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| SENIORS CHAMPION | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Sylvia Hardy
Sylvia Hardy was born in 1932. Her father was a commercial traveler and her mother was a school teacher. One of her earlier memories is being bombed out in Exeter Blitz.
She attended a state school in Exeter and won a Scholarship to
local grammar school which she left at the age of 17 with matric
exemption. She spent 2 years training to be a nurse at Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital but decided that it was not for her. Instead she joined the Civil Service as a national Insurance Officer.
She was posted to London in 1966 and left Civil Service in 1969 to take Social Work course at Plymouth Tech College. After qualifying, in 1971, she took up a post with Devon County Council as community social worker at Tiverton until 1974. She then transferred to Medical Social Work at R D & E hospital.
Her work took her all around Devon supporting families with physical handicap problems e.g. multiple sclerosis. She was forced into early retirement on health grounds in 1986.
She is a passionate campaigner for justice in general and for pensioners and others on low incomes in particular. However in recent years she became alarmed that her quality of life, and that of many other pensioners, was deteriorating. She decided to take a stand and take direct action against the ever increasing reprehensible Council tax.
She said: We cannot go on with our incomes going further
behind inflation. Soon, we will not have any quality of life at
all and we think that very unfair. I'm reasonably fit so I would
like to be able to lead an active life. I would like to be able
to go out with my friends for lunch sometimes, go to the theatre
occasionally, or have a holiday. I had a week's holiday earlier
this year and that may be the last one, the way thing's are
going.
If I had to sit at home and twiddle my thumbs all day because I
couldn't afford to go out and enjoy myself, I honestly wouldn't
want to go on living. The council tax in Devon has gone up this
year by 18.5% whilst most of our pensions have only gone up
1.7%. That's a HUGE difference. A great many of us in Devon and
Cornwall have decided that we're only going to pay an increase
which amounts to the increase in pension that we've had this
year. In a local by-election in 2004 Sylvia finished last in the race between four candidates in the Exeter ward of St David's and Pennsylvania. She entered the by-election after a £91 liability order was made against her for council tax that she had refused to pay. She faced a £ 644 council tax charge on the Exeter flat where she lives alone, after last year's tax rose nearly 18%.
She has vowed to go to jail rather than pay the sum and said: "I
am sure we will have a try again." We will continue with the campaign to get council tax abolished."
Sylvia is an active member of the Exeter & District Friendship Centre for the over 50s and the Devon Pensioners Action Forum. She is a passionate campaigner for justice in general and for pensioners and others on low incomes in particular.
She also has strong interests in music - having been trained to sing by Marlio di Veroli in London. (Mario also trained Harry Secombe). She is a member of the Exeter and Dawlish Operatic societies and took many leading Contralto roles. She also sang as guest soloist with several local orchestras and choirs. Her other interests include: Canals especially restoration. Member of Kennet & Avon Canal Trust, Wilts & Berks Trust and Stove Canal Trust. She has had several holidays cruising in narrow boats on various English and Welsh Canals.
At 10am on 26 September 2005, Sylvia Hardy appeared at Heavitree Magistrates' Court, Exeter for not paying the full increase in her council tax. For more information about how to support the campaign against the council tax email agvenison@ic24.net. |
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