AS WE reach the end of the year it’s been good to see Worcester’s High Street busy and bustling and the smart new Cathedral Plaza thronged with visitors.
It’s great more people are choosing to visit our city but of course the extra visitors mean more pressure on the city’s crowded streets.
I’m glad that we have seen major investments in our roads and measures to reduce traffic in Worcester announced this year which will hopefully help to reduce traffic in the year to come.
It’s also been a pleasure to see some of the excellent work being done by local charities in recent weeks – opening Maggs new clothing store and seeing CAB WHABAC providing new affordable housing above it with some help from Worcester Municipal Charities was a real example of how local charities can achieve more by working together.
It is also good to see how they have delivered more homes over the shops in our city centre, helping to meet the need for affordable homes whilst also making the city centre more sustainable.
I will keep working with the city council to encourage this kind of project in the year to come.
At this time of year when many of us take a break, we should thank those still working to keep us all safe – the police, fire and ambulance services and those working at our hospitals over Christmas.
I am glad the Worcestershire Royal is set to receive its biggest investment in decades, but I know it is not the buildings but the people who make the biggest difference.
