Had a really busy few days. Busy, hectic, complex, satisfying.

HealthWatch is set up by the government to act as a local "Watchdog" for things to do with our NHS & social care.

We have £150k allocated to do this work for around 165,000 local people. That's about what one top doctor or manager would earn annually, so it's a massive task. We aspire to listening to & speaking for our community on these vital issues & are all volunteers, except for our small team of staff.

Because there's strength in unity, I convened an inaugural regional meeting of all two dozen HealthWatches in the NorthWest recently. It was hugely successful & great to learn the similarities & the differences in our approaches to things. We meet again nearer Christmas in Bolton.

The highlight must have been the opening of the Bill Taylor Futures Centre at Blackburn College. I've been a Governor there since 1981, with a 9 year gap. I love being around younger people & the College is education & training home to 15,000 people from across East Lancs & beyond. Our apprentices, under graduates, VI formers & others are a credit to their families, communities, the College...but most of all, themselves.

I am grateful to my fellow Governors & townsfolk for bestowing such an honour.

But I also spent another rewarding evening helping present the prizes to our further education students down at Ewood Park.

The room was packed with proud students:- A levels, trainee plumbers, hairdressers, brickies, their beaming Mums & Dads & others from home! The night was deserved & a hoot!

Then there's quite a change in the senior management at the College & a few of us spent a day sifting through numerous applications prior to a further 2 day selection process in a few weeks time.

Busy. I get the same "wage" for both roles, no pay increase in decades, but rewarding work to see successful students, great teaching, fantastic new buildings & trying to make OUR NHS more engaging, responsive & accountable to its owners...US!