I have had so much fun this week! Worcester is, as usual, having a superb summer.

I’ll start with an event outside of Worcester, The Battle of Evesham. This event marks a significant battle in the Second Barons War (1264-1267), which saw the defeat of Simon De Montfort. This was after a long war where De Montfort had raised one of the earliest forms of Parliament against King Henry III. Before this battle, De Montfort had managed to capture Henry, and his son (who then escaped). He also made the monarch recognise Llywelyn ap Gruffudd as the Prince of Wales.

Unfortunately for De Montfort, his success was thwarted by the bend in the River Avon that he got trapped in. This final battle was re-enacted by over a thousand people last Saturday.

It was fantastic to be part of the day, walking in the parade through Evesham, laying a wreath for the men who lost their lives so long ago and learning about the battle. Thank you to everyone who made the day happen!

This week I have had the pleasure to meet with Laura Goodridge (pictured with me below), CEO of Home Instead Herefordshire and Gloucestershire. We had a fascinating conversation about women in leadership and what more we can do to encourage young women to step into leadership roles with confidence. It sounds like she is already doing amazing work to support and develop future leaders.

On Tuesday I attended WODYS’s production of The Wizard of Oz at The Swan Theatre. Having visited rehearsals recently, I knew the show would be great, but the finished production exceeded my expectations. I was so impressed by how talented every young performer was in singing, dancing and acting. I can’t wait to check out next year’s show.

Young people were also at the heart of National Play Day, where Play Worcester hosted a fantastic street pop-up at the University of Worcester. It was wonderful to see children and families enjoying simple opportunities to play together. I really enjoyed learning to juggle and showing off my hula hooping skills. Thanks to Play Worcester and the University of Worcester for all their work putting together the event.

I also visited Severn Trent’s Built for Worcestershire community event. It was great to meet with the team, councillors and the Staff at The Hive all working together to support our communities. I had the difficult task of judging the children’s art competition. Choosing two winners was far from easy, as the standard was incredibly high. Events like this demonstrate that infrastructure projects are about far more than pipes and roads; they are about investing in communities, and building a stronger future for Worcestershire.