Mandy Telford is a mother of two, the wife of Barrow and Furness Labour MP, Cumbria County Councillor and a proud owner of curtain-climbing kittens. How does she balance home life with being the wife of a busy politician?
MY MAKEUP LIVES ON THE MANTELPIECE DOWNSTAIRS
Molly, my 17 month old, is not sleeping and it is driving me crazy. My alarm is set for quarter past seven but she is waking everyone up, including Maisie, my four year old, at half past four, but I’m tough with them and don’t get out of bed, even when she’s screaming the house down for hours.
These days my makeup lives on the mantelpiece downstairs. It is not as if I can just throw on my jeans on workdays, I have got to be out of the house by 8:45 to drop the girls off and then I have got to go to work.
When we moved here, I recently had Maisie and I was just being a mum, then I had Molly and stood for County Council. I love being a mum but it is not all I wanted to do. I have been president of the NUS in Scotland and for the UK, after realising that I did not want to be a teacher. I have worked in public affairs and I have been specialist advisor for the minister of the Olympics.
Then John won the election for Barrow and Furness, and we moved here. John said, “You need to decide where the family is based” because it impacts of me a lot more than him. I made the decision to live here because it’s a lovely community, people are nice and it’s safe. It’s also nearer to my mum in Scotland.
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| Mandy and John are joined by friends and fellow Labour campaigners |
I’M NOT HAPPY TO JUST BE KNOWN AS THE MPs WIFE
Yesterday I was in meetings all day. I went to Dong, who are the people that do wind farms, they were telling me about the job opportunities. I chaired the women’s Community Matters. There is no women’s centre in Barrow where they deal with things like domestic violence.
I travel to Carlisle most weeks for council meetings. Cumbria is so big, it’s almost too big, Carlisle is 72 miles away and I travel the furthest out of ay of the councillors.
Being John’s wife is odd. I’m not happy to just be known as the MPs wife. I need something that’s about me and isn’t about John or the kids. Although, it is useful to be a county councillor and be married to John. I’m not someone who will sit back and just let things happen so a job in the council was perfect.
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| Mandy campaigning for the County Council election |
MOST DAYS I’M DOING MUNDANE MUM STUFF
I finished around four and then there are afterschool things for the girls. Yesterday it was drama club, other days it dancing or football. By the time I’m home it’ll be after half past six and already past Molly’s bedtime. Once Molly goes to bed, about half past seven, I can make packed lunches then finally sit down and watch television.
I don’t work every day, it tends to be two days a week, but this week I’ve had a four full on days, but most days I’m busy doing mundane mum stuff, running around after toddlers.
IT’S CHAOS AND I LOVE IT
I don’t do anything highbrow. I watch Coro and have a glass of wine. I haven’t read a book since I had Molly, I’m just too tired. Television is my saviour especially if John’s not there, which is Monday morning through to Thursday night.
My days are often chaos, but I just do it. My house is a tip and I hate people turning up on my doorstep. The playroom is a mess, there are just toys everywhere. To top it off, we’ve just got kittens that like to climb up the curtains. It’s madness, but I love it.
I’ve come a long way since moving here. I had no friends, just the one small child. Now I have a house that I never want to leave. I have two kids and a job I really enjoy. I get to stand up for a community that I’m passionate about. I’d like to imagine that this is what I do for the rest of my life.
It’s not tough when John isn’t here, we’re really lucky, but it’s exhausting. I juggle it because that’s what mums do. I’m always thinking about the next thing. John just slots himself back in every weekend.
I KNOW I’VE ALWAYS WANTED TO CHANGE THE WORLD
I want my girls to grow up happy and confident. If they want to go into politics, that’s fine. I just want them to stand up for themselves and not take any shit from anyone.
At some point, once I found the time, I get into bed and get my downtime ready for a new day.
I know I’ve always wanted to change the world. That’s why you get into politics, because they want to change something, do something, make things better.
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