THE new Sinn Féin councillor for the Colin area says she is "excited" and "honoured" to take on her new role at Belfast City Council.

Siobhán McCallin was selected by the party this week to replace outgoing councillor Clíodhna Nic Bhranair. Ms Nic Bhranair is stepping down as a Belfast City Councillor to focus on her role as Special Adviser to First Minister Michelle O'Neill.

From Beechmount, Siobhán was educated at St Catherine’s Primary School, St Dominic’s Grammar School and St Mary’s University College, completing a History degree in 2003. She is mother to Eoin, Aoife, Lorcan and Caolan, while the McCallin family are members of Naomh Eoin GAC. 

Siobhán taught in Christ the Redeemer Primary School in Lagmore from 2003 to 2016 when she medically retired due to a life-threatening sepsis ordeal and subsequent diagnosis of ME/CFS, which resulted in long periods in hospital and multiple surgical interventions. 

In a sit-down interview with the Andersonstown News, Siobhán spoke at length about her health battles and the impact it has had on her and her family.

"My health issues started with a kidney removal after years of having issues with kidney stones," she explained. "Each of my four pregnancies resulted in me being hospitalised for almost the duration. It was very traumatic.

"I also had a rare blood clot which I was very lucky to survive.

"I also survived sepsis. I was then diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), also known as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) or ME/CFS, which is a long-term illness that affects the nervous and immune systems and can make it difficult to do normal activities.

"I was in lockdown four years before everyone else. I lost everything that was part of me. I was suicidal. I was grieving the person I used to be. It was very hard to come to terms with the fact I would never be the same person again because of ME."

Since her medical retirement Siobhán has been a local activist campaigning on sepsis, ME/CFS and mental health.  She is a member of Glór na Móna’s 'Scríbhneoirí an tSléibhe' writing group, and her debut poetry collection, ‘Awakening M.E’, was published during Féile an Phobail in 2023.

"When I was well enough, I got involved in local community activism which helped give me my life back," she continued. "I have met so many people through the activism work. The poetry allowed other people to relate to it which meant so much to me. It made it so worthwhile.

"I was also involved in New Script for Mental Health, a campaign group calling for a trauma approach to mental health. The statistics are shocking, especially the spend on anti-depressants compared to talking trauma."

Speaking about her role as a councillor, Siobhán believes the party is a perfect fit for her.

"I am very grateful for the opportunity and to be asked to take on the role of a councillor," she added. "I have always been a supporter of the party. I am inspired as a woman by Mary Lou McDonald and especially Michelle O'Neill for her leadership.

"I am so grateful for the political leadership who were involved in the Good Friday Agreement who gave me and my children the opportunity to live a normal life. I was also a student of Politics and History. I am anti-imperialist and anti-colonialism. My ultimate aim is Irish unity.

"I am very lucky to be part of the largest representation of Sinn Féin on Belfast City Council."

Siobhán says she wants to be a voice for everyone in Belfast City Council, especially the working class community and people with disabilities.

"I want to work with everyone," she continued. "There is common ground in all of us in this city. Belfast has so much to offer. I really love the city and the people.

"The working class communities have been left behind. As a working class person, who is very proud to be from West Belfast, I hope I can reach out to others and help them.

"I will be representing the Colin area, back to where I worked as a teacher in Christ the Redeemer. Colin is a growing and exciting part of Belfast, especially with the recent new additions such as the park and transport hub.

"The issues for me is transgenerational trauma, deprivation and poverty and mental health. There is a lot of suffering going on out there and people are not getting the help that they need. It is an absolute honour and privilege to be asked to be a councillor. I know I have to pace myself and be careful because of my health issues.

"I want to be a strong voice for those with health issues and disabilities; people like myself who didn't have that support before."