The Reform councillor has been charged with assault and criminal damage and will appear in court tomorrow
Reform councillor Mandy Clare, who was accused of assault and criminal damage following her arrest at a Pride event, has launched an online crowdfunder for her legal defence.
Councillor Clare, who represents Winsford Dene for Reform UK on Cheshire West and Chester Council, was arrested at the town’s Pride event on 28 June and subsequently charged with common assault and criminal damage.
Clare worked for the Reform MP for Runcorn and Helsby, Sarah Pochin, but was suspended from her role after she was charged with the offences. She will appear in court tomorrow.
A spokesperson for Pochin said the office has a “zero-tolerance policy” for “disorderly” conduct. They added: “While we fully respect the right to due process and a fair hearing, it would not be appropriate for the individual to continue in her role at this time.”
Clare said on the crowdfunder page on crowdjustice.com: “I need to raise £1000 as quickly as possible and need your help.” She said she “strenuously den[ies] any wrongdoing whatsoever at the 2025 Winsford Pride event”.
The Cheshire councillor has since said that the “initial cost target” of £1,000 was met within the first day, and that she now needs to raise £5,000.
So far, the crowdfunder has raised £1,748.
On the crowdfunding page, Clare describes herself as a local councillor who “champions child safeguarding, women’s rights, LGB rights and free speech.”
She claims that local Pride events have become less child-friendly and promote “a particular ideology” that she believes creates a hostile environment for those with dissenting views.
Olivia Barber is a reporter at Left Foot Forward
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