Local * Visible* Hands On  

Councillor Izzy Knowles

Izzy was elected in May 2022

She has spent her entire working life at the grass roots in the public sector; 5 years in children’s services, 30 years as Police Officer and 5 years with a homeless charity. 

When the pandemic struck Izzy  was one of a key group of volunteers who set up Moseley Together which arranged deliveries of food and medicines to shielding and vulnerable resident, supported businesses and found volunteers for vaccination clinics. She went on to become a volunteer vaccinator with St Johns Ambulance and was awarded the BEM for ‘Services to the community in Moseley, especially in response to Covid 19’ in the 2022 New Years Honours list.

In 2022 she helped a group set up Moseley for Ukraine in response to the war in Ukraine and to support refugees and host families in Moseley.

Izzy has ben an active volunteer in a number of different organisations, these include attending the district Housing Liaison Board which seeks to include tenants and stakeholders in partnership with city housing officers as well as holding them to account. She has been a member of the Birmingham East Police IAG, which acts as liaison between local police senior management and the community. She founded Moseley Litter Busters, a group of volunteers who help to enhance and support a pride in our neighbourhoods. She helps run Moseley Farmers Market which has done much to boost the economy and the profile of Moseley as a destination and she set up Moseley Alternative Giving Campaign which provide help and support to homeless and vulnerable people in our community’.

Izzy says: ‘Having lived, worked and volunteered in public service for most of my life I feel I am in a good place to understand and tackle the very many issues that matter to people, such as local policing, crime, fly tipping, pollution, poor levels of recycling and dirty streets, and to take on injustices that prevent people succeeding in life such as the housing crisis, lack of funding for schools, inequality, prejudice and racism’.

I will be highly visible, hands on, local, accountable and contactable and when someone needs help or advice I will be there for them because it doesn’t matter who they are, or what their politics are, everyone matters and we can always find common ground.

I believe that everyone, no matter their background or starting point in life should be enabled to achieve. Our city is bursting with talent but our society holds it back. I want to see social mobility enabled through economic growth and educational opportunities tailored for all young people. I am suspicious of over powerful corporations, unions and bureaucracies. I recognise that challenges like climate change and the fourth industrial revolution require new and international solutions, rather than backward and inward looking politics’.

Councillor Philip Mills

 

Philip Mills was elected in October 2025

Philip works as the finance director for national charity LionHeart (benevolent fund for RICS members) ‘that helps people back onto their feet when life trips them up’;

He volunteers for local music education charity The Stringcredibles and national charity Visionary (membership charity for local sight loss charities) – ‘giving back’ is at the heart of his life;

He has lived in Birmingham for 40 years, already attends services at St Mary’s Church Parish of Moseley, Birmingham UK and is a member of Warwickshire County Cricket Club;

With friends in Moseley, Philip has enjoyed many visits to Moseley Farmers’ Market , Cannon Hill Park, Midlands Arts Centre – MAC Moseley Park and Pool and MoseleyBog over the years – and is looking forward to many more;

He supports the arts as a patron of both the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Shakespeare Company, as well as enjoying opera and plays the clarinet;

Philip is severely sight impaired and knows what it’s like to live with a disability, and – supported by guide dog Mason will champion accessibility and inclusion for everyone in Moseley