Meet Your Councillor – Vol . 7

Meet your Councillor…

Stephen Barnes is one of the councillors for Redruth (North) Ward and is the current Mayor of Redruth. Born at 6 Treleigh Terrace Redruth in 1956, he is the middle child of three brothers.

Stephen has always lived in and around Redruth, moving from his family home in Treleigh Terrace to Four Lanes in April 1979 when he married. He lived there for 14-15 months before moving Paulls Row Redruth, which he found to be ‘ideal and easy for the shops.’

However, it was not long before Stephen moved again, this time prompted by faulty electrics that meant he was faced with the fact that he ‘either had to totally renovate and probably also add an extension or just move.’ So, he moved to the end of Clinton Road where he has been for the last 38 years. Stephen likes it because it’s quite quiet but it’s still near the centre of town.

“I’ve got very good neighbours, only one of them has been there longer than I have and the ones who have moved in have just blended in.

Stephen has been a well-known member of the Redruth Community for many years now, helped by his many careers. He started work as a Telegram boy, then a Postman,

where he would use up all his time on his rounds talking to people. It wouldn’t just be the people of Redruth who were keen to see Stephen doing his rounds, the dogs loved him too. ‘When I was on a delivery round, I had a van and I used to get through a bag of dog biscuits a week because I used to go and see the dogs.

While Stephen has many idyllic stories of travelling around Redruth (occasionally accompanied by a black Labrador called Jason) he also has a dramatic tale or two to share.

“I had a gun pulled on me four times. I had a bloke try to stab me in the hand because I gave his dog a biscuit. 

Staying in control in these situations was a skill that Stephen brought with him to his next job as a Ward Clerk at Treliske Hospital. He also worked as a delivery driver for Tesco for nine years, relying on his expert local knowledge to use local landmarks to find holiday accommodation of confused visitors. He once even drove a tourist ‘100 yards to the pub for a fiver’ in his Tesco delivery van!

Alongside his career, Stephen became a councillor for Redruth in May 1985 at just 19 years old.

“I am the only one left from the first council of Redruth, next May I’ll have done 40 years.

He was inspired to become a councillor by another councillor called Peter Spargo, someone he would see regularly on his rounds as a postman. ‘Every time I saw him I always had a question for him.’ Eventually, Peter Spargo suggested that if Stephen wasn’t happy with what the council were doing Stephen became a councillor himself, so he did just that.

In nearly 40 years of being a Councillor here in Redruth Stephen has seen a lot of ‘exciting’ changes, including Charlotte Caldwell joining the team as Town Clerk in April 2024. Stephen supports Charlotte wholeheartedly, commending her leadership qualities and vision for the town of Redruth.

“I think she’s the best thing for Redruth Town Council.

Charlotte and Stephen are involved in an exciting project with Marc Craig, Leake Street London’s Artist in Residence. Marc has travelled around the world creating street art murals to highlight the plight of endangered species and will be doing a mural right here in the heart of Redruth.

Although Stephen confesses he is ‘not a great lover of art’, he likes ‘good stuff’ and believes ‘this is going to be good.’ He has likened the ‘thought-provoking’ elements of the project to world-famous street artist Banksy.

While Stephen can appreciate good art, his love for literature, politics and history shines through his conversation.

It is unsurprising then that Stephen’s favourite books are the works of George Orwell, stating that if he were stuck on a desert island those would be the books that he would take with him.

“what he has written is as relevant today as when he wrote it first. He was trying to warn us of what could happen.

In addition to George Orwell, Stephen has been inspired by many figures throughout history. ‘I actually keep a file on my computer of quotes. There’s over 100 quotes on there – I’ve got a quote for every day.’

Some of Stephen’s favourite quotable figures include Cartoonist Kin Hubbard and US Presidents Dwight D Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan. A particularly sage piece of advice included within Stephen’s quotation catalogue comes from 20th-century French Writer Antoine de Saint-Exupery.

One of Stephen’s Favourite Quotes:

“A goal without a plan is just a wish”  – Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Stephen has many goals and ambitions for Redruth Town Council, reflecting on his favourite quotation and past historical events to come up with a quote of his own.

“You can have a number of individuals in a team but if they don’t play as a team it’ll fail. That’s why I like to try and think at Redruth Town Council, we all work with one aim and that’s for the good of Redruth.

Redruth and its community are the most important things to Stephen and they shape everything he does for the town both as a councillor and the current Mayor. Whether he be sat around his table, serving some ‘surprisingly good’ homemade leek and potato soup for his daughters, playing pool for his team, at Peventon for the ‘the grumpy old men’s breakfast club’ meet up, or sat at the table in the Langman Room in Redruth Civic Centre. Community is his essence. This sentiment could not be more clearly summed up than by his closing interview statement.

‘I love my town, I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. Although occasionally I buy the big one for the lottery, if I won I would go on holiday all around the world and see different places but I wouldn’t want to live anywhere other than Redruth.’