Leisure concession agreed for retired emergency workers in Wolverhampton
Plans to give concessionary leisure membership rates to all retired emergency services personnel, veterans and NHS workers in Wolverhampton has been given the unanimous backing of the city council.
Merry Hill councillor Wendy Dalton put forward the proposal at this month’s meeting of full council, where the move was greeted with rapturous applause by all members.
Councillor Dalton said: “I would like to extend the concession for leisure membership rates to demonstrate our continued gratitude and support to these people for their years of public service and dedication to our city. Without these individuals, where would we be?
“We recently had a chute fire in the flats at Merry Hill, and of course we were concerned. The fire service was there immediately and met with residents to deal with it and allay their fears.
"Also, my mother was taken ill and rushed to hospital in an ambulance. Once there they took wonderful care of her and I am so grateful to all the doctors and nurses.
“This leads me very sadly to the recent murder in our ward, where many of our police were outside in the cold and rain night and day looking to apprehend the perpetrators.
"Some even suffered abuse because people couldn’t walk their dogs or access their vehicles, so I would like to say thank you to them.
“Finally, lest we forget, we are all only here today because our veterans defend our democracy.
"We work together seemlessly in cross-party partnership and I would like to thank Councillor Greg Brackenridge for seconding this motion and helping it to move along."
Councillor Brackenridge said: “People will know that I am a veteran and a former firefighter. WV Active offers fantastic facilities and I am absolutely privileged to be seconding the motion by Councillor Dalton.
"When they get to the age of 67, people get a concession.
“But many of those in the blue light services, the NHS and the armed forces often retire before state pensionable age so there is a gap where they don’t get a concession, and we think is unacceptable.
"This is a policy which is aimed at thanking those people that we relied upon heavily during the pandemic.
"This is 100 per cent the right thing to do. It is not political and it is a thank you.”
Councillor Udey Singh said: “It is an absolute pleasure to support this as it cuts through politics and ensures Wulfrunians live longer and healthier lives.
"It also ensures that those who have given years of support and dedication through their respective roles in public service are given something back in the form of concessionary leisure membership.
“I also believe it will go a long way towards tackling an issue that is rarely spoken about in public forums, and that is loneliness.
"Age UK’s research shows that approximately one million retired people across the UK often feel lonely, so I hope that this will give the people who worked in these professions the opportunity to remain active, healthy and engaged for many years to come.”
Councillor Jasbir Jaspal, cabinet member for adults and wellbeing, said: “I am fully committed to supporting people to be more active, and this complements the great work done by our WV Active service, which is bucking the trend of many other gyms and leisure offers and going from strength to strength in terms of active members getting a well-priced offer.”
