In 2016, the Canalside ward, which includes most of Maybury, Sheerwater and Woodham, elected three Labour Councillors. In 2018, our Conservative candidate in the ward is Robina Shaheen, a former Labour Party candidate now standing on the positive message of the Conservatives.
Robina is well-known in the area as a driving instructor and she works particularly with women from the Asian community who want to learn to drive with a female instructor (although she has pupils from across Woking). Robina wants to spread the positive message of the Conservative administration at Woking Borough Council and make sure that Council services work for everyone in Canalside.
She said: "I would like to tell you a little bit about myself and why I think I would make a strong local representative for us all. My family moved to Woking from Pakistan when I was one year old. I was brought up here and attended local schools.While still a teenager, I was married and had to move away. Due to personal circumstances I came back to Woking and single-handedly raised my four children.
“Being a single Muslim woman, I realised that it was very difficult to get recognition or support but I overcame those obstacles, persevered and worked hard. I have always made time to help others and ended up working first as a volunteer then as an advisor for Citizen’s Advice Woking. In that role, I dealt with people’s issues on housing, welfare, benefits, debt and family problems. I was advising people from all parts of the community and I was working one day each week at the Maybury Centre.
“One of the things that was constantly being raised with me was how hard it was for Asian women to find a female bilingual driving instructor. It gave me the idea of training myself as a driving instructor and so since 2001, I have been running my own driving school, with many of my clients from the Asian community - but also from outside it. I find through this work that people talk to me about their issues and again I get to point them in the direction of people who can help.
“I was told by a friend that I would make a good Councillor and that I should find out more about being one if I wanted to do more to help people. I have become more convinced that it is Conservative values that can really make a difference to people; I want to help people help themselves and to empower them."