(By Dominic McDonough, Sunderland Branch Chairman)

Here in Sunderland we are seeing a fantastic surge in interest from young people. It is hard to believe that in less than a year Sunderland has gone from nothing to one of the regions biggest and most active branches. But why is this? Sunderland is an area that has been let down by Labour. After the closure of many heavy industries in the 1980s, a huge amount of investment was poured into the area which resulted in the opening of big employers such as Nissan and Doxford Park call centres. Unfortunately this has not been continued by Labour and the area is once again suffering. What is bad news for Sunderland is good news for CF in Sunderland. Our membership numbers have gone up and we now have a team who are working hard to get Lee Martin elected. It is hard to believe that Sunderland, a Labour hotspot since the 1950s, is on the verge of electing a Conservative MP, but this is proof that the whole of the country is hungry for change. Labour are not just losing there grip in marginal’s but the old Labour heartlands are waking up and realise that Labour have infact done very little for them.

As well as focusing on campaigning we also get together regularly for chats, drinks, meals and this has really enabled the team to band together. It also enables those who may not be as clued up on politics as others to relax and chat about work, gossip and general chit chat. This makes for a very friendly atmosphere which is essential.

Sunderland CF recently had an action day and curry night in support of Lee Martin which was a raring success. Many things where discussed on the evening, but one thing that really hit home was the way in which young people simply feel let down. To quote one member “1997 was seen as a change for the better, it has infact been a change for the worse”. This makes Sunderland CFs work so much more important, for the first time in many years young people are getting involved and young people are working hard to deliver a change that will benefit us all for the future. Sunderland is usually the first to declare. What a bad start to the night it would be for Mr Brown if a North East inner city went blue.

From the Blue Blog: I look back at 2009, which saw CF almost triple its number of branches in the North East region.

2009 has been North East Conservative Future’s busiest year to date. We have been involved in media training days, local and European elections, trips to America, social events, debates and the list goes on.

February saw YBF visit us in Newcastle and provide us with some media and campaign training. Training was delivered to activists from Sunderland, Newcastle and Northumbria and other areas of the North East with ages ranging from Sixth Form Students to Post-Graduates. This training became invaluable to CF members when they were campaigning throughout the local and European elections and the media training paid off during Party Conference with members being interviewed for prime time radio and news programs.

Conservative Future has also almost tripled the number of branches that it has in the Region over the course of the last year. We now have branches spanning from Sunderland to Newcastle and Blyth to Morpeth and Hexham . We also established a Regional Executive consisting of the Regional, Branch and Area chairmen and also a media officer and a graduate officer. The Executive has made it a lot easier to organise ourselves so we are working effectively and providing help where it is needed the most.

The summer saw three of our members, including myself, travel to Washington DC with YBF to take part in media and campaign training and to also attend the Young Americans’ Foundation Conference. The media training consisted of spending time in a real television studio practicing being individually and in groups. We also took part in sessions to learn more about online campaigning and activism, speech writing and public speaking and preparing press releases. This was all information that we have been able to bring back to the North East and share with other members of CF.

The year ended in a charitable way with an event organized in order to raise funds for St Oswalds Hospice, a local charity which saw members of CF attend as well as MEP’s and Parliamentary Candidates. £80 was raised for the charity which provides care and support for those in need of Hospice care. We also took part in the Operation Christmas Child shoebox appeal which involved filling a shoebox with small presents which will then be sent to under privileged children around the world. Twenty shoeboxes were filled and delivered to the organizers, Samaritans Purse.

North East Conservative Future have been very busy getting into the Festive spirit by taking part in the Operation Christmas Child Shoebox appeal organised by Samaritans Purse. This project has been running for nearly twenty years and has delivered millions of shoeboxes to under-privileged children in Europe, Africa and Asia. Children are presented with boxes regardless of their background and faith. The project is very simple. You take a shoebox, wrap it up in Christmas wrapping paper, decide whether it is for a boy or a girl and fill it with goodies. Members from Conservative Future all across the Region participated in making up the shoeboxes and we made over 20 all together. Individual branches organised ‘Shoebox nights’ which saw members bringing individual shoebox fillers including toiletries, sweeties, hats and scarves, toys and colouring pens and paper. These nights proved to be very successful and members were certainly spurred on by the promise of warm mince pies! It was extremely pleasing to see so many members, including their friends and family, getting involved in this charity project. It is very different to the campaigning and social events which we usually take part in. CF have the power to make a huge difference in our communities and by taking part in voluntary and charity projects such as these we can truly make a difference. Related posts:

(By Gareth Llewellyn-Stevens, Media Officer)

On Saturday December 12, Conservative Future activists from various branches across the North East joined local PPCs and members on a 7am battle bus from Newcastle to Harrogate to help deliver a letter and survey from David Cameron to the constituents of Harrogate and Knaresborough.

This campaign project was directly targeted at voters who want change but are unsure how to achieve it.
Every voter in the constituency received a letter and survey from David Cameron highlighting that the only way to change the government is to vote Conservative and that the role of local champion in Harrogate and Knaresborough is passing to Andrew Jones with the retirement of the MP Phil Willis.

After a cold, misty morning session we were treated to quality sandwiches and cups of local favourite Yorkshire Tea, before embarking on a busy afternoon session that took us through to 4pm and being late for the bus back to Newcastle.

The day was rounded off in style with an impromptu drinks session in Newcastle city centre, where on reflection, everyone was very happy with the work we did, and were impressed with how organised the Harrogate and Knaresborough Conservative Association is in their efforts to turn Harrogate and Knaresborough blue again.C

(ELAINE BAMFORD, TYNE AND WEAR AREA CHAIRMAN)

On Saturday 7th November, Conservative Future members from branches across Northumberland & Tyne and Wear joined local PPCs, members and activists on a 7am battle bus to travel up to the Glasgow North-East By-Election.

In total, we managed to help deliver more than 10,000 leaflets for the Conservative candidate Ruth Davidson.

You can view Ruth Davidson’s website here.

On Friday the 16th October North East Conservative Future hosted a drinks event which helped to raise money for St Oswalds Hospice.  The event not only attracted CF members but also local Parliamentary Candidates, the Regional Chairman and local MEP.

The night was a huge success with over £80 raised in all.  Raffle prizes included gift vouchers from local restaurants, European Union Champagne, Conservative goodies and a variety of goods donated by Starbucks.

Chales Heslop, the Regional Chairman, and Martin Callanan, Conservative MEP, rose to the occasion and gave galvanising and inspirational speeches to a packed room.  They both commented on the importance of Conservative Future in winning the next General Election and each of them thanked members for all their hard work during the European and Local elections in the Summer.

I would like to thank all those that attended in particualr Sarah Farnham and Newcastle Uni Conservative Future for all the hard work that was put into the night.

There is also an exciting opportunity for all members to take a FREE bus to Glasgow on the 7th November for some campaigning. The bus will be leaving from various areas around the North East and I very much encourage all CF members to take part.

For more information please contact the Area Chairman Elaine Bamford.