I visited Brookfields Farm in Wombourne and spoke to Linda about the government’s new tax on family farms.It is a poor policy that will devastate livelihoods, local food production, and our beautiful countryside. It must be reversed.

Merry Hill saw my 9th annual jobs and skills fair, and the busiest one yet. A huge thank you to all the businesses and organisations who attended — there are thousands of quality jobs and careers available in and around Dudley. You can hear from some of the employers in this episode - including M&S, Ask Italian, National Infrastructure Solutions, the NHS, and HM Prison Service.

I continue my Dudley South Heroes series with Dawn Keeley — Dawn does a huge amount of volunteering with the Girlguides in Wall Heath. The girls who attend do lots of adventurous activities and work in the community, and they get a lot out of it. Dawn is a true Dudley South Hero — thank you Dawn! If you know of someone doing some good work in our community, who deserves a bit of recognition, please let me know, I’d love to get them on my community podcast. 

Trevor runs a charity called "Santa's Black Country Toy Appeal". He and his team of volunteers have been collecting toys for disadvantaged children for 26 years, and they now cover Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton. You can donate at https://bc-santa.co.uk/.

Trevor is a Dudley South Hero and joins us for this episode.

Meet Stu Bratt, my next Dudley South Hero. Stu runs a local mental health charity for men called "Tough Enough To Care". He set it up to help people struggling with their mental health, after losing two friends to suicide.

Hawbush Gardens is a real jewel in the community here in Brierley Hill. Ken Smith runs it — they use the space to grow fresh produce for local people and so much more. I went there and spoke to Ken for the first of my 'Dudley South Heroes' conversations — in these conversations you can hear from some of our amazing local people who are doing great things for our community. 

I hosted a packed jobs fair at Merry Hill shopping centre and I’d like to thank every single business and organisation that took the time to come along and speak to local people. We’ve got many thousands of good quality jobs and training opportunities in just about every industry you can think of. In this episode you can hear directly from some of our amazing employers including: Flannery Plant Hire, Waldrons Solicitors, HM Prison and Probation Service; Canal & River Trust; as well as Mayor Andy Street and an apprentice. 

At the start of the pandemic, GPs in Pensnett were moved to Brierley Hill and the High Oak Surgery became a Respiratory Assessment Centre. We need a permanent GP surgery back in Pensnett. In this episode, I'm outside the old High Oak Surgery and I'm joined by Doreen, a local resident who had campaigned for it to be brought here 20 years ago. I'm also joined by local councillor and resident Sue Greenway. 

There’s just over a month left until the government Kickstart scheme ends. It is a fantastic scheme that takes young people off benefits and puts them into quality jobs. They are paid the minimum wage, they learn valuable skills that they can keep for life, and it is fully funded by government. So if you’re a local business, and you haven’t yet had a chance to look into it, please do. 

I caught up with Aaron Atwal from Canal & River Trust and Dam Sood from The Indian Tavern at my recent jobs fair - they have both successfully taken on local young people as kickstarters and given them some incredible opportunities. And if you’re a business that’s participated in the scheme, or if you are a kickstart apprentice, get in touch, I’d like to hear from you!

I’m really pleased to report that Dudley and the West Midlands currently have more job vacancies than before the pandemic. And I’m talking about quality jobs that are offering quality training - in health, social care, hospitality, construction, the police, retail  - just about any sector you can think of. I recently held a busy and lively jobs fair at Merry Hill and spoke to some of the employers.