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Local Government Studies

ISSN: 0300-3930 (Print) 1743-9388 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/flgs20

Gender and the experiences of local electedmembers – a focus on Wales

Catherine Farrell & Sarah Titcombe

To cite this article: Catherine Farrell & Sarah Titcombe (2016): Gender and theexperiences of local elected members – a focus on Wales, Local Government Studies, DOI:10.1080/03003930.2016.1207629

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03003930.2016.1207629

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Gender and the experiences of local electedmembers – a focus on Wales

Catherine Farrella and Sarah Titcombeb

aSocial Sciences Department, University of South Wales, Pontypridd, UK; bWelsh LocalGovernment Association, UK

ABSTRACTThis article explores issue of gender in relation to the experiences of localelected members. Member experiences are important as this may be one ofthe factors which lie behind the under-representation of women in politicallife at all levels. This article is focused on Wales where women make up 26% oflocal councillors, hold only 20% of cabinet positions and occupy one Leaderposition. This article reports on the views of male and female councillors froma number of Welsh authorities who, when interviewed, identified very differentexperiences of elected office. Central to their experiences are their routes intooffice, personal circumstances and societal influences. The existence of adominant male political culture is evident and this may have an impact onthe participation of women in local political life.

KEYWORDS Gender; elected members; women; local government

1. Introduction

This paper is concerned with the issue of gender and the experiences oflocal government elected members in the UK. Reviewing this topic at thispoint is an important and timely one as there is clearly a need to understandmore about the position and experiences of female politicians as they areunder-represented in politics. This paper focuses on Wales where 26% ofcouncillors are female in comparison with 33% in England. The proportionof female councillors in Wales was rising steadily until the 2008 electionsand since this date, there has been little change. Only 24% of cabinetpositions are held by women and there are currently only two femalecouncil leaders. At the last local election, it appears that more female thanmale elected members decided not to seek re-election indicating that morefemales than males are choosing not to remain in office. Capturing theirexperiences provides the focus of paper and an important background toreaching a gender balance in local government which is central to justice,

CONTACT Catherine Farrell catherine.farrell@southwales.ac.uk Social Sciences Department,University of South Wales, Forest Hall Room 205, Treforest Campus, Pontypridd CF37 1DL, UK

LOCAL GOVERNMENT STUDIES, 2016http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03003930.2016.1207629

© 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

representation and more effective decision-making (Campbell and Childs2015; Bochel and Briggs 2000; Briggs 2000). The findings are relevant toWales and have wider applications in other countries both inside and out-side the UK where there is an under-representation of women in politicalpositions.

This paper focuses on the experiences of female and male politicians inpolitical office. In an exit survey organised by the Welsh Local GovernmentAssociation (2012), of those councillors who had decided not to stand for re-election, it was highlighted that whilst members were satisfied with the levelof support that they received in relation to their administrative needs, theirlearning and development and their equipment and facilities, they weremuch less satisfied with their experiences of working in the political arena.In particular, they identified issues about member relationships, the beha-viour of some members and their experiences of the party political groupsystem. Within the survey, responses from female members were particularlystriking as they suggested that female councillors were experiencing whatthey identified as the ‘rough and tumble’ which often involved ‘bad tem-pered bickering’ and what some identified as ‘inappropriate, unhelpful orbullying’ (WLGA 2012, 9). These factors influenced their decision not tostand for re-election.

The aim of this article is to investigate further the issue of gender andthe experiences of elected members. Set in the context of Wales, part oneexamines the context of female councillors in England and Wales andexisting evidence on the experiences of male and female councillors bothprior to their election and afterwards. In part two, data from a number ofsemi-structured interviews with male and female councillors is presentedand this is analysed in part three. The findings from the research arerelevant to understanding more about gender and local democratic pro-cesses in England and Wales and key issues relating to improving this areidentified.

2. Gender profiles and politics

This section focuses on member profiles, recruitment and selection issuesand also gender roles within councils. At the end of the Second World War,Hasluck (1948) described local members as predominantly male and middleclass. Where councils were successful, it was due to political competitionamongst the men, because ‘closely contested party strife lends a stimulus toeach side to put its most capable and effective men into positions ofprominence’ Hasluck (1948, 337). It was not until 1967 that the make-upof councils was officially measured and the disparity noted. Maud (1967,135) highlighted that ‘it is clear that members do not reflect the communityin terms of age, sex occupation or education’. According to Maud, women

2 C. FARRELL AND S. TITCOMBE

made up 12% of councillors in England and Wales in 1964 and by 1976, thishad risen to 17%.

Up until the mid-1980s, all the available data refer to councillors inEngland and Wales. The first information about councillors specifically inWales highlights that in 1986, 10% of councillors were women compared to20% in England and 19% in Scotland (Widdicombe 1986). It was more than adecade later before any form of regular information gathering about theprofiles of members took place. In 1998, the LGMB (1998) undertook amember survey which applied to both England and Wales. It showed that27% of councillors in England and Wales were female, and in Wales, thenumbers had risen to 20%. More recent data are available in England andthis highlights that female councillors represent 29% of all councillors in2002, 29% in 2004, 29% in 2006, 30% in 2008, 31% in 2010 and 33% in 2013(Local Government Association 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010). These dataare for England only as the response from Welsh authorities was too low tobe included. Data about councillors in Wales have been provided by Brooksand Ap Gareth (2013) indicating that the figures for Wales are 18% in 1999,22% in 2004, 25% in 2008 and 26% in 2012. A count by the WLGA in 2016shows that this percentage is still at 26%. According to Thrasher and Rallings(2004, 11), Wales ‘lags behind both England and Scotland in the proportionof women candidates fighting local elections’.

Concern at the under-representation of women led the new Ministerfor Local Government and Social Justice to commission an ‘Expert Group’to examine the issues affecting equal representation in 2013. A numberof recommendations were made by the group, including the need toensure that the data collected allowed valid UK comparisons. It wassuggested that information from potential candidates should be gatheredto find out why they decided not to stand, together with ‘exit’ interviewswith councillors who had decided to stand down (Welsh Government2014).

The reasons behind candidates standing for office have been identified inprevious research. According to Elcock (1994, p. 71), some people stand tocompensate for a lack of job satisfaction in their working lives as a result ofinsufficient educational opportunities ‘working class councillors who failedto realise their intellectual potential during their education and thereforehave jobs which they find insufficiently interesting or demanding’. Leach,Stewart, and Walsh (1994) identify status, power and material benefits asmotivators, together with loyalty to political parties or commitment to ageographical area. According to the Councillors Commission, some stand inorder to serve the community or because they had received an invitation to.Rallings et al.’s (2010) data indicate that women are the group who are morelikely to be asked to stand than men as they are least likely to put them-selves forward.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT STUDIES 3

Rallings et al. (2010) describe the recruitment process in most parties as a‘closed network’ where candidates are selected from those who are partymembers. They have to be ‘approved’ by the local group and be successfulin a selection interview. The recruitment networks used by political partiestend to be closed, which means they are confined to existing local politicalgroup members. Evidence suggests that women are reluctant to stand foroffice. An Irish study of female councillors by Wilford et al. (1993) exploredwhy this might be. They suggested that potential female candidates lackedthe confidence to stand. They were more likely to prioritise family needswhich they considered to be in conflict with council meetings scheduledduring the day. The issues of confidence and family priorities are also notedby Rao (2000, 52) who suggests that women are under-represented in UKpolitical life due to the roles and expectations they adopt. She commentsthat ‘women are not coming forward in great numbers . . . are socialised notto pursue certain occupations . . . and are portrayed as not having the timeor energy necessary to give to public life, nor the political contacts toembark on political life’. Rao’s (2000) research also finds that women canbe discriminated against in local power structures and are reluctant toparticipate in it. Data into the incentives for and barriers to people standingfor office provided by the Department for Communities and LocalGovernment (2007) suggest that people do not stand because they do notunderstand what local councillors do and believe that they are too busy totake on the role. The Commission also found that in England, black andminority ethnic women are under-represented in comparison with menfrom the same communities. They suggest that a culture exists whichdiscourages women from becoming politically active.

In 2011, the Equality and Human Rights Commission commissionedresearch to ‘explore the relationship between common pathways into pol-itics and underrepresentation of groups protected by the Equality Act(2010)’ (Durose et al. 2011, v). This article found that diversity is importantfor justice, effectiveness and legitimacy. The report examined the barriersfacing diverse groups and individuals seeking nomination, selection andelection, the factors that help people enter politics and the role of politicalparties and institutions in supporting diversity. It found that barriersincluded the time required for the role, the financial costs involved andthe influence of the ‘archetypal candidate’ Durose et al. (2011, 12).Thisarchetypal candidate which apparently people expect to see in the role isusually white, male, professional and university educated. The notion of thearchetypal male candidate is reinforced by Allen (2012, 711) who considersthe recruitment and retention of women councillors in terms of supply (thelow number of women coming forward for selection) and demand (thelimited desire of parties to select women when they come forward). Hesuggests that both of these factors combine to create a ‘feedback loop

4 C. FARRELL AND S. TITCOMBE

which reinforces the image and perception of politics as a male dominatedfield that often treats women as unwelcome intruders’. Allen (2012) alsofound that women are more likely to drop out after just one or two terms asa councillor than their male counterparts. When they do leave their coun-cillor roles, women are more likely to take up community roles in contrast tomen who drop out in order to pursue a career higher up in politics. Thereasons for standing down are again given as a lack of time to do the joband the negative impact on work and family life. Women are also lessinterested in standing for office as Hansard’s Audit of Political Engagement(2013) suggests. It found that men are more interested in becominginvolved in local decision-making (51% compared to 45% among women).

Councillor roles can be broadly divided into community work, communityrepresentation to the council, community leadership, work in the variouscommittees of the council on behalf of the authority as a whole (decision-making) and ensuring that the council is properly run (WLGA 2011). Rao(1998) suggests that councillors are very aware of the different aspects oftheir role, particularly the split between decision-making and representation.Rao suggests that the majority of councillors prefer their representativework but spend the majority of their time on council and committee meet-ings. Due to the culture in local government, she believes that this is anactivity which is more geared to male preferences, but provides no evidencefor this. Stokes (2005) agrees with this position saying that women are moreinterested in representing their constituents than committee work. Theinvolvement of females in particular in constituency matters is an issuepicked up in the recent article by Thrasher et al. (2015, 20) where it isargued that ‘the lack of women in senior roles in local government, maynot simply be a function of social constraints but also because womencouncillors are perceived as more approachable and effective than men inresolving issues’.

Existing research has recorded the different role of members on UKcouncils on the basis of gender and found that 16% of leaders, 27% ofdeputy leaders, 30% of mayors, 24% of committee chairs and 20% of partyleaders were women (LGMB 1998). The survey also suggested that there wasa gender divide in the service areas which female councillors were respon-sible for. It was highlighted that women were relatively under-representedon central committees including policy, finance, legal and IT and over-represented on housing, social services and health. These committee pre-ferences are also found in Yule’s (2000) study of female councillors inEngland in the 1980s.

The Centre for Women and Democracy (2011) has produced an annualreport on the gender breakdown of local authority leaders in England since2007. The report shows that in 2010/11, 26% of cabinet or executivemembers are women. Of these, the main portfolios for women are health,

LOCAL GOVERNMENT STUDIES 5

social services and housing. Male colleagues are more likely to lead oncorporate services, regeneration and education. It is highlighted that malecouncillors are more likely to progress to being leaders of their authorities asa result of this experience.

The picture in Wales shows again a lower representation among womenin senior roles. A review of each of the authorities in 2012 shows cabinet andcommittee membership in Wales following the 2012 elections, and the dataindicate that out of a potential 195 cabinet roles which were filled at thetime, women held 20% of these (Balsom 2012). In 2016, a review of autho-rities shows that women now hold 24% out of a potential 187 cabinetpositions so there has been an improvement. The profiles in 2012 rangefrom none in four councils to women occupying half of all positions inanother. In 2016, there are still no women in the cabinet in one council butall other councils have at least one woman member on them and there isone council where 60% of all the seats are occupied by women.

Much of the debate around the impact of gender on local councillorscentres on the under-representation of women. This raises the question ofwhy this is the case. The answers are clearly useful to this study as this maybe due to their different experience of the role and contribute to thediscussions on how less positive experiences could be remedied.

In relation to the barriers to becoming an elected member, Linsley et al.(2006) suggest that some of these particularly affect women. It seems thatwomen believe that they do not have the time for a role in public office, orchoose to prioritise different aspects such as family or work. The authorsidentify the difficulties inherent in maintaining a balance between personallife, work and a council role. Time and prioritisation are two of the issuesfocused on in the Expert Panel Review. The chair brought her own first-handexperience of the role and its challenges, saying, ‘having been a councillorfor 9 years whilst juggling a job and the demands of a young family, I amonly too aware of the time commitment involved and the impact that therole can have on career prospects and family life’ (Welsh Government2014, 1). In contrast, whilst some women might struggle to engage incouncil activities because of these priorities, some men appear to make avirtue of attendance. The Centre for Women and Democracy (2011, 39)identify ‘macho presenteeism’ which is described as the tendency for mem-bers who display macho characteristics to work long hours and attendmeetings at any time.

There is also a finding in the literature that females are discouraged fromparticipating due to overt discrimination. McHarg (2006) explain that thisstarts during the selection process where there is evidence of discriminationby party selection committees which favour men when deciding who will beput forward for election and continues throughout a political career wherewomen are passed over for senior positions. As well as overt discrimination,

6 C. FARRELL AND S. TITCOMBE

some authors describe more subtle cultural influences that can discouragewomen from participating. A political culture established by the malemajority and therefore accepted as the norm, is widely described as beingdetrimental to women. According to Mackay (2004, 39), some of the reasonsfor inequality in political institutions are due to cultural stereotypes –‘patterns of behaviour are shaped by cultural codes of masculinity andfemininity and by institutional norms and values. In political institutionsthe masculine ideal is standard and underpins institutional structures andpractices and dominant masculinities are presented as common sense,ostensibly gender-neutral norms, conventions and practices’. This authorsuggests that male politicians use strategies to establish their sense ofentitlement to dominate political life when women encroach on their‘male space’. One of these strategies is demonstrated where MPs in theHouse of Commons speak over each other rather than taking turns tocontribute. Bochel and Bochel (2000) support this view and suggest thatwomen actively avoid taking part in public life as they see a political culturewhich is patriarchal and not inclusive. The Centre for Women andDemocracy (2011) suggests that a culture of sexism and bullying still persistsin many areas of public life. The WLGA exit survey (2012) finds similarexperiences. Members were seen to be discontented with the behaviourof their fellow members and some of the responses from women suggestedthat they experienced bullying and also gender discrimination.

There is clearly an historical and current unequal representation betweenmale and female councillors in the UK as a whole and in Wales in particular.Women are under-represented. Men and women have different reasons forstanding for office with women tend to stand to make a difference in thecommunity, whereas men are motivated more by party political beliefs.Women also tend to volunteer themselves to be selected, whereas menare more proactive. Selection panels seek archetypal candidates who theybelieve will be successful at elections and these tend to be male. When inoffice, women tend to take more time over the role than men, despite oftenhaving less time due to their personal circumstances. Women appear tohave a preference for the representational role rather than decision-makingand their ambition is for their communities rather than for themselves.There is a difference in roles and interests on the council between menand women – females tend to become involved in areas, including health,social care and education, whereas men connect more with areas, includingresources, regeneration and performance.

3. Findings – the experiences of members in Wales

In order to identify the impact of gender on the experiences of electedmembers in local government, semi-structured interviews were conducted

LOCAL GOVERNMENT STUDIES 7

with a sample of 18 members from across the political spectrum in Walesbetween 2014 and 2016. Of these, 10 were female and eight were malecouncillors. All members had served at least one period of office in localgovernment. In selecting interviewees, a sample across the geography ofurban and rural Wales, the political spectrum and gender were key con-siderations. The councillors were drawn from 10 of the 22 existing councilsin Wales. Efforts were also made to include respondents across the agerange. A breakdown of the interviewees is presented in Table 1 below. Noteswere taken during the interviews and as the researchers were aware thatsome politicians can lack trust in tape recordings.

A key part of each of the interviewees was questions about memberexperiences around the following themes:

● Experiences during the recruitment and selection process;● Roles undertaken within the council;● Member experiences of undertaking the councillor role.

Both male and female members identified a variety of reasons for standingfor office. Some were common, including wanting to give something backto the community or being concerned about a particular issue that theywanted to change locally. However, there were also distinct differencesaccording to gender. Almost all of the men interviewed had been awareof the role of councillor and had made the decision to stand independentlyof suggestions from others. The male respondents also reported that theystood for office because of family tradition of standing, trade union mem-bership, party membership or a strong commitment to a particular politicalideology. In contrast, females reported that they viewed becoming a mem-ber as a logical next step following their work in the community as activistsor volunteers. Most women typically reported that they had beenapproached by someone else to stand for office, usually a local partymember, or existing councillor rather than making the decision indepen-dently. Those who stood without prompting reported that they did thisbecause they believed that they could do a better job than those currentlyin office.

Table 1. Respondents who participated in this research and their political affiliation.Respondents

Labour North Wales One female, one maleLabour South Wales valleys Three females, two malesPlaid Cymru, Mid and North Wales Two female, one maleConservative North Wales One female, one maleIndependent Mid Wales One female, two maleLiberal Democrat South-west Wales Two females, one male

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Both men and women had views about why fewer women than menstand for office.

Some men expressed the view that woman are generally less confidentthan men in putting themselves forward for election. One man believed thatwomen tend not to stand because they ‘can’t be bothered’ or have ‘better’things to do like ‘taking care of relationships’. Generally, men believed thatwomen were not discriminated against during the selection process butchose not to put themselves forward as candidates. Men also suggested thatwomen were less prepared or less able to work through what was describedas the ‘apprenticeship’ that needs to be served prior to candidature. Thisapprenticeship, they highlighted, typically includes union and party mem-bership and rising through the local group ranks. This was also mentionedby women who felt that this route to membership was more challenging forthem as it requires time away from home for long periods and this is notgood for those who are the primary carers of their children. It also estab-lishes a pattern in relationships where men routinely spend time on politicalbusiness away from the family for some years before being elected so thatsupport mechanisms at home are already in place when men are elected.

Both men and women reported a perception that there was a differencein the areas of interest of male and female councillors. Both parties alsobelieved that, to some extent, this was not just a perception but was a resultof the different career choices made in society more widely. All membersreported that men tended to seek positions either on the cabinet or onscrutiny committees related to the economy and council services such aslicensing and planning. In contrast, females opted for positions relating to,for example, children and young people, health and well-being and humanresources.

There was a significant difference in the views of male and femalecouncillors about opportunities for advancement from the back benchesand scrutiny committees to a position on the cabinet or as a leader of thecouncil. The majority of men reported that women have the same oppor-tunities once elected, although also recognised that there were more menthan women in senior positions but felt that this was because there aremore male members than female on the council as a whole. Men reportedthat members are selected for senior councillor roles due to their ability,experience and being long-standing council members rather than for rea-sons of gender. Any challenges in moving through the ranks from being anew member were seen by the majority of men to be experienced equallyby everyone. It was accepted that senior positions are in the gift of theleader who is likely to promote those who have supported them. Onemember argued that ‘obviously there are elements of political patronage,the group elects the leader, and the leader elects the cabinet, that’s how itworks’. Some men reported that women had less opportunity for

LOCAL GOVERNMENT STUDIES 9

advancement because male leaders tended to appoint male cabinets asthey felt that they could rely on their support due to long-standing relation-ships. One male councillor reported that some females had been givencabinet positions to ‘keep them quiet’ when they had complained aboutthe male-dominated cabinets. A number of men suggested that womenmight have other parts of their life which impacted on their opportunitiesfor promotion like their jobs and family life, with one member highlightingthat ‘I couldn’t have been promoted without the support of my wife andfamily, maybe female members don’t have that’.

Females typically felt that most of the males on the cabinet had not beenselected according to skills and experience but rather for reasons associatedwith either friendships or political patronage. They reported that theythought that leaders selected their cabinet to reward those members whohad supported them in becoming leader and to ensure minimum challengeto their leadership. Women reported that there was evidence of femalemembers being passed over for senior positions even though they weremore qualified than the male members selected. One member said that,‘you need to be a yes person to get on the cabinet’. Many women statedthat they had to work twice as hard and be twice as good as men in order togain and retain firstly their seat on the council and then a more seniorposition. One argued that ‘its like that quote from Ginger Rogers, we have todo everything as well as the men except backwards and in high heels, butalso take the kids to Judo and cook dinner afterwards’. Women also believedthat men were more likely to be career politicians, looking for advancement,than women.

Both male and female councillors almost unanimously identified positiveexperiences in their relationships with officers who they saw as supportiveand knowledgeable. Any disagreements or tensions between officers andmembers were viewed as healthy although sometimes also frustrating.Indeed, there was an expectation that tension would exist between officersand members in planning policy and development management. Somewomen reported that historically they had been treated by some of themore ‘old school’ officers at best ‘like children’ and had at worst beenbullied by them. However, female members felt that these experienceswere not as common as they used to be. Females reported experiences ofcliques among male members and male officers at a senior level, which theybelieved to be not include female members.

Relationships between members were reported by both men and womento be more complex than those between members and officers.Relationships were seen to be influenced by personality, respect, statusand party politics and they impacted on members’ behaviour, experiencesand effectiveness in the council, in the community and in the party group.Men described their relationships with other members as varied according

10 C. FARRELL AND S. TITCOMBE

to personality and political persuasion and gender itself was not identified.Men were largely of the opinion that they could get on with most members.For example, one male member reported that ‘we might have a knock aboutin the Chamber, but we are all friends in the pub afterwards’ with anotherarguing that ‘I’m more interested in whether someone can do the job wellrather than if they are male or female’. Another suggested that ‘I think, ifanything, we give more respect to our female councillors and also that someof our women councillors are better than the men’.

In contrast to these male experiences, there was a marked difference inthe member experiences as described by women. Females typicallydescribe councils as male dominated and sexist. One argued that ‘it’s anold boys club’. Women identified the existence of both power strugglesand tribalism as unhelpful to getting the work done. They were notsupportive of decisions which were made for reasons of personaladvancement, desire for power and ego rather than for the benefit ofthe community. Where members belonged to a political group, the groupmeetings and culture was seen to be sexist as women’s voices werelistened to less than men’s. Members reported that patronage of menby men was rife in groups and provided examples of sexist behaviour thatthey had experienced. In one instance, comments about dress andappearance were made repeatedly to a young female member by anolder male. The female member made a formal complaint after informalapproaches failed. Female members reported that casual sexist commentsare common. Some examples include:

‘Women have little feet so they can stand closer to the sink’‘I’m surprised you are here with two children at home’‘Well lads, I won’t object to looking at that for the next 4 years’

A significant number of both male and female councillors described ahistorical culture which they argued influences the behaviour and attitudesof some older councillors. This was more evident in the traditional ruralareas and the Welsh valleys than in urban centres. Members described howthey felt that there was a sexist culture in some aspects of local political lifein Wales and that this manifests itself more in the culture of the politicalgroups than in the council. This was more apparent in the more ‘traditional’parties. One female member argued that the ‘culture of Wales, particularly inthe Valleys where it’s all about pits, chapel and tradition, still affects thebehaviour and attitudes of the older members’.

Female councillors uniformly reported that they have more responsibil-ities outside the council in terms of their jobs and in the home that make itharder for them to give time to council duties. Some women described theexpectations they felt about having to both ‘run their homes’ and work onthe council. This member said that ‘my husband still expects the cooking to

LOCAL GOVERNMENT STUDIES 11

be done when I get home from the meeting, the male members get up fromthe meeting saying “let’s see what the wife’s got for tea”’.

Male councillors commented that discrimination on the basis of gender isno longer an issue, although they had many historic examples. This memberargued that it was his view that ‘thirty years ago men thought that thewomen just had to be put up with’. They believed that the sexist cultureused to mean that women were discriminated against but that thisimproved with each successive election since 1996. This member went onto say that ‘it’s only in about the last 10 years that men have accepted thatwomen could be better than them’. The majority of the male councillorsbelieved that women are not discriminated against.

In contrast, women believe that they continued to be discriminatedagainst but that it was less overt than in the past. Half of the femalemembers interviewed expressed a belief that membership of outside asso-ciations is more common among male members than for females. In theiropinion, this confers an unfair advantage in all aspects of local politics fromselection to allocating positions of responsibility. Female councillors uni-formly felt that male members meeting in exclusively male associationsoutside the council provided channels of communication between council-lors and other men in senior public life in Wales which women are not partof. This then undermined their networking and advancement opportunities.One woman described her direct experience of police and senior membersusing these informal links in an attempt to discredit her.

Both male and female members referred to differences in personalitywhich affected the experiences of men and women in office. Both men andwomen described women as more empathetic which helped their relation-ships with other members and also with the public. This member stated that‘women are often more successful in the community as people find womeneasier to speak to’. Some male members said that, due to their personalities,women found the ‘banter’ associated with political relationships difficult andhad a ‘different sort of a sense of humour’ which kept them separate fromthe men in informal settings. One man commented that appearance wasmore important for women – he felt they need to be better dressed thantheir male colleagues because they are judged more on appearance. Thisrespondent went on to make a joke about this. Male respondents acknowl-edged that men and women have different needs and different drivers. Onemale respondent argued that ‘women and men have different styles andwomen aren’t always quiet, on the contrary, often they push an argumenttoo far, they don’t know when the battle is lost’. Women uniformly believedthat all councillors need to be assertive to be successful, with one memberarguing that ‘successful women are all fighters; this is not a place forshrinking violets!’. Women suggested that men tend to be more readilyaccepted in business meetings and women make more of a difference in

12 C. FARRELL AND S. TITCOMBE

communities. Females reported that they felt that they had to prepare twiceas hard for meetings as their male colleagues so that they can perform welland they felt that men were more likely to ‘wing it’. Women also said thatmany male councillors come from job backgrounds which support their roleas councillor, whereas women are more likely to have had a different focusin their previous employment roles, including teaching and family life.Women felt better at working collaboratively even cross-party and therewere many examples given of cross-party working from women but notfrom men.

4. Review and analysis

In relation to the impact of gender and the experiences of elected membersin Wales, councillors clearly felt that this had an impact. Male and femalecouncillors described the experiences differently, and there was a significantdivergence in the manner in which they were presented. The majority ofmen seemed broadly content with their lot as a councillor and somerecognised the additional challenges for women. The majority of womenappeared to be either resigned to, but more often frustrated and angry withtheir situation. A minority acknowledged that some men shared some butnot all of their experiences. The responses from women were quite stark,and in some cases shocking. In two cases, where inappropriate behaviourappeared to cross the boundary into harassment, press and social mediaevidence was found, and has not been included in this article in order tomaintain confidentiality. Common experiences included some of the reasonsfor standing for office, which was often as a result of being concerned withlocal issues or a feeling of wanting to give something back to the commu-nity. Members also shared a common positive response about the way inwhich they were treated by officers which they considered to be equal,regardless of gender. Everyone interviewed agreed that there were likely tobe tensions in their relationships with other members. This was seen asinevitable due to politics and personality. Male and female members agreedon some issues including that they tend to have different areas of interestand that this is not always through choice but from wider societal influenceon personal circumstances and career choices. All members broadly agreedthat their advancement in the council is usually in the gift of the leader, andtherefore influenced by the local political group.

There was evidence of divergence in the experiences of men and women.This is evident in relation to their route into local politics. Women were morelikely to come from a background of local community politics and invited byothers to stand for office, whilst men were more self-motivating with aclearer pathway to office starting with party or union membership throughto increasingly senior positions on the council. Fewer women stand for

LOCAL GOVERNMENT STUDIES 13

office because they are not inclined to participate in what they perceive as amale dominated, adversarial and discriminatory system. Some female mem-bers viewed their participation in public life as less important than thedemands placed upon them in their employment and domestic lives. Thediscrimination experienced by women takes the form of sexist behaviourfrom male members, sometimes in formal council settings but more ofteninformally, in settings outside the council or in the party group. Systemicpolitical patronage was observed by members and the vast majority offemales believed that it is operated largely by men, for men and preventsthem from moving on to higher status roles. The membership of gender-specific organisations is also perceived as preventing women accessing thesame networks and opportunities as their male counterparts.

In contrast to the views of the majority of females, most men felt that therewas little evidence of discrimination against female councillors. Their view ofpatronage was that men andwomen had equal opportunities at both selectionand election as councillors by both their parties and the electorate. Malemembers reported that where councillors leave office after one term, this isdue to them having other priorities rather than discrimination.

This research supports Leach et al.’s (1994) work with members standingfor reasons associated with power, status and commitment to a party orgeographical area. Members also stood as they wanted to serve the com-munity (Department for Communities and Local Government 2007).Members confirmed the findings of Rallings et al. (2010) that women aremore likely to be asked to stand than men who tend to make the decision tostand themselves. The findings by Allen (2012) about recognised routes intooffice and candidate recruitment through the political party route were alsocorroborated in the interviews. Members reported that whilst their relation-ships with officers were good, this was not always the case with othercouncillors. The male-dominated council described by Allen (2012) and theculture of sexism and bullying in England (Centre for Women andDemocracy 2011) matched the experience of the female councillors whoparticipated in this research. The barriers to women standing for officediscussed by both the Department for Communities and LocalGovernment (2007) and the Expert Panel (Welsh Government 2014) as thetime commitment and negative impact on family life were also described byfemale councillors in Wales. All councillors supported Rao’s (1998) conten-tion that council roles are gendered, with women being more likely to beinvolved with housing, social services and health. Councillors in this researchalso added education to this. The observation from the Centre for Womenand Democracy (2013) about opportunities female progression to the cabi-net being limited for women was supported in this research.

The findings that male and female councillors have different interests andpriorities whilst in office supports existing evidence including Stoke’s (2005)

14 C. FARRELL AND S. TITCOMBE

where females were more interested in community matters than progressioninto the cabinet. Members of both genders also agreed with the findings ofBochel and Bochel (2008), who described women having a more democraticand consensual style as council members than men. These findings were alsoapparent in Brigg’s (2000, 79) study of local politics in Hull and in Canada. Here aconclusion that ‘female politicians have a more conciliatory approach and seekto compromise where possible, operating in a less confrontational manner’.Thrasher et al.’s (2015) study also finds that female councillors invest more timein council business than male colleagues.

It is clear that culture is relevant to the context of the experience offemale councillors in Wales with all members suggesting that it was a male-dominated culture. This finding is not unique in Wales and Mackay (2004)found evidence of this culture in England too. The extent of sexist behaviouridentified by female members about a male culture which dominates inlocal councils is apparent. Political patronage appears to be entrenched insome areas and a widespread belief that women were not being appointedto senior roles. These experiences may explain why after a term of office,many female councillors do not stand again.

5. Conclusion

This article has focused on gender and the experiences of elected membersin Wales. It is clear that the different experiences of men and women startbefore they are elected as candidates and throughout their period of office.Women have a less positive experience and this may be one of the factorscontributing to the low numbers of female elected members or to thehigher proportion of women who stand down.

The reasons that more women are not coming forward to stand for officeare complex and appear to be due to a range of factors. The role of a localcouncillor can be time-consuming and challenging. Women may have lesstime available to take on the role in addition to other responsibilities andpriorities. Male councillors have participated more in roles outside of thehome, including trade union and party membership. These may make iteasier to fit being a councillor into the pattern of their lives. Women may notbe coming forward because they are not impressed with the style of politicsthat they see in councils. Men tend to have a clearer and more establishedroute into office through a form of ‘apprenticeship’ within a party hierarchy.Women have a less structured path, entering through community volunteer-ing or community interests. This can mean that men are viewed as the morequalified and able choice when candidates are selected.

Once elected, men hold more senior positions than women and it is clearthat women and men experience the culture within councils and politicalgroups differently. Most men believe that elements of council culture such

LOCAL GOVERNMENT STUDIES 15

as systemic political patronage and robust behaviour are normal and appro-priate and do not disadvantage either gender. Women, however, report oninappropriate behaviour which can be sexist and discriminatory. The detri-mental effects of this culture are seen most clearly in the party political groupswhich are not subject to the same rules as council chamber. The impact thatthis has on female councillors is not well documented or described; however, itseems that women’s experiences as elected members is not reported widelyenough. The findings of this article are important for our understanding ofgender and the experiences of members in local government.

This paper relates to the situation in Wales and all members interviewedthought that there should be more women in local government in Wales. Thereis a great deal of concern about the low number of females in elected local officein Wales and other parts of public life. The Welsh Government has committed toseeking to introduce a 40% quota for women on public sector boards, forexample. The passing of the Local Government (Wales) Measure 2011 mayalso improve the experience of women in local councils as a duty is placed onlocal authorities to provide remote attendance at meetings, undertake consulta-tion on meeting times and training and development. Actions may also emergefrom the Expert Group’s findings which if implemented, may result in all politicalparties agreeing to field female candidates in at least 40% of winnable seats. It isunderstood that labour has agreed to this at a recent conference and thedecisions of other parties are awaited. The Welsh Government has also intro-duced a ‘Diversity in Democracy’ project in order to increase the diversity ofindividuals standing for elections. This programme has encouraged women andmembers of other under-represented groups to participate in activities such asmentoring and training to enable them to become candidates for the 2017elections. Female politicians are becoming more prominent in the Wales and UKpolitical system and recruiting them and promoting positive experiences forthem at all levels, including local, regional and the UK government will be centralin changing the mindset to one of inclusion rather than exclusion.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Catherine Farrell is a professor of public management at the University of SouthWales and her research interests are in governance, the changing roles of profes-sionals in public services and the participation of women in public life. She iscurrently researching different models of public board governance, including thestakeholder and skill-based approaches in a range of services. She has published in

16 C. FARRELL AND S. TITCOMBE

journals including Public Administration, Policy and Politics, Public Policy andAdministration, Human Relations and Industrial Relations.

Sarah Titcombe is the Policy and Improvement Officer for Democratic Services at theWelsh Local Government Association. She has worked in local government for over30 years in England and Wales. Currently she works with all the local authorities inWales supporting elected members and the officers who work with them. Her mainareas of work are councillor roles, competencies and development, and democraticservices policy. Her interests include councillor coaching and gender inequalities inlocal politics

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