It’s appropriate I start my latest update with a tribute to Cllr Denise Western, who died peacefully last month.  Denise was a very important and popular member of our Labour Group in Trafford and worked hard on behalf of residents and community groups in Broadheath Ward.  She made a huge contribution during her time on Trafford Council and was, until recently, a brilliant Chair of our Children’s & Young People Scrutiny Committee. Earlier this week we had a meeting of Trafford Labour Group where many members paid their respects to Denise.  She will be much missed, and my thoughts are with all her family at this very sad time.

Although this is my first update since mid-July, it has been a very busy summer.  A few highlights include observing the 80^th Anniversary of VJ Day at Trafford Town Hall, joining the Secretary of State for Education and meeting some inspiring students at Trafford College for A Level and T Level results day, and joining our Environmental Enforcement team on a bicycle tour around the north of the Borough.

It was also great to see two major regeneration projects reach important milestones.  Last month Move Altrincham opened and it was wonderful to see how much Altrincham Leisure Centre has been transformed.  It’s a facility fit for the 21^st Century and already proving popular.  August also heralded the re-opening of King Street in Stretford- a really important stage in the regeneration of Stretford Town Centre.  Over coming months, new businesses will be moving to the new units and we’ll have a town centre we can be proud of.

This week I spent much of Monday and Tuesday at the Town Hall, and much of the rest of the week out on visits.  I’ve joined our Deputy Leader, Cllr Liz Patel, on ward walkabouts with councillors from Lostock & Barton and Aston Upon Mersey.  These walkabouts are an opportunity to discuss issues and opportunities with ward councillors.  I was also on a walkabout in my own ward with representatives from L&Q, and spent time in Partington with Parish Councillors at one of their regular advice surgeries.

I also got to see Trafford from a new perspective when I attended a Topping Out Ceremony at the highest point of Lumina Village.  Next year will see the completion of 639 new homes at Lumina Village and there are some fantastic views from the upper floors- including the City Centre to the north and Cheshire to the south.  199 of the homes will be a mixture of shared ownership and social rent.  I’m really pleased to see this development nearing completion, it would not have happened without the decisions taken by this Labour Council.

Another highlight of my week included an invitation to Trafford Sea Cadets to meet the Mayor’s New Cadet for the year- Cadet Homan.  It’s great to welcome our third Mayoral Cadet from Trafford Sea Cadets and it was good to see how popular our local unit is.

Finally, with my Green City-Region Portfolio hat on, I attended two important events this week.  The first was a return visit to one of my favourite places, our GM Renew Hub in Trafford Park.  I’ve written about this hub before- it’s a place that supports the circular economy, provides affordable pre-loved goods and offers skills and job opportunities.  I was there to celebrate the Hub’s 4^th Birthday and you can read more here.  And on Friday I joined Mayor Andy Burnham and Minister Mary Creagh at the official launch of Greater Manchester’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy.  I’ve been the political lead on this strategy and I’m proud to see the ambition we have to restore nature across Greater Manchester.  You can find out much more about the strategy here.