A meeting of Worcester Rotary on Monday brought good news, as we were able to finalize the accounts for last month’s charity banquet. I’m delighted to report that over £7,000 was raised towards the Rotary charities and my own Mayoral causes, St Paul’s Hostel and Maggs Day Centre. It was a great effort and we are extremely grateful to all our friends who supported the event. A special thanks to Worcester Operatic and Dramatic Society’s Youth Section (WODYS), who launched the evening with such a fine performance.

Later that day, I joined a civic party led by the chairman of Worcestershire County Council, Cllr Rob Adams, to visit The Hive. Despite being a regular user I found there are place in this landmark building that I hadn’t seen before, so it was an interesting visit. Congratulations to all those who have been involved in this truly remarkable project.

One of the duties of the Mayor is to chair the meeting of the full Council, and on Tuesday I was pleased to welcome over 40 members of Worcester Swimming Club who there for the debate about a new swimming pool for the city. It was a final Council for me as its chair and was the scene of a lively debate on the introduction of the “bedroom tax”

On Wednesday evening, in my role as President, I chaired the annual general meeting of Worcester Twinning Association, and presided over the election of the association’s officers. It was a well attended meeting and it was interesting to hear about celebrations for the 25th anniversary of our twinning with Kleve in Germany. Next year there is a visit to Worcester, Massachusets, and a return visit for Kleve residents.

Speaking of our American namesake, on Thursday I welcomed Carl Herrin, Pro Vice Chancellor of Worcester University in Massachusets, to the Guildhall.

Later that day, I welcomed two groups of visitors from Worcester Industrial Archaeology and the History Association to see the Guildhall treasures. I was pleased that we were able to display some of our historic Charters, which caused a great deal of interest. Carl Jukes, city conservation officer, came along and was able to provide a great deal of detail about the current buildings.

I was pleased to join members of the Onside charity at the Guildhall on Friday to launch their new Get Connected campaign. Onside is dedicated to help vulnerable, disadvantages and isolated people, and this new campaign is all about encouraging people to make contact with and support their neighbours. I hope as many people as possible in Worcester will take the pledge to Get Connected.

Finally, I’d like to remind you of two upcoming events in aid of my charities – performance of The Pirates Of Penzance on April 27, courtesy of Great Witley Opeartic Society (GWOS) and on April 30 a lecture on Medicine in Worcestershire by Dr John Harcup.

Tickets for both are available on 01905 722001.