An Edge Hill romance that began over pancake recipes has led to 30 years of marriage, successful careers in education and digital services and a place in local history as Cathie and Scott Gibbens become the first married couple to complete all four mayoral roles in their borough.
For Edge Hill alumni Cathie Gibbens BA (Hons) English (QTS), 1995 and Scott Gibbens BSc (Hons) Geography with IT, 1993, a chance conversation over pancake recipes while they were students led to a lifelong partnership.
This August, the couple will celebrate 30 years of marriage. They are also celebrating another milestone, with Cathie becoming Mayor of Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council, following Scott’s year in office as Mayor in 2023/24. They are the first married couple in the borough’s history to complete all four civic roles of deputy consort, deputy mayor, consort and mayor.
Cathie shared how their route to the mayoralty began with a desire to make a difference locally.
Cathie said: “We became involved because of two local environmental issues that really mattered to us. We wanted to protect our community, so we decided it was worth becoming councillors.”
Those campaigns helped prevent a proposed national rail freight interchange from being approved, while the couple continue to campaign to protect a local beauty spot from future housing development.
As Mayor, Cathie represents the borough at civic events throughout the year, from welcoming schoolchildren to the council chambers and opening new businesses to supporting conservation projects, community organisations and remembrance services.
“It really is a privilege to wear the chains of office,” she said. “My sister flew over from America to surprise me at the Mayor Making ceremony and my fellow councillors said such wonderful things. It was a very special day.”
During her year in office, Cathie hopes to champion local businesses, celebrate community achievements and support two charities that are especially close to her heart: the Hinckley District Poppy Appeal, in memory of her two brothers who served in the RAF and the Concordia Theatre Project 2030, which is helping secure the future of the volunteer-run community theatre.
Having served as Scott’s mayoress during his year in office, Cathie already knew the commitment the role would require.
Cathie said: “It was a real privilege, but incredibly busy. Most of the stress was making sure we had the right clothes, the chains and knew where we were parking. Scott has been wonderfully supportive.”
Although the couple are now well-known figures in local government, their story began on the Edge Hill campus more than 30 years ago.
They first met through mutual friends, when Cathie phoned her dad for a pancake recipe.
Cathie said: “When I put the phone down, a voice behind me said, ‘You didn’t ask me, did you? No, I wouldn’t know how to make them.'”
Neither imagined then that they would still be together more than three decades later.
Their student years were filled with memories that remain special today. Cathie represented Edge Hill playing hockey in goal and badminton, while Scott spent much of his time in the Geography department before famously abseiling down Lancashire Hall.
Both also worked in the University’s libraries, including the then-new library with its revolving entrance and rolling book stacks.
Cathie laughed: “We actually worked really well together, although no one believed we didn’t get up to mischief in the rolling stacks.”
The close-knit campus community left a lasting impression.
Cathie said: “We loved Edge Hill because you could go into Ken’s Bar and see pretty much everyone you knew. It was a great campus for walking around and getting to know people.”
After graduating, Cathie spent seven years teaching before building a successful career in digital product development, working with education technology providers, the Department for Education, the National Apprenticeship Service and the Careers Service. Scott also went on to work in digital services and at one stage the pair even worked together for the same company.
One particularly memorable moment early in Cathie’s teaching career brought her back to Edge Hill. During an Ofsted-era inspection, the lead inspector turned out to be her former lecturer, Sonja Oyens.
Cathie recalled: “I’ll never forget her seeing me and shouting my name across the staffroom. She observed my teaching and my ICT plans before saying, ‘Well, I can’t fault your teaching because you went to Edge Hill and I taught you.’ Then we spent ages talking about Edge Hill.”
Looking back, Cathie believes her time at the University laid the foundations for everything that followed.
Cathie said: “Every part of my career journey has been built on what I learned before and what I learned on the job. Learning really is for life.”
July 27, 2026
