On Thursday 7 May, Rye will have the opportunity to elect local representatives to serve on Rother District Council.
Rye News has given all prospective candidates the opportunity to summarise their positions, especially in relation to their vision for how they intend to represent and support Rye and the surrounding villages.
These statements are the opinions of the candidates themselves and, as such, have not been edited by Rye News.
These are the five candidates standing in the Rye and Winchelsea ward on Rother District Council, listed in alphabetical order.
Dan Bradley (Reform UK)
Through my work in youth development, I’ve seen what our area can achieve when people come together. But I’ve also heard the challenges many of you face. Young families tell me how difficult it is to find a home locally. Others speak about services under pressure, roads that never seem to improve, and decisions made elsewhere that don’t always reflect what our communities actually need. These conversations stay with me and shape how I think about the future of this area.
Housing is one of the issues raised most often. Many people feel priced out as more properties become holiday lets. I’ve looked at how other communities have responded — prioritising full-time residents or supporting community-owned housing that stays affordable long-term. These are ideas worth exploring here too.
Local services are another concern. Some towns have introduced small visitor contributions at busy tourist spots to help maintain toilets, car parks, and infrastructure. It’s a simple way to ease pressure on residents while still supporting the local economy.
Roads, planning, and the landscape come up often as well. People want safer roads, better transport links, and a stronger voice in shaping development. Protecting our countryside matters deeply to many of us, and I’ve seen how seasonal shuttles, better traffic management, and higher biodiversity standards can help other communities balance growth with environmental care.
If you see me around town, please stop me for a chat. Real solutions start with real conversations, and I’m always ready to listen.
David Cooke (Conservative)
I didn’t come to this election with political ambitions. I came because Rye and Winchelsea deserve better, and because local councils should focus entirely on local people, not national agendas or gesture politics that mean nothing to hardworking council taxpayers like you and me.
I’m a Conservative because I believe in hard work, personal responsibility, and standing up for your community. I’ve lived that here, alongside my wife, with family roots going back decades. I know what makes this place special, and I know what’s letting it down.
Housing is a real concern. Local people, especially young families, are being priced out while second homes and holiday lets put pressure on our communities. We need a balanced approach that protects our character while ensuring local people can actually afford to live here. Our high streets need stronger support too, backing local enterprise, encouraging year-round trade, and acting on slow planning decisions and weak enforcement that frustrate residents and businesses alike.
What this community doesn’t need are candidates elected on the back of populism, without any real understanding of what local government is for. It needs someone who will roll up their sleeves, fight for every penny of funding, and make sure Rye and Winchelsea are never overlooked.
With our councils merging into a single new Unitary Authority, the decisions made over the next few years will determine where investment goes and which communities get heard. I will build on Keith Glazier’s outstanding groundwork and work alongside Sally-Ann Hart to arrive at that table as a united, experienced team, securing the best possible deal for Rye and Winchelsea.
Common sense. Clear priorities. No time wasted on anything that doesn’t put this community first.
Derek Greenup (Liberal Democrats)
Local Liberal Democrats have been delighted to select Derek Greenup as their candidate for the Rye and Winchelsea seat. Derek has lived in Fairlight for many years and has been a life-long Liberal.
Originally from Middlesbrough and educated at London University, Derek was a teacher by profession and he spent his final years before retirement as head teacher at William Parker School, where he got to know generations of local families. He took the school out of special measures to ‘Good’, and left the SEND department as ‘Outstanding.’
Mr Greenup, as he is known affectionately by many, has run for office in the past – in 2009 and 2019 – and has decided to stand again for the towns and villages he loves in order to work in partnership with Councillor Andrew Mier, Rother District councillor for Southern Rother.
Derek says, “I have been genuinely inspired by Andrew’s service to our villages, and I believe that Rye and Winchelsea and the surrounding rural communities need a strong, kind voice on Rother, who will advocate for the people and families who need help the most.”
Derek believes in the liberal values of freedom, tolerance and respect and plans specifically to work with the biker community, police and other agencies to ensure that bikers can visit our historic towns in a way that maximises their positive impact.
He will work alongside and encourage local businesses, especially those connected to tourism, so that they can continue to flourish and prosper.
And he will work with the growing Liberal Democrat group of councillors to ensure that in the process of local government re-organisation, the devolution of assets from Rother District Council is undertaken to the benefit of Rye, Winchelsea and our rural communities – not just as a cost-saving exercise managed by bureaucrats.
Dominic Manning (Green)
I am an architect by profession and have lived in this area since 1997. I care passionately about our people, our communities and our environment.
I have a track record of turning ideas into action:
• Co-founder of Rye Repair Café, now a popular monthly event.
• Until recently, I managed the cardboard recycling rota for the Rye Chamber of Commerce.
• Co-founder of the Rye Community Food and Wildlife Garden in Love Lane.
• Director of Strandliners. Speaking out on BBC Sussex, I have been holding Southern Water to account for the disastrous spill of bio-beads at Camber Sands.
• Core member of Rye Mutual Aid during Covid.
• Assisting with maps for Rye Neighbourhood Plan.
• Designing a new car-free bridge connecting the Rye schools with Tilling Green.
• Exploring ways of having more renewable technologies fitted to community buildings.
Rother District Council is now in winding down mode, with the unitary authority to be created next year. But the cost of living crisis is an immediate reality for many.
The Green Party rejects decades of austerity and calls on Central Government to provide people and communities with the support they deserve and need. There are so many ways to achieve this, including Invest to Save, which requires targeted upfront investment to secure sustained savings and improved outcomes.
If elected, I will assist all those who need access to the services the Council provides. I will continue with the good work that Rother Alliance, which includes the Greens, has been carrying out for our communities. This ranges from meeting financial stability to assisting addressing pensioner poverty. The Green Party councillors have been succeeding with motions such as Zane’s Law and Rights of Rivers – there is more to do.
First and foremost, I will stand up for Rye and Winchelsea.
For more information, visit:
https://rother.greenparty.org.uk/rye-eastern-rother/
Amanda Pollard (Labour)
As someone who has lived in our area for nearly 30 years, and raised my children here, I understand the real challenges our rural areas face, from lengthy ambulance response times to unreliable public transport services.
I have worked in the NHS for over 20 years, including as a senior manager in the Sussex Ambulance Service, and I have campaigned on health causes nationally on Panorama, Radio 4 and BBC News. I was awarded an international whistleblowing award for raising the alarm about standards in healthcare regulation and inspection at the Mid Staffs Public Inquiry, so as your local councillor, I will not be afraid to speak my mind and stand up for our corner of Rother!
We have an absolutely superb MP in Helena Dollimore. We have already seen the results of her work in Rye. We have had two public meetings about anti-social behaviour, and we are getting extra officers to keep our streets safe. We have exposed Southern Water’s catastrophic plastic bead spill on our coastline, for which they will now face the full consequences. Helena has consistently raised the importance of getting international trains back at Ashford, for which I will continue to make the case, if elected. Helena continues to work hard for Rye and Winchelsea, but she needs support on our local councils, making sure that our area and the issues that matter to us get the profile we deserve.
Rother District Council have decided that our town council should now manage cost-heavy assets, like the public toilets, but have not handed over revenue-generating ones such as public car parks which could help offset those costs. We shouldn’t have to subsidise this as a town through increased council tax. I will be raising this as a priority.
With Helena in Parliament and me at the council, Rye and Winchelsea will have a united team pushing for the issues that matter to local residents.
Polls are open from 7am to 10pm on Thursday 7 May. Don’t forget to bring a valid form of photo ID.
Image Credits: Rye News library , Dan Bradley , David Cooke , Derek Greenup , Dominic Manning , Amanda Pollard .