I’ve said it time and again, but I never cease to be impressed by the depth and strength of the volunteering spirit here in Solihull.
From charities to sports clubs, there are a huge number of people who donate their time, energy, and expertise to making our town such a wonderful place to live.
I set up my Points of Light award as a way of offering them a little reward and recognition, and at the weekend I had the great pleasure of joining the Literary Litter Pickers and Olton councillor Katy Blunt to meet the latest winner.
Many of you will have heard of Christine Dunster. Her litter-picking group, which brings together volunteers and staff from local businesses to clean up Olton and Hobs Moat, has featured in this paper before.
This summer she was awarded the British Empire Medal for her work in the community, and it was my pleasure to present her with a certificate and bouquet, kindly donated by local florist Fleur-de-lis, as my own gesture of thanks for all her work. By coincidence it also turned out to be her birthday!
We managed to collect 37 full bags of rubbish between us, and the area really did look much better by the time we were finished.
In sadder news, I also had the opportunity last week to speak in the House of Commons about the tragic deaths of Khaola Saleem and Raneem Oudeh, the local mother and daughter stabbed to death outside their home last month.
It was the very first Prime Minister’s Questions since the end of summer recess, and Theresa May joined me both in offering her thoughts and prayers to their friends and family and praising the exemplary response of the police, emergency services, and wider community.
Originally published in the Solihull Observer, 13/09/18.