On 11th June, our campaign reaches an important milestone – our first anniversary. We want to take this opportunity to thank every single person who has signed, shared, supported, and stood alongside us over the past year. Your support has helped turn a simple idea into a growing movement for change, and we couldn’t have come this far without you.

Over the past year, we have worked hard to raise awareness of our campaign and the issues that matter most to those we represent. As part of this effort, we were recently interviewed by Gamal Fahnbulleh and Katie Walderman from ITV Granada Reports to discuss our campaign and the change we are seeking. We are grateful for the opportunity to share our message with a wider audience and help bring greater attention to this important issue.

We are also pleased to share an update on our recent progress. On 3rd June, we met with Deputy Mayor of Manchester, Kate Green, and Alison Connelly from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA). The meeting was positive, productive, and encouraging. We had the opportunity to discuss our proposals in detail and were pleased with the engagement and willingness to continue the conversation.

We will be meeting with them again in the near future to build on these discussions and, we hope, move forward with the proposals we have put forward. This is an important step in ensuring that the voices of those supporting this campaign are being heard at a decision-making level.

Looking ahead, our next objective is to continue pushing forward with our plans to engage directly with central government. This has always been one of our key aims, and we remain committed to ensuring that meaningful change is considered at a national level.

While there is still work to do, we are encouraged by the progress made so far and remain determined to keep moving forward. As we mark one year since launching this campaign, we reflect with pride on what has been achieved and with optimism for what lies ahead.

Thank you for your continued support, belief, and commitment to this cause. Together, we are making a difference.

Here’s to the next stage of the journey.

Thank you.

Simon & Maria x