Alison Austin
| Alison Austin | |
|---|---|
 Alison Austin (Photo - Boston Standard) | |
| Born |
1943 (age 80–81) Essex |
| Residence | Wyberton |
| Nationality | British |
| Education | Miss Green’s 'dame' school; Boston High School; University of Wales |
| Years at BGS | c1985-1999 |
| Departments | Mathematics |
| Subjects | Mathematics |
| Spouse | Richard Austin |
| Children | Lucy, Chistopher, William |
| Parents | Dr and Mrs Rosalind Mary 'Mollie' Hardwick of Kirton (adoptive) |
Alison Austin was a teacher of mathematics at Boston Grammar School from c1985 to 1999.
Early Life
Describing herself as ‘a product of the war’, Alison was born in Essex in 1943, but came to Kirton aged only a few months old as the adopted daughter of Dr and Mrs Hardwick, who also adopted another daughter, 18 months older. Alison’s father, Dr Hardwick was the village doctor from 1928 until his death in 1957, when she was just 13. His memory lives on in the village with Hardwick Road and the Hardwick Estate being named after him. Her parents had married in 1938, her mother Mollie (Rosalind Mary) being daughter of Dr C.W. Pilcher, of Boston.
Alison was educated until she was 11 at Miss Green’s ‘dame’ school – a room in her home. She passed her 11-plus aged only 10 and moved up to Boston High School for Girls. Having passed her O-levels and A-levels she went to the University of Wales in Cardiff where she graduated with an honours degree in mathematics.
In her second year at university, Alison gained a summer job working in the Ministry of Agriculture’s entomology laboratory and met Richard, agricultural adviser for Holbeach Marsh. After a three-week courtship, they were engaged, Richard having taken her to the top of Boston Stump to propose marriage. Aged just 21 – Richard was 28 – Alison had a year left to finish her degree.
Teaching career
Alison and Richard married in July, 1966, and lived in West End Road, Wyberton, by which time Alison had started teaching maths at Sleaford High School. After two years there she taught for another two years at Boston High School before taking seven years off to raise their adopted children, Lucy, Christopher, and William. As their children took part in activities, Alison found herself volunteering to keep the local Brownie pack going and was Brown Owl for 15 years. She was also active in the Ladies’ Circle and Wyberton Parish Church and, for a while, delivered for Meals on Wheels.
Alison went back to teaching part-time at Sleaford, staying for six years, before moving to teach at Boston Grammar School. She stayed there for fourteen-and-a-half years before taking early retirement in 1999.
Councillor and Mayor
Alison likes challenges and gained a first-class Open University degree in human geography aged 63.
Her life took another turn when she was persuaded, despite early resistance, to stand for election to Boston Borough Council. Led by Richard, the Boston Bypass Independent party swept to power at borough level in 2007. In 2013 she was also elected to Lincolnshire County Council as a Lincolnshire Independent.
In 1999 Alison decided she needed something more to do with her life and made up her mind to volunteer as a charity shop worker but found herself at homelessness charity Centrepoint Outreach, volunteering in the drop-in. "Every one of these is someone’s son or someone’s daughter. It could be our son. It is so easy these days to be in this situation – a relationship breakdown or a loss of employment, especially without the backing of family, can end this way," she said. Alison is a director of the charity and for three years was chairman.
In May 2014 Alison became Boston's 480th Mayor. As Mayor she selected Centrepoint Outreach to be one of her two Mayor’s Charities. The other was the Gateway Club, part of Boston Mencap - this choice being influenced by one of her grandsons who has Down’s Syndrome. Richard was her consort as Mayor.