Burnley county councillor Sobia Malik not seeking re-election after taking up new role at Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust

Sobia served as a councillor for Burnley Council before being elected as a Lancashire county councillor and is not seeking re-election in May.

Last month she was appointed as chairperson of the Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust, Patient Involvement and Experience Scrutiny Committee.

While she said she was sad to leave behind her democratic role she was excited about helping make a positive difference for patients at a crucial time for the NHS.

“While leaving elected public service is never easy, I am relishing the opportunity to play a positive role in supporting health services across the region. It’s a great honour and I’m looking forward to working to build on the excellent work of the Trust in putting patients at the centre of all we do.”

She added: “I will always be grateful to the community for electing me to roles where I was able to make a difference to people’s lives at both county and borough level.

“The highlights included being Labour Shadow Cabinet Education portfolio holder, where I was able to lead campaigns supporting families of special needs children and our headteachers of maintained nursery schools. I was very fortunate to get a lot of things done including saving a local GP surgery and a former SureStart building from closure.

“I value most my work during the Covid-19 pandemic when I helped set-up a make-shift vaccination site. It undoubtedly saved lives during the darkest and most surreal time in our history.”