On Thursday I had the privilege of judging the foreign language speaking competition at Dane Royd Junior and Infant School, where I am a governor. It was a true pleasure to see so many children taking on the challenge of learning a new language and with pupils competing in French, Spanish and Mandarin it is encouraging to see our schools preparing the next generation for a global future.
Later I was glad to join the parishioners of St James Church in Chapelthorpe for their Christmas lunch and to wish them well for the festive season before paying a visit to St Catherine’s emergency food bank to discuss the important work that they do in supporting people in the most difficult of circumstances. As well as finding out more about their preparations for the winter period, it was great to discuss new fundraising potentials to help support their vital services for many people across Wakefield.
In the evening I met with Chief Superintendent Paul Hepworth of West Yorkshire Police to discuss the changes to the neighbourhood policing strategies, during which I was glad to receive the reassurances I needed that our NPTs will continue to be well-placed to ensure the protection of our community and the prevention and detection of crime.
Over the weekend, I was very glad to support the opening of R.J. Burgess funeral home in Crofton and to be given a tour of their new premises by Ian Burgess. As a strong advocate for local business it is always good to see new jobs being created in our community and I am glad to wish new enterprises good luck at start of this journey.
In the afternoon, I made a site visit to Stoney Lane in Penthorpe where I was able to observe the speeding vehicles which have been the cause of so much concern to many residents of the area and having seen how dangerous the speeds on this stretch of road appear to be, I will be taking forward the enforcement of speed reduction measures as a priority. I also spent the afternoon knocking on doors and speaking to residents in Penthorpe, Criggleston and Netherton and I will be feeding their views on important council issues into my work.