December 4th was Small Business Saturday. I spent the day visiting many great local small businesses, including pop up shops, market traders and a wide variety of family businesses. I wanted to show my support for independent high street retailers and hospitality businesses, and local online businesses, such as the The Belgian Beer Company who provide a click and collect service from their base in Festival Park. It was great to see the enthusiasm of our local businesses despite the tough times they’ve been through in the last year. The Christmas decorations, festive music, and food, plus the prospect of booster jabs protecting more of us from Covid, all these make us feel cautiously optimistic about the celebrations this year.
In this Christmas season, and wintery weather we think even more about those in the community who need support, so I included two not-for-profit organisations (social businesses) in my visits on Saturday. I was really impressed with both and want to highlight them in my column this month. Unit 1 Park Works in Hanley and Ten Count Boxing Gym CIO in Bentilee both provide a great service to the community.
Unit 1 Indoor Skatepark in Park Works, Hanley, has been built by three dedicated volunteers to provide a safe space for young people to learn skateboarding or trying the obstacles on scooters. In Bentilee, families are discovering the newly opened Ten Count Boxing and Fitness Centre which offers budget classes to local youngsters. The club has been kitted out entirely by donations.
Both facilities are run by community champions. Both organisations would like to be able to offer more at less or no cost to those who need to use the facilities but can’t afford the equipment – whether that is the skateboard, scooter or boxing gloves and sports gear. These social businesses have been established to answer a real need in the local community, but they still need to pay rent and keep the lights on, so there is a cost involved.
In Westminster I chair the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Youth Affairs. We have looked at the impact of COVID on young people and are calling for more investment in youth work. We know that health and mental health is improved by exercise, and facilities which provide supervised sports activities in neighbourhoods where there is great need deserve funding. Often the debate is who is best placed to do this. It could be funded through social prescribing (available through the NHS), sports or education funding or through a community safety budget as part of a diversionary activities programme or supported by a Lottery grant. Whatever the route, these grassroots organisations are at the heart of our communities and deserve support. Stoke City Council’s Community Investment Fund is open to not-for-profit organisations such as these. However, the issue is often that small Community Interest Companies don’t have the time or expertise to complete multiple application forms as well as running their facilities, or even to market their offer to sustain the running costs.
I write regularly about the generous spirit of the city. This year’s highlight for me was the launch of The Harper-Lee Foundation at Stoke City Football Club, due to the generous sponsorship of the Club’s Community Trust. Raising awareness of the danger of button batteries may save lives this Christmas and there can be no greater reward than to know other families will not suffer as Harper-Lee's family have – a fitting legacy for the much-missed beautiful toddler.
My role as the Member of Parliament for Stoke-on-Trent Central is as much about highlighting challenges for us to address locally as it is about pushing nationally for more investment in Stoke-on-Trent. We know that government cannot do everything, and that collaborative working brings the best results locally.
In my job, no two days are the same, working for my residents either in the constituency or in Parliament. I started producing monthly videos to give a snapshot of what I do each month, and I hope this is helpful. In my last Personally Speaking this year, I want to take the opportunity to thank everyone who supports me in my work and my special thanks to everyone who works tirelessly in our local community. As we approach the holidays, I wish you a joyous time with family and friends. The pandemic has given us all a greater appreciation of the simple pleasure of being able to be together. Happy Christmas.
