Kim Leadbetter

She found other students there who'd come from similar backgrounds and she found students who weren't from similar backgrounds, but actually they bonded and connected and became really good friends.

Why do you think she went into politics?

I think she went on her own journey through her education, through Cambridge, but then also working for charities and humanitarian causes.

And I think she had always been very interested in politics.

And we did joke about her coming back and being our MP one day, probably from a relatively young age.

But she didn't do that straight away.

I think what she saw through the humanitarian work that she did was that

You know, you can make a difference in lots of ways, but politics is where the big levers are.

And if you want to make a difference on issues that affect the country and indeed the world, that is where you need to be.

She also really wanted to come back to Yorkshire and reconnect with her roots.

And she would not have been an MP for anywhere else.

She was very clear about that.

She wanted to come back and represent Batley and Spen.

And when the seat became available and the previous MP retired, the timing was pretty bad, actually, because her children were so tiny.

And she really did wrestle with whether she could do it because her absolute priority was being a mum.

But she did go for it.

And then she did that job with such determination, but such compassion.

But there is a reality, which is you never switch off, you never leave work.

And I think that is one of the things that she struggled with the most.

But what she also loved was, like I say, coming back to Yorkshire.