A school governor was inspired by her late father to stand to become a councillor.

Becky Allinson has been selected by Labour to stand in St Mary’s ward in Shoreham for May’s Adur council elections.

The seat was formerly held by Catherine Arnold who resigned as a councillor earlier this month.

Ms Allinson and serving councillor Jeremy Gardner will be standing for Labour in the two St Mary’s seats up for election on May 2.

Ms Allinson, who lives in St Mary’s, is the daughter of the late Les Alden who was an Adur councillor and leader of the Adur Labour group until 2020.

“I am delighted to have been selected to stand as a candidate,” she said.

“I saw the hard work my dad put into being a councillor, the way he had to challenge those in power and the success he had in supporting local residents. He had a passion to make life better for local people and I share that.

“Growing up in a politically active household instilled in me the importance of advocating for social justice and fairness. I am passionate about fostering a community we can all take pride in. Standing in this election is an honour for me.”

Ms Allinson is a school governor with Shoreham Academy, which was recently rated as outstanding, and works for a Brighton-based company providing advice to government and policymakers on education.

Earlier this month, Ms Arnold, who represented St Mary’s ward for five years, said a “political event” made her re-evaluate her role.

The former councillor threw her hat in the ring last year to become the Labour MP candidate for East Worthing and Shoreham, which is currently held by Conservative MP Tim Loughton.

But she was not included on the list of contenders, which was completed by a panel led by the party’s national executive committee.

The candidacy was eventually awarded to Lambeth councillor Tom Rutland.

In a statement Ms Arnold said she stepped away from her position proud of “my community, my work and the people within it”.