Rowenna Davis
Rowenna Davis
Rowenna Davis (born 28 February 1985) is a Labour Party politician. She is currently a councillor representing Waddon ward in the London Borough of Croydon. She has worked as a teacher and political journalist. She has previously been a Labour) councillor for the London Borough of Southwark and contested the parliamentary seat of Southampton Itchen) in the 2015 general election. She has written numerous articles for publications such as the New Statesman, The Guardian, The Sun and The Economist. In 2011, Davis authored Tangled Up in Blue), an examination of the rise of the Blue Labour movement.
Early life and education
Davis was born in Lewisham and spent her early years in Portsmouth and Catford before her family moved to North London, where she attended the comprehensive Hampstead School. At the age of fourteen, she organised a protest against the quality of the school meals provided by Serco. Home-cooked, healthy food was offered in a rival, all-you-can-eat tuck shop and the students boycotted the official canteen, forcing them to change their menu within two weeks. In 2003 she and two schoolfriends organised 'Hands Up For Peace' in response to the war in Iraq. This led to thousands of other students making a hand-print bearing their name and a message of peace. These were then printed out, attached to sticks and planted in Parliament Square to make a protest with the intention of influencing Prime Minister Tony Blair.
Early life and education
After leaving school, she read Politics, Philosophy and Economics at Balliol College, Oxford. In 2005, while still an undergraduate, she won the Oxford Leadership Prize which is a contest requiring an essay on a contemporary issue of political leadership. Her winning essay, "Invisible Leaders", was presented in a novel audio format and won her the prize of £4,000. Her leadership models were those that "create space and opportunity for action". She subsequently undertook a postgraduate MA degree in journalism from City University London.
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