Chris Coates has lived in Lancashire for 30 years. He is a carpenter with more than 25 years experience in the construction industry where he has done a wide variety of jobs from renovating poor-quality housing in Burnley to his current work managing construction projects for community groups. Coates lives with his partner and has a grown-up son at university. He is a Lancaster City councillor and has been the county councillor for Lancaster Central Division for the past four years. He is a trustee of the National Coalition Building Institute (NCBI)- Lancashire and a director of LESS - Climate Change Project.