IT’S ALWAYS nice to visit places that bring back childhood memories, so I was pleased to attend this year’s ‘graduation’ ceremony at Brynteg Nursery School in Abersychan.

I have a photo of me, aged about three, sitting in the playground with Lord Touhig - or Don as we called him then! No doubt we were busy practising our debating skills between games of tag or hopscotch.

Whilst the nursery was always ahead of its time, I’mglad to see that the place has moved ahead in leaps and bounds since I left. We certainly never had a graduation ceremony, but after watching the well-behaved, bright children sing and collect their certificates, I was struck by what a good idea it was.

Praise has to go to the headteacher Mrs Ryan and her staff for a great start to the pupils’ education, a start that I’mconfident will help them go from strength to strength.

Having grown up in Abersychan, the place holds many memories for me. My father was a coalminer, before going on to work at British Nylon Spinners, and my mother ran the greengrocer’s shop in Station Street. I remember above all the community spirit that existed in our part of the valley – people would pull together in tough times or to help those in need.

Incidentally, I also remember the Co-op on High Street, which I walked past on Friday.

It is sad to see it looking run down, and I really hope it can be put to better use.

With stories of fixes in Falkirk in the news, Abersychan also reminded me of the rich history of trade unionism in our valley.

As a miner and in British Nylon, my father was always a union man.

He taught me of the importance of working men and women standing up for a fair deal in their workplace.

The bravery of his generation in struggling for their rights has given us things we now take for granted, like safer workplaces, decent pay, maternity and paternity rights and the right to time off.

That’s why I reject those who attack the unions as if they’re some sort of sinister secret society.

They’re not – trade unions are ordinary working people fighting for a fair deal.

People like nurses, teachers, cleaners, builders, office workers and shop workers – the people without whom our society wouldn’t function.

We may not have the huge workplaces of the past like British Nylon, the coalmines and the steelworks, which at their height employed thousands of people in our valley.

But trade unions still have an important part to play in building a fairer future for working people, in Torfaen and beyond.