Josephine Farrington, Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton (née Cayless; 29 June 1940 – 30 March 2018) was a British Labour Party politician, active in local government internationally before her elevation to the Lords in 1994.

Early life

Josephine Cayless was born in

Loughborough Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood (borough), Charnwood Borough of Leicestershire, England; it is the administrative centre of Charnwood Borough Council. At the United Kingdom 2021 census, the town's built-up area had a popula ...

in 1940. She worked as a teacher, even though she had left school at age sixteen.

Politics

She was a Preston Borough Councillor from 1973 to 1976. In 1977, she was elected to

Lancashire County Council Lancashire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Lancashire, England. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashire is smaller than the ceremonial county, which additionally includes Blackburn with Dar ...

and held several senior positions, including chair of the Education Committee. From 1981 to 1994 she was a Member of the

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; , CdE) is an international organisation with the goal of upholding human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it is Europe's oldest intergovernmental organisation, represe ...

Standing Conference of Local and Regional Authorities and of its successor the

Congress of the Council of Europe The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities is the pan-European political assembly representing local and regional authorities from the forty-six member states of the Council of Europe. Its role is to promote local and regional democracy, imp ...

. She acted as an international observer at local elections in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

and

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

. She was also a Member of the

Committee of the Regions The European Committee of the Regions (CoR) is the European Union's (EU) assembly of local and regional representatives that provides sub-national authorities (i.e. regions, counties, provinces, municipalities and cities) with a direct voice w ...

of the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

and was Chairman of Education and Training in 1994. Farrington was the Labour candidate at the 1983 general election for the constituency of

West Lancashire West Lancashire is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire, England. The council is based in Ormskirk, and the largest town is Skelmersdale. The district borders Fylde to the north, over the Ribble Estuary; South Ribbl ...

and stood for the party again at the

1991 Ribble Valley by-election The Ribble Valley by-election, in Lancashire, England, took place on 7 March 1991 following the elevation of MP David Waddington to the House of Lords. Michael Carr of the Liberal Democrats won election at his third attempt. The seat, based ...

. On 29 September 1994, she was created a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

as Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton, of Fulwood in the County of

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

. She was a government spokesperson in the

Lords Lords may refer to: * The plural of Lord Places *Lords Creek, a stream in New Hanover County, North Carolina *Lord's, English Cricket Ground and home of Marylebone Cricket Club and Middlesex County Cricket Club People *Traci Lords (born 19 ...

for several issues between 1997 and 2010.

Personal life

Cayless married Michael Farrington in 1960; the couple had three sons. She died from lung cancer at her residence in

Dolphin Square Dolphin Square is an estate of private flats with some ground floor business units near the River Thames in Pimlico, Westminster, London built between 1935 and 1937. Until the building of Highbury Square, it was the most developed garden squar ...

, London, on 30 March 2018, at the age of 77.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Farrington of Ribbleton, Josephine Farrington, Baroness 1940 births 2018 deaths 20th-century English women politicians 21st-century English women politicians Deaths from lung cancer in England Labour Party (UK) Baronesses- and Lords-in-Waiting Labour Party (UK) life peers Labour Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Life peeresses created by Elizabeth II Life peers created by Elizabeth II Members of Lancashire County Council Women councillors in England