I have been meeting some great people involved in community work, during a busy week.

As well as spending Sunday attending the Civic Service for the Mayor of Droitwich, on Monday I met with Moira Groves and the General Director of DHL Sainsbury’s at their Warndon distribution depot. They’re a company keen to promote environmental issues, and I helped plant a Black Pear Tree in their grounds for World Environment Day.

On Monday lunchtime I was at Cripplegate Park where judges were visiting to agree whether the prestigious Green Flag status would be awarded once again. They were also visiting Fort Royal Park, which we are all keen to see awarded a Green Flag for the first time. Although it was rather rainy, the park itself looked excellent and very well-tended.

Early Monday evening saw me at the King George V Community Centre where I was really pleased to welcome walkers Jude and Jane, who are taking part in the Big Walk in memory Jo Cox MP. Their leg today was Alvechurch to Worcester, some 22 miles in not very pleasant weather. I hope the warm welcome they received from all present raised their spirits.

Later that evening I attended a meeting of Worcester’s Twinning Association where a resident of our twin town of Kleve in Germany was also in attendance. Discussions regarding alternative visits took place along with planning for the Christmas Fayre.

Tuesday was completely different. I received international medical students from Birmingham University in the Mayor’s Parlour and gave them a tour of the Guildhall. This was in addition to being present at the launch of two new businesses in the City. The first was Swirly Joe’s in Silver Street, a café/restaurant dedicated mainly to serving fantastic desserts. This was followed by seeing the work of Jilly Oxlade-Arnott of Architectural Impressions, whose paintings depict notable buildings.

Finally on Wednesday I was able to promote my theme of Valuing Volunteers by helping Worcester Community Action at The Hive. They signed up a number of people there and then who were interested in volunteering and will look to match their skills and experiences with the right organisation.