Lesley Smith

I've lived in Queen's Park for more than 20 years. I've brought up a daughter here, been a governor of local schools and I'm passionate about our area. I've had a long business career but now I want to make time to support my community. Queen's Park is a great place to live. But too many families find it hard to make ends meet. I’m glad Brent’s Resident Support Fund (RSF) can help give families a lifeline when they need it. We also need affordable housing, especially for young families. Brent’s homeless caseload is rising and I want to help the council’s efforts to create more affordable housing. Brent's private landlord licensing scheme will make a real difference to tenants’ security and living standards. We have great transport links but we’ve waited far too long for Queens Park station to be made accessible. Parents are still lugging pushchairs up stairs 17 years after I did and people with disabilities and older residents have no step free access. Local people have been pressing DfT for step free access for years and we need to keep the pressure up. We also need to work with local residents to make sure that we manage traffic to keep children safe and reduce congestion where we can. Brent’s a hard working borough. As its most southern ward it’s easy for people here to feel overlooked. We need to make sure that from Kensal Green to Queen’s Park we’re making local voices heard. General Election and Queens Park by-election 2024 - Postal votes Postal votes for the Queens Park by-election have been sent, by Brent Council but we're hearing that Royal Mail is experiencing some delays so that some may arrive later than expected. If you are a postal voter and do not receive your postal vote by Friday 28 June, you will need to go to Brent Civic Centre, Engineers Way, Wembley Park, HA9 0FJ to pick up a replacement. When you receive your postal vote pack, return your vote as soon as possible to ensure it arrives by polling day (Thursday 4 July). If you cannot post your postal vote in time, you can take it to a local polling station or Brent Civic Centre on polling day. You will be only able to hand in your own postal vote, and the postal votes of up to five other people. If handing in any postal votes, even your own, you will also need to complete a short form and take your photo ID.