Great to meet with the community group, Leyton Midland Collective, on a walkabout recently! We visited businesses under the arches on Leyton Midland Road, strolled through Abbots Park, and saw Jack Cornwell Park, home to the old Brooks Farm, which the collective is working hard to bring back. Really exciting to hear more about their projects and ambitions for the area!

It was a pleasure to meet with Rabbi Richard Jacobi and members of the community at East London and Essex Liberal Synagogue in South Woodford. Thank you for this opportunity to discuss issues of concern to our local Jewish community.

Lovely to spend some time at Holy Trinity Church in South Woodford with Rev Abi Todd! Faith spaces like this are cornerstones of community life, and it was great to hear more about their ongoing work and engagement with local residents.

Over the Parliamentary recess, I feel it is important to visit our local foodbanks and recognise the essential help they provide. It was fantastic to meet Paster Dave, who leads the Meet the Need food bank. Meet the Need is supported by 38 volunteers, and it runs every Wednesday and Thursday at Elim Pentecostal Church, Hainault Road.

Every Friday, Cann Hall Masjid’s food bank warmly opens its doors to the entire community, as it has since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. While it’s a sad reality that food banks have become a feature of our communities over the last decade, I wanted to visit our local ones and celebrate the vital support they offer.

Brilliant to see Redbridge Foodbank in their new home in Woodford last week. This site provides so much more space for volunteers to prepare donations for people in need.

It’s now been a year (and 10 days!) since I was elected as MP for Leyton & Wanstead. Thank you so much to everyone who’s supported me and for all the conversations we’ve shared.  As we head into year two, I’m excited to keep working hard for our community - whether that’s pushing for more accessible public transport, tackling antisocial behaviour, or championing improvements at Whipps Cross and more.

Fantastic to join local PC Anna Cork from the Cann Hall Safer Neighbourhood Team at the Public Sector reception in Number 10 Downing Street last week.

It was great to meet local community members at the Wanstead Quaker Meeting House last week. Thank you for having me for delicious tea and cake and an engaging Q&A session on peace, the environment, the armed forces and more!

I recently had the privilege of speaking in a parliamentary debate on the urgent need for more social housing in outer London boroughs like Waltham Forest and Redbridge.

Calvin Bailey MP is working with residents across Leyton & Wanstead to address serious concerns about housing management by FirstPort. If you live in one of the developments listed below and have experienced problems, we want to hear from you.

It was a pleasure to meet with Father Neil again and see first-hand the great work that the team at St Margaret with St Columba, Leytonstone are doing for our local community with their foodbank. Thank you for having me!

This week, I visited Noor ul Islam Mosque in Leyton for a meeting hosted by the Waltham Forest Council of Mosques. I’m always grateful for the opportunity to listen, reflect, and engage with local perspectives. Thank you to WFCOM for hosting and for the important work you continue to do in our community.

Thank you to Connaught School for Girls for the warm welcome last week. It was great to sit down with the school leadership team and of course Teddy the school dog to hear more about the school’s priorities and the support they need to continue delivering for their students.

Brilliant to visit Buxton School in Leytonstone this week, an all-through school supporting young people aged 3–16.

I attended a meeting with the Met Police to discuss the use of stop and search powers, a topic that has impacts many across London, especially within marginalised communities.