An MP who served the community for almost 50 years has been honoured with a special memorial.
A total of 47 trees, one for every year he served as a Manchester MP, have been planted in memory of Sir Gerald Kaufman in Rusholme.
The memorial event came to fruition on what would have been Sir Gerald’s 91st birthday, with the 47th and final tree being planted by his nephew, Brian Selby.
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Sir Gerald was renowned for his colourful dress sense, and was described by former Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn as someone who ‘loved life and politics’.
Creative Rusholme, Manchester City Council, and other community organisations came together over the last few years to plant the trees.
The final tree, a Hawthorn, was planted on June 21.
This event, which included a dedication ceremony, also marked the beginning of a new project in the area, Rusholme 470, a project which plans to plant 470 new trees in Rusholme over the next three years.
Sir Gerald lived in Rusholme throughout his time as an MP, winning 67pc of the vote in 2015, his highest win of all elections.
He served as Member of Parliament for Manchester Ardwick and then Manchester Gorton for forty-seven years.
The first tree of Rusholme 470 was planted by Afzal Khan MP, Sir Gerald’s successor, in Birchfields Park.
Speaking about the project, he said: “Like Sir Gerald, I am so proud of Gorton constituency and am constantly impressed by their creativity and resilience.
"Projects like this one are critical to our future wellbeing in Rusholme and across the world.
“I am delighted to launch Rusholme 470 Project and look forward to supporting it to grow from this lime tree.”
Meanwhile, local artist and environmentalist Phil Barton of Creative Rusholme who led the project, remembered Sir Gerald for his contributions to Rusholme.
He said:“47 Trees for Sir Gerald Kaufman gave citizens and organisations in Rusholme the opportunity to think globally and act locally whilst coming together in appreciation of Sir Gerald’s lifetime contributions to the people and landscape of Rusholme.”
Sir Gerald Kaufman died in 2017 after serving Manchester constituencies for nearly half a century.
At the time of his death, Sir Gerald was the Father of the House of Commons and the longest-ever serving Member of Parliament for a Manchester Constituency.
