It’s certainly been an eventful week in Parliament with heated debates about Brexit and a General Election as well as the announcement of the Spending Review. On Wednesday, I asked the Prime Minister a question on community hospitals at PMQs, asking him to join my campaign to keep Leek Moorlands Hospital open with enhanced services. I also attended some of the many Parliamentary events to support issues that I know are of importance to many of my constituents.
I was pleased to support local pubs in the Long live the Local event and also Breast Cancer Now to prepare for Wear it Pink Day on 18th October. I am encouraging constituents to nominate their favourite local Pub for the Parliamentary Pub of the Year Awards and the Countryside Alliance Awards nominations are also open – please see my website for more details.
It was then back to the Moorlands where I had a lovely visit to Biddulph Grange Garden. The staff gave me a tour starting with the trees, some of which are 180 years old and explained what they are doing in order to address climate change issues and how some of the impacts of climate change are already affecting the garden. I then admired the beautiful flowers and the lake and had a cup of tea and some delicious shortbread in their new Camellia House tearoom.
It was then off to Werrington to talk to David Shaw and the Werrington Community Volunteers Group about their Log Cabin Project and to see what I can do to help with some hurdles they have encountered regarding their application for charitable status.
This Log Cabin project is a really ambitious wellbeing initiative and will be the first Log Cabin Garden Therapy Project linked to a Community Library in the UK.