Mayor of Worcester

Phil and I visited ASPIE this week – a charity which supports adults who have Aspergers Syndrome.  People with Aspergers often excel – as mathematicians, musicians, accountants, and much more. Shockingly, it is currently taking 22 months to get a diagnosis of Aspergers in Worcestershire.

We spent Tuesday evening with the Guides. I had the pleasure of presenting several Guides with their Baden Powell Awards and hearing about their activities.

This week, Blessed Edward Oldcorne School celebrated their fiftieth anniversary with a special mass, presided over by Archbishop Bernard of Birmingham. Prayers were also said for Denise, wife of the Bishop of Worcester.

On Friday evening, we attended an evening of songs, traditional and modern, in aid of Acorns and Maggs. Thank you to the Chapter 8 singers for a magical evening.

St Swithun’s evensong is always a wonderful experience. The bells rang a welcome as we processed along the High Street and the Gentlemen’s Volunteer Choir sang from the gallery. Try taking your sandwiches to St Swithun’s on Friday lunchtimes if you enjoy live music with your lunch. I plan to!

The new Dines Green development got under way on Monday. There will be 51 new Worcester Community Housing homes, a youth centre, shops and a church. By next spring, the heart of Dines Green will be amazing.

Worcester Repertory Company triumphed again with Shakespeare at the Commandery. They gave us the funniest version of the Tempest I have ever seen. Congratulations to Chris Jaeger and the whole team! I certainly plan to see the Merchant of Venice at the Cathedral in October.

 

After a fascinating talk by Lord Faulkner on how Britain’s railways were saved, I was left wondering if Sir Humphrey of “Yes Minister” had been involved. It was a complicated and devious tale. I feel sure the book will interest both railway fans and the politically or historically inclined.

Saturday brought a change of pace – I joined the Worcestershire Chinese Association for their monthly meeting and attended a garden party with past mayors from around the county. I also found my dream kitchen at the opening of “Dream Doors,” a new family business on the Tything.

Phil and I received a warm welcome from residents and staff when we attended the Shaw Red Hill Care Home fete. We had a tour of the home and chatted with residents.

Planning for the World War 1 commemoration is gathering speed. A specially designated website will launch in autumn, so it will be easy to advertise your event or find out what is going on.

I welcomed the winners of the Rotary Club’s “Junior Youth Speaks” competitions from St Barnabas and Gorse Hill Schools to the Mayor’s Parlour. The children asked some searching history questions and informed me that the origin of the phrase, “to kick the bucket,” referred to kicking the bucket from under someone about to be hanged. This interesting nugget of information came up during a visit to the cells.

Last week, local Samaritans celebrated 40 years of supporting people experiencing a crisis in their lives. Nationally, the Samaritans have been in existence for 50 years. Congratulations to them and thank you to the volunteers, for all the hard work that you do.

It was an honour to welcome a distinguished Chinese delegation from the city of Hezhou, Worcestershire Ambassadors and their guests to a reception at the Guildhall on Monday evening.

Hezhou is a city of about five million people and expects its population to double in the next five years (London’s population is approximately 4 million, to give some idea of the scale!)  The delegation was led by the Vice Mayor of Hezhou, Ms Grace Pan Ming. As a former Worcester University Business Studies student, Ms Pan Ming knows the city well. She has since gone on to a successful career in Chinese local government.

Monday also marked the start of Armed Forces Week – local reservists and veterans gathered to raise the Armed Forces Day flag over the Guildhall.

At the Worcestershire Summer School Games in Bromsgrove, the indoor rowing was particularly thrilling – and exhausting just to watch!

Phil and I were guests of the Worcester News at the Twenty20 cricket match between Worcester and Glamorgan. The covers were on and off as rain interrupted play, but the players gamely went on to produce 14 overs, as the weather lifted.

The Worcester Symphony Orchestra treated us to a programme of Mozart and Beethoven in St George’s Church on Saturday evening.  Their wonderful rendition of Beethoven’s 5^th Symphony made Dolby surround sound seem pale by comparison!

I also welcomed some Tanzanian guests, who are visiting the county as part of “One World Link,” and attended a production of “The Curry Bean” at RGS The Grange. 

We ended the week as guests of the Rotary Club at the inauguration of their new President, Sheila Sonley – Many congratulations to her!

I welcomed four groups of young people to the Mayor’s Parlour this week – the College of Technology’s Life Skills Class; two groups of students from Kleve, our German twin town; and an American group who are visiting Worcester University.

My visitors told me that their home towns do not possess the kind of traditional Mayoral Regalia that Worcester is fortunate enough to have.

On Tuesday morning, I joined local Rotarians at Gorse Hill Primary School for their Junior Youth Speaks competition. Congratulations to all of the finalists for a really superb effort and a very enjoyable morning.

Since then, I have joined the High Sherriff of Worcestershire and his guests for a garden party, attended the re-dedication of the Post Office war memorial at Wainright Road and chatted with young people at a Prince’s Trust event.

What made their event so special was the new deck and barbecue pit built by the young people for the Rainbow Hill Scout Hut. This multi-talented youth group is making a real difference to their community. Well done!

The RGS Springfield Sports and Open Day in Britannia Square gave me an insight into a high achieving school. I greatly enjoyed seeing the children’s work on a tour of the school.

A particularly special event for me was the launch of St Paul’s Hostel sleep out. St Paul’s is one of my three charities this year; the other two being Maggs and Asha. Participants were clearly having fun. Obviously, it is much less fun if you have to do it because you are homeless. A tip for anyone who might try it in the future – onesies are a great way to keep warm if you are sleeping under the stars.

Phil and I ended the week with our Civic Service. We processed to the Cathedral to start our Mayoral year with a thoughtful service.

It was a wonderful day, when we were joined by many friends, local people whom we have met through the year and dignitaries from around the county, and further afield. We’d like to say a sincere thank you to everyone who attended –you helped to make the day a very memorable one.