ANOTHER column and another ministerial visit to Barnsley.

Because hot on the heels of visits from the Transport, Health, Technology, and Energy Secretaries, we’ve now welcomed the education secretary, Bridget Phillipson.

Bridget was in town to visit Base71, the state-of-the-art youth zone co-delivered by our council and its partners, and hear all about Barnsley Council’s Great Childhoods Ambition: their commitment to giving every child the best start in life.

Whether it’s providing school uniform vouchers worth £50 or £100 to all children in the borough, or delivering around a million free bus journeys for under-18s, the education secretary was seriously impressed by the council’s joined-up approach to supporting kids and families.

So far, so familiar. The Health Secretary was impressed with the joined-up approach of the council’s Health on the High Street initiative, which is bringing services into the town centre, cutting missed appointments, and easing pressure on hospitals.

Similarly, the Technology Secretary was impressed with the council’s long-term investment and strategy: that’s why we’re the UK’s first Tech Town and this is already bringing real investment into our town.

There’s an £800,000 AI skills fund to help local people and businesses embrace new technology, and new NHS pilots using AI to cut admin, reduce waiting times, and free up staff. It’s about creating jobs, backing local firms, and making sure Barnsley folk are ready for the industries of the future.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: none of this happens by accident.

There’s a reason why the government is looking to learn from Barnsley.

There’s a reason why Barnsley has award-winning markets and the fastest-growing disposable income in the north of England. And there’s a reason why Barnsley’s Labour Council has won both major Council of the Year awards.

Barnsley’s successes are down to long-term decisions, investment, and a tireless focus on delivery.

Which brings me to Reform because when you look at where they’re actually in charge, the gap between promise and performance couldn’t be wider.

In Kent their so-called flagship council they promised to cut tax and waste. Instead, council tax is going up.

Their much-hyped head of waste cutting quit after admitting he hadn’t found any savings and Kent’s children’s services have been downgraded by Ofsted.

In Derbyshire, they’re proposing to close eight care homes, shut several adult education centres, and are even threatening the local tip.

Down the road in Doncaster, Reform certainly isn’t showing the leadership South Yorkshire folk deserve.

They’re trying to reverse the funding for re-opening Doncaster Airport, despite warnings that this could kill the project for good, and, when confronted with the fact that what he’d said about council tax rises plainly wasn’t true, their leader simply said: ‘it is what it is.’ I urge you all to find the video online and ask yourself if that’s the sort of leadership you want for Barnsley.

In Barnsley, with Labour, we’ve got a council that is delivering.

Elsewhere, where Reform is in charge, the reality has been pulled promises, shutting services, and lousy leadership.

This May, you’ll have a clear choice.

A choice between sticking with a council that has a proven track record of delivering for our town, or rolling the dice on a party whose record simply doesn’t match its rhetoric.

Please choose wisely.