Oldham West and Royton MP Jim McMahon has nominated his constituency Office Manager, Shirley Buckley for a Special Award for Connecting Communities at the Parliament’s People Awards, and the Oldham resident has made the final shortlist of three ahead of the winners being announced on Monday 25th January. The unique Openreach Special Award for Connecting Communities is designed to recognise the extra mile that people that work for MPs do to support their communities and society.
Shirley has been Jim’s Office Manager since he became the Member of Parliament for Oldham West and Royton in 2015, and before that worked for Michael Meacher MP since the late 1990’s. Her commitment to social justice and equality shines through in her work ethic, and the fact that she gives her undivided attention to every constituent and case that crosses her desk.
One of Shirley’s many accomplishments over the years is the work she did in supporting Jim to secure a statue of Oldham’s own suffragette, Annie Kenney, now standing proudly outside the Old Town Hall in Parliament Square.
Jim said, “Shirley is the heart and soul of the constituency, she has helped literally thousands of people over the years and her dedication to helping me and the rest of my team is unquestionable.”
“The truth is there are thousands of people in Oldham who Shirley has helped without them knowing that she was the one helping them, she has dedicated the last 25 years to trying to make the lives of Oldhamers better and she was vital behind the scenes in helping us bring Annie Kenney back to Oldham.”
“She deserves every possible recognition and I’m so pleased that she’s made it to the shortlist for this award. She is integral to the way my constituency office runs and her support over the last five years has been invaluable.”
Shirley Buckley said, “I was quite shocked when I got the email to say I’d been nominated and shortlisted, Jim and everyone else in the office kept it quiet that I’d been put forward so I was a little taken aback and didn’t quite know what to make of it.”
“I’m really pleased to have got this far, I don’t expect any awards for what I do. I just see it as doing my job and trying my best to solve the problems people have when they come to their MP.”
Jim McMahon OBE MP 