The games are funded by the Government, through its Connecting Communities fund. At the opening event, there was some brilliant dancing by the Street Vibe group and an urban climbing wall, which I managed to scale! I’ve also been to one of the ‘Wii – Give it a Go’ sessions at New Parks’ lovely new library, where I well and truly embarrassed myself with my attempts to dance.

Yesterday, the weather cleared for a few hours which was great news for the families at the ‘Cycling in the Park’ session in Western Park. This was a chance to try out the cycle trails in and around Western Park, get some free bike maintenance, and learn about what cycling is on offer after school and at the weekends – all under the trained supervision of the Western Park Freeriders team Matt, Phil and Rick.

The Easter Games aren’t just for kids and families. There’s also a badminton session for the over 60s and a football tournament for seniors. The Games are all about bringing communities together: of all ages, from all faiths, and from every part of Leicester. That’s what Labour means when we say we will help strengthen fairness in communities – one of the 5 pledges in our election campaign.

There’s loads more activities going on over the weekend, and next week (click here to find out more). So whether you fancy basketball, boxing, canoeing, squash or gardening – there’s something for everyone. See you there!

But the importance of climate change, and how we can actually engage people in addressing the issue, started to make much more sense to me this week.

On Saturday morning I went to a local residents’ coffee morning at Leicester’s EcoHouse. Run by the charity Groundwork – with funding from the National Lottery, European Union, local council and businesses – the EcoHouse does exactly what it says on the tin. It shows simple, real and practical changes you can make to your home to make it ‘greener’.

OK, not everyone will be able to put EcoHouse-size solar panels on their roof or use rainwater to flush their toilet. But this brilliant building shows us how we can all make a difference, whether it’s by recycling bottles, paper and drink cans; improving our home insulation; using energy-efficient light bulbs and eco-friendly cleaning products; or growing some of our own vegetables.

Earlier in the week I also learnt more about Labour’s plans to build affordable homes and support employment and training through the recession.

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