What can a new mayor do for Peterborough?
BBCThe 100-year-old bus depot on Lincoln Road, Peterborough, is flanked either side by takeaways, cafes, a pawnbrokers and pound shop. There are plans to move the depot and improve the area, which is one of the poorer parts of the city. With a new mayor due to take on responsibility for transport and regeneration, do people who live and work near Lincoln Road think they can make a difference?
The next Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority mayor will be elected on Thursday, 1 May, and will have access to large investment funds to improve public services.
Peterborough is the biggest city in the county and the fastest-growing, but is also the most deprived local authority in Cambridgeshire according to an official index. The mean household income for the area covering Lincoln Road, Millfield and Bourges Boulevard, is £38,400 – 14% lower than the average for Peterborough.
We have spoken to business owners, community activists and local residents in the area around Lincoln Road about what they think the new mayor should prioritise.
Tackling hunger
Dianne Eaton, 69, and Maryam Farooq, 41, both volunteer at the Millfield Community Fridge just off Lincoln Road, where they distribute food to those in need and say no child should be going hungry in the city.
"I wish there was a way you could reach more children," says Dianne.
"One of the very early lessons I learned as a teacher was that you cannot teach hungry children."
Maryam says: "My little one... when I fulfil his needs he is happy for his education."
She adds that schools could do with more training and support to be able to tackle bullying.
'Help us with parking'
Alex Baranowski opened his picture framing shop on Lincoln Road in the late 1980s and says the road has "changed dramatically" since then.
He thinks a mayor should help local shopkeepers by making sure there are car parking spaces for customers.
"Help us with the parking. I think all the shopkeepers would agree on that," he says.
He says buses often tail back on Lincoln Road making it difficult for shoppers to get around.
"It's become very busy over the past 15 or 20 years and we don't have the infrastructure," he adds.
'More courses in colleges'
Jacqueline, 50, has travelled from Eye to Millfield to enjoy a tea and a slice of cake, and also says parking should be a priority.
And she has a few other things on her mind.
"Get drugs off the street, get alcoholics of the street," she says.
"Get more courses in colleges; bring the apprenticeships back."
Tackling deprivation
The Reverend Giles Knight, from the Open Door Baptist Church in Millfield, says the new mayor should understand the problems of the area.
"It's really important the mayor is aware, not just of the needs of Millfield, but of what is going on in this area and the challenges that are faced here," he says.
He says many are struggling to pay for the basics, especially if they are working on zero-hours contracts.
"There's a variety of need in the area, yesterday I saw people queuing up to buy drugs; there's a problem with alcohol," he says.
"For different reasons people are finding it difficult to find enough money to cover rent and other essentials."
'The homeless situation'
William Wilson, 57, says he sees more people sleeping rough in and around Lincoln Road.
"What a new mayor needs to do is deal with the homeless situation, really badly," he says.
"I just want to know what are you going to do about it."
Who is running?
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