Young Wolverhampton councillor quit for better work-life balance

Bev Momenabadi was the youngest Labour councillor in Wolverhampton when she was elected in 2018 aged 29

A former councillor says she quit the role due to exhaustion and the effect it was having on her personal life.

Bev Momenabadi was the youngest Labour councillor at City of Wolverhampton Council when she was elected, aged 29, in 2018.

But after five years, which saw her become cabinet member for children and young people, she did not stand in May's elections.

"I wanted to see my family more," she said.

"Many of us [young councillors] have full-time jobs as well as being councillors and trying to do the both can take its toll on your personal life."

Ms Momenabadi said her council work on top of her job meant she and her partner Nathan Evans were "like passing ships in the night"

Ms Momenabadi became a councillor for the Ettingshall ward after she previously worked for charities and said she was motivated by wanting to "be part of the change I wanted to see".

Her work as a councillor also covered the Covid-19 pandemic, when she volunteered at a test centre and delivered food parcels, and she won a local government "young councillor of the year award" in 2020.

But she told BBC Radio WM some of the most challenging issues she had faced included supporting bullied school pupils who felt suicidal and when an elderly woman was left shaken after she was burgled.

"I ended up staying at her house for a number of nights just to make sure she felt OK," Ms Momenabadi said.

"Those are the real reasons I think people get into politics because they really want to make a difference."

Ms Momenabadi said she wanted to spend time with her family and look to start one of her own after she stood down as a councillor

Her family live in Manchester and she said this meant she did not see her parents "for months and months", while she and her partner, Nathan Evans, were "like passing ships in the night".

Her decision to stand down surprised colleagues in the Labour Party and Ms Momenabadi said she would not rule out a future return to front-line politics.

"For now, I want to spend time with my family. I've missed them dearly for the last five years and hopefully start a family as well," she said.