Mayoral Blog

Councillor Jean Brazil

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 16 May 2011

Well, here it is my final blog of the year.

I can't believe my term of office has come to an end.

It has been a wonderful 12 months and Sydney and I are grateful to everybody who has helped make our Mayoral year so special and so very memorable.

We have had a lovely week to bring our Mayoral duties to an end. Beginning on Monday morning with a visit to Gorse Hall Primary School  in Stalybridge. Sydney and I had enjoyed a visit to Gorse Hall School just a couple of weeks ago when we attended a tree planting ceremony, this time, we were invited back to present the children with garden trowels and seeds courtesy of Harfields. This year Harfields, who is one of the UK's leading manufacturers of tableware, is celebrating its 50th anniversary and, to mark the occasion, the company is giving away garden items as a thank you for the support it has received over the years from the Schools Meals Service. We were invited to present the gifts to the children at Gorse Hall. It was lovely to be able to return to the school and to see all the children and staff once again.

Later, we attended our last Citizenship Ceremony of the year at Dukinfield Town Hall before welcoming guests from Ryecroft Hall to the Mayor's Parlour.

On Tuesday, we visited Enterprise Rent-A-Car  in Hyde. The branch has only recently opened for business and it was a pleasure to be able to welcome the company and its staff to Tameside. The Mayoral car was even treated to a free car wash as a thank you for our visit.

In the evening, we returned to Dukinfield Town Hall for an Adult Learners Presentation at the invitation of Ashton Sixth Form College  and on Wednesday evening we attended a similar event at Tameside College . Sydney and I were amazed and delighted by the number of adult learners receiving awards and we were pleased to be able to support these important events and to express our congratulations and good wishes to those receiving recognition.

On Thursday, we hosted a visit to Ashton Town Hall by a group of approximately 30 students from Armentieres, Stalybridge's twin town in France. The students, aged between 10 and 11 years, were visiting the Borough as guests of St Paul's Primary School . It was a pleasure to meet them and to extend to them a very warm welcome to Tameside.

In the evening, we were joined in the Mayor's Parlour by the Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayoress and guests from Central Estate Residents Action Group  in Dukinfield. Each year the residents come together to work on their entry for Britain in Bloom . They make a real difference to the local area and it is lovely to see the effort they put in and the tremendous community spirit they have. Sydney and I were pleased to be able to acknowledge their hard work and to thank them for their efforts.

Our final engagement of the year was on Friday morning when we welcomed to the Mayor's Parlour a group of children from Stalyhill Junior School  in Stalybridge. The children were the winners in the Trading Standards Annual Easter Egg Competition, which Sydney and I helped judge and, by way of saying well done, I invited them to join me in the Town Hall. It was a lovely visit and a very nice way to end our official duties.

We formally hand over the chains of office at the Annual Meeting of the Council to be held on Tuesday evening.

Councillor Susan Quinn and her husband, Councillor Kieran Quinn, Executive Leader of the Council will become the new Civic Mayor of Tameside and Consort for the ensuing year. Sydney and I wish them both well, we know they will do a wonderful job and they will certainly enjoy their year in office.

To close, thank you once again for an incredible year. We have met many wonderful people along the way, made lots of new friends and have hundreds of happy memories to treasure. We wouldn't have missed it for the world.

With every good wish.

Week Commencing Monday 9 May 2011

It's hard to believe that my year in office is coming to an end, where has the time gone?

This week was my penultimate full week in office.

Engagements began on Monday evening when Sydney and I were pleased to welcome guests to the Mayor's Parlour from Audenshaw Community Association. On Tuesday morning, we were joined in the Town Hall by members of the Probin Mela Ladies Luncheon Club from Hyde and then later the same day, guests from the Gardening Club at Learn@Union Street.

Receiving visitors to the Mayor's Parlour has been a highlight of our year. It has been lovely to be able to recognise and to reward our volunteers and community groups and to thank them for their work.

On Wednesday evening, we attended a performance of the thriller 'The Edge of Darkness' at the invitation of the Flowery Fields Amateur Dramatic Society . It was a wonderful play and the plot, together with a superb cast, kept us on the edge of our seats throughout the whole evening.

On Thursday, we were privileged to join the other Civic Heads of Greater Manchester on a special tour of the Greater Manchester Police Museum and Archives  courtesy of the Chief Constable of Greater Manchester, Mr Peter Fahy and later, we visited the George Lawton Hall in Mossley for a production of the musical 'Acorn Antiques' performed by the very talented Mossley Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society .

On Friday, I hosted a Charity Golf Day at Fairfield Golf and Sailing Club  for my Mayoral Charity Appeal Fund. Unfortunately there were not as many teams taking part this time as in previous years and the weather as you know was very wet, but still the golfers had a great day and I am pleased to say that the event raised £100 for the Mayor's Charity. I am very grateful to everybody who took part and to the officials and members of Fairfield Golf Club for their continued kindness and support.

On Saturday, I was delighted to be asked to draw the winning ticket in the Wedding Dress Draw organised by the Infant Feeding Trust  Charity Shop in Ashton. As you may have read in the local the press, the trust was recently given a beautiful designer wedding dress. The dress has been on display at the trust's charity shop since early in the year and people have been able to buy tickets to have a chance of winning the dress in a prize draw. A lucky bride will now be able to wear the dress of her dreams at her forthcoming wedding.

From here, Sydney and I headed over to Longford Park Stadium  in Stretford for the Annual Track and Field Championship Meeting organised by the Greater Manchester Athletic Association . It was great to be able to see the athletes in action and also we were very proud to be asked to assist with the presentation of medals at the conclusion of the day.

On Saturday evening, we attended a Civic Ball hosted by the Mayor of Rochdale  at Rochdale Town Hall. This was the last occasion for the Mayoral teams across Greater Manchester to be together before we all hand over our chains of office. It was a wonderful night and the perfect way for us all to say our goodbyes, although we will of course be keeping in touch as the 'Class of 2010/11' have become firm friends.

To round the week off, on Sunday evening, Sydney and I were invited to Albion United Reformed Church  in Ashton for a concert with Foden's Band. This event formed part of the 2011 Tameside Music Festival and was once again another very successful and enjoyable evening.

And that's it for this week. Thank you for joining me.

Hope to see you soon.

Best wishes.

Week Commencing Monday 2 May 2011

Hello again, thank you for joining me.

Well it has been a busy week with the Local Elections and of course with my Mayoral duties.

Official engagements began on Bank Holiday Monday when Sydney and I attended the Yom Hashoah  commemoration at King David High School  in Crumpsall. Each year the World Jewry commemorates the memory of those who perished in the Holocaust. Sydney and I joined the members of the Manchester Jewish Representative Council   to pay our respects and to remember those who had lost their lives.

On Tuesday, we were able to offer congratulations and good wishes to graduates who had recently completed a ‘Bridging the Gap’ training programme - Bridging the Gap  is a programme designed to help people who have experienced substance misuse problems gain the skills required to become alcohol and drug support workers. It was wonderful to meet the graduates and to share their celebrations and success.

On Wednesday afternoon, I was pleased to attend the Annual Women of the North Luncheon. The event was held at the very beautiful Mere Golf and Country Club  in Knutsford. It was a fantastic day with proceeds going to SSAFA Forces Help  and the Neuromuscular Centre .

Later, Sydney and I were invited to join the Lord Lieutenant of Greater Manchester  and the Deputy Lieutenants of the County at a lovely Reception at the Orangery in Heaton Park .

There were no Mayoral engagements on Thursday and Friday but on Saturday, we joined the Members of The Royal British Legion  for a Poppy Party on Ashton Market Ground. This year is the 90th anniversary of the RBL and many events up and down the country have been organised to commemorate this very special anniversary.

In the evening, we attended a rousing concert at Hyde Town Hall courtesy of the Black Dyke Band . It was a wonderful concert which formed part of this year’s Tameside Music Festival.

On Sunday afternoon, Sydney and I visited Carrbrook Bowling Club in Stalybridge. The sun shone brightly and we had a lovely afternoon. I am sure it must have been a fluke but I took to the bowling very well and was delighted to win the game! My thanks go the members of the club for their generous hospitality and warm welcome and especially to Brian for his kind tuition on the day.

And that brings another very enjoyable week to an end.

Thank you for tuning in. Please come back again soon.

Best wishes.

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