Local Politics Update

October was a difficult month for the Jewish community with the tragic events at Heaton Park Synagogue. As a result, we received a lot of messages from local allies, political representatives & council staff, and Christian ministers. People were genuinely shocked by events even if we, perhaps, had been expecting something like this for a while.

This has meant that Harry and I have been busy meeting with a range of local political and authority representatives. One of our first meetings was with Samantha Nibblett, the MP for South Derbyshire. She was refreshingly honest about her need for knowledge and I will be leading an education session for her constituency staff next month. We also met Lousie Sandher-Jones, MP for North East Derbyshire.

Our meetings with local councils included the Head of Place at Derby City Council and Cllr Dawn Abbott, Cabinet Member for Health and Communities at Derbyshire County Council. She was very keen to advocate for our community and has previously run an event trying to break down ignorance in the area. Harry and I will be meeting her and her team again at County Hall, Matlock later in the year. The meeting with Lousie Sandher-Jones also included the councillor for Grassmoor on North East Derbyshire District Council, with whom we had a productive and helpful conversation.

We will carry on presenting community perspectives whenever possible and may occasionally reach out to you for your opinions as we have done before. This lived experience data is so valuable to authorities and helps to make our wider community of Derbyshire a more pleasant place for all.