May brought the good news that the UK economy has turned the corner and has been growing much faster than expectations. The UK economy has been performing better than all other large European countries as well as the United States.
I saw the impact of this locally when I visited three new businesses which have recently opened on Chelmsford High Street. Gaia is a family run jewellery business, specialising in 14 carat gold with beautiful modern designs. Zambrero makes the scrummy burritos based on Mexican cooking, for every burrito ordered they donate a meal to someone in need and Flannels, specialising in luxury designer fashion have taken on the old Top Shop location at the entrance to High Chelmer. It is great to see such diverse businesses choosing to locate in Chelmsford.
Another sign of the economy doing well is Chelmsford’s low unemployment. There are now record numbers of people in work locally. There has also been significant increase in support to help people into jobs.
I met with the new “Individual Placement and Support” team. This service is aimed at helping those with common mental or physical health illness to gain and sustain meaningful paid employment. It was extremely moving to hear from people who are now back in jobs and the positive impact this has had on their mental well-being. If you do know anyone who could benefit from this service they can find out more online, via their GP or at the Job Centre Plus.
At Beaulieu Park station construction teams have been hard at work lifting the two station footbridges into place. You may have seen a very large crane in action. Once this is completed there will not need to be any further weekend possessions over the summer months. Passengers will be able to enjoy travelling by rail across the region and beyond over June, July and August.
We also got the excellent news that Chelmsford’s Medical School at Anglia Ruskin University will expand its places to train even more doctors each year. I campaigned hard for Essex’s first medical school to open in Chelmsford a few years ago. The first students graduated last summer and many of the new doctors chose to stay working in our local NHS. The news that the school is to be expanded is great for our local health service.
Thank you to those who vote in the recent elections to choose the Police Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex. I was delighted that Roger Hirst has been re-elected. I have worked closely with Roger to increase the number of police officers in Essex to record levels. Latest data from the police shows that knife crime dropped by 11.7 % in Chelmsford last year and Anti-Social Behaviour is down by 29.7. Thank you to the Police for their recent Operation Stronghold all across Chelmsford and for making tackling car theft a top priority.
I have been delivering my crime and safety survey all over Chelmsford, the responses have helped me to get police to focus on the issues that concern local people most. If you have had a copy of the survey please do help by filling it in.
As ever, if you require any assistance with an issue or a problem, do not hesitate to get in touch with me on [email protected]
