Christine Chapman (born 7 April 1956) is a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

Labour Co-operative Labour and Co-operative Party (often abbreviated Labour Co-op; cy, Llafur a'r Blaid Gydweithredol) is a description used by candidates in United Kingdom elections who stand on behalf of both the Labour Party and the Co-operative Party. Candida ...

politician who was a

Member of the National Assembly for Wales A Member of the Senedd (MS; plural: ''MSs''; cy, Aelodau o'r Senedd; , plural:) (AS)., group=la is a representative elected to the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; ). There are sixty members, with forty members chosen to represent individual Senedd c ...

for

Cynon Valley Cynon Valley () is a former coal mining valley in Wales. Cynon Valley lies between Rhondda and the Merthyr Valley and takes its name from the River Cynon. Aberdare is located in the north of the valley and Mountain Ash is in the south o ...

from 1999 to 2016. She has not held senior government posts and has been described as "one of the quietest women AMs ...

hose A hose is a flexible hollow tube designed to carry fluids from one location to another. Hoses are also sometimes called ''pipes'' (the word ''pipe'' usually refers to a rigid tube, whereas a hose is usually a flexible one), or more generally ' ...

effectiveness lies in her quiet willingness to discuss".icwales.co.uk Politics Handbook

Education

Chapman was born in

Porth Porth ( cy, Y Porth) is a town and a community in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales. Lying in the Rhondda Valley, it is regarded as the gateway connecting the Rhondda Fawr and ...

Rhondda Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley ( cy, Cwm Rhondda ), is a former coal mining, coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fa ...

and educated at Porth County Girls' School. She then went to the

University of Wales, Aberystwyth , mottoeng = A world without knowledge is no world at all , established = 1872 (as ''The University College of Wales'') , former_names = University of Wales, Aberystwyth , type = Public , endowment = ...

and graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

degree in Classical Studies and History in 1978, and to

South Bank Polytechnic London South Bank University (LSBU) is a public university in Elephant and Castle, London. It is based in the London Borough of Southwark, near the South Bank of the River Thames, from which it takes its name. Founded in 1892 as the Borough Po ...

where she obtained a Diploma in Careers Guidance. She earned a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

Economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analy ...

Cardiff University , latin_name = , image_name = Shield of the University of Cardiff.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms of Cardiff University , motto = cy, Gwirionedd, Undod a Chytgord , mottoeng = Truth, Unity and Concord , established = 1 ...

and a

Postgraduate Certificate in Education The Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE/PGCertEd) is a one- or two-year higher education course in England, Wales and Northern Ireland which provides training in order to allow graduates to become teachers within maintained schools. In ...

at the University of Swansea.

Career

She worked as a teacher, school careers adviser, and Compact Manager with Mid-Glamorgan Education Business Partnership. She was later co-ordinator for Torfaen Education Business Partnership and non-Executive Director of Mid-Glamorgan Careers Ltd. She obtained professional membership of the Institute of Careers Guidance.

Politics

Chapman served as a Labour Party member of

Rhondda Cynon Taff Rhondda Cynon Taf (; RCT; also spelt as Rhondda Cynon Taff) is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It consists of five valleys: the Rhondda Fawr, Rhondda Fach, Cynon, Taff (Welsh: ''Taf'') and Ely valleys, plus a number of towns and vil ...

County Borough Council representing

Ynysybwl Ynysybwl ( cy, Ynys-y-bŵl ) is a village in Cwm Clydach in Wales. It is situated in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, roughly north-north-west of Cardiff, north of Pontypridd and south of Merthyr Tydfil, and forms part of the com ...

and Coed y Cwm. In the 1999 election, Chapman was elected as AM for

, withstanding a strong advance by

Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. Plaid wa ...

. She chaired the Objective One Programme Monitoring Committee from 2000 to 2004, finding the time to complete an

MPhil The Master of Philosophy (MPhil; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. In the United States, an MPhil typically includes a taught portion and a significant research portion, during which a thesis project is conducted under supervision. An MPhil m ...

degree at Cardiff University in June 2001. In January 2005 Chapman was appointed as a Deputy Minister in the

Welsh Assembly Government Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

, responsible for Education and Lifelong Learning, and Finance, Local Government and Public Services. She was Chair of the Assembly's Women and Democracy Group and Secretary of the Labour

UNISON In music, unison is two or more musical parts that sound either the same pitch or pitches separated by intervals of one or more octaves, usually at the same time. ''Rhythmic unison'' is another term for homorhythm. Definition Unison or pe ...

Group. She supported the "Children Are Unbeatable Alliance" which seeks prohibit all corporal or physical punishment of children. Chapman stood down in 2016 and was succeeded at the 2016 Welsh Assembly elections by Vikki Howells.

References

External links

*
Christine Chapman AM Official site

Offices held

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chapman, Christine 1956 births Living people Alumni of Cardiff University Labour Co-operative members of the Senedd Wales AMs 1999–2003 Wales AMs 2003–2007 Wales AMs 2007–2011 Wales AMs 2011–2016 Members of the Welsh Assembly Government People from Porth Female members of the Senedd Members of Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council 20th-century British women politicians Women members of the Welsh Assembly Government Women councillors in Wales