Councillor Winters Monthly Update – January 2024
Another year has come and gone; I sincerely hope you and your Families have enjoyed the festivities over the past few weeks.
It was heartwarming to see so many people wanting to get involved with ‘The Tree of Hope’ 2023 initiative at the Christmas light switch-on. Well done to The Jockey Club for putting this idea together and thank you to those who have taken part in writing messages of all kinds. It has been lovely to see so many residents admiring the tree and taking the time to have a read of all the messages displayed. We look forward to working with The Jockey Club again next year on this project.
Our Snow Globe event was another success; it was of course a shame that the weather couldn’t quite cooperate, however it was a pleasure to be involved and witness so many of you jumping at the chance to take a photo with Santa! I thoroughly enjoyed handing out all of the mince pies together with the Town Clerk and Event Manager which were kindly donated by Waitrose and Tesco. Many thanks to Newmarket Community Choir who did a grand job of performing Christmas songs cheerily by the Bill Tutte Christmas Tree.
Another Winter Wonderland; and how marvellous it was to see so many children’s faces lighting up when meeting the real reindeer, it was great to see so many stalls in the Memorial Hall, the perfect opportunity for residents who hadn’t maybe quite finished their Christmas shopping to pick out a lovely handcrafted item. The toboggan was well and truly received it seemed…even by some of the adults, I hear! With an ever-changing climate it is tricky to make an area feel festive when the weather doesn’t quite oblige, but I must pass thanks to our team for going above and beyond to deliver a successful event.
I was pleased to be told that so many parents made use of the pre-booking of HAF free school meals at our ‘Story time with Santa’ event, funded by Suffolk County Council. I do hope the children had fun making their crafts, I’m sure they took centre stage on many a Christmas trees.
We were quite fortunate that the ice kept at bay for the majority of December, allowing us to keep the Memorial Gardens open as much as we possibly could. We know so many, make use of the cut through and enjoy just a general walk through the grounds and it is always our aim to allow access when safely possible to do so.
Looking ahead to 2024, I hope we can continue to deliver engaging events for the public, work alongside local organisations to keep the community spirit alive and of course, as always provide a public space for residents to address the Council or alternatively observe proceedings here at The King Edward VII Memorial Hall. Visit www.newmarket.gov.uk for the meeting schedule and comprehensive information about the council and what we do.