Harpreet is a

had to join the Labour Party.” After studying politics at Nottingham Trent University and completing a masters degree in international politics at Bradford – which included trips to Northern Ireland and Sierra Leone – she began campaigning actively for the Labour Party. Initially involved in the Ashbrow ward that she now represents, Harpreet worked at a constituency level in Huddersfield. “I’ve always liked campaigning,” she said. “I liked meeting people. I wanted to make sure that Labour values became actions – that you’re coming together for an idea that you are working for. That’s pretty impressive.” A spell working with the Audit Commission was followed by a stint at the NHS, supporting various trusts. A period working with Oldham’s Labour MP Debbie Abrahams pushed her further into the political arena. “I worked with Debbie when she was campaigning in the Colne Valley,” Harpreet added. “Two days a week at first. Then it became full-time. A lot of the work was around council issues. You end up getting involved in everything: communications, campaigning, Parliamentary work. I learned so much. The experience that gave me was immense.”

Harpreet followed up by working with Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham on his election campaign.

It was another epiphany and, somewhere along the line, she decided to throw her own hat in the ring.

“Andy spoke to me because he spoke about the north and about young people not going to university,” she said. “We were a small team and so I got to know him personally. I learned a lot.”

Encouraged equally by her Labour colleagues and her family, Harpreet stood for Ashbrow and won the seat, replacing veteran councillor Jean Calvert after she resigned from the party.

Harpreet’s recollection of winning: “It was pretty cool. The thing that got me was how other people were excited for me. That really touched me.

“I’d always been a back-room person, a campaigner. Stepping forward was a big deal.”

Notwithstanding family and friends, the local temple gathered to offer a prayer and a Sikh blessing to one of their own.

“Being a Sikh is part of my identity,” says Harpreet. “The values of Sikhism are very important to me.

“People identify with my accent and my skin colour. That’s also important to me in a positive way.”

Partnered with ward colleagues Amanda Pinnock and James Homewood she wants to tackle deprivation, fly-tipping and help deliver services in the light of ongoing budget cuts. She calls it “a massive issue.”

“We are facing a crisis in local government because of it,” she said. “That’s something I will be continually raising at council. Austerity is hurting us. Its impact is affecting everybody.”

Do her future ambitions head in the direction of Westminster? She smiles.

“It’s a big commitment – a 24/7 role, and a massive amount of work. It’s something that I would have to think about, and not something that I’m even thinking about now. I want to do what I’m doing now as well as I can. We’ll see what happens.”

Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said: “It is fantastic that Harpreet has been elected to Kirklees Council.

“I know from working with her that she is diligent and hard-working, but more than that she is down-to-earth, rooted in the real world and is an authentic voice for her community.

“She is a genuine pioneer and an incredible role model for young women across the north. She has got all the qualities to go very far in politics and I will be supporting her all the way.”