Christine has over 25 years experience in public life in Scotland in the fields of politics, education, public relations and charity work. For 12 years she served on the City of Edinburgh District Council and was her Group’s leader for 4 years. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. In 1992 she was made an OBE. Christine is a member of the Board of The Friends of the Royal Scottish Academy. She has just been elected to the Board of The Edinburgh International Festival.
Christine’s business experience has covered the fields of theatre, economic development, science, coal mining, education and training. She has held a number of non-executive directorships in these disciplines. She is a trained and experienced personal relationships counsellor and a business and personal mentor. In 2005 Christine established Christine Richard Associates who undertake Event Management and Public Relations as well as company and individual profiling. Last year she coordinated the ‘Yes to Edinburgh’ campaign on congestion charging in Edinburgh. Seven years ago Christine co- founded West Lothian Women in Business, which is a network for women who are self-employed and also for women managers. Christine recently stepped down from the Chair of this thriving organisation.
For 5 years Christine was a magistrate in the District Court. She was also a member of the Secretary of State’s Advisory Committee on the appointment of Justices of the Peace. She has been an adviser to Government in various areas of policy, including health, local government and education.
Christine is a trained and experienced radio and television broadcaster and writer as well as an entertaining and accomplished speaker. She has a wealth of topics on which she is invited to speak. These range from witty after lunch and after dinner speaking to the more serious topics of the economy, health, education, enterprise, the Powers of the Mind and Life/work balance. She writes a regular diary column and articles for lifestyle magazine, Lothian Life and is currently working on a contemporary novel set in Scotland. She was recently a contestant in an ITV gourmet TV show, Chef V Britain, challenging TV chef Gino D’Acampo to cook her signature dish, Posh Cottage Pie. Currently Christine is working on a proposed TV series on ageing with Michael Shea, the well-known writer and broadcaster and former Press Secretary to the Queen as well as two other potential programmes.
Her leisure interests include her family, literature, music, theatre, food, wine and horse racing. She is a member of a racing syndicate, which has two horses in training. Christine has close connections with Musselburgh Racecourse where her late husband, John was Chairman.