Weekly Column: Mayor Billy Sheerin

Date published: 01 February 2020

This weekly column from the Mayor of Rochdale, Councillor Billy Sheerin, is about the places he has been and the people he has met during the week commencing Monday 20 January to Sunday 26 January 2020.

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‘Don’t Be Blue Be You’ was my very first event of the week, organised by Janette Birch and Victoria Murphy, but was the initiative of Mark Widdup, Director of Neighbourhoods at Rochdale Council.

Last Monday (20 October) was Blue Monday, something I’ve never heard of before, but it would appear that after the Christmas festivities people find themselves going through a depressive period and the worst day of that period is known as ‘Blue Monday’.

An event was put on at the Wheatsheaf Shopping Centre where stalls were set up for service providers to come along  and show to the public that there are all sorts of activities and help for you to get involved with when feeling blue.

Attendees included Our Rochdale, Rochdale Women’s Welfare Association, Rochdale Connections Trust, Rochdale & District Mind, HMR Community Cancer Service (Living with Cancer) and chefs from Rochdale’s Hopwood Hall College were there making vegetable stir fry’s – free food cheers anybody up! Members of Middleton’s Hopwood Hall College were also at the centre painting a butterfly on the wall to brighten up the place and make us feel spring-like.

 

 

 

It was very well attended throughout the day and I thank these terrific organisations for attending and informing others of what is available in our borough. Here is a list of all who attended:

• Rochdale Mind – Penny Strickett, Welfare service manager and Sabba Razzaq, Apprentice
• Our Rochdale - Connecting You - James Montgomery, Joanne McIntosh and Alex Dempsey, Apprentice
• Hopwood Hall College - Laura Wynn, Reprographics & Campaigns Officer and Louise Aspinall, Works & Skills Officer
• Butterfly mural painting - Jane Bennett, Lecturer and Courtney Booth, Student
• HMR Community Cancer Service - Asma Begun and Tabitha Mellor
• Rochdale Women’s Welfare Association - Mann Ki Baatein (councillor) Jet Harding (counselling co-ordinator) and Khaldha Manzoor (manager)
• Rochdale Connections Trust - Lauren Sullivan, Bev Place and Debora Madden

 

 

 

On Wednesday (22 January), we had visitors at the town hall from Rochdale’s German twin town, Bielefeld. A gentleman called Olaf Selonke, the ‘Bürgermeister’s’ assistant, visited along with a lady, Verena Loesing. The two came across from Germany to discuss with the Friends of Bielefeld committee a new format for the upcoming visit in September 2020.

The idea is that this year’s visit is going to be a mixture of tourists and house guests. The friends will be coming across from Bielefeld on the 6 September for a week and during their stay will be going to Walley and Clitheroe for a day out in the Lancashire countryside and then will be going on another day out to a vineyard between Harrogate and York - Yorkshire Heart Vineyard and Brewery. They will also be having a shorter visit to Hebden Bridge and Hollingworth Lake before a tour of Rochdale Town Hall, Touchstones and the Co-Operative museum. There will be 10 people hosted in people’s houses and 25 will stay at a hotel in Rochdale.

The first exchange happened in 1954 and that was an exchange of businesspeople who stayed in host houses. Then there were a lot of youth exchanges.

The Friends are always looking for new members who would be willing to host visitors and participate. They will be making an exchange next year, hopefully going by coach from Rochdale to Bielefeld.

 

 

I cut a ribbon and officially opened Trade Mouldings new distribution centre at Kingsway Business Park on Thursday (23 January). This was a good event; it was nice to see a new company opening in Rochdale that have come over from Ireland, using Rochdale as a distribution centre and trade counter. It was great for me to open a business like that. I wish them all the best for the future.

• www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/1/business-news/132472/trade-mouldings-opens-new-distribution-centre-on-six-acre-site

I also went to Falinge Park High School on Wednesday evening for the Youth Speaks District Heat competition. This is organised every year at Falinge Park High School by the Rotary Club of Rochdale.

So many took part in the public speech competition, with competitors from different schools competing in two sections – intermediate and senior – speaking on a range of topics including social media, global warming, role models effecting behaviours of the youth, and hopes for the future.

Thank you to Ravi Sharma from the Rotary Club for organising, the headteacher at Falinge Park Janice Allen for hosting and to all the young people who made the event a success and worked hard on the project. It was a very well run and enjoyable night, especially when I spent 15 minutes entertaining the crowd whilst the judges came to a decision. They took a long time to decide, so it must have been very, very close.

The winners will now move onto the next round for the North West.

 

 

Friday 24 January I went to the Mayor of Trafford’s Civic Ball at Waterside in Sale. Councillor Rob Chilton is one of the youngest mayors in the ten local authorities, who has been a councillor since 2010. He put on a most enjoyable evening for the mayoress and I, and all the other Greater Manchester mayors, raising funds for his chosen charities: the Friends of Manchester Hospitals, the Alex Hulme Foundation and the Society for Abandoned Animals.

The High Sheriff of Greater Manchester, Mark Adlestone OBE, who lives in Trafford was also there with his wife Gabrielle.

This year, before the end of May, all the mayors of the ten local authorities will be holding their civic charity balls to raise funds for local causes. Mine will be a Hollywood themed evening hosted at Rochdale Town Hall on Saturday 18 April.

• www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/events/64634/the-mayor-of-rochdale-civic-charity-ball

 

 

Mayoral Invitations

The Mayor welcomes invitations to events held by local organisations and individuals. Due to demand, it may not be possible for the Mayor to attend every event he is invited to.

To invite the Mayor to your event, please complete the Mayor attendance form and return it to the Mayor’s Officer.

Visit: www.rochdale.gov.uk/council-and-democracy/mayors/Pages/mayoral-invitations.aspx

Email: mayoral@rochdale.gov.uk

Tel: 01706 924773