My week started with a trip to Partington. I was there to visit Partington Advice Hub at the Library and Wellbeing Centre. The hub launched in September, and it brings together different organisations with the aim of providing support to residents. The concept has worked well in both Stretford and Sale Moor where hubs have been operating for a while, and I’m sure it will help make a difference to residents who visit the hub in Partington. During my visit I spoke to representatives from Housing Options, Trafford Family Information Service, Trafford WorkWell and Groundwork GM- who were there to provide advice on tackling high energy bills. It was also good to see Trafford Welfare Rights and Citizens Advice at the Hub, along with Partington’s banking hub which has stepped in as banks have closed their branches. On my way out I had a go on the SiSu Health Station which checked by blood pressure, weight, height and body fat. I won’t gone into details but let’s just say the readings have nudged me back to the gym this week…
Next stop was Partington’s new Community Grocery– which I got to see ahead of the grand opening. This is a brilliant initiative which offers affordable food and other essentials at the same time as helping to avoid items going to waste. The shop has a lovely feel to it, and I was also pleased to see a good fruit and veg offer as I know this is something residents have been wanting to see improve for a while. I’m proud to see Trafford Council supporting the Community Grocery.
Back at the Town Hall on Monday afternoon, I had a couple of meetings with colleagues before heading out for a doorstep session in Stretford & Humphrey Park with my ward colleagues Steve and Jane.
Tuesday started with a staff Let’s Talk session at the Town Hall. Around 60 people joined the session where we got to know our new Interim Director of Children’s Services, Dr Risthardh Hare, learned more about social value, had an update on the benefits of regeneration and heard from a member of our LGBT+ Staff Network. Each section was important, each a reminder of how important our people are.
Later that day I chaired a meeting of the Old Trafford Regeneration Mayoral Development Corporation, where we welcomed Mayor Bev Craig for the first time. The agenda included an update on our masterplan consultation where each board member stressed the importance of ongoing engagement with our local community. As a local resident I absolutely get that it’s important we get this right and ensure the local area reaps the benefits of this exciting project.
I was back in Stretford Town Centre on Tuesday evening to attend a meeting of the Town Centre Forum- this time hosted at Grub. A very visual sign that our efforts around regeneration were paying off was apparent through the number of people attending the forum- significantly more than compared with a couple of years ago. During 2026 we’ve welcomed many new businesses to the town, and it was a good meeting that looked to the future with optimism.
On Wednesday morning I joined the Mayor of Trafford and colleagues at the Town Hall sunken gardens as we paused for 2 minutes at 11am. It was a simple ceremony but a powerful and poignant one. Following several meetings, my day ended in Sale where I joined the launch of Trafford Youth Service. Our previous Youth Service was one of earlier casualties of austerity and such a loss to local young people. As you’ll be aware, giving children and young people the best start in life is one of our main priorities as a council so I am delighted that we’re living up to that commitment by investing in our Youth Service.
I was back in Sale the following day for a meeting of our Corporate Parenting Board. It was a really engaging meeting where we got to hear directly from a couple of our care experienced young people and our amazing foster carers. We also had an informative presentation from a colleague from housing- I welcome much more joined up work between colleagues in Housing and Children’s Services. I’m pleased to hear that some of the housing we’ve been developing as part of our wider regeneration efforts have directly benefited some of our care experienced young people.
The theme of investing in younger people carried on into Friday where I joined Bev Craig and other GM Leaders in Bolton for this month’s Combined Authority meeting. There were lots of important items on the agenda, including an equalities update, building safety, skills, and climate adaptation. The most celebrated item was the decision to introduce free bus travel for 11-16 year olds from next January. A clear indication of how much we want all our younger residents to succeed and a very positive way to end the week.