South Kesteven District Council cabinet member Rhea Rayside: ‘I am passionate about helping people in the community’
We continue our focus on members of the new cabinet at South Kesteven District Council with Councillor Rhea Rayside, cabinet member for people and communities.
Councillor Rayside, 40, was born in Barbados. She is married to an Englishman. They have four children between them and moved to the UK some years ago. Coun Rayside was elected to the district council for the first time in May. She is a Liberal Democrat councillor representing the ward of Stamford St George’s. She was a parish councillor in Billingborough before her election in May.
What is your job as the cabinet member for people and communities?
My portfolio includes anti-social behaviour and CCTV, migrants, mental health, rough sleeping, safeguarding, benefits and assistance.
It’s going well so far. In the initial stages after the election it was quite intense with the various training and learning about the portfolio. It was a lot of learning and taking in information, but equally exciting and feeling really positive about things going forward. I think we are working together well as a council because, despite being made up of several groups, we have that common ground and that foundation of wanting to serve the public and wanting to be transparent and accountable. I think that is the common ground amongst all of us. We are very much building our house on that, so to speak. I think so far, so good. Obviously at some point in time we will disagree. We are all mindful of how we operate and with the opposition. We are just trying to do things differently.
What do you want to achieve in your role in the cabinet?
I would like to get better support for those that need it. I have been working with groups involved with youth and the elderly and I am very keen also on supporting anyone with mental health or health issues because at the end of the day, as a council, we have an obligation to our community to make sure that everyone has access to everything that they need. We need to make sure we have a healthy community and they have all the information they need. With the current cost of living, we need to make sure everyone has access to the grants and assistance that they need. These are things that I am trying to improve. Also we do not have many rough sleepers in the district but I want to make sure that any who do, go to sleep with at least one meal. There are a only few individuals but once we are aware of it we do our utmost to house a person in temporary housing until we can get them something permanent.
Are you optimistic in the new council that you can achieve what you want to achieve?
I am very optimistic for the future. In the three months since the elections we have already achieved quite a few things so I think this is the beginning of being able to do a lot more in the four years we have been elected for and hopefully past that.
Is there anything you have achieved so far you would like to mention?
We have just brought on a team specifically for the cost of living to be able to offer guidance to individuals so whether they are going through a housing situation or benefits or whatever area it may be and they need that extra support we can give them that cost of living guidance. It’s new and it is already very active and helping many people so far. Also with customer service, our service has improved with access to the council. It will get better over the next few months so when people call they will be able to get through a lot quicker with whatever inquiry they need support with. With anti-social behaviour, we are hoping to improve that situation. It’s about one or two people who make it difficult for others and we want to control that better. We want people to be more considerate in their actions. We have moved CCTV from analogue to digital so we have 70 cameras covering public space between Grantham, Stamford, Bourne and the Deepings and they are monitored 24/7. I would also mention the Community Awards. We have added new awards. We have added the Community in Bloom Award to replace the Best Kept Village award and we also have an Urban Space Award. The other categories are Inspirational Young Person, Business and the Community, Lifetime Community Champion, Health and Wellbeing and The Neil Smith Beyond the Call of Duty Award. The closing date for nominations is August 24. I am really looking forward to meeting the finalists and being able to present them with an award because I, too, was an award winner in 2021 (Helping hand Award for helping to run Stamford’s Second Helpings food distribution hub during lockdown) so it will be nice for me to be on the other side of it.
You most recently wrote to the secretary of state for transport, the Rt Hon Mark Harper MP, arguing against the proposed closure of the ticket offices at Grantham and Stamford railway stations.
Yes. I said this will impact many of our residents or visitors who travel in and out of the district via rail every day, some of whom will rely on ticket office staff either for information on their travel arrangements or the purchase and collection of tickets and other products. This will especially be the case for those who are elderly or vulnerable. Additionally, unfamiliar stations can be very daunting to visitors, including young people, those with disabilities (particularly those with visual impairments), the elderly and anyone struggling with anxiety. Having staff physically on hand at stations will help to ensure that those unable to use the ticket machines can still purchase tickets or other products, as well as provide valuable reassurance and advice to many travellers using services at the stations. I am concerned that the changes will have a detrimental impact on existing rail customers, but also put people off using the railways as a means of public travel due to losing an important aspect of its customer facing accessibility and support.
Do you enjoy helping and meeting people?
Yes definitely. I have been living and breathing the community for a number of years. It’s something that I have always been passionate about so it’s really lovely for me to have that as my portfolio. It just feels like a continuation and a larger platform for me to be able to do the things that I am passionate about. My background was in the medical field for over 20 years but now I have moved into community work. I always thought growing up I knew I wanted to serve the community. I was passionate about medicine so I assumed that was a natural course to follow, but then I got to realise that i am more passionate about working within the community and serving people in a greater capacity. Some careers take from you and some fuel you and I have been doing more community projects and I find that literally fuels me but I get excited to do stuff for people. One of the things I do is supply schools with food packages twice a term so it helps any students whose families are going through food poverty. The schools will hand them out to students at their home so it is done discreetly. I am just seeing what other support I can offer schools.
