Abi Brown has been Stoke-on-Trent City Council Leader since 2019 and is Conservative councillor for the Meir Park ward - She has shared what a typical day in her shoes looks like. 

Councillor Brown told Stoke Nub News: "I normally get up just before 6am, get ready, walk the dog who I had from a local dogs home about 11 years ago, and a couple of mornings a week I like to go for a 5k run around where I live in Meir."

Cllr Brown started running during the Covid-19 pandemic and ran the Potters 'Arf in 2021, which she said was "really tough", but has carried on running ever since. 

As well as running a 5k a few mornings a week, she also runs a longer distance on a Sunday somewhere different in Stoke-on-Trent. 

The Potters 'Arf is a 13.1 mile run through Stoke-on-Trent which raises thousands of pounds every year for the local community (Sarah Garner).

She then takes her two children to school and "sits on the A50 at the busiest time of the day so it takes around 30 minutes to get into the Civic Centre, where I normally am.

"On the commute I sometimes listen to the radio but normally use Siri to send messages or make calls."

Cllr Brown, who receives an annual allowance of £36,000, says her work diary is normally full from 9am until 6pm and booked well in advance. 

She said: "A normal work day looks like chairing a couple of meetings, normally internal meetings, catching up with a couple of my officers and I'll probably try and get off site to see something or have a call with someone.

"I do a reasonable amount of work with LGA which has been really good because it's raised the profile of Stoke-on-Trent and most days I would normally chat with someone from there or do a bit of work for them.

"Normally at some point in the day I'll also meet up with a cabinet colleague and have a chat with them and throughout the day I'm picking up messages - no two days are the same!"

For example, on Thursday last week (16 March), Cllr Brown joined the anti-social behaviour team and the PSCOs in Stoke Town and visited sites where rough sleepers had been and they had a conversation about what can be done to secure sites. 

Cllr Abi Brown with colleagues from Staffordshire Police and Staffordshire Fire last week (Stoke-on-Trent City Council).

Cllr Brown said: "I did that for about an hour and it was a really good opportunity to see the work on the ground and see what's going on in the city on a particular subject. 

"I like doing things like that, it's a good opportunity to see things up close and personal. Nothing puts me off, I'm not bothered if it's raining, I like to go and see actually what's happening - I'm the first one over the road having a look."

Cllr Brown also told Stoke Nub News: "I don't take a lunch break, I just work straight through, I might grab a cup-a-soup and my PA might bring me a drink.

"I gave up drinking caffeinated drinks a few years ago, at the same time as I started running, so I drink a lot of peppermint tea. A cup of tea with milk is an afternoon treat if it's been a particularly busy day!"

"I normally finish work at around 6pm, once or twice a week I might have an evening engagement which could be an awards ceremony or going to a meeting.

"In the evenings I tend to work doing emails because I'm in meetings all day so I'll have emails to catch up on, sometimes I'll walk the dog and catch up on social media.

Cllr Brown says one of her favourite places to visit is The Quarter, Stoke (Sarah Garner).

"I do like watching telly but I don't have much time. I watch The Apprentice while doing the ironing and will record gritty dramas for when I've got time - I'm not very exciting during the week, I have a bit more of an exciting time at the weekend!

"At the weekend I like going out, going to restaurants and bars, I particularly like The Quarter at Stoke, The Glebe and I'll go to Potters Bar in Meir Park occasionally.

"I like going to gigs as well, I saw Manic Street Preachers at Victoria Hall and they were absolutely brilliant and it was a fantastic gig. My favourite band is the Kaiser Chiefs though and I've seen them about ten times now!"

Hopefully for Stoke, Cllr Brown will continue to keep her finger on the pulse of the city. 

Unlike her favourite band, she surely wouldn't want to 'Predict a Riot' or deal with an 'Angry Mob'. 

Maybe her minimum scenario would be 'Everything is Average Nowadays' but from what we've seen of her workload it's clear she wants something better than average for Stoke residents. 

READ MORE: Stoke community comes together to repair Bucknall's iconic City Farm after fire destroys shed and equipment

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