Mayoral Column – written by Cllr Adrian Gregson, Deputy Mayor of Worcester

The vagaries of the weather meant that it was down to me as Deputy Mayor to open the postponed first Worcester Mela in 30 years – a mini Mela outside the Guildhall serving as a taster for a full-blown community event planned for next year.

Judging by the crowd and interest it should be great.  Mela Festival is a colourful expression of  South Asian heritage and tradition and fun. With music and dancing Bollywood-style, it has taken all week for my back to recover (see the video!)  Well done to the volunteers who brought this together, and good luck for next year’s event.

The Inland Waterways Association celebrated its 75th anniversary with a flotilla of barges on the canal at Perdiswell and it was a real pleasure to open the event on Saturday. The canal network is amazing across the country and in Worcester it is a really important part of the walking and cycling network, heritage and visitor economy.  It’s a key element in our Masterplan and is one of the elements to receive support from the Towns Fund. As with the Mela, this Waterways weekend – and indeed much of the work on keeping canals clean and safe – was run almost exclusively by volunteers.

And that theme continued at Worcester City FC where I was able to present the Under 8s side with their national trophy, won earlier in the Summer. What a fantastic achievement for the kids and their parents and the volunteers who run and coach them – as well as WCFC as a whole.  There is so much going on at Claines Lane now City are back. As can be seen from Monday’s result on the pitch they need our support; the organisation of youth, women, veterans and First Team all rely on that volunteer army as well.

This whole week has shown me close up just how committed people in the city are to their various causes and interests and how prepared they are to give time and effort to help others. Really inspiring.