Weekly Message to Constituents 227 - Unique opening of community boardwalk

16 August 2024

In the Constituency

Two Mayors cut the ribbon to open Sutton Coldfield boardwalk

Above: Mark Sergant, of the Friends of New Hall Valley Country Park (centre) with The Mayor and Mayoress of Sutton Coldfield, John and Sarah Perks, and the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of Birmingham, Ken and Barbara Wood. Pic: SCCT.

Volunteers who renovated a much-loved boardwalk to allow people of all abilities to enjoy a Sutton Coldfield beauty spot enjoyed a unique double celebration – when two Mayors showed up to open it.

The New Hall Valley boardwalk – which was funded partly by Sutton Coldfield Charitable Trust and the Town Council – was officially opened on Wednesday, August 14 by both the Royal Town’s Mayor John Perks and Birmingham’s Lord Mayor Ken Wood.

Believed to be the first time both Mayors have shared duties at a Sutton event, the unique double ribbon-cutting ceremony was cheered by members of the Friends of New Hall Valley Country Park volunteer group, who gave up their time to renovate the boardwalk, after it had been damaged by vandals.

The group, which boasts almost 800 followers, organise monthly get-togethers where they roll up their sleeves, grab some tools and get stuck in to help keep the Country Park in the best possible condition.

They represent Sutton Coldfield at its very best – and are a great example of the many, many voluntary organisations that make the Royal Town such a brilliant place to live.

Made from recycled plastic, the newly renovated185-metre-long boardwalk is low maintenance, easily accessible and expected to last for decades – giving local people access the habitat of New Hall Valley, and adding to the beauty spot’s existing walks.

Work began in April, after Sutton Coldfield Charitable Trust provided a grant for £26,200, following £8,000 from Royal Sutton Coldfield Town Council and cash from the City Council’s Beyond Birmingham 2022 fund.

The two Mayors – who both represent Sutton Coldfield’s Walmley and Minworth Ward – are long-time supporters of the Friends of New Hall Valley.

Councillor Ken Wood, the Lord Mayor of Birmingham, said: “The boardwalk is brilliant, and I think it’s great that everybody mucked in, from the volunteers who built it to the funders who helped make it happen.

“Everybody did what they could, it was a real team effort. Even though the project had to happen in the first place because of vandalism, the efforts to restore the boardwalk have shown a good thing can come out of a bad thing – it’s so admirable how the town came together.”

Councillor John Perks, Mayor of Royal Sutton Coldfield, is no stranger to New Hall Valley and has volunteered with the Friends on their projects – earlier this year, he broke his arm working on a project with them.

He said: “The volunteers have made this happen – they got together to solve a problem in the local community and created this through hard work and determination.

“They got the funding together themselves and came here whatever the weather to achieve their aim. It says something very positive about the community spirit here in Sutton Coldfield – people of all ages and abilities came along to help.”

Mark Sargent, chair of Friends of New Hall Valley Country Park, said: “I’d like to thank both Mayors and Mayoresses for braving the weather and coming out today, and on the numerous occasions that they have come along here to get involved, lend a hand and show their support.

“It’s great to see the people we elect to represent us rolling their sleeves up and taking part in projects like this.

“So many people, companies and organisations have helped make this happen. Murphy, who I work for, encourage their employees to dedicate two days a year to worthy causes, and we were incredibly lucky that the Cannock depot sent eight strapping lads down to help. They worked like absolute Trojans – they moved 16 tonnes of material in one day!

“And a team from Betel UK, a Birmingham drug rehab charity, came in to demolish the old boardwalk and put the foundations of the new structure in place. It’s really well-constructed, so I want to thank them.

“The City Council’s Park Ranger Service has provided invaluable support too, helping us to achieve what we wanted and lending their expertise.

“And, of course none of this would have been possible without the funding we were lucky enough to receive.

“Last but not least I’d like to thank the volunteers, who come a long week-in, week-out – without them, this project wouldn’t have reached completion.”

Tina Swani, CEO of Sutton Coldfield Charitable Trust (SCCT),said: “I think it’s fantastic that a community have pulled together to create this boardwalk, and that volunteers have actually been part of its construction.

“The fact that it’s also made of completely recycled plastic is marvellous – it really fits with what SCCT are here to do, in terms of sustainability and accessibility.

“People of all mobility levels will now be able to come out into this fantastic park.”

Sutton Coldfield students celebrate A level success

Congratulations to all the young people in Sutton Coldfield who picked up their A level results this week, and my thanks to all the school staff across the Royal Town who work so hard to ensure their students reach their full potential.

I regularly visit all of the schools in Sutton, as well as Sutton College, and I'm always hugely impressed by the dedication of the staff I meet. We are very lucky to have such great schools. Below is a round-up supplied by local schools.

Above: Fairfax students collecting their A level results.

FAIRFAX ACADEMY, which is the founding school of the Fairfax Multi-Academy Trust, celebrated another year of A Level success with Y13 students, with positive outcomes in a broad range of A level and Vocational subjects, with many seeing improvements on last year.

Principal Sean Castle said: “We are delighted that our students have enjoyed so much success yet again, it is a real testament to all of their hard work.

“Being the first year group to have sat formal examinations after the pandemic, they have excelled over the last two years and approached their Y13 assessments with resilience and maturity, and we have been incredibly proud of them.

“Students at Fairfax Sixth Form continue to make strong progress in a range of academic and vocational subjects.”

For the full story and more pictures, click here: https://tinyurl.com/FairfaxAlevels

Above: Renee Gray (left) with her friends Rhianna and Amayah at Arthur Terry.

Staff at ARTHUR TERRY SCHOOL in Sutton Coldfield said they were ‘incredibly proud’ of students for achieving excellent A-Level, BTEC and RSL results.

Headteacher Samantha Kibble said: “We are immensely proud of our Year 13 students who have achieved some fantastic results.

“They demonstrated their ongoing commitment and resilience to their studies and should be very pleased with their results and we wish them all the best in their next steps”

Associate Assistant Headteacher Daniel Whitehouse added: “Our students have worked so hard throughout this year showing exceptional commitment and dedication.”

For the full story and more pictures, click here: https://tinyurl.com/ArthurTerryAlevels

Above: Bishop Vesey’s students this week.

BISHOP VESEY’S GRAMMAR SCHOOL celebrated the many outstanding achievements of all their Year 13 pupils in the ‘A’ level examinations.

Vesey students are going on to further study and training with a wide range of excellent universities and outstanding degree apprenticeships. This year, 81% of the grades awarded were at A*-B (80%, 2023) reflecting a significant achievement for the school’s students.

Dominic Robson, Headteacher of Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School, said: “We are immensely proud of the resilience, hard work and achievements of all our students. They have shown such impressive levels of maturity, and good humour, playing an active role in the life of our school community throughout their time with us, whether that be as leaders and mentors, through charity work or through their vibrant contributions to Vesey sports, music and drama.”

Above: Bishop Walsh students pick up their A level results.

BISHOP WALSH CATHOLIC SCHOOL celebrated the fulfilment of students’ God-given talents on A-level results day.

Natalie Brodie, Principal at Bishop Walsh, said: “We are so proud of the achievements of all our Year 13 students who have collected their results today. Despite the many challenges they have faced over the last few years, their successful results have proven the benefits of hard work, determination and commitment.

“I also thank our wonderful teaching staff, support staff and families who have supported and guided students so diligently throughout Key Stage 5. We wish our students all the very best in the future and hope they continue to be encouraged and inspired by our Catholic ethos of ‘Guided by Christ, we aspire to achieve.”

Shareen Chilwan, Head of Sixth Form, said: “Our Year 13 students have really made us very proud. We celebrate the whole young person by recognising their God-given talents and supporting their uniqueness. Alongside their academic success, we are proud of the people they have become.”

Police called into action in Sutton

Above: Incidents in Sutton Coldfield this week have highlighted the need for urgent consultation over plans to close and sell-off the town’s long-established Police Station.

Residents will have been reassured by the swift response of local police this week, after alleged incidents in the town which received much coverage on Social Media.

While it’s not possible to go into detail of the alleged incident (for legal reasons) local people will be aware that it is one of a number of worrying occurrences in Sutton Coldfield of late which have required police presence.

It will also not be lost on residents that, as our Police Station faces being closed by the region’s Labour Police and Crime Commissioner, there continues to be an urgent need for open and transparent public consultation into his plans to replace it with a smaller facility, in converted semi-attached houses.

With more events like this happening in Sutton, residents have a right to know how this plan will impact factors like response times for officers.

I have once again turned down the offer of a behind-closed-doors meeting, and have urged the PCC to accept the invitation of Royal Sutton Coldfield Town Council to answer questions from councillors and the public at their meeting in September.

While I suspect that he will not take up this offer, rest assured I will be raising the threat to our Police Station at an adjournment debate I have arranged in the House of Commons on Wednesday, 4thSeptember.

A town of 100,000 people needs a fully-functional Police Station, and it’s not enough to simple announce plans to fundamentally change policing here without proper consultation.

Putting on the style to support Cancer Support Centre

Sutton Coldfield Cancer Support Centre is organising a black tie ball this winter to raise funds for its important work supporting local people post-diagnosis.

I am privileged to be Patron of the centre, which is based in the same building as St Giles Hospice in Lindridge Road and know just how important it is as a locally-based service.

The Cancer Centre is there to support local people - they may have just received a cancer diagnosis, be about to have surgery or receive hospital treatments, be currently undergoing conventional treatments such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy, have finished their treatment and been discharged, be approaching one of the many follow-up appointments, or be supporting a loved one on their cancer journey. The Centre is there for all of them.

Set to be held at Aston Wood Golf Course, Blake Street, on Friday 29th November, the dinner looks like not only being one of the biggest dates on the Royal Town’s calendar it will also support a brilliant local charity.

If you are looking for a glamorous, fun night out, I’d urge you to consider putting on your ‘glad rags’ and getting along to support the Cancer Centre.

Tickets are available individually or as a discounted table of 10 – see the ‘further information’ section at the end of this newsletter for more details.

in the Commons

Mpox outbreak

Parliament has risen for the summer recess, but as Shadow Foreign Secretary, I remain alert to events around the world.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the Mpox outbreak in parts of Africa a public health emergency of international concern.

The highly contagious disease - formerly known as monkey pox- has killed at least 450 people during an initial outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

It has now spread across parts of central and east Africa, and scientists are concerned about how fast a new variant of the disease is spreading and its high fatality rate.

This week I spoke with Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, to express my concern over the rapid spread of MPOX across parts of Africa. He underlined the importance of an international response to contain the virus.

We must persevere with Sudan peace talks

Fresh peace talks which hope to end Sudan's 16-month war have started although, as I write, neither side has entered the negotiating room.

The US, which is leading the talks, insisted the event should continue regardless, saying "we are going to try to do everything we canto try to end this horrific crisis in Sudan".

Fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has killed thousands, driven millions from their homes and sparked what the United Nations has called the "world's worst hunger crisis".

Despite a faltering start (which is far from unusual in such events) these US-led peace talks offer a much-needed glimmer of hope for Sudan. The UK should play our part in helping to drive forward progress and end the horrific suffering and displacement of millions. Enough is enough.

Further information

Further information