June 2026 – In Doncaster East and the Isle of Axholme
June has been an incredible month. The "Save Lives for Sam" national water safety campaign launched with support from across the media and political spectrum, we celebrated the Golden Chippy Award winner, and real progress continued on Doncaster Sheffield Airport, rail services and much more. Here's the full update.
Out and about in the constituency
The biggest moment this month was the national launch of our "Save Lives for Sam" water safety campaign, in partnership with the Mirror. This campaign, which I have been working on since being elected, calls for a preventative approach to water safety so that no family has to go through what Sam's did. The response has been extraordinary. The campaign has been backed by the Education Minister and the Prime Minister, supported by two Olympic gold medallists, the Royal Life Saving Society and RoSPA, and covered by the BBC, ITV, LBC, Greatest Hits, Grimsby Live, Doncaster Free Press, Sheffield Star, National Water Magazine and the Thorne Times. This is just the beginning, and I will keep pushing until we see real change.
There has also been good progress on my campaign to restore train services between Doncaster and Scunthorpe. Northern have now finished reviewing the proposal my office put together and have come back with some suggested improvements, which they will be presenting to us shortly. Watch this space.
My Pitcher's Pilot Programme took another step forward this month. A location has been found for accommodation, with the Regents Hotel taking on an initial cohort of students. This proposal is being presented to the training provider next month. It's exciting to see momentum building around aviation training in our area!
The Golden Chippy Award was a massive success, with over 400 votes cast. After a close race, Pisces of Rossington came out on top. Congratulations to them and to all the brilliant chippies across the constituency who were nominated.
Also in Rossington, Pride in Place continues to move forward. The Chair has been appointed, the final few board members are being selected, and the final advisory report has been produced. The first neighbourhood board meeting will take place before 18th July, with the announcement of the first wave of projects landing shorty after.
I also held one of my regular coffees mornings in Crowle, where for the first time we handed out flyers in advance. It helped to more than double the turnout, and going forward I'll be doing a short presentation at the start of each coffee morning about the work of the office if you would like to find out more about what we do.
Finally, it was a real pleasure to present the medals at the Thorne Juniors FC competition, which was attended by nearly 600 young people over the weekend. Events like these show the strength of community sport in our area and the dedication of the volunteers who make it happen.
In Parliament
This month I met with the aviation minister to discuss how we can support young people pursuing careers in aviation locally, which ties directly into the work we are doing around Doncaster Sheffield Airport and the Pitcher's Pilot Programme.
It was great to welcome Crookesbroom Primary and Hatfield Woodhouse Primary to Parliament as part of my Pitcher's Parliament Programme. I also visited St Joseph's Primary and Crookesbroom Primary in the constituency, continuing to bring Parliament to the classroom wherever I can.
I was honoured to welcome the Thorne and District Royal British Legion to Parliament. We organised a tour of the Palace of Westminster and a follow-up workshop. Off the back of this visit, my team will be setting up a public meeting with the RBL branches across the constituency to hear their concerns.
Following the 10th anniversary of the tragic death of Jo Cox MP, I took part in an ITV piece on the issue of MP safety. It is right that we remember Jo and reflect on the importance of keeping our democracy safe for everyone.
I also spoke in Parliament on a range of issues this month in parliament including animal rights, community pharmacies, the British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme, road safety, breast cancer and mental health.
Casework highlights
My team closed 534 cases this month. A few that stood out:
Fought to keep cheque deposit services for Lloyds accounts at Post Offices, ensuring residents can still bank locally.
Expedited a case for a resident who had been on the audiology department's waiting list for almost five years.
Overturned a fixed penalty notice for a resident who had been wrongly charged by another local authority.
If there's anything you think I can help with, please get in touch.