Mayor of Worcester Blog

To be honest, it was a great weekend for Worcester. Not only the number and variety of jubilee teas, but also the general buzz around the place. We hosted a lunch in the Guildhall for people nominated by local community groups, who had gone over and beyond what could be expected during the Covid crisis and it went really well, and then followed it up with a few neighbours still braving the clouds!

The Elgar Festival is now getting a regular footing in the city – Elgar’s birthday coincides with the Jubilee date of June 2 – and was well supported with fantastic performances by local and invited musicians. Huge talent and great music over a range of genres.

But bringing it home in these anxious times, I was pleased to accept, on behalf of the city, the grateful thanks of a Ukrainian refugee who talked to us at the Cathedral door on Saturday night. His story is moving and relevant but despite his tribulations he made a real effort to meet me and to attend the concert.

Things moved at a gentler pace during the week. Digging a sod on Broomhall Way at the start of the new housing development, one of the urban extensions agreed as part of the South Worcestershire Development Plan. Not without its controversy but we know we need affordable housing.

I also called in to see a community arts project in an empty shop provided by Crowngate – the Community Living Room. Organised by Crave Arts, the project gave space to people to talk and write about their own home life, good and – more often than not, not so good. It was a really interesting event aimed at drawing out the importance of a secure home through poetry and art, and tackling the anxieties, and worse, that some people have to deal with in their domestic life. Right on the money as far as my theme of the year goes, in tackling mental health and wellbeing through engagement with arts, heritage and culture.

I still think in terms of school holidays (probably because both my parents were teachers) but this ‘Not Bank Holiday Monday’ had me discombobulated. I was one of 700 guests at the Lord Lieutenant’s Jubilee Garden Party. The rain pretty much held off for the two hours.  Most people had a greater right to be there than me – local community service workers recognised for their commitment during the pandemic.

Similar people are at my chosen charity, OnSide and it was great to meet the team at their open day. Working with anxiety, social prescribing, loneliness, dementia and wellbeing, this group are providing essential care, support and advocacy in these uncertain times. Well done Kate, Mo, Viv, Susanne, Alan, Adrian and everyone else.

On Wednesday I called in at Worcester’s trademark Royal Porcelain Museum which is showcasing its historic royal designs alongside Platinum Jubilee plates designed by schoolchildren from Stanley Road. The museum has had further funding to take its pop-up museum to people in the community who would not normally get into the Severn Street attraction.

On Thursday evening, Edward Elgar’s birthday, I was on Fort Royal Hill to launch the Jubilee celebrations in the city. Around 1,000 people came up to watch me light the beacon. It was amazing to see so many old and familiar faces. Many had made an evening of it, with camping chairs, wine and quiche. Others had wandered up as it got darker. They came from across the city, and also internationally. I met at least three groups of American visitors who reminded me, as an historian, of the great irony of lighting a Jubilee Beacon for HM The Queen, on the ground where liberty was fought for and the two US Presidents stood to recognise one of Worcester’s other great trademarks, the English Civil Wars.

It has been a rewarding week full of links with the past but celebrated in highly modern fashion, marking 70 years of great social, economic, cultural and political upheaval across the Commonwealth and the world. Seventy years of service by one woman who has also changed but who remains, for many, a symbol of stability.