Steve Double's Blog

I was born 12 days before the end of 1966 (which was a very good year) in my grandmother’s house in St Blazey, a village a few miles from St Austell. We then moved into St Austell to live which has always been home.

After attending the local schools (Carclaze and Poltair) I went straight into working for Barclays Bank at the age of 16. I have to admit that I couldn’t wait to leave school and the thought of going to college never entered my head) I spent 10 years working in Lostwithiel, Bodmin, St Austell, Newquay and St Columb. During this time the bank did allow me to attend college one day a week (that was about enough for me) and I gained a diploma in Business Studies at St Austell College.

In 1992 I left the bank – I must admit I was getting pretty bored of it by then and I could see the sales culture coming which really wasn’t for me.

So as a complete change of directions I went to work for our local church and also my father’s charity (Good News Crusade). I spent the next 12 years ‘pastoring’ (although I am not keen on the word) what was known at St Austell Bay Community Church. This was a really interesting time and taught me a great deal about people and community. It also helped me develop my communication and public speaking abilities.

During this time I also spent time working with my father’s charity helping him with various projects and events in the UK and overseas – especially East Africa. I have come to love Tanzania and Kenya and still try to visit there as often as I can.

Then in 2001 I felt it was time for another change of direction. Although I still have a very active faith, I started to feel that there had to be a lot more to it than religious Sunday meetings and the like. So through some very surprising events we ended up starting a business (www.baymailing.co.uk). This has been an amazing part of our journey. We have seen the business grow to become one of the biggest providers of mailing and distribution services in the South West. It has given us the opportunity to provide jobs for local people and engage with the business community.

Then in 2009 came another dramatic change. Due to the recession I found myself with some time on my hands so in March I decided to take a look at the local political scene. (You can read more about this on the Me and Politics page) but I ended up being the Conservative Party candidate for the Cornwall Council Election for the Poltair area of St Austell.

To my great surprise I won the election and now serve the local community as a Cornwall Councillor. This has been a very steep learnign curve and has thrust Anne and I right into the heart of local politics. A few weeks after me becoming a Councillor, my wife , Anne was approached by our local Parliamentary candidate to be her candidate’s aid for the up coming General Election. So we are now a part of Caroline Righton’s campaign team and our main focus for the coming months is to do all we can to get her elected to Westminster.

Who  knows what is next on our journey but so far it has been quite a ride!