Councillor Ruth O'Keeffe
Ruth was born in Birmingham . She attended Tiffin Girls School , Kingston Upon Thames, a girls' grammar school, for secondary education and went to Robinson College Cambridge to read Geography in 1981, graduating in 1984 and becoming MA Cantab in 1988.
She trained as a teacher at Homerton College Cambridge, gaining a PGCE in 1987. She also has Open University honours degrees in Psychology and Education (BA Hons) (1990) and General Science (BSc Hons) (1998). Following an interest in Special Educational Needs (SEN) she gained an Advanced Diploma in this subject from the Open University in 1991, being awarded a master of Arts in Education specialising in Child Development and SEN in 1993.
She has taught in a variety of settings from Infant School to sixth form, and has worked in both mainstream and special schools, for some of the time as a music specialist.
Ruth has four children.
She was first elected to the County Council in May 2005 for the Lewes Division.
Ruth has been a member of Lewes District Council for the Lewes Priory Ward since 2003 and Lewes Town Council for the same ward since 1999. She has served on a variety of Committees and Panels including the District Council's Environment Review Board and Housing Consultative Panel, and the Town Council's Finance and General Purposes, Environment and Tourism, Property, and Planning Committees.
She was appointed to HOSC shortly after her election to the County Council.
Address: 28 Mountfield Road, Lewes, East Sussex, BN7 2UR
Tel: 01273 476720
E-mail: cllr.ruth.o'keeffe@eastsussex.gov.uk