Yvette Cooper: A time to thank community heroes​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Week in week out, our emergency services, NHS staff, care workers, delivery drivers, shop workers and others continue to be the beating heart keeping the country going – and so many of them will be working right through the holiday period, sacrificing time with their own families to keep vital services running. Special thanks go to our armed forces serving overseas, and to all their families here at home thinking of them this Christmas.

It's not just Christmas, though, when people are stepping up to serve others. Local volunteers and community organisations continue to do an amazing job across the Five Towns, getting on with projects that change other people’s lives.

Places like The Addy, which has been supporting children and families in Knottingley for decades. Holly and the team have a packed activity programme – from the pensioner lunch and bingo to the toddler play sessions. But it’s the smiles on children’s faces as they run around the wild and wonderful adventure playground, in that make The Addy so special. I’ve been supporting them to get their next round of funding – which has just been secured for the next three years, so those smiles will continue.

In Airedale, the Friends of Airedale Library held a poignant event in September opening the new garden in memory of former councillor Yvonne Crewe who passionately fought to improve the lives of local children, so the new play space is the perfect tribute to her. Volunteers make lunches, organise activities and fundraise, including for the great new woodland den and pirate ship. And of course it is just a lovely place to drop by and get books for children to read.

Helping children get books is so important. That’s why we started a Community Books Scheme during Covid to give donated children’s books to other families. It became so popular that I’ve continued it ever since and work closely with the brilliant Pontefract Reads to get more books out there. We’ve recently supported Altofts Junior School to start its own library with a donation of 100 books, while The Brig in Altofts also re-gifts books.

Elsewhere, Pontefract Civic Society and the 5 Towns Veterans Support Hub have recently been formally recognised, receiving The King’s Award for Voluntary Service for their tireless work preserving the town’s heritage and helping veterans and their families respectively.

We’ve got so many other people here in the Five Towns who are like this, knuckling down to build civic pride, or smashing barriers out of the way to improve the lives of people who are struggling. I think about Kath and Mel who run Airedale Baby Bank; Trevor and Tom at Pontefract Collieries; Lorna and the volunteers at Castleford Heritage Trust; and so many more amazing community champions. And we should never forget all those helping friends, family and neighbours through Christmas. We must take the time to thank them all. Maybe that can be our new year’s resolution.