The daughter of Reverend George Hamilton Richards and Eva née Lindley, she was educated at Canon Slade Grammar School in Bolton and at Ealing Hotel and Catering College.

Angela Harris was a member of North Yorkshire County Council from 1981 to 2001 and the first woman to chair the authority in 1991/92.

Angela is also a former member of the Service Authority National Crime Squad and Police Negotiating Board.

From 1994 to 2019 Angela Harris, was a Deputy Lieutenant of North Yorkshire and, from 1996, is a member of the Court of the University of York.

She was party spokesperson on Northern Ireland and member of the Home Affairs Team for policing matters.