Freeman of the Borough? Or Just Another Round of Political Theatre?

Freeman of the Borough? Or Just Another Round of Political Theatre?

Why Sandwell’s Highest Civic Honour Is Being Handed to the Wrong People — Again.

For a borough built on community graft, voluntary spirit and decades of unpaid service, you’d think Sandwell would reserve its highest honour — Honorary Freeman of the Borough — for the people who have actually held this place together.

But no.

Instead, we have an extraordinary meeting called just to rubber-stamp two establishment figures:

Lord John Spellar and Stewart Towe CBE DL.

Meanwhile, people who have served this borough for 20, 30 and even 40 years — the John Edwards’, the Bob & Barbara Prices, the Ian Jones’, and the countless voluntary champions who quietly keep communities alive — are ignored yet again.

And residents see it for exactly what it is:

Political theatre dressed up as civic recognition.

Let’s start with Lord Spellar.

Spellar’s record is hardly the stuff of community unity:

Publicly condemned racist remark (“bongo bongo land”).

Documented hospitality from the gambling lobby — in one of the UK’s poorest boroughs battling gambling harm.

The only Labour MP to vote against LGBTQ+ inclusive education.

Already awarded a life peerage.

Does this really scream selflessness, service, or “enhancing the reputation of the borough”?

Or is this yet another insider getting yet another badge?

Residents know the answer.

And then we have Stewart Towe.

A respected businessman, sure.

But Freeman of the Borough? Really?

Towe’s civic footprint in Sandwell is:

Short-term

Corporate rather than community-based

Not remotely comparable to the people who’ve given decades of their lives, unpaid, to caring for residents, supporting youth, driving community safety, fighting poverty, or protecting green spaces.

Freeman status should honour selfless, sustained contribution — not career prestige, networking power, or regional profile.

But apparently, in Sandwell, titles and connections take precedence.

The real question is this: who is this honour actually for?

Because it certainly isn’t for:

the pensioner who ran a community group for 25 years,

the volunteer coach who kept hundreds of kids off the streets,

the faith leader who fed families during lockdown,

the Friends groups who saved parks and green spaces,

or the councillors who have served four decades with zero recognition.

Those people — Sandwell’s actual backbone — don’t get extraordinary meetings, glossy reports, and ceremonial scrolls.

They get overlooked.

Again.

A process stitched together for a pre-picked outcome

Look at the reports:

“No equality implications.”

“No risks.”

“No alternative options.”

No consultation with residents.

No transparency over who was considered.

No scrutiny or scoring mechanism.

This isn’t a civic honour.

It’s a closed-door endorsement ceremony.

And people can smell it a mile away.

Sandwell deserves better

If the Freeman title is going to mean anything, it has to be rooted in:

community

fairness

transparency

service

integrity

and — importantly — the people who actually live here.

Not political insiders.

Not corporate leaders with short civic résumés.

Not individuals whose records divide the borough rather than unite it.

Sandwell has enough battles.

We don’t need another symbolic misstep that widens distrust between residents and the Council.

Time to honour the right people — the ones who give, not the ones who receive.

#Sandwell #LocalGov #Accountability #CommunityChampions #PoliticalTheatre #FreemanOfTheBorough