Cllr Sam Murray represents Castle Hill Ward at Ipswich Borough Council and Whitehouse and Whitton Division at Suffolk County Council.
She is a mother of 2 and a small business owner in Ipswich. A resident of North Ipswich recently said “when Sam was elected, it was like letting off a Roman Candle. I don’t think people were quite ready for her!” Other residents laughed and agreed. Sam certainly hit the ground running.
In her short time as a Councillor she has delivered a lot for her residents. As a strong voice for people with disabilities, she has successfully lobbied Ipswich Borough Council to use disability advisors on major planning applications. She has used her highways locality money for reconstructing pavements so that wheelchair users can access a bus shelter. She has also built up a strong reputation amongst families who have children with special educational needs and disabilities. Not only does she spent time in the schools and nurseries in her division, she has also helped countless families with school places, EHCP support and by advocating on behalf of the families. She is the SEND governor of Castle Hill Schools and visits regularly. Another successful campaign resulted in the first wheelchair accessible swing in Suffolk which was installed at Castle Hill Park. Now children who use wheelchairs can enjoy swinging alongside their peers. Sam’s relationship with the parks team has positively resulted in inclusive play and she has used some of her County Council locality budget to purchase communication boards for non-verbal residents and children to be able to communicate when at Ipswich parks and beyond. Her advocacy for disability has also led to trials where adults with learning disabilities had an opportunity to teach children about bike repairs during her trial cycle swap shops. She was nominated for a National Diversity Award for being a positive role model to those with a disability.
Sam breaks down the barrier of what it is to be a Councillor. She is often spotted in her division in fancy dress when doing her councillor visits and tries not to take herself too seriously. She has dressed in an inflatable giraffe costume to visit a nursery school on their Zoo Day. She participated in an event at Castle Hill Community Centre dressed as a princess which made the manager do a double take and laugh. Her promotion of road safety during a jubilee event on Whitehouse Park dressed as a London Guard opened up conversations with her residents and broke the ice. She believes in being a part of the community and a grassroots approach.
But don’t let the fancy dress fool you. Sam does have a serious side and community safety is one of her priorities. She was the first Suffolk Councillor to complete the Domestic Abuse Champions training and took it upon herself to trial domestic abuse training to beauty salons and hairdressers in her division with the support of a trainer from Suffolk County Council. She is pleased that because of this trial, Ipswich Borough Council and Suffolk County Council are working on rolling this out to be town wide training available. Sam’s recent campaign is to get an Ipswich Knife Crime Strategy. Something she has been relentlessly lobbying for over the past 2 and half years. Sam was nominated for the Sue Poole Award in recognition in the field of Violence Against Women and Girls.
Sam is a sleeves rolled up, get on with the job type of Councillor. She commits to a cause and sees it through, no matter how long it takes. Though she did once try to trial mannequins as a technique to slow down speeding cars. On reflection, she acknowledges not all of her ideas are practical. Sam also agrees with the Chinese candle analogy.
Sam can be contacted on [email protected] for her County Council work or on [email protected] for her Borough Council work or 07980 074514,
