Mayor of Worcester Blog

One of the scariest things to be asked to do as a primary school child is to make a speech in front of an audience of class-mates and teachers. But self-confidence grows with practice, and is an important life skill. For this reason, The Rotary Club of Worcester has been running its Junior Youth Speaks competition in Hollymount and St Barnabas primary schools for several years.

So I was delighted to be invited to judge the St Barnabas competition and faced the very difficult decision of choosing the winners from six excellent finalists. Well done to all the prize winners and participants both here and at Hollymount.

Worcester has now been a Fairtrade City for ten years and – as the councillor who proposed this to the council a decade ago – I was extremely pleased to welcome Anthony Wood and other members of the Worcester Trade Justice Network, whose hard work and determination brought this about, to a special reception in the Mayor’s Parlour. Buying Fairtrade products means that some of the poorest workers in the world are not exploited, but paid fairly, so they can feed and educate their children. How well this idea fits my theme of “No community left behind”!

The mayoress, my wife Lynn, and I thoroughly enjoyed RGS The Grange speech day, celebrating the success and achievements of their pupils.

I was also able to tour St Richard’s Hospice with its chief executive Mark Jackson. We are extremely fortunate to have this superb service here, which supports those facing life-limiting illnesses and their families with amazing care and compassion, often in their own homes.

Two groups of language students from Italy toured the Guildhall and I was delighted to welcome them. Lynn and I also visited ASPIE, which supports people with Asperger’s Syndrome. This condition is poorly understood by most of us and ASPIE provides space and activities to make friends with others experiencing the same condition.

My busiest week so far was dominated by remembrance services for the Battle of the Somme. I launched a charity fundraising initiative at Individual Tailoring, opened two exciting new Worcester businesses, visited three school concerts, a community Ramadan celebration, attended one civic event and welcomed a group of young visitors from Stuttgart, Germany.

Friday marked the Battle of the Somme centenary, the darkest day in British military history, when 60,000 of our citizens were killed or injured in a single day. The early morning service at the war memorial and one in the Cathedral in the afternoon were both inspiring and fitting tributes. Keeping these memories alive is important because surviving relatives know that we still care. We are also reminded that war means loss of lives and must always be a last resort.

On a happier note, the concerts were celebrations of musical achievement by extremely talented blind and partially sighted students at New College and very young children at RGS The Grange. Ian Venables’ song cycle “Through These Pale Cold Days” also had its world premiere at RGS.

Small businesses are vital to our city, so it was good to open Worcester Eyecare in Sidbury and RedPoint Indoor Climbing Centre in Midland Road. Worcester Eyecare offers state-of-the-art optical care and RedPoint brings a superb new facility to our city, which helps users to exercise in an exciting and challenging way. Individual Tailoring in The Foregate launched an innovative idea which both helps local charity and supports their business. Donating an unwanted suit gains £50 discount on a new one – and the old suit is sold by St Richard’s Hospice to raise funds.

Breaking the fast with our Muslim friends in Fort Royal Park was wonderful – people of different ages and faiths sharing fun, food and conversation.

Mayoress Lynn and I were delighted to visit the Art Exhibition at Worcester Sixth Form College. Fine examples of textiles, graphics and photography were displayed, created by students as part of their coursework. Judging by the high standards, some high grades can be expected.

Stanley Road Community Primary School was next, for their Starfest Festival of Theatre. Children of all ages performed a variety of historical, comedic and improvised drama, with tremendous enthusiasm.

The Summer Fayre at Cherry Orchard Primary School luckily had dry weather, as several outdoor activities were offered to raise funds and provide entertainment for both children and parents.

Saturday was the Queen’s Tea Party at Berkeley’s Chapel, for residents of the alms houses at Berkeley’s Hospital and Nash’s and Wyatt’s Court. Their wardens had worked hard to decorate the chapel with lots of red, white and blue and to provide delicious food, so the party was much enjoyed by the guests.

King George V Community Centre, Brickfields, hosted an art and archives workshop for children from Hollymount and Fairfield primary schools, designed to inform them about Worcester’s past in a fun way. This was part of the “Strong Rooms” project by the county archives staff from the Hive. The culmination will be a major installation in Gheluvelt Park in August.

The Royal Grammar School’s Commemoration Service in the Cathedral was wonderful. Many students participated, reading, singing and playing music to a high standard. Staff had clearly prepared students well and they did the school proud.

I chaired the full City Council meeting on Tuesday evening, which was much calmer and more co-operative than many, and my week ended with a visit by students from Munich to tour the Guildhall with their hosts from the Sixth Form College.

The Mayoress and I enjoyed visiting Worcester Snoezelen. This charity, based at the University’s St John’s Campus, provides a wide variety of multi-sensory experiences, including hydrotherapy, which help many people with mental and physical disabilities.

One of the pleasures of being Mayor is hosting school visits to the Guildhall and there were two this week. German students from our twin city of Kleve came first, on an exchange with Worcester Royal Grammar School. Next, Spanish children called, accompanied by their hosts from Lyppard Grange Primary School. Young people appreciate our magnificent Guildhall, marvelling at its history, the stunning Assembly Room and the prison cells. They ask interesting questions – one asked where in the building my bedroom was!

Latimer Court Care Home had their High Tea on Friday. My consort, Lucinda, and I were entertained by a wonderful saxophonist. One resident, Dorothy Capper, read her own amusing monologues, reminding me of Yorkshire playwright Alan Bennett. I discovered that, by an amazing coincidence, Dorothy not only came from the town where I was born, but her husband Ron had been my PE teacher there!

The English Association of Male Voice Choirs Annual Concert, hosted  by Worcester Male Voice Choir at the cathedral, was a real treat. The six massed choirs raised the roof with works from Verdi, Mozart, Handel, Humperdinck and Leonard Cohen, augmented by soprano soloist Claire Bessent, organist Keith Hearnshaw and the Birmingham Horn Sound.

Following my theme for the year of “No community left behind”, I was pleased to fly the Rainbow Flag over the Guildhall during the vigil in memory of 49 members of the LGBT community who were killed in an Orlando nightclub.

I also attended the ceremony to raise the Armed Forces Day flag and my busy week ended with the annual general meeting of Worcester Samaritans, a vital charity of trained volunteers who help the growing number of our residents facing despair and even contemplating suicide.