PAPER B

Island Magazine February 2022

February 2022 and spring is on its way!

February starts to move us into spring and already the daffodils are starting to come out. It is the time of year I

love as the garden starts to rejuvenate and come alive. It is now close to 2 years since the first lockdown and the

reality of Covid19 kicked in. It seems a long time ago and I think none of us would have believed wearing masks,

doing flow tests, and having three vaccinations was going to become the new normal. In that time Ryde Town

Council has radically changed and now provides a range of services for all ages from a youth service to grants to

a range of community projects that support residents who are most vulnerable including a Ryde community

connector worker. We have new branding, a full-time business development manager and with IW Council and

Historic England a Historic High Street project manager. This means we have a team who are actively working

and leading on economic recovery of the Town in 2022. In 2022/23, Ryde Marina, High Street, Ryde beaches,

Appley Tower, St. Thomas’s Church, Vectis Hall and Ryde Interchange/Western Gardens will all start to be

developed/renovated and improved. There are new businesses starting in the Town and a full programme of

2022 events will be held from the Mardi Gras to IW Pride, from Classic Cars to Tour de UK Road race. Team

Ryde is out there working hard to improve our Town. There is a spring of hope in the air.

Mayor’s Charity’s appeal raises over £1500!

During December, I joined up as Mayor of Ryde with the Deputy Mayor, Cllr Jenna Sabine, in appealing for funds

from residents to make sure the most vulnerable in the Town received help this winter. Jenna dressed up

differently every day from 1^st December as a human advent calendar as part of this fund-raising. We raised over

£1500 and this is being distributed to Ryde Aspire, Tidal Family Support, Haylands Farm and Phoenix Projects.

Thank you to all those who contributed and took part including No 64 Café, No 66 Card Shop, The Star Inn,

Monkton Arts, Crepe Lovers, the Rug Band, Ryde Aspire, Ryde Town Council, Waterside (I did my boxing day

swim there) Pool, and Delysia Farm.

Next Mayor’s Charity Appeal - Pancake Day - 5^th March -

My next charity appeal is about the reality of food poverty in Ryde which is very sad. Ryde Foodbank is based in

my Ryde Appley and Elmfield Ward in Grace’s Church on Marlborough Road. Since 2016, I have held an annual

pancake-day fundraising and food poverty event and raised around £9000 over the years to support the work of

the IW and Ryde Foodbanks. They are life-saving in their work. This year’s event on 5^th March will be held in Co-

op Square and will involve pancake flipping and hopefully the first Mayor’s Pancake race down the High Street. I

am also currently supporting Tidal Family Support and the Ryde Veterans’ Hub develop and access more

funding. As IW Mental Health Champion I have launched with IW Public Health and IW Health Watch, a new

small grant fund for MH support projects and discussing with projects in the Town how they can apply.

Appley Park and 2022

Appley Park suffered in 2021 with the sink hole and resulting Southern Water works which made the area difficult

to access, smelly, and not pleasant. This work should be finished in February and RTC is working with Southern

Water and IW Councils and other stakeholders to have a range of improvements such as the play area, the toilet

block, tree planting and a programme of events in the Park such ranging from Shakespeare in the Park to the

annual Beach Sports Festival.

Jubilee and Recognition for Ryde Residents who have contributed to the Town

I am putting forward a motion to Full Council to recognise the hidden Ryde residents over the last 70 years of

Queen Elizabeth’s reign that make Ryde the special place it is and thank them.