Lord Provost Bill Campbell Blog #24

Hello and welcome to my End of Month Blog #24 as the Lord Provost of Dundee.

I am pleased to again share my experiences of being out and about, witnessing the many exciting events and initiatives happening across the city.

Activities over May included:

• Early on Wednesday 1^st, I attended St Mary’s RC Primary School for their 2024 Careers Day. I was warmly welcomed to the school and was given the opportunity to visit the P1, P2 and P5 classes meeting with the young pupils who were dressed up in a variety of different working uniforms from doctors to footballers;
• Later on Wednesday 1^st, I gave a Civic Reception to Forthill-based Forfarshire Cricket Club. The Club achieved a double double winning the 50 Over Scottish Cup and T20 Scottish Cup in 2022 before repeating the feat in 2023. It was great to recognise the outstanding success of the Cricket Club in this way;
• Depute Lord Provost Kevin Cordell hosted a Civic Reception for Girlguiding Dundee on Thursday 2^nd in the City Chambers. Depute Lord Provost Cordell said it was a pleasure to host the event for Girlguiding Dundee;
• Also on Thursday 2^nd, The Lady Provost and I attended the launch of the latest V&A Dundee exhibition Kimono: Kyoto to Catwalk. I always enjoy these V&A Dundee Exhibition Launch evenings as an opportunity to make new connections with people and this event delivered big style on that front;
• On Friday 3^rd, I attended the Dundee United versus Partick Thistle match following an invitation from the Club. The celebrations for winning the 2023-2024 Championship followed the United victory. I congratulated Dundee United FC on their achievement;
• On Saturday 4^th, alongside the Council’s Sports spokesperson Councillor Lynne Short, I made a double visit to Dundee Dragons Wheelchair Sports Club. We first met with Group Founder Elizabeth Ferris at the Gardyne Campus at Dundee & Angus College before meeting with Dundee Dragons Wheelchair Sports Club Cycling Co-ordinator Graham McBain;
• On Monday 6^th, I attended a Boys Dundee Schools Football Cup Final at Tannadice Park between Grove Academy and Harris Academy. These matches are always enjoyable and played with great skill and excellent sportsmanship;
• On Thursday 9^th, Bailie Helen Wright hosted a Civic Reception in the City Chambers to mark the work of the Dundee Partnership’s Building Stronger Communities Group during its twenty year existence. The Group is made up of council officers, third sector partners and community members who meet regularly to address issues affecting communities, such as poverty, fairness, inequalities and much more;
• On Saturday 11^th, the Lady Provost and I attended the Dundee Sports Awards Dinner at the Apex Hotel. I was honoured to be invited and was delighted to be given the distinct privilege of presenting the Sports Person of the Year Award which went to Natasha Phillips and collected on her behalf by her sister Katie. Following the close of the Dundee Sports Award Dinner, there was a photo call which included the winners and the Lady Provost and I were invited to join;
• On Tuesday 14^th, I travelled to Edinburgh’s St Giles Cathedral for a reception and concert marking the Polish National Day, 3^rd May Constitution Day. I met with a number of people during the evening event, including Consul General of the Republic of Poland in Edinburgh Lukasz Lutostanski, and Polish Jazz Musician Artur Dutkiewicz;
• I gave a Civic Reception to the European Network for Forensic Science Institutes (ENFSI) Seminar at Discovery Point on the evening of Thursday 16th. I accompanied conference attendees on a tour of RRS Discovery before giving a Civic Welcome in Discovery Point;
• On Friday 17^th, the 2024 Lord Provost of Dundee Charity Fund Dinner took place at the Apex Hotel. The response across the city was fantastic, with a sell-out event;
• I attended the 6^th Annual General Meeting of the Girls’ Brigade in Scotland Tayside Division at the Glasite Hall on the afternoon of Saturday 18^th. I was made very welcome and met with members of all ages. I was given the honour of presenting certificates and badges and spoke with officers past and present. My congratulations and appreciation to everyone involved;
• On Tuesday 21^st, I welcomed the German Consul General in Edinburgh Christiane Hullmann to the Twinning Room before we both attended the opening of the Dundee Würzburg Twinning Association Exhibition at Central Library;
• I attended the Royal Air Force Cadets 1232 (City of Dundee) Air Squadron ATC Open Evening on Tuesday 21^st where I was made extremely welcome. I inspected the squadron before making a speech and presented a number of the awards including a Lord Lieutenants Cadet for the City of Dundee 2024-25;
• On Wednesday 22^nd, I attended the Home-Start Dundee Open Morning in the Central Baptist Church on Ward Road and had the opportunity for chats with both those running and with those attending the event;
• Between Thursday 23^rd and Sunday 26^th, the Lady Provost and I visited Würzburg, one of Dundee’s Twin Cities. The main event was the Mozart Festival 2024 however there were many additional visits around this beautiful city plus the opportunities to meet with my counterparts from our host city and also from a number of Würzburg’s other Sister cities who were also attending;
• On Tuesday 28^th, I attended my second Dundee Schools Football Cup Final in May with this one being a girls match at Whitton Park, home of Broughty Athletic JFC. This was an excellent, highly skilled and entertaining match which I very much enjoyed;
• In the evening of Thursday 30^th, the Lady Provost and I attended the Dundee Schools Music Theatre performance of The Wizard of Oz at the Space Theatre. It was yet again another fabulous evening of entertainment from DSMT. My congratulations to DSMT Producer Phil McGregor. The talent of the S1/2 pupils has to be seen and heard;
• On Friday 31^st, I launched a litter pick at the Dundee Discovery Rose Garden. I was joined by Councillor Lynne Short, pupils from Morgan Academy and the High School of Dundee, members of both Dundee Rotary and the Dundee-Würzburg Twinning Association. It was great to see community spirit in action with many citizens coming together for the greater good.

For updates as they occur, you can find the latest Lord Provost news and activities on both Facebook and Twitter/X.

Thank you for taking the time to read my Blog.

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