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'Who is Tom Aditya'?
(Excerpts from articles published in the Bristol Post, Asian Voice, British South Indians, and other newspapers)
Mayor Emeritus, Councillor Tom Aditya is an elected civic representative, a member of the UK Police Scrutiny Panel, a social justice advocate, and a management consultant in the United Kingdom. He is the first person of Indian origin to be elected Mayor in South West England, the first person of South-Indian origin outside the London metro region elected Councillor in the UK and the first South Indian elected in the UK on the Conservative party ticket, and the first person of Asian and Indian heritage to be elected to a civic office in South Gloucestershire county. Since 2007, he has been part of the South Glos Council's Equalities Panel. He has also been serving as the Chairman of the ‘Bristol Multi-Faith Forum’, which is the Bristol City Council’s initiative for social harmony and community well-being. Besides that, Cllr Tom is the Chair of the South Glos Council's Community Engagement Forums Chairs Network, as well as a Member of the Bristol University Court, and the Police Strategic Advisory Panel, which covers Greater Bristol and West of England counties. In his civic roles, Tom Aditya served as Mayor, Deputy Mayor, Council Spokesperson, Chairman of the Finance Committee, Planning and Environment Committee, Staffing Committee, Leisure, Youth & Amenities Committee, International Twinnings Committee, etc. Tom also acts as a speaker, policymaker, and entrepreneur.
Tom has been part of a community partnership team that builds up sustainable communities by improving community cohesion, promoting health and well-being, enhancing people's skills and learning, eradicating poverty, reducing loneliness and isolation, advocating equality, and celebrating diversity. He was involved in community engagement projects and instrumental in establishing a community radio for the neighbourhood in 2010. Cllr Tom’s service was extended internationally as a human-rights campaigner, and he was successful in the campaign to liberate expatriate housemaids enslaved in Saudi Arabia (2015) and to release an innocent man sentenced to the death penalty in UAE. He facilitated the Indian High Commission’s Consular Camps in Bristol and has also been an inspiration for organising such consular camps for other nationalities in the region. He acts as a bridge between various communities. Cllr Aditya was at the forefront of establishing direct flight services between London and Cochin in 2020, repatriating seriously ill patients and stranded people during the COVID lockdown, and putting up vaccination awareness campaigns and outreach clinics for the community during 2020 and 2021. Since 2011, he has been a champion of the NHS Blood and Organ Donation campaign. During the 2021 UK census, he initiated the campaign to preserve and enumerate the heritage languages of the ethnic minority communities in the UK and that campaign turned out to be very popular amongst various communities. Being a civic representative, he relentlessly raises the voice for people’s needs and concerns and contributes to various streams of society, profoundly.
Tom Prabin Mathew Aditya was born in a traditional Christian family in Kerala (India). Growing up in Kerala, Tom was inspired by the social contributions of his forefathers. Tom's father, Mr Thomas Mathew was very much involved in the social and community activities of that neighbourhood. His illustrious maternal grandfather Mr Mani K Vettom, who passed away in 1954, was an Indian freedom fighter, civic leader and leader of the national movement in the erstwhile State of Travancore. Tom was acclaimed as a good reader and speaker from a young age. He was active in students' union activities, debating forums and quiz competitions. He studied Law and Economics at University and did a Master's degree in Management. He later undertook academic programmes on project management in the USA and financial services management in the UK. He also pursued a PhD programme on public administration in England. Tom recalls that he faced many challenges in life, but he feels that such ordeals provided him with the experience to comprehend the world from a realistic perspective. He cites his parents, siblings and friends as providing the support that laid the foundations of his development.
Cllr Tom started his banking career in 1995 and gained exposure working through various ranks of management and travelling widely. During the change of the millennium, he was invited to serve as projects director of an Indian diocese (also a major development agency in that part of the world). It was a very strategic portfolio with diverse activities. The team he was involved with produced many successes including the establishment of Amal Jyothi College of Engineering, Kanjirapally and the Sahyadri Co-operative Bank, Kanjirapally - the flagship projects of that time. He also contributed to strengthening the indigenous manufacturing facilities of the Malanadu Development Society, the Organic Farmer’s Consortium and the International Exports Division of Peerumedu Development Society under the Diocese. He fulfilled his responsibilities meticulously as an effective hand behind the Diocesean Administration for the development of Marian College Kuttikanam, MMT Hospital Mundakayam and various other schools, infirmaries and institutions.
In 2002, Tom moved his management consultancy services to the shores of England. Afterwards, he diversified into financial services and exports. He built up a successful venture in Great Britain and soon became the most productive financial consultant in the UK. The business activities enabled him to crisscross and explore the world further and to be decorated with a range of corporate awards. He received the UK's most productive financial consultant award in 2006. He also penned several articles on public administration and political science. His works include 'Local Governments - the Cradle of Democracy, The Flaws of Indian Democracy and The Localism Act 2011 and its implications.
Community service has been very close to Tom's heart and he considered it as his vocation. He was always involved in social activities and was ready to help others. In 2007, Tom Aditya was selected to the South Gloucestershire Council's Equalities Forum, representing the ethnic minority community organisations. The Equalities Forum (which got representatives from the senior citizens, women’s guilds, youth clubs, disability forums, voluntary organisations, faith congregations, family partnerships, LGBT groups, various ethnic and language communities as well as spokespersons of the police, fire and rescue, National Health Service, primary care trust, education service and the local authority) gave Tom an extended platform to serve the wider society. During the interim, he served as Chairman of the South Glos Equalities Forum and used that opportunity resourcefully to help the marginalised in their human rights and equality issues and to serve as a voice for the voiceless.
Taking account of Tom’s community involvement and understanding, he was chosen as the Trustee of Southern Brooks Community Partnership, a renowned non-governmental organisation, which helps people to make a positive difference in their lives and neighbourhood. He was also at the forefront of the campaigns for faster broadband and the full-fledged post office in Bradley Stoke. Tom’s sincere efforts for such causes prompted the local residents to nominate him to the Council. Cutting across political differences and cultural diversities, he secured two-thirds of the polled votes in the ward which was never won by his party earlier. Considering the sparse Asian population in the area, his election victory revealed the town’s vibrancy to recognise talented individuals irrespective of their race or colour and its solidarity with the under-represented sections of the society. Interestingly this created news headlines in the international media.
At the local authority, within a short time, Tom has been regarded as an enthusiastic and proactive councillor, acknowledged even by his political opponents. Whilst serving as an elected councillor, he served in various committees of the Council and was later elected to serve as the Mayor, the Deputy Mayor, the Conservative Group Leader, the Council Spokesperson, and the Chairman of the Finance and Planning Committees. He holds high attendance records in all council meetings and civic programmes and relentlessly raises his voice for people’s needs and concerns. He always voted against the council tax increase and helped the council to keep the council precept frozen for the last 8 years, whilst zealously applying the concept of financial prudence in public transactions. He was effective in bringing more transparency and accountability to the administration.
Whilst Tom served as chairman of the planning and transport committee, he drove up arrangements for the upkeep of the town’s highway verges when SGC axed that service. He also provided leadership for the town’s beautification and conservation, as well as on various community issues. To restore and enhance the ecosystem, he proposed the plan for the creation of wildflower areas on highway verges and to identify open spaces to preserve biodiversity and to provide habitat for pollinating insects, as part of the Council's Biodiversity Initiative. Also, he represented the Council at the International Twinnings Committee, Avon Local Councils Association Committee, the Bradley Stoke Library Committee, Anti-Hate Crime Board, and others, without taking a penny from the council funds. Being the town council’s ambassador for international twinnings, he devotedly partakes in and encourages twinning visits and inter-cultural programmes to twinned cities, to local schools as well as in the neighbourhood.
Furthermore, as a Member of the Avon and Somerset Police Scrutiny Panel, Cllr Aditya partakes in scrutinising the police actions in Greater Bristol and the West of England counties, whilst communicating local people’s perspectives on the use of police powers and safeguarding civil rights, and acts as a ‘critical friend’ of the Police. The Avon and Somerset Constabulary area covers 1,855 square miles (4805 square kilometres) and has a population of over 1.6 million people and more than 679,000 households. Simultaneously, Tom serves as Chairman of Bristol Multi-Faith Forum, which is an equalities organisation instituted by the Bristol City Council for inter-faith and inter-cultural cohesion and social harmony and to promote the health and well-being of the communities. He steered the Bristol Multi-Faith Forum in organising the 'Love your Neighbour' Award programme in partnership with the Bristol Rovers Football Club. Tom also leads the NHS Blood and Organ Donation campaign in the West of England. Bristol metropolitan area has a population of over 1.2 million, and he was involved in its community cohesion projects. Tom works at the forefront to organise the annual memorial services that pay tributes to the famous social reformer Raja Ram Mohan Roy, who was laid to rest at Bristol in 1833. Tom has also been eager to incorporate the memories of the Commonwealth soldiers, who fought and died, helping the British during the two world wars.
Bradley Stoke, which he represents, has the record of the lowest crime rate in the region. Nevertheless, when signs of burglaries and anti-social activities by miscreants came up in the neighbourhood, Tom Aditya was at the forefront to call the attention of the police against burglaries and anti-social activities; and urged strong action. He called public meetings with the top officials of the Police and put up solutions to fight against it and brought things under control. He took the initiative to bring new public transport links connecting the Bristol city centre and hospitals with Bradley Stoke. He has been involved in the youth activities of the council and urged fervently to enhance youth democracy. He has actively been part of building up the skate park in the neighbourhood and was also instrumental in organising social networking tea parties for the elderly in the town to reduce social isolation and loneliness. Through the Community Engagement Forum, he engaged with the local health centre to streamline telephone and online appointments for patients, which helped many members of the community. He always helped the community groups in their activities and supported them in giving council grants to local community groups. As a volunteer, he has been involved in many community activities such as the Community Festival, the Carnival, the Fireworks, the neighbourhood cleaning missions, the green gyms etc. He actively lobbies with the higher authorities and stakeholders to improve and maintain the quality of life for all residents. He advocates reducing traffic congestion and parking problems through better planning and infrastructure development. He also stands up for better school funding. He wishes to establish a crown post office in the neighbourhood and clean up the lake in the nature reserve.
Councillor Tom Aditya currently wears various other hats. He is Chairman of the Council's Community Engagement Forum, South Glos Equalities Forum, the West of England Community Transport Network Committee and the Local Authority's School Governor. He is distinguished by his trademarks: sincerity, conviction and courage. He smoothly blends the roles of a people’s advocate and management consultant. His passionate interest in civic subjects and sustainable community development projects is illustrious and his comprehension of such themes is inspiring. He is an asset to society.
To summarise, Tom is a reliable and approachable friend who is ready to listen and also has the experience, knowledge and energy to put things into action. He strived to spread goodwill and harmony among all sections of society and had a positive attitude and universal values. Tom feels that people should resolve political differences and cultural diversities to work together for the holistic development of the nation.