In December 2019, Sarah Atherton was elected to represent Wrexham, becoming the first Conservative to represent the constituency since its creation in 1918, overturning a Labour majority of 1,832 and turning it into a Conservative majority of 2,131. She became the first female to represent Wrexham and the first female Conservative MP elected to Westminster representing a Welsh constituency. As well as this, Sarah is also the first female MP that has also served in the regular Armed Forces.
Following her election, Sarah was appointed as the Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Wales Office, and worked closely with the Secretary of State for Wales to ensure that Wrexham’s interests are represented in Westminster.
Subsequent to this, she has been appointed as one of two PPS' to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and the Government Equalities Office, a role she continues to hold.
As an Army veteran and member of the Defence Select Committee, Sarah also frequently speaks up for the rights of military personnel and has called for the end of vexatious claims against veterans. In her role as a member of the Defence Select Committee, she has also been given the opportunity to Chair a Sub-Committee looking at the experiences of female Armed Forces personnel and veterans. This role came off the back of tireless campaigning in and out of Parliament to ensure that the voices of these individuals can be heard.
In addition, Sarah is also a Vice-Chair to the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Veterans and is involved with other APPGs with a defence focus, such as the APPG for the Armed Forces and the the APPG for the Armed Forces Covenant.
Prior to her involvement in politics, Sarah trained and served as a nurse at Wrexham Maelor Hospital, before progressing to become a District Nurse. Understanding that health and social wellbeing were inextricably linked, Sarah later trained as a social worker specialising in mental health issues among older people.
Her enthusiasm for helping people and bettering her community is what initially inspired Sarah to get involved with politics. In May 2017 Sarah was elected onto her local Community Council and has been involved with various community initiatives.
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