Mayoral Blog

Councillor Susan Quinn

Welcome to the official Blog of the Civic Mayor of Tameside

A Blog (or a Weblog) is an online journal/diary which is frequently updated with the author's thoughts and comments, and is intended for the general public to view.

Week Commencing Monday 25 July 2011

Hello again, thank you for joining me.

Official engagements this week began on Monday morning when I had the pleasure of welcoming four apprentices to the Mayor’s Parlour.

The apprentices joined the Council in 2009. All have achieved NVQ Level two in Customer Care and have now secured permanent positions within the Council. The young people began their work at Tameside as part of an AGMA initiative to recruit apprentices specifically into revenues and benefits roles, they recently attended an awards ceremony at Stockport Town Hall  . It was lovely to meet them and to hear about their work. The young people were joined by Councillors John Taylor and Jim Fitzpatrick and Ilys Cookson (Assistant Executive Director- Exchequer and Support Services).

Later in the day, I met with Sophie L’helias, a student from Montigny-Le-Bretonneux who has been visiting the borough on a work placement at the Reporter Newspaper  .

On Thursday morning, I joined the minute’s silence on the steps of Ashton Town Hall to pay respects to those who lost their lives in the recent atrocities in Norway.

On Friday, I attended a luncheon hosted by the High Sheriff of Greater Manchester  for all the Mayors and Mayoresses/Consorts of the County and on Saturday, I was pleased to attend the unveiling of a plaque at Denton West Cricket Club  to commemorate the achievements of England and Lancashire Cricketer, Brian Statham CBE.

Later, I called in at a Summer Fete hosted by local residents at the Micklehurst Youth Base.

On Sunday, the Entente Florale  Judges arrived in the borough and Kieran and I were pleased to join them for Dinner at Portland Basin Museum.

The judges will tour the borough on Monday 1 August to look at a wide range of initiatives, covering everything from evidence of environmental education and landscapes to tourism and community engagement efforts.

It is a very exciting time for the borough particularly as Tameside is the country’s sole representative in the prestigious competition after winning last year’s national Britain in Bloom  competition. Everybody involved has worked really hard and I thank them and congratulate them on their efforts.

And that’s it for this week.

I hope to see you again very soon.

Best wishes.

Week Commencing Monday 18 July 2011

Hello again,

Mayoral engagements began this week on Monday afternoon when Kieran and I had the pleasure of welcoming Mr Jeff Harrison, County Manager of The Royal British Legion in Greater Manchester , to the Mayor’s Parlour.

Jeff wanted to take the opportunity to talk to us about the work of the RBL in the County and more specifically within the Borough of Tameside.

From here we headed over to AsOne Design Ltd  in Hyde. Following the Tameside Apprenticeship Fair earlier in the year, AsOne generously offered a placement to 23 year old Ben Schofield as a Production Assistant. Kieran and I were invited to visit Ben at work at this thriving web and media design company. It was wonderful to see Ben’s success first hand and to see how the Apprenticeship Fair has helped him achieve his first steps into work.

On Tuesday afternoon I attended a meeting of Full Council and on Wednesday evening, I was invited to attend a musical production by the children of St Stephen’s CE Primary School in Audenshaw at St Peter’s Church in Ashton.

The show was the story of Hassebu – a folk tale from the Island of Zanzibar. All the children from Reception to Year 6 took part and they did a wonderful job. It was a lovely way to end the school year and to say farewell to the older children as they prepare to move on to high school.

On Friday, I visited the Open Day at the Water Adventure Centre  in Droylsden before attending a concert at the George Lawton Hall by the Greater Manchester Police Choir .

Saturday evening was the annual Proms in the Park event at Hyde Park. A rousing outdoor concert performed by the Manchester Camerata Orchestra . This event has become a firm favourite in the Tameside Arts and Events Calendar. This year’s event also featured the wonderful talent of local singer Iona Fisher  who got the evening off to a fantastic start.

To round the week off, on Sunday afternoon, I attended the Residents of Horses Field annual Family Fun Day in Dane Bank, Denton. It was lovely afternoon and it was good to see the local community coming together and enjoying the fun and activities.

And that brings another Mayoral week to an end.

Thank you for joining me.

Hope to see you next time.

Best wishes,

Week Commencing Monday 11 July 2011

Hello again, thank you for joining me.

My official engagements this week began on Monday afternoon when I met with Mr Derek Fisher, the Chairman and Secretary of The Royal British Legion  in Ashton-under-Lyne. Mr Fisher had requested the meeting in order to introduce himself and the work of the RBL within our local community.

Later, I had the pleasure of welcoming the young people who were involved in the E-safety Pride of Tameside Awards. The awards were run by the Tameside Safeguarding Children Board . Children from across the Borough (and the North West Region) were invited to join in the e-safety competition by designing an e-safety resource (poster, game, film play etc) giving an e-safety message to other young people.

There were separate categories for Primary and Secondary school children and also for young people aged 16-18 Years. The 2 highest scoring entries out of each category were then entered into a regional competition where I am delighted to say three Tameside young people won prizes. These young people were invited to attend a regional winner’s event in Manchester on 8th July. In order to add my congratulations and thanks, I invited all the winning entrants to join me in the Mayor’s Parlour where I was able to view their designs and present them with a certificate in recognition of their achievements and success.

On Monday evening, the Deputy Mayor and I welcomed Mr and Mrs Dargavel to the Mayor’s Parlour. This very special couple both received the MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for their services to the Community in Hyde. It was lovely to have the opportunity to meet them and to be able to extend our congratulations and good wishes.

On Tuesday lunchtime I was asked to unveil a new video kiosk in the Museum of the Manchester Regiment, the kiosk shows previously unseen film footage recorded by a Regimental Officer in the 1930’s and I’m sure this will prove to be a very popular addition to the Museum.

On Thursday afternoon, I was honoured to attend the Pride of Tameside School Sports Partnership Awards  at Dukinfield Town Hall. The commitment to PE & sport in the Borough by our schools is commendable and I think it is wonderful that the Tameside School Sports Partnership hosts these annual awards to recognise the dedicated and innovative practice of school sport, PE and physical activity.

On Saturday morning, I was delighted to host a reception in Ashton Town Hall for approximately 60 Explorer Scouts who will shortly be representing Tameside, Stockport and the City of Manchester at the 22nd World Scout Jamboree  to be held in Sweden. I was pleased to have the opportunity to wish the scouts a happy and successful trip and also to present them with a Tameside Plaque to give to their hosts with my thanks and good wishes.

In the evening, I attended a wonderful concert courtesy of the Greater Manchester Police Band at Hyde Town Hall. The event had been organised as part of the Tameside Arts Festival and proved to be another very successful evening.

To finish the week off, on Sunday afternoon, I had the pleasure of attending The Royal British Legion Annual Service at Manchester Cathedral . This year, The Royal British Legion celebrates its 90th anniversary and therefore the service held special significance. It was a lovely afternoon and I was pleased to lend my support.

And that brings another week to a close.

Thank you for your time.

Hope to see you soon.

Best wishes.

Week Commencing Monday 4 July 2011

 Hello again, thank you for joining me.

Engagements began this week on Tuesday morning when I had the pleasure of welcoming local representatives of Gideons International  to the Mayor’s Parlour. I was kindly presented with a beautifully inscribed Bible as a memento of my year in office.

On Wednesday morning, I visited the Sportcity Indoor Athletics Facility  in Manchester for the Greater Manchester School Games , at the invitation of School Sport Partnership. During the event, we had the opportunity to tour across the different games venues to watch the teams in action in a variety of sports. Tameside was represented by teams from Primary, Secondary and Special Schools in the Borough, all of whom had won the right to compete in the Festival. This event was one of only nine pilot festivals to be held across the country this year. In the Olympic year of 2012, there will be around 50 events taking place. It was a great morning and it was lovely to see the young people taking part and enjoying the activities. I felt incredibly proud of them all.

Later in the day, I attended the opening of an art exhibition at Hyde Town Hall. The work was produced by young people from some locally based and borough wide youth projects and provided a fantastic opportunity for the young people to showcase their talents in a visual art display.

From here, I headed over to Denton West End Social Club for the North Tameside District Scout Council  AGM, where I was delighted to accept the position of Honorary President of the Scout Council for the coming year.

On Thursday morning, Kieran and I visited Jubilee Gardens in Droylsden for the official opening of the Parent Hub. Thanks to an Aiming High for Disabled Children Grant, Jubilee Gardens has been completely renovated. The Parent Hub will allow the many support groups for disabled children to meet on a regular basis, run clubs and activities. It will also provide parents with a place to access advice and information from staff in the Integrated Service for Children with Additional Needs (ISCAN) and from the various support groups. Over the coming months there will be a series of open days for people to look around Jubilee Gardens and to view the fabulous new facilities.

Friday was a ‘sporty’ day once again. This time, I was invited to attend the 2011 Greater Manchester Mini Games at Flixton Girls High School  in Trafford. I was delighted to be able to lend my support to the event and to cheer on ‘Team Tameside’.

On Saturday morning, I joined dance troupes from across the Borough for the Tameside Big Dance 2011. Organised by Sport Services, the event on Ashton Market Ground , featured a wonderful array of spectacular dance performances.

I had a lovely day on Sunday. Engagements began with a visit to Haughton Green Young People’s Centre for the annual Family Fun Day, followed by the much loved Well Dressings in Gee Cross.

To round the week off, I attended the opening event in this year’s Tameside Arts Festival at Flowery Field Church  in Hyde. The Festival, which runs for two weeks, is packed with top-quality cultural events designed to appeal to all ages and tastes at affordable prices. Events got off to a fantastic start with a concert by the very talented Abney Orchestra . The musicians played a selection of film and popular classical music which included Disney, Pirates of the Caribbean, the Muppets and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It was a wonderful evening. I now look forward to attending other Festival events over the coming days.

And that’s it for another week.

Thank you for your time. I hope to see you again soon.

Best wishes.

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