News / Politics
Natalie Bennett visits Bristol to support Green mayoral candidate Mary Page
Former Green leader Natalie Bennett has visited Lawrence Weston alongside her party’s candidate for the West of England mayoral election.
Previous polling has put Mary Page ahead in the race to replace Dan Norris while the most recent poll sees Labour’s Helen Godwin in first place.
What is agreed is that Thursday’s election is likely to be incredibly close.
is needed now More than ever
Australia-born Bennett, who was Green Party leader between 2012 and 2016, is now Baroness Bennett and sits in the House of Lords.
She joined Page at Ambition Lawrence Weston to learn more about a new renewable skills academy, with Page stressing that one of her key priorities is “changing opportunities for our working class communities”.
Ambition Lawrence Weston have recently hosted both a Grand Iftar and a St George’s Day celebration, with Page calling the organisation “an absolute exemplar of how community cohesion and placemaking can be done”.
The community centre at Ambitious Lawrence Weston is a vibrant, multi-purpose hub offering a wide range of activities and services.
These include a dementia hub, leisure and social groups like knitting and a men’s shed, Friday night supper clubs and special events like their first ever Iftar.
They actively work to foster social inclusion, especially for new or marginalised residents.
A major focus is education and skills training, particularly adult learning and vocational training.
St George’s flags remained at Ambition Lawrence Weston following their recent St George’s Day celebration – photo: Hannah Massoudi
Due to poor local access and high travel costs, many people who don’t live in the city centre have to take multiple buses, which is neither efficient or cheap.
Page describes this particular access challenge as a “double penalty” for those living on the outskirts of Bristol.
As a result, they are pushing for local outreach by colleges and universities to provide place-based opportunities.
Ambition Lawrence Weston’s Mark Pepper said: “What we mean by place-based is by looking at the job opportunities that are in the local area that are accessible and then matching that up with the needs in the local area.”
Page emphasised how this approach of addressing the needs locally will work alongside WECA’s and Westminster’s aims to improve skills and job for those who need it most.
“We deliver climate action by stealth,” Pepper added, aligning climate-friendly actions with residents’ priorities like beautification of their gardens while promoting plant diversity or reducing bills through solar farms.
“We’re trying to save money because we’re poor and in poverty. We want to keep the carbon down, not because of the carbon, but because the costs of creating that carbon.
“We want to keep more money in our pockets for our community.”
All photos: Hannah Massoudi
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