Leamington mayor gives £7,000 boost to two good causes in the town

Two charities with close connections to the Leamington area have received a cash boost from the town's mayor.

Councillor Susan Rasmussen spent her first year in office raising money for Motionhouse and Warwickshire Wildlife Fund.

Her work helped to raise more than £7,000.

Cllr Rasmussen presented the cheques to representatives of the two charities at a virtual awards ceremony.

She said: “'Despite having very few chances to fundraise this year I'm delighted to be able to help two charities which have strong local connections as well as a much broader significance.

“Motionhouse is part of the creative community which is attracting attention and prosperity to Leamington. In normal times they perform far and wide at the highest level, literally and metaphorically, and are becoming well known for their outreach programmes which enable local people to participate in activities which combine physical, artistic and social development.

“Warwickshire Wildlife Trust is increasingly involved in the management of Leamington's best-loved green spaces.

"Our local patches of nature are under greater stress than ever and we need organisations like WWT if we are going to survive the climate and environmental crises that we face.

"They too bring many opportunities for us to participate in practical work and education projects.

“I'm hoping that one of my fundraising events this coming year will involve an opportunity to see a Motionhouse rehearsal in progress, and another will feature walks in Leam Valley Nature Reserve and Jephson Gardens, when we will learn about bats and use echo-locators, so do look out for those.”

Leamington Town Council has decided that Cllr Rasmussen should run her term of office for two years instead of the usual one.

This decision was made "due to the extraordinary times we find ourselves in due to Covid".