I bet you never saw that coming!

Well what an amazing few days we have just witnessed.  I'm happy to admit I went into the general election thinking Labour would hold its own.  I wasn't expecting the huge losses predicted at the start of the campaign but equally I wasn't expecting another 30 new Labour MPs, one of whom is the new MP for Reading East Matt Rodda! Jeremy Corbyn had had an excellent campaign and when I read our manifesto my heart soared - it was excellent.  Filled with hope for a fairer future.  I was a steward at the rally he held in Reading and the turnout was amazing and so encouraging.

On election day I was running the Battle ward committee rooms, which something I've done for many years.  I was entering the gate data we had (the info we get when people at the gate of polling stations ask for your polling card number).  This shows us how many of our promise had voted.  It was clear something was very different from the beginning.  I was receiving a lot more data to input than is usual. By the end of the day I had huge piles of gate slips and an achy right hand!

By 10pm I was tired and looking forward to some sleep but the exit poll put any ideas of a peaceful evening to one side so I headed off to the count.  The voting samples I took looked excellent in Battle and pretty good even in some of the West Berkshire wards.  As the results came in from across the country it was apparent the exit polls were pretty accurate.  This meant we were in with a real chance of winning the two Reading seats.

At 3.30am the Reading West results were announced.  We didn't win but we did reduce Alok Sharma's majority to 2876. Around 4am a real buzz was being felt and rumours flew we had won Reading East.  The candidates were told the result and headed to the stage for the announcement.  It was amazing.  Matt Rodda had not only won the Reading East seat but did so comfortably with a 3759 lead.

It's now clear Reading West is a winnable seat and I will do all I can to ensure the the next time we have a general election (some saying it could be the autumn!) we return Reading West to Labour.

West Reading Great Get Together - Picnic In The Park!

"We are far more united and have far more in common than that which divides us" - Jo Cox MP

In my year as Mayor I met hundreds of people in Reading and got to know about their lives, hobbies, passions and challenges.  I loved Reading before I was mayor but the great people I met during that year made me love Reading more.

Reading has always had a strong community identity with thousands of different people getting along together all year long.  We decided to hold a Great Get Together event in West Reading to celebrate and strengthen our community.  So please join us:

Sunday 18 June

12pm-2pm

Kensington Road Park

Refreshments and BBQ for sale from 103rd Oxford Road Scouts

Join our Great Get Togther in Kensington Park, Reading. Pack a picnic and come along to meet your neighbours in Reading.

Any good at cricket, rounders or football? If you are bring a team game and get your new friends running around in the park.

We'll have story telling for children from Eddie Winship.

You'll be able to buy refreshments and BBQ from 103rd Reading Scouts who are supporting the event (£2 for a jumbo hot dog or 4oz burger. Vegetarian options available).

Reading has a wonderful community and has proved year on year we have more in common!

Print a poster to share here: Picnic In The Park Poster

RSVP to our Eventbrite event here: Picnic In The Park Event

Or join our Facebook event on my page here: Picnic In The Park Facebook Event 

Press release:  West Reading Great Get Together Press Release

We'd love to see you at our event however if you can't make it please share with as many people as you can.

There is parking at the park as well as two hours parking in nearby streets.  If coming by bus you can catch the 15, 16 and 17 and get off at the West Village - Tesco stop (inbound or outbound).

Subject to change due to unforeseen circumstances and bad weather - fingers crossed.

West Village: amended parking restrictions

After requests from residents, the caretaker and West Village Residents group, parking restrictions were drawn up for West Village and the consultation recently ended.  The response was mixed so a reduced set of restrictions will be going to Traffic Management Sub-Committee on Wednesday.  Here they are:

Residents were concerned that the original plan would reduce the number of parking spaces available, especially were garages are too small to be used.  This reduced scheme addresses the concerns raised but also makes the area safer and more accessible.

As a larger scheme was originally advertised this reduced scheme does not need to be advertised again. This saves time and will enable Reading Borough Council to start making the streets of West Village safer if the plans are approved.

You can read the report and officer comments here:  http://www.reading.gov.uk/article/9594/Traffic-Management-Sub-Committee-14-SEP-2016

Fibromyalgia Awareness - The Fight Continues

A few weeks ago I was given the opportunity to continue my fight for better awareness of fibromyalgia.  The motion in proposed for Unite 's policy conference made the final agenda.

I was proud to be able to bring this motion to Unite the Union's 2016 policy conference. It was carried unanimously. My work for people with fibromyalgia didn't end when I stopped being Mayor. I'm fighting for everyday people all the time. My speech was as follows:

Brothers and sisters. This is the second time I've spoken at a conference. The last time was 10 years ago and I was at Amicus finance sector conference opposing the offshoring of our jobs. A lot has changed in those 10 years. I've had two boys, been elected as a Labour councillor in Reading and in 2014 became the Deputy Mayor of Reading.

It was during my time as Deputy mayor that I visited my local fibromyalgia support group to celebrate their 1st anniversary.  I heard about the debilitating pain, tiredness, muscle stiffness, irritable bowel syndrome and other symptoms associated with the condition.  I was horrified to hear of the struggles faced by the people in the room. Drs who didn't believe the condition existed, employers who did not understand it, people who lost their jobs or felt they had to resign leaving them to rely on benefits and the government's increasingly harsh disability payments system.  The condition doesn't necessarily worsen. It doesn't stay the same. It comes and goes. You can have a few good weeks but then find you're unable to walk.  One day you can be OK the next unable to get out of bed. At work you could have a long run of good accuracy but a ‘fibro fog’ could mean you get things wrong or take longer than usual to get your job done. I remember hoping it was something I never had to experience.

Just a week later the pain began. It started in my neck. I dismissed it as a dodgy pillow. It moved to my knees. I put it down to 22 years dancing catching up on me. Then it moved to my shoulder,  elbows and hands. I couldn't do basic tasks without being in a lot of pain. I was tired but I had two children. It's normal isn't it? One Dr told me to come back when my knees were so sore I couldn't walk properly, another put it down to low vitamin D but thankfully the third took me seriously and referred me to rheumatology.  It was at my appointment in February 2015 that I saw one of the Drs who attended the support group the previous October and it was at that appointment I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia.  The pain, tiredness,  disturbed sleep, low mood and anxiety all made sense but it was a shock.

I became mayor in 2015 I raised money for Fibromyalgia UK and the local support group I'd become a member of as well as the local special care baby unit.  My year as mayor ended in May but my fight for people with fibromyalgia didn't stop there.

I bring this motion to conference so we can help and support our friends, family and members with fibromyalgia.  If you look around the room you'll see colleagues with the condition. They may know they have it or they may be struggling daily with a group of symptoms they can't make sense of. It will help us protect our members from discrimination,  job loss, uncertainty and the stress caused by sickness policy and make sure they can work safely.

Conference I move.

Motion:

Conference resolves that Unite will create an information pack to raise awareness of fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia is a long-term condition that causes a wide range of symptoms including:

Pain
Fatigue
Muscle stiffness
Difficulty sleeping
Problems with mental process
Headaches and migraine
Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Estimates suggest as many as 1 in 20 people in the UK  could have this condition,  that's approximately 71,000 Unite members, with 7 times more women being affected than men.

Conference resolves to:

Create an information pack on fibromyalgia,  it's symptoms and how these may affect members in the workplace.
Make this available to all members.
Send this information to all workplace, equalities and health & safety reps.
Encourage reps to make employers aware of the condition so affected members are properly supported in the workplace.

South East/Women’s Committee

Reading a Top 20 UK Destination? Why not?

I have a sharp ear for Reading being mentioned on TV.  We've had entries for Robot Wars two weeks in a row now!  On The One Show this evening it was mentioned that Reading was in the top 20 UK holiday destinations.  The presenters were a bit surprised although Alex Jones said it is a nice town.

I tweeted this gem and the (friendly) cynics responded. Surely Reading isn't a destination town?  Well I think it is and here's why:

Christchurch Bridge

The Thames and Kennet - our beautiful, somewhat under utilised, rivers.  We have lovely Thameside open spaces like Caversham Court Gardens and Christchurch Meadows (complete with paddling pool, beautiful Christchurch bridge and, next year, a Lido/spa!).  You can take a cruise to Mapledurham House, the likely inspiration for Toad Hall. The Kennet runs through The Oracle shopping centre filled with shops (no surprise there) and restaurants.
 

Caversham Court Gardens with Progress Theatre production

 Theatre - we have The Hexagon which puts on dance, music, comedy and theatre as well as the very popular pantomime.  We have the gem that is South Street, currently undergoing an upgrade but will reopen better than before.  It will be able to build on it's impressive programme of more alternative acts and it's well respected comedy festival.  We have Progress Theatre (with Reading boy Kenneth Branagh as patron!) who have a year round series of productions and the very popular outdoor shows in the summer.  I finally made it to one this year and A Midsummer Night's Dream was brilliant.  In November Reading Between The Lines will premier their dramatisation of Henry I.  I saw the preview and it will certainly be something worth watching. We also have Reading Rep and the joy that is Reading Fringe Festival.

Awful photo but I'm of the age where I sit near the back in a chair.

Music and Festivals - well the first entry requires little research.  It is of course the Reading Festival held (partly) in my very own Battle Ward. This is an internationally renowned music festival pulling in some of the biggest names in the world!  For the rest of the year we have The Purple Turtle, Sub 89, the Readipop Festival and brilliant home grown bands.

Reading has an ever growing Pride event - one of the last free Prides in the country.  This family friendly event takes place on the first Saturday of September - 3 September this year.

Moving away from guitar based music we are lucky to have CultureMix who perform throughout the year and will shortly be at Arena - Carnival of the World.  We also have Reading Symphony Orchestra, Aldworth Philharmonic Orchestra, Reading Operatic Society, the Phoenix Choir and the Sainsbury Singers who put on concerts and musicals all year round.

Carnival and World Music - as well as Carnival of the World coming up in a few weeks, recently we had a samba parade through town accompanied by BeatRoots.  We have, until recently, had the West Reading Carnival which I hope will soon be back on the Oxford Road soon.

The Rising Sun Arts Centre (designed by Waterhouse - the same chap who did the Natural History Museum) has a huge variety of music, dance and performance from around the world and recently was awarded a Queen's Award for Voluntary Service.  Just down the road is RISC, also offering a wider world view and home to the awesome Tutu's Ethiopian Table (and moving cleverly onto food).

Our Eat Reading lunch - German, Ethiopian and a burger from Mal!

Food and drink - well you certainly won't go hungry in Reading.  We have your usual chain restaurants but also some very good independents.  There's no way I could compete with the excellent Edible Reading so just take a look at their blog.  This summer we had the Eat Reading food festival and the, now annual, Reading Chilli Festival - the hot wing challenge was a joy to behold.

We have a wide variety of cafes like Picnic and the gluten free Nibsy's and also a fair few pubs. Check out Reading CAMRA, although there are many others both in the town centre and around.  Historically the town was world famous for beer, biscuits and bulbs (don't eat the bulbs).

History - Sir John Betjeman said 'No town in the South of England hides its attractions more successfully from the visitor' and for that I'm sorry and we'll stop it now.  Reading is an ancient town.  It was mentioned in the recent drama The Last Kingdom charting the reign of Alfred the Great and his Dane friend Uhtred.  History tells of a Battle against the Danes in Reading.

Over the years it flourished, being famous for its wool trade among other things.  The town's crest includes two rams in reference to this part of the town's history. Read more here.  But what can you visit?

Reading Abbey and Prison

 Most famous at the moment in Reading Abbey, founded in 1121 by Henry I as his final resting place.  Reading Abbey Revealed  is restoring the Abbey so it can be visited again and the wider Reading Abbey Quarter will see the abbey placed in the wider context of the town.  There is also the Hidden Abbey Project which, using Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is hoping to discover the extent of the buried Abbey and event the High Alter where Henry I was buried (no - they're not going to dig him up). You can occasionally take a tour of the Abbey but it will be fully reopened by 2018.

The Abbey Gateway

The Abbey Quarter also takes in the gateway, were Jane Austen went to school.  We also have Reading Prison which, this autumn, will be home to Art Angel and world renowned artists. It's most famous inmate was Oscar Wilde which inspired the Ballad of Reading Gaol.

Reading Museum is a lovely museum and home to Britain's Bayeux Tapestry.   It also has the Silchester Gallery which holds finds from the nearby Roman town of Calleva Atrebatum as well as galleries on natural history and, of course, Reading.

In October the University of Reading's Museum of English Rural Life (MERL) re-opens.  The university also has the Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology and the Cole Museum of Zoology as well as an award winning 'green' Whiteknights campus and the London Road campus with it's beautiful cloister.

We have a rather impressive collection of blue plaques including William Henry Fox Talbot! Famous names from the town include the aforementioned Kenneth Branagh (we went to the same secondary school, at different times I'll add), Kate Winslett, Marianne Faithful, Mike Oldfield and, of course, Ricky Gervais who made a film based on his life in Reading and named it after our very own Cemetery Junction!  Bugsy Malone has scenes filmed here. There's a long list of notable types from Reading here.

Art and Culture - we are lucky to have a thriving arts scene in Reading.  It's well worth looking up Jelly, OpenHand OpenSpace, The Whiteknights Studio Trail, Caversham Arts Trail, and Reading Arts Week.  New to the town is the Art Scope Gallery and if you are looking for something with a bit more history, Reading Museum has a very impressive collection!

                                                                          2016 is also Reading's Year of Culture.  We may be over half-way through but there's still loads to see and do. There are regular festivals and celebrations held by Reading's diverse community.  Highlights this year include Chinese New Year and and at the very end of last year, The Winter Giant.


And finally shopping - During my travels around the UK I've visited many a shopping centre.  I may be biased but few match Reading.  For a start the main shopping street, Broad Street is pedestrianised.  I'm always surprised when the main shopping street isn't.  We have two shopping malls, The Oracle and the Broad Street Mall, both in the town centre ensuring trade doesn't vanish out-of-town. We have a nice bit of architecture if you glance above the modern shop fronts and you can still find some independent gems in places like the Harris Arcade.

So as you can see there's lots to do in Reading.  You could easily fill a weekend and there are plenty of places nearby to stay.  We have a spanking new station and you can be in London in 25 minutes.  We are close to Heathrow and the M4, with park and ride schemes and the best bus company in the UK - Reading Buses. Oh, and we've just got an Ikea which we're very excited about.

This list is by no means exhaustive.  Follow Alt Reading and Get Reading to keep up to date.

Disclosure: I was Mayor of Reading 2015/2016 and patron of the year of Culture and Reading Pride so I am biased.