Background
Richard was born in Kingston, Jamaica in 1956 where he spent his formative years before migrating to Northampton, England in 1964. There, he attended Vernon Terrace primary school before going on to study at Cliftonville Comprehensive School for boys. After leaving school with an interest in cars, Richard became an apprentice mechanic, which included studying mechanical engineering at the local college. However, within two years Richard soon left the so-called tranquil town life of Northampton for the glitz and glamour of London in the latter part of 1973.
In London he had a few jobs in the car motor industry before working in various positions for a train operating company. Over a period of 22 years with this company, Richard became station supervisor and duty manager of many London stations, including Blackfriars and City Thameslink. He then briefly worked in enforcement for a local authority before going on to work in the third sector on community development initiatives and as a community researcher, whilst studying at South Bank University.
In a change of career, Richard opened a Caribbean restaurant and wine-bar in Southeast London, which closed 2000. In October 2000, he joined Greenwich Council firstly as: Project Development Officer; Information and Research; and Policy and Performance Officer, which ended when he took voluntary severance in October 2011.
Richard’s first love however is art and from a very early age became well known for artistic impressions. He is a competent artist and in 1977 he sold his first painting for £250. His expertise is in portraits, still life and landscapes.
Tragedy
In 1991 sadly, Richard was delivered a devastating blow when his son Rolan (aged 15) and Nathan (aged 14) were brutally attacked by a gang of 15 white racists in February of that year. Rolan was fatally stabbed and Nathan narrowly escaped by running for his life. Since that life changing event Richard and his wife, Audrey, have campaigned tirelessly over the years to bring about social justice, equality and human rights for victims of racial violence and other form of injustices.
Over the past 20 years Richard has campaigned alongside other victims, families, friends and supporters of those who have or continue to suffer racism and other human rights issues such as: Brian Moore, Satpal Ram, the Cardiff Five, Ruhullah Aramesh, Rohit Duggal, Stephen Lawrence, Duwayne Brooks, Orville Blair, M25 Three and many others. Richard was a contributor to Satish Sekar’s second book The Cardiff Five: Innocent Beyond Any Doubt.
In honour of Rolan’s life and aspirations Richard, with the full support of his family established the Rolan Adams Legacy Foundation. See http://rolanadams.org.uk for more information.
Expertise
In his endeavour to help bring about community cohesion and more civic engagement among Minority Communities, Richard worked in the Third Sector as a Community Researcher and Community Activist. In the same way, Richard worked in the Public Sector with Local Authorities on the low take-up of civic engagement among Minority Communities and the issue of social exclusion.
Richard was awarded a BSc (Open) degree in the Social Sciences and Archaeological related subjects in July 2011 by the Open University. In addition to his Grassroots and Third Sector involvement work, Richard was a Principal Officer for a Local Authority with experience in: Staff Supervision; Project Management; Casework; Data Protection and Freedom of Information access requests; Quality Control; dealing with MP’s and Councillors’ enquiries; problem solving and delivering appropriate resolution to complex customer complaints and Ombudsman’s enquiries. He is a methodical and highly organised individual with strong communication skill.
He also has excellent analytical and investigative skills. He is a highly valued member of The Fitted-In Project’s team and is the Chair of the Trustees.
Interests
Richard has a wide range of interests that include his position as a Schools Admission Appeal Panel Member as a LEA Governor at a local School and Six Form College. He is also a dab-hand at DIY home projects. He also enjoys Swimming and Gym Activity, along with Travelling. As previously mentioned, Richard’s keen interest is in art and he enjoys experimenting with water, acrylic and oil mediums (colours).