It was wonderful to attend the opening of the new Gurdwara in Belvedere with the local Sikh community. Celebrating the important work that the Sikh community carry out and learning more about their faith was very special.
It was great to attend the Erith Town FC annual presentation evening and hand out well-earned awards to our local players, as well as recognising the massive amount of work that occurs behind the scenes.
Grassroots football is one of the key pillars of local communities, so celebrating their success is vital.
Up the Dockers!
This month, I thoroughly enjoyed attending the Africa Day of Celebration organised by Active Horizons. I was honoured to support an organisation who do so much to foster leadership and promote the voices of the African diaspora.
Every year, the Politics Home magazine recognises 100 Women in Westminster who are leading the way in politics and public life. It was an honour to be recognised as one of the hundred women making a difference, and to be selected amongst other women trailblazers. You can read more about this event here.
Many thanks to NHS Confederation for inviting me to speak to their annual Mental Health Conference in Leeds on the urgent need to invest in our mental health services.
It was also important to learn about the innovative approaches taken at Leeds Synergi to tackle ethnic inequalities in mental health.
I was inspired to watch history in the making as the first ever girls side from Erith and Belvedere FC under 15’s team played against Sudbury Town at the Acclaim Handling Community Stadium in Welling.
Big congratulations to all those involved in making this happen and to the girls on the field from both teams.
This April, it was great to speak at the ‘Black in Business’ event in Parliament hosted by Channel 4 and Lloyds Banking Group. And it was great to hear from the amazing Black entrepreneurs and business owners, who spoke about the work that has been championed by this initiative.
It was lovely to join the RGNS’s celebrations this month as they welcomed a New Year 2081. I want to wish all Nepalis in Erith and Thamesmead and across the whole country a very Happy New Year.
This month, I was pleased to speak with health professionals and charities from One Voice to discuss collaboration on key issues including pregnancy, maternity, neonatal care, and early years services.
I was joined by representatives from the Royal College of Midwives, the Royal College Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Sands and many other important organisations. I found hearing suggestions on how to improve the accessibility and quality of care for mothers particularly interesting and I look forward to continuing this important conversation.
As Shadow Minister for Women’s Health and Mental Health, I was also pleased to speak at this symposium focused on how Black Men are disproportionately detained under the Mental Health Act.
The law as it stands is not fit for purpose, with Black people four times more likely to be sectioned than White people and eight times more likely to be placed under a Community Treatment Order (CTO).
My speech emphasised the urgent reform needed to the Mental Health Act and how that can be achieved. I would like to thank Policy Connect and Lord Bradley for inviting me to join as the keynote speaking at this vital event.
