Abtisam Mohamed is among the shortlist of candidates hoping to replace Paul Blomfield in the Labour safe seat of Sheffield Central. She grew up in Burngreave and still lives there today. I caught up with her this week to find out how the former Earl Marshall School student became a successful lawyer and local councillor and why she wants to be an MP in Sheffield. She told me, “I remember speaking to someone from careers at school and I said that I want to go into law. Their advice was, you’re not going to because of the school you go to and the area you live in. They told me to try something a little more achievable, maybe childcare. So, the aspirations weren’t high.”
Abtisam says it was drilled into her and her classmates that because of where she lived – in Burngreave, there were certain limits to how far they could go. Inspired by her English teacher, she scraped through, leaving with four GCSEs. “I always cling on to those, because people always say they’re not proper GCSEs and I say every single GCSE counted. Two of those were in Drama and DT but the other two key ones were English and Maths.” She says, “It really mattered having the right teacher.”
At that point, Abtisam says she would never have imagined being a local councillor, let alone an MP. After leaving Earl Marshall school (now known as Fir Vale Secondary), Abtisam studied for A-levels at college but didn’t pass. She recalls a feeling that it didn’t matter, and that she was only doing them for the sake of it. “Aspirations were so low, very few of my friends went on to University. Some went straight into employment and some classmates ended up on the other side of the law. That was our reality growing up. The grit of everyday life and the environment around you teaches you to be streetwise, but the grit and fighting spirit get you through.” She says.
Undeterred by her education experience, Abtisam returned to University as a mature student determined not to let her surroundings define who she was. “It pushed me to think people from our area really have to fight to change things for themselves.” She added, “Your surroundings can either make you stronger or they can break you. For the overwhelming majority, there is a real motivation to change things for the better. Sometimes you’ve got to push a little bit harder than maybe some others would have to, because of those factors.”
Ms Mohamed has served on the council for six years, being elected three times by a large majority. She told me, “The thing I enjoy most about local politics is being out in the ward as much as possible. Being visible in the area, and dealing with people’s individual problems, is why I got involved in politics. Making those changes at a local level is what matters to people.”
I asked her what she considers her greatest achievement so far. She said, “When I look back at the mountains I’ve had to climb In life, just getting to where I am with a smile on my face feels like a huge achievement in itself.”
Abtisam also carried the Olympic torch in Sheffield – a reward for the work she had done in the community, which led to her nomination along with five others, for Woman of the year.
She has dealt with some heart-wrenching cases as a human rights lawyer and says winning some of those cases has given her great satisfaction. In her role as councillor, she wrote the bid for Firth Park to access Economic recovery funding, securing a much-needed £200,000 for the area. She brought the community together with local businesses to decide how to spend the money, which is also a significant achievement.
Paul Blomfield has been Sheffield Central MP since 2010, increasing a tiny minority to a considerable one. He recently announced that he is to stand down at the next General Election. Abtisam believes Sheffield needs someone local to replace Paul. “There needs to be an understanding of what Sheffield as a city needs and that comes from local knowledge and working with people and organisations on the ground. We also need someone who will work hard.
I’ve seen Paul at work. He’s one of the hardest-working MPs we have. He’s leaving a great legacy that has to be continued. We also need a connection between local communities and national policy. People who are elected should be able to understand what matters in their local communities and use that to form their priorities on the national arena. It should always be from the ground up, not from top to bottom.”
With a Labour success looking increasingly likely, when the public does go to the ballot boxes, Abtisam acknowledges that there will be huge pressure on Labour to succeed. She says, “The economy has been destroyed by the Tory Government. I worry that there is an expectation that Labour will just turn things around immediately. My key priorities will be fighting inequality and investing in a greener and fairer economy. Investment in our public services is essential as is creating long-term sustainable and decent jobs. I’ll also be advocating for regeneration and proper levelling up in communities.”
To bring together the diverse areas within Sheffield Central, Abtisam says listening and being available is vital. While many areas may experience quite different issues, she says those different issues are still important to people, “Some issues may have more of a priority, and some areas might have more pressing needs, but I will work to balance the different needs that have to be addressed. I will make myself available in the constituency, and people will know who their local MP is. We will campaign to bring people together for the greater cause of fighting for a Labour Government so that we can make the changes needed to help people thrive in their lives.”
Sheffield is a wonderfully diverse city and has a longlist of candidates that is just as diverse. Abtisam Mohamed says she is the person to be selected because she has lived in the city for over thirty years since her dad worked at Forge Masters. She has worked tirelessly alongside communities and for communities, listening and understanding what local people want. “I started right at the bottom of community development, she said, “and progressed to working on bigger community projects supporting more people. I believe in the power of people and that communities if supported can make change, but that change can only happen with support and investment. I’ve done this through my work in the voluntary sector, as a councillor, and using the political means available to me to try to make change locally. As a lawyer, I use the legal system to help people navigate the complex system, and the kind of law that I do – asylum and human rights law, is life-changing for many. For me, I have always been about helping people and making things better for individuals and wider communities. It feels like a natural step to now make change at a national level and influence the policies that affect our very communities.”
Jason Holyhead 