Your questions answered: Queen’s Park by-election candidate Simon Charleton

Six candidates are standing in a by-election in Queen’s Park for a seat on Brighton and Hove City Council (BHCC) on Thursday 18 September 2025.

The seat became vacant when Labour councillor Tristram Burden resigned, citing a conflict of interest in his new job as a local authority inspector at the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

The candidates are Simon Charleton (Labour), Sunny Choudhury (Conservative), Rudi Dikty-Daudiyan (Liberal Democrat), Adrian Hart (Independent), Marina Lademacher (Green) and John Shepherd (Reform UK).

Each candidate has answered questions about local issues and why electors should vote for them.

Here are the responses from Labour candidate Simon Charleton, 69, a retired headteacher who lives in Queen’s Park.

Why do you want to be a councillor?

I want to be a local champion for everyone in Queen’s Park, regardless of who they vote for and which part of the ward they live in.

I have been campaigning, representing, lobbying, etc, for decades in Queen’s Park and want to use my experience and my many local connections to help residents with their practical problems.

I’ve been a councillor in Queen’s Park before so I know how to help residents navigate around council departments and get things done.

Why do you want to stand in this ward?

I have lived in Queen’s Park for nearly 30 years. My children went to Tarnerland Nursery, Royal Spa and St Luke’s schools and they learned how to play football in our lovely parks.

I would not consider standing in any other ward other than the one I live in.

I’m not seeking to build a political career – I simply want to be a community champion for everyone, whether they live in Craven Vale, St Luke’s, around the parks, Baker’s Bottom, by the College, Albion Hill, the John Steet area, Kingswood and Milner, etc.

What are the key issues specific to this ward?

Many residents tell me their concerns about anti-social behaviour close to their flats and in our two parks and we have some good solutions to help resolve this.

Others tell me they want to see improvements to our playgrounds, more initiatives to improve public spaces and recycling areas and fly-tipping removed more speedily.

Speeding is also an issue of concern. Residents have been talking to me on the doorstep about community plans for areas such as the Pepperpot and more support for our amazing local community and tenants’ groups.

Some residents have concerns about a planning application in Edward Street.

The number of primary and secondary age children is falling, resulting in a growing number of empty places and reduced funding for schools. What should the council do?

One of the reasons I’m standing is to bring my experience from a lifetime working in schools.

The previous Green administration completely failed to deal with this entirely predictable problem and left it to Labour to pick up the pieces.

Labour will deal with practical problems and not make empty and unrealistic promises.

The council took the difficult decision to close two primary schools. That has meant other schools in the city are fuller and better funded.

There will be no further changes to admissions arrangements and pupil numbers in the schools in Queen’s Park in this administration – and that is a promise I’m standing on.

Brighton and Hove has a housing crisis. Where should new homes be built?

The Labour council is the most ambitious in the whole country on affordable housing – last year the council bought back 100 properties and built hundreds of new homes.

The city has limited land but we need to make use of it – like at Moulsecoomb Hub where 200 new social homes are in the pipeline.

If elected, I will push for spare council land to be used for housing. The Green record on this is weak – very few new homes were built when they ran the council. It’s worth noting that the Labour council increased council tax on second and empty homes – a good number have been brought back into use.

Local government is being restructured in Sussex. New councils will be expected to serve a population of at least 300,000 and possibly 500,000. Brighton and Hove has a population of about 280,000. Should Brighton and Hove expand to the east, west or both?

It is important that people in Queen’s Park who feel strongly on this issue respond to the consultations that are running at the moment so that the government can listen to all shades of opinion. We need to listen to and value everyone’s views.

This reorganisation is part of the government’s wider plans to decentralise power away from London and into the hands of local people – and that I strongly applaud.

Who should be the first directly elected mayor of Sussex and why?

A number of great Labour candidates such as Dan Yates, from Brighton, have thrown their hats in the ring for this contest.

Who knows? There might be more. Any one of them would do a great job for Queen’s Park, Brighton and the rest of Sussex.

Labour mayors such as Sadiq Khan in London and Andy Burnham in Manchester have done a great job for their cities and regions and I know one of our Sussex candidates will bring more jobs and environmental improvements to Sussex.

Labour has led the way on taking power away from London and giving it to communities around the country.

Polling day is on Thursday 18 September, with polling stations due to be open from 7am to 10pm.

The polling stations are at