Personal and political life

Ben Hartley has lived in Sale all of his working life and has lived in Ashton upon Mersey for 14 years.

He grew up in Bolton before studying at university in Warwick and Nottingham.

He lives with his wife, a teacher at local schools, two teenage daughters and a border terrier.

Ben has been a lifelong Labour supporter and member of the Party since 2004.

He has campaigned for Labour locally for over 10 years helping to elect Labour councillors in Broadheath.

In 2019, he became the first ever Labour councillor elected to represent Ashton upon Mersey ward on Trafford Council.

He is a member of the Council’s Health Scrutiny Committee and Poverty Action Group.

He was until recently the Chair of the Planning and Development Management Committee.

Ben has supported the work of community groups in Ashton and the Sale West Community Hub.

In March 2023, Ben was selected as Labour’s parliamentary candidate to contest Altrincham & Sale West at the next General Election.

His priorities for the area are supporting communities through the cost of living crisis, ensuring better access to Trafford schools, ending long waits for mental health support, more affordable housing, supporting local businesses and addressing the climate crisis through community led and co-operative solutions.

For six years, Ben was a governor at Old Trafford Community Academy.

He is passionate about defending the NHS and our public services after seeing the compassion and dedication of healthcare workers treating his daughter for cancer.

He is campaigning to forge closer links with Europe as part of the Labour Movement for Europe and is a member of the Unison and Community trade unions and The Co-operative Party.

Ben has had a legal career stretching over 20 years and currently works full-time as a Principal Legal Adviser at a healthcare regulator, leading a team of solicitors preparing fitness to practise cases.

He’s worked on high profile cases, legislative reform, judicial review claims, appeals and on evidence provided to statutory inquiries into healthcare failings.

He has qualified as a Solicitor Advocate with rights of audience in the higher courts.