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Antoinette Sandbach MP arrived at Haileybury only 12 years after the College first began to admit girls in 1973.
She went on to forge a successful career as a criminal barrister in London before moving home to Wales in 2005. In 2010 she became a member of the Welsh Assembly and, in 2015, contested the Cheshire seat of Eddisbury where she is now the sitting MP with a majority of nearly 13,000.
From rural Wales to Member of Parliament
Antoinette Sandbach was born in Hafodunos near Llangernyw in the historic county of Denbighshire in 1969. Following work as a barrister for over a decade, she is now MP for the Cheshire constituency of Eddisbury in North West England.
Early years and education
Antoinette joined Alban’s in the Sixth Form at Haileybury in 1985, only 12 years after the College first began to admit girls in 1973.
Following a gap year in Indonesia where she worked for the charity Project Trust, she then went on to study Law at Nottingham University. She then took her master’s degree there, before being called to the Bar in 1993 – an achievement she still recalls as a highlight of her career.
Legal career
Antoinette practised as a criminal barrister for 12 years from her Chambers in Bedford Row, near to Gray’s Inn, right in the heart of legal London. It was here that her passion for supporting those in need began to flourish; in particular, working on one case when she successfully advocated the admissibility of evidence of a witness who had been “nobbled” by the defendant.
As a barrister, she also served two terms on the Bar Council, in addition to providing legal aid advice and support for those not in a position to advance their cases.
A move into politics
In 2005, Antoinette returned to Hafadunos and, as a consequences of her experiences, was inspired to bring her local knowledge and legal background to bear on a career in politics.
Working initially in support of David Jones, MP for Clwyd West she went on, unsuccessfully, to contest the constituency of Delyn in 2010 before becoming Conservative Regional Assembly Member for North Wales in 2011, when she also became Shadow Rural Affairs Minister in the Welsh Assembly.
Constituency MP
In March 2015, Antoinette was selected as the Conservative Party candidate for the Conservative-held seat of Eddisbury, a safe Tory seat in Cheshire, England. Having secured a majority of 12,974, she resigned from the Welsh Assembly, where she was replaced by Janet Haworth.
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