July has been a busy month filled with many events and engagements. It is fantastic to represent Hyndburn at these activities and I would like to offer my thanks to all the organisations and charities who have invited me to be part of their special events.
I have had the privilege of attending an event with Accrington Rotary Club at the Dunkenhalgh Hotel, where previous president Jacquie Baldwin handed over to new President Mike Bridges. I was presented with honorary membership of the Accrington Rotary for my Mayoral year and learnt all about the fantastic work they do within the local community to support those who need it.
Pendlebrook Care Home also invited me to the launch of their new Dementia Café which will be open on the 2nd Tuesday of every month. This is a fantastic new facility for people to use and I am sure lots of people will see the benefits of it. They are based on Haworth Street in Accrington and the café allows people to meet others in a similar situation in a relaxed and friendly environment.
Speaking to the staff and residents at Pendlebrook Care Home it was clear they want to work closely with the community to provide a facility that meets the needs of the people. As part of this they do welcome feedback and thoughts on the Dementia Café and want people to help shape it for the future. Well done to everyone involved in bringing such a vital offer to Hyndburn!
Finally, one of the highlights of this last month was meeting the Italy Women’s UEFA Team at The Accrington Stanley Hub at Highams Playing Field. The Mayoress and I accepted the invitation to attend and show our support during the Football game at Ethiad Stadium in Manchester, where they played against Belgium. They played very well but unfortunately didn’t win, we were very grateful for the opportunity to watch them play and had a brilliant time.
It is a testament to the exceptional facilities and continued investment from Accrington Stanley and the Community Trust that we have the ability to host them for their training sessions. Seeing the facilities in use brought me great pride and I hope having the team here to use the training grounds inspires even more young people from our borough to get involved, attend Stanley Matches and support our various local grassroots sports teams.