Keep up to date with the latest news from around Denton & Reddish

This week in Denton & Reddish
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** Dear Constituent,
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Here's your latest edition of Denton and Reddish Weekly News.

This week I voted against the flawed Tier system, but it was approved by Parliament, so as of Wednesday, Greater Manchester is under new Tier 3 restrictions. This is the relevant official guidance from the Government:
New Tier 3 local restrictions ([link removed])
Take care and stay safe.
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Headlines


** Gwynne thanks Syria Relief for raising over £10,000 for Tameside families
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Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, has congratulated local charity Syria Relief for their charitable efforts during the lockdown.

Syria Relief, based in Denton, is known for their charity and humanitarian work in Syria, but during the lockdown, they have raised over £10,000 and set up a foodbank from scratch in order to support families in Tameside.

Syria Relief were driven to do this during the early stages of lockdown after some of Tameside’s foodbanks were forced to close (often due to panic buying and demand outstripping supply) and helped fill food provision gaps.

They set up www.covidemergencyresponse.com ([link removed]) to fundraise for local individuals most impacted by the pandemic and have, at the time of writing, fundraised over £10,500. They have also been involved in supplying hot meals to homeless and vulnerable families and distributing healthcare packs.

The project was led for Syria Relief by Dr Shameela Islam-Zulfiqar, a medical doctor with years of experience working in the NHS.

Andrew Gwynne said:

“Syria Relief is an absolutely fantastic local charity that does amazing – and often dangerous – work supporting those caught up in the Syrian Civil War.


“Whilst the charity is very well known for their work in Syria, I’d like to congratulate them on all that they have done locally here in Tameside to help people through the difficult period of the lockdown – running a foodbank, providing vulnerable people with essentials and hot meals, and distributing healthcare packs.


“We are very lucky to have such a fantastic charity right here in Denton, and I’d particularly like to thank Dr Shameela Islam-Zulfiqar for all her hard work co-ordinating this lockdown work.”



** Gwynne and Councillors slam decision to close last Reddish bank
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Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, has joined with local councillors to express their disappointment in the news that the Lloyds branch in Reddish will close early next year.

The bank, on Houldsworth Square, was previously scheduled to close on 26 May 2020, but this was postponed by the pandemic. It is now slated to close on 22 March 2021.

This closure follows the closures of Natwest and Barclays branches in Reddish in 2015 and 2016 respectively, leaving Reddish without a bank.

Gwynne previously wrote to the Chief Executive of Lloyds Bank to oppose this closure, but it has proceeded nonetheless.

Andrew Gwynne said:

“It was good that the closure of the Lloyds branch in Reddish was postponed during the pandemic, and I had hoped that the bank had seen sense and reversed their decision.


“The long socially-distanced queues we’ve seen during the COVID crisis show just how important the bank is to the local community and it’s incredibly disappointing that this decision has been made, leaving the town without a bank.


“There is still time for Lloyds to reverse this damaging decision and I would strongly urge them to do so.”

Cllr Kate Butler, speaking on behalf of the Reddish North councillors, said:

“It’s very disappointing that Lloyds have chosen to go ahead with this closure.


“We saw during lockdown that this is still a much needed community asset as queues regularly spilled from the bank into Houldsworth Square.


“Closing this bank means the end of drop-in counter services in Reddish and it’s very regrettable.”

Cllr Yvonne Guariento, speaking on behalf of the Reddish South councillors, said:

“The closure of Lloyds Bank is a blow to residents of Reddish and retailers, making life more difficult especially for the elderly and people without internet access.”


** Pulling together
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I’m sure you will all be as delighted as I was to hear that we now have three working vaccines that will soon be rolled out. As difficult and grim as the last eight or so months have been, we can finally see some light at the end of the tunnel. Things won’t get back to normal by Christmas – as the Prime Minister so confidently predicted a few months ago – and may still be a little unusual through the spring, but as more and more people are vaccinated and the rate of transmission is brought down, we can gradually start doing more.


I’m looking forward not just to the bigger things – holidays, parties, live events – but the little things that we all took for granted, like popping round to someone’s house to borrow something or getting into a conversation with a stranger in a shop or on public transport. Hopefully, one of the positive things that can come out of such a miserable time is a newfound appreciation for all of these little things, as well as for the precious time we spend with friends and family.


Despite all of this, we shouldn’t pretend that there won’t be difficulties ahead. Some of the consequences of this crisis – both the virus itself and the various lockdowns – will be very long-lasting. Many people’s lives have been changed as they’ve said goodbye to loved ones or lost jobs and businesses – coming out of the crisis, they will have to adjust to a new and potentially daunting reality.


Being cooped up inside more than we’d like has had an impact on both mental and physical health, which we’ll have to deal with long after the virus has gone. There is also a lot of evidence that the pandemic has widened the gap between the rich and poor. Whether that’s in mortality rates, in educational attainment or in terms of wages again it’ll take time to try to rectify these injustices.


Part of what will help us recover from the crisis here in Tameside is the same thing which has got us through it, and that’s pulling together as a community. We have seen so many people here – some of whom I’ve been delighted to present with my Citizen’s Awards – supporting each other and helping those in most need and I hope that we continue to see more of this in the months ahead so that, as a community, we can successfully face any challenges which might come our way.
Read More of This Week's Stories ([link removed])
Andrew in the constituency

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** 🏆 CITIZEN'S AWARDS 🏆
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Throughout the year I’ve been awarding my Citizen’s Award certificates to people who’ve done something special...

But we were so overwhelmed by the nominations made, and lockdown made it difficult to personally award the certificates - so last weekend I held a virtual awards ceremony.

51 certificates were awarded to some brilliant people from across Tameside and Stockport who have gone over and above to help make the Denton and Reddish constituency a better place.

Thank you to all the recipients for all you do... and please keep nominations coming in. It’s nice to celebrate the many good deeds taking place - they’re too often overlooked or taken for granted - so let’s say thank you! 🌟 👏🏻 🌟

Nominations can be put in here on my website ([link removed] ([link removed]) ) or emailed to: [email protected] with the name of the person, their contact details (if known) and a description of what they’ve done to be considered for an award. They must either live in the Denton and Reddish constituency or have done their good deed within it.

I also presented a Citizen's Award in person this week - well done to Denton’s Tommy Parker for helping to organise and coordinate a huge Christmas toy and food appeal.

I joined with the local Councillors to present the award to Tommy - our modern-day Santa!
Andrew in Parliament
Here are videos of some of my contributions in the House of Commons this week:
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📺 WATCH: There was an Urgent Question on the liquidation of Debenhams and the administration of Arcadia Group. It’s a devastating blow to an already fragile high street retail sector. I raised the impact of online retail on traditional stores and asked what strategy the Government has to help diversification as this trend will undoubtedly accelerate.

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📺 WATCH: At Transport Questions this week, I had a question on active travel. Funding for schemes is all well and good, but Greater Manchester also needs strategic highway powers - like London has - to keep our roads moving for all users. The Government promised the powers in July. Their answer is woeful. 🚲 🚗 🚌
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📺 WATCH: The Government has announced how they propose to award education results in England.

Unlike last year there will be some exams.

I ask about the regional disparities in children affected by COVID, IT poverty or an unsuitable home-learning environment. An awful response that doesn’t help get these children exam-ready in any way. 🎓
Andrew in the media

📰 READ: Thanks to the Tameside Reporter for featuring the Citizen's Awards ceremony that took place at the weekend!

Read the full article here. ([link removed])
Community Board

For the first time, the charity Children's Hospital Pyjamas is collecting donations of children's pyjamas in Greater Manchester.

These will go to Tameside Hospital, Stepping Hill Hospital and MRI Hospital for Children.

You can find out more, including how to donate, here. ([link removed])

For more info email [email protected] (mailto:[email protected])

Christ Church is part of the community of Reddish providing church services and community events along with being home to the longest running drama group in Reddish ‘The Green Group.’ Christ Church is an old building with substantial upkeep costs the majority of which are funded by the income from the Green Group’s shows. Covid has meant these shows couldn't take place. Christ Church and the Green Group are running a GoFundMe to keep the church open.

You can find out more and donate here. ([link removed])

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