Darlington’s longest serving councillor Heather Scott

Heather Scott, was first elected in May 1976 and has since held several roles representing the region on the national and global stage. 

The Conservative member for Park West ward has seen it all. 

“It’s incredible to think it’s been 50 years, but I can still remember when I was first elected all those years ago,” she said. 

Her childhood was spent 1,370ft above sea level beside the Stainmore summits of the trans-Pennine road and rail routes. Her grandfather was a gamekeeper on the moors, and her father ran a garage, looking after cars. 

Heather Scott (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT)

Cllr Scott’s passion for politics started when she moved from Stainmore to Barnard Castle in her youth and joined the Young Conservatives, later canvassing for the party. 

It was her father who got her interested in politics. “We had some very interesting conversations,” she said. “He was a very right wing Conservative.” 

After moving to Darlington in 1976, she was quickly snapped up by the Conservatives and was promptly elected, later admitting she and her colleagues were “thrown in at the deep end”. 

Back then, Jim Callaghan was in No 10 Downing Street, opposed by the young Conservative leader Margaret Thatcher. Abba’s Fernando had just knocked Save All Your Kisses For Me by the Brotherhood of Man off the No 1 slot in the pop charts. 

She quickly rose through the ranks and was the mayor of the borough in 1988/ 99, when she completed a parachute jump to raise money for charities including St Teresa’s Hospice and Darlington Memorial Hospital’s leukaemia unit.

The 86-year-old council stalwart also played a part in bringing the first Macmillan Cancer Support nurses to Darlington.

Her dedicated community work meant she received an OBE and was lucky enough to meet Queen Elizabeth II to receive the award – a moment she called “the most special occasion of my life”. 

Cllr Heather Scott at the launch of Darlington’s Rail Heritage Quarter at Head of Steam. (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT)

Recalling the moment, Cllr Scott said: “She was very kind, she had a sense of humour, and she was just very interested in people. When I met her that came across. 

“I think she had a knack for putting people at ease and making them feel special.

“Obviously, I was nervous, but it was a special occasion. It was the most special occasion of my life.”

Despite failing to secure Parliamentary seats after standing in Bishop Auckland, Durham, Newcastle, and Richmond, her local political career has blazed a trail. 

Cllr Scott said: “Being a councillor gets into your blood and you just want to continue to help people. 

“That’s why I got involved, to help people with their problems.”

She was elected Conservative group leader in 2007, and in 2019, she spearheaded the party’s success in ending 40 years of Labour control and became Darlington Borough Council’s first female leader in its 152-year history. 

Having led the borough through the Covid pandemic, and Darlington represented by its first Conservative MP for nearly 20 years, she stepped down as council leader in 2022. 

Her legacy will include the setting up of the Treasury Campus in Darlington, which will eventually have up to 1,500 civil service jobs. 

Cllr Scott added: “The council has changed a lot over the years and so has the town – for the better. Darlington is a wonderful place.

“The role of a councillor is still the same as it was 50 years ago – you are elected by the people in your ward to do the best you can for them; that hasn’t changed.”

Yet, the accolades didn’t stop there. In 2023, she received the freedom of the borough – the highest distinction a local authority can bestow on an individual. 

“I owe the people in my ward a huge debt of gratitude – they have given me their votes for 50 years, and I am very grateful for that,” she said. 

Now, she has encouraged the next generation to consider a life in public service.

She added: “I think if I were to offer any advice to any young people thinking of putting themselves forward to be a councillor in future, I would say go for it – there’s nothing better than being able to help people with their problems.”

Councillor Jonathan Dulston, who inherited Cllr Scott’s leadership of the local Conservatives, praised her impact on the community. 

He said: “Heather’s 50 years as a member of Darlington Borough Council is an extraordinary achievement and a testament to her unwavering commitment to the people of Darlington.

“Across five decades, she has brought experience, integrity and a deep sense of public duty to everything she has done. It is only right that we offer Heather our warmest congratulations and thank her for a lifetime of dedication to local government and to our community.”

And despite political differences, Cllr Scott also received warm praise from the current administration. 

Steve Harker, Labour leader of the Council, said: “I would like to congratulate Heather on 50 years of service. Half a century is a remarkable achievement. 

“It’s clearly an incredibly long time that Heather has served both her local community and the wider borough.”