A Saturday double-bill

Last week's rain held off on Saturday to allow us to spend most of the day in Hull Road Ward talking to residents. Okay, we don't presume to have the power to control the weather, but there was definitely an uplift in our mood as the sun poked out through dark clouds overhead.

It's no secret that Hull Road has a number of complex issues, which makes being Councillors for the ward both challenging and immensely rewarding.

We spent the morning doing a street surgery for half of Badger Hill (Crossways, Sussex Road, Eastfield Crescent and the smaller streets). This was a new experience for us as new Councillors and, judging by the response from residents, well appreciated by the locals too.

There are several ways a street surgery can be conducted. Our street surgery consisted of delivering leaflets around the chosen roads roughly a week before, stating our intention to visit. Residents could put these leaflets prominently in their windows in order to ask us to call round on the day itself. This proved hugely successful and we were able to speak to quite a few residents about issues that were important to them. We'll now work on those and keep in touch with the residents who raised them.

Badger Hill is often on the 'front-line' of the Heslington East development and many issues are typically University-related, which showed us the importance of keeping open dialogue with the University management themselves.

The street surgery also showed us the obvious benefits over 'static' drop-in surgeries where one waits for residents to come to them. We think it's important to get out there and meet residents in their homes where they feel most comfortable.

In the afternoon, we made the short trip to Hull Road Park where a family fun day was in full swing. We were pleasantly surprised by the large number of locals who had come out to take part in activities, go on the climbing wall, watch the falconry display or just to get an ice-cream. Well in excess of 500 locals were there.

The surrounding areas are home to many lower-income families and we spoke to people who lived in Etty Avenue, Alcuin Avenue and Burlington Avenue. The family fun day was a cheap and affordable way for them to get out of the house for a bit.

With the community spirit we saw clearly demonstrated in both Tang Hall and Badger Hill, we're proud to be Councillors of Hull Road Ward.