Gerry Keating steps down as Jesmond councillor

Outstanding campaigner and long serving councillor Gerry Keating is unfortunately having to step down as councillor for North Jesmond because of ill health. Over the years Gerry has inspired many a would-be councillor and built very strong relationships with the people who have elected him. He will be a hard act to follow.

Gerry was first elected as a Tyne & Wear county councillor in 1981 representing Gosforth No. 2 ward. He subsequently represented Blakelaw for 26 years on Newcastle City Council, and then North Jesmond since 2014. He brought a particular expertise in transport, education and planning to the conduct of council affairs, and was a long-standing member of the Planning Committee. He has been an exceptionally committed, hard-working and much-admired ward councillor.

Gerry came to Tyneside aged 10. He was educated at St Cuthbert's School, Newcastle and then Cambridge University. Aged 25, he became a teacher of Politics and Latin at the Royal Grammar School, where he remained for 33 years. Always a keen sportsman, during his time there he coached some outstanding athletes and cross-country runners.

We wish Gerry and his wife, Lucy, a former Jesmond councillor herself, all the best for the next chapter in their lives