It has been a quieter week, but I have been enjoying some of the feedback that I have received via letters and email.

The Hive Summer Reading Challenge was greatly appreciated by so many young people.

Thank you to all the brilliant parents who contacted me to let them know that their child had a brilliant time reading over the summer and receiving their award.

This is a fantastic challenge for young people in our city and I think it goes a long way to foster a life-long love of learning and reading.

I have had many emails from parents whose children I met revisiting Pitmaston Primary School.

It is really wonderful to be able to share my knowledge of local government and politics with young people.

I always try to do so in a way that is balanced and student led, answering their questions, rather than just talking at them.

I am so pleased to see all the parents who say their children, especially their daughters, have been inspired by my visit.

I very much appreciate parents taking the time to send that feedback to me. With all the brilliant young people I have met recently, I know that Worcester has an exceptional future ahead of it.

It was a great honour this week to be invited to speak to the Brownies, Rainbows, Girl Guides and Rangers at St Martins Church.

They asked some really interesting questions about my journey to becoming mayor, what it is like in local politics and the history of Worcester.

I also learnt a lot about their journey through guides and how it prepares them for life as well as things they would like to see in the city. Thank you to Caroline Hallam for organising the visit and allowing me to speak to such inspirational young people.

There are a few things coming up that I am looking forward to. This weekend will be Worcester City Pride, a fantastic celebration event for the work of LGBT+ people in our community.

This event is unusually in October this year, and to tie in with that they have set the theme as “spooky”.

I think there will be some brilliant outfits and costumes on display.

I often think about how lucky I am to be alive at this time, where events like this can happen in our city.

How lucky we are to have such a diverse range of people in our city who can go about their lives without fear and without oppression.

How lucky we are that Worcester is, in general, a safe space for everyone. I am looking forward to the celebration of history, art, performance, literature, politics and so much more.