News from Jennette Arnold OBE (past staff): Honoured After Being Awarded the Freedom of the City

Jennette Arnold AM OBE honoured after being awarded Freedom of the City

Local Assembly Member, Jennette Arnold OBE AM, has been awarded the Freedom of the City at a ceremony that took place at Guildhall on Friday (25^th October). Ms Arnold was ‘overwhelmed and delighted” to be honoured for her decades of commitment to public service and politics.

Ms Arnold’s distinguished political career commenced in 1994 when she was elected as an Islington councillor, later serving a term as a Deputy Mayor.

In 2000, she entered City Hall as part of the first cohort of London Assembly Members. By the time she stands down at next year’s Mayoral elections, she will have served her constituents in Hackney, Islington and Waltham Forest for two decades.

As a London Assembly Member, Ms Arnold has been at the forefront of a number of the issues which have shaped London. Over the last twenty years, she has been a member of the Metropolitan Police Authority and has chaired the Cultural Strategy Group for London, playing a role in bringing the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games to the capital.

As the current Chair of the London Assembly Education Panel, she has championed children with special educational needs and disabilities, lobbying the Government to allocate more funding and resources to schools.

Ms Arnold is also currently leading campaigns on eradicating the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in London and increasing BAME representation in politics.

In addition, she continues to work tirelessly to represent her constituents on transport issues such as tube noise and the disruption faced by passengers using the Gospel Oak to Barking Overground Line.

Before becoming an elected politician, Ms Arnold began her career as a nurse in the NHS, after moving to the United Kingdom from Monserrat. She subsequently became an Industrial Relations Officer and a Regional Director of Services and Special Adviser (Equalities) to the General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing.

Local London Assembly Member, Jennette Arnold OBE AM, said:

“This is a huge honour and I am both overwhelmed and delighted to be awarded the Freedom of the City.

“Throughout my career in public service, it has been a privilege to represent and campaign on behalf of my constituents across North East London and work alongside some incredibly inspiring people.

“The timing of the ceremony during Black History Month is also significant, demonstrating how ancient traditions can remain relevant if they reflect the realities of progressive social change.

“In our capital, diversity will always be our strength and I hope to see many more people from underrepresented communities awarded the Freedom of the City in future years.

“I also hope this will be an inspiration to all young people of BAME heritage that they have a voice that needs to be heard and that they can make a positive and meaningful impact on their local communities”.