Mayor's Column: Councillor Aasim Rashid

Date published: 13 August 2021

Councillor Aasim Rashid was sworn in as the Mayor of Rochdale on Wednesday 19 May 2021.

This weekly column is about the places he has been and the people he has met from Monday 20 July to Tuesday 3 August.

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For all who have been going through a difficult time with Covid-19 over the last year, this Eid [Monday 20 July] gave us a lesson of sacrifice and allowed us to help those who are going through a difficult time, who may have lost loved ones in the last few months.

For Eid I visited a few local mosques with community members before heading to Springfield Park. This was the first time after two years that we had the chance to come out and pray in the open park. It was a special event, bringing everyone together.

I hope that all Muslims living in Rochdale who celebrated, and around the world who celebrated, had a safe and very prosperous, happy, and healthy Eid.

 

 

The Duchy of Lancaster Benevolent Fund kindly donated £500 to my charity appeal. A cheque was presented at Rochdale Connections Trust to myself and my wife, Mayoress Rifit Rashid, by Deputy Lord Lieutenant Ian Sandiford.

The Fund is a registered charity set up with the consent of The Queen to benefit causes primarily in the counties of Greater Manchester, Lancashire, and Merseyside.

This kind donation towards my chosen charities will help to support local causes and promote their work. Thank you to the Duchy of Lancaster Benevolent Fund for this and for their continued support of the mayor’s charities year after year.

This donation is made annually to the Mayor of Rochdale’s Charity Appeal.

 

 

On Sunday 25 July I visited Queen’s Park in Heywood for the official bandstand reopening event. Organised by the Friends of Queen’s Park, members of the public were invited to celebrate the open day with live music from local talented artists and I gave a speech to commemorate the event.

The Friends and all the volunteer workers have done wonderful work in restoring and refreshing the bandstand for all to enjoy. I wish to recognise them in the coming weeks by presenting Certificates of Appreciation for all their work.

All the performers on the day were local to Heywood and all performed for free. The headline act was local band 25th Hour, as well as Jack Carroll, The Old Fathers, and The Mashup Men.

 

Read more: Queen's Park bandstand given new lease of life thanks to generosity of artistic teamPublished: 06 July 2021

 

 

I hosted a charity cricket match - Rochdale Mayor's XI vs Pakistan High Commission XI - at Rochdale Sports Club on Thursday 29 July. The guest of honour was the High Commissioner of Pakistan who visited with other dignitaries before all enjoyed a charity dinner after the match.

Due to the weather we had to play indoors, otherwise it would have been an outdoor match, but nevertheless it was a really great event which raised more than £3,000 for my chosen charities through donations.

Rochdale won the match by 30 runs.

 

 

I joined Rochdale & District Fusiliers Association, along with the Lancashire Headquarters at Rochdale Cenotaph on 1 August to commemorate the battle at Minden, North Germany, in 1759 during The Seven Years’ war.

A Drumhead service was held to commemorate the 262nd anniversary of the battle.

The Battle of Minden is also known as the Battle of Roses, as British regiments advanced to the fight with roses in their hats, plucked from the fields. The battle saw the British and Germans fight the French and Anglo Saxons.
 

Read more: Minden Day commemoration held in RochdalePublished: 06 August 2021

 

 

Later the same day, I attended a family fun day in the Spotland ward at Lenny Barn playing fields. This was the first-ever outdoor family event organised by Rochdale's Nigerian Community Association, staged in partnership with Rochdale AFC Community Trust.

It's always a great pleasure to attend grass-roots community events like these; it shows Rochdale off at its best.

There are hundreds of people just like the local Nigerian Community Association who work incredibly hard in bringing together people from different backgrounds, cultures, and faiths. They make Rochdale a much nicer, kinder, and richer town.
 

Read more: Family fun day brings communities togetherPublished: 11 August 2021

 

 

I ventured to Bilal Mosque on Monday 2 August to welcome judges from the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) North West in Bloom – It’s Your Neighbourhood competition.

They were invited to visit five mosques across Rochdale on 2 August to see how they have all taken steps to help fight climate change, combat carbon emissions, and enhance the beauty of their neighbourhoods for ‘Masjids in Bloom’. 

I think this is a brilliant initiative to across the mosques to bring all communitites together, as well as being another way forward to help our environment.
 

Read more: Judges visit five Rochdale mosques for Masjids in Bloom initiativePublished: 04 August 2021

 

 

Next, Raja Zeeshan invited me for an exclusive interview on his Free Speech show, which you can watch below. Thank you to Raja for his time and for inviting me onto the show, I really enjoyed it.

 

 

To finish, on behalf of all the Rochdale borough and as the Mayor of Rochdale, I want to send a huge congratulations to Stuart Bithell from Rochdale who recently won Gold at the Tokyo Olympic games.

I hope when he returns to Rochdale, we will have a reception for him in Number One Riverside and honour him. This is such a big achievement for Rochdale.
 

Read more: Rochdale’s Stuart Bithell wins first ever 49er sailing gold for Team GB at Tokyo 2020Published: 04 August 2021

 

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The Mayor’s Charity Appeal for 2021/22 is raising funds for Springhill Hospice, Parkinson’s UK, Petrus Rochdale, Jolly Josh, and Rochdale Shopmobility. All donations are gratefully received and will go to these fantastic local causes.

You can donate to the Mayor’s Charity Appeal (registered charity number 1043910) by:

BACS or bank transfer:
Barclays Bank Rochdale Branch
Account Name: Mayor of Rochdale's Charity Appeal
Account Number: 53356159
Sort code: 20-72-67

Cheque: make cheques payable to The Mayor's Charity. You can drop them off at the front desk at Number One Riverside or post them to:

​​The Mayor's Office
Number One Riverside
Smith Street
Rochdale
OL16 1XU​​​​

Phone (one-off text giving): Text ROCHDALE to 70085 to donate £5. Texts costs £5 plus one standard rate message.

 

 

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 924890