Leader’s column

IN September 2015 the Government announced plans to resettle up to 20,000 Syrians refugees in need of protection in the UK by 2020.

Earlier this week I had the pleasure of attending a welcome event for five Syrian families who have moved to Rossendale as part of this scheme.

I can only imagine what these people have been through to get here. I just hope that they are now able to find some peace and can start to rebuild their lives.

I remember my own journey to Rossendale. I came just a few miles up the road from Salford.

It was 1989, I arrived with my nine-year-old son and two cats not really knowing what to expect.

What Rossendale gave me, at a time when I needed, it was not just a new place to live but a warm welcome and a home.

I hope these weary travellers have the kind of experience that I enjoyed almost 30 years ago.

Bill Esterson – Shadow Business and International Trade Minister visited Rossendale on Monday to talk to local businesses large and small about some of the challenges they face in their day-to-day work.

One of the main issues seems to be finance.

Businesses, particularly start-up businesses, are struggling to get loans and funding from high street banks. Increasingly people are reliant on family and friends in order to get their businesses off the ground.

Considering Rossendale relies so heavily on small to medium sized enterprises this is a worrying trend.

Rossendale Borough Council have recently put in place a scheme to assist new businesses coming into the borough or existing companies looking to open new premises with a reduction in business rates.

Anyone interested in this scheme can contact economicdevelopment@ rossendalebc.gov.uk

Later in the day we had a tour of the Town Heritage Initiative area in Bacup. Thanks to Kerry at Brian’s of Bacup, Jeanette from G&J Domestics and Gary from Wishes Galore for taking the time to talk to us, this was much appreciated.