive with Hanging baskets, Christmas trees and bunting. Smaller groups always have the opportunity to apply for a small grant from the council.
- What is your position on local environmental issues, such as climate change, pollution, and waste management?
It’s a must that we have to do something to address climate change as soon as possible. In recent years the Environment committee has taken the challenge on and made progress. Pollution and waste management are outside of the scope of the Town council. However when these issues arise it’s often the Town Council contact first. The Town council will either contact the relevant authority or signpost the member of the public to that authority
- How will you ensure that your role as a councillor receives the required time and effort to carry it out effectively?
I believe I have done so in my role as a Councillor over the last 15 years and will continue to do so. I used to play golf and go fishing too but that’s not happened for quite sometime now.
Candidate-Specific Questions:
- What five words would people who know you use to describe you?
Had to ask a friend for this…. intelligent, honest, hard-working, generous, kind
2. As an already elected council member, what three things you are most proud of from your most recent term in office?
I have been involved with the Crown Wharf project since day one and two things I am still heavily involved with are the Crown Wharf Theatre and the Heritage Centre and also the continued constructive and financial support for the Community Hub. The one other thing that I mustn’t forget to mention from my recent term is my immense pride on the birth of my first 2 new wonderful grandchildren.
3. Can you give an example of something that in hindsight you’d wish you’d tackled differently in the most recent term? What lessons did you learn from the experience?
It has to be the monstrosity on the Stone Business Park. The lesson I learned is not to depend on Stafford Borough Planning reports that state:
“it is acknowledged that the level of impact that the height of the development would be likely to have on the character and quality of its immediate and wider settings (taking into account of the localised topography, vegetation, contextual built environment and relatively restricted locations where the development would be visible from), would not be so high and/or severely detrimental to the locality to categorically warrant an insistence that the buildings height be significantly reduced.”
and another stating:
“Whilst the new building would be significantly larger in both overall height and floor area, due to the topography of the land and the presence existing mature trees and vegetation in the landscape around the site, there would be very little indivisibility between the new building and the heritage assets identified above. The most likely place where the site might be visible is from the churchyard of St Michaels Roman Catholic Church, approximately 337m south-east of the site, but any impact to its special architectural and historic interest and how it is experienced in its setting would be negligible (if there would be any impact or visibility at all).
The Town Councils only has a consultee role in planning applications, which seems to have very little influence on decisions. Currently there’s a government led framework for how planning notices are publicised and these aren’t in line with modern times. I would look to ways that planning applications can be publicised to local residents and businesses.
4. How can candidates be classed as “independent” when they are all united as a group under a single political banner? How is this different from voting in line with a national political party?
We don’t have a ‘party whip’ to force people to vote in a certain way. Anyone can vote how they want or feel and we do have constructive meetings to discuss all aspects of varying issues. Most of the time we are all on common ground as we all want the best for Stone. Occasionally there are differing opinions but so be it. We have on occasions had members voting differently.
Yes, we are a united group as we all want the best for Stone and its residents. This is Proven by the fact that we have fielded a diversity of males and females from a wide age group for the full 18 Candidates in the Town Elections and the full 5 in the Borough Elections.
We truly care and we do not want to simply prop up political support for the National Party in current control at Stafford Borough Council
5. What’s your pledge to the people of Stone if you’re elected?
Continue my ‘work hard with dedication’ approach.
