AS I mentioned last week, the Parliamentary recess is a great opportunity to get out and about even more in South Swindon, meeting local residents, community groups and major employers.

A good example is the morning I’ve just spent with our hardworking Royal Mail staff, experiencing what’s involved in delivering the post and the challenges of providing a modern postal service to every home and business in the constituency.

Royal Mail has recently refurbished its Swindon facility following the merger of the old Dorcan and Hawksworth delivery offices in July.

The new office is now known as the Swindon Delivery Office, and of course is one of the most important employers in the area. I am glad that the company has demonstrated its long-term commitment to Swindon through this investment, and wanted to see the changes for myself.

The visit gave me the opportunity to see how Royal Mail is investing in new sorting and delivery equipment to cope with changing demands. Thanks to the growth of online shopping and use of emails, the company is delivering more parcels and fewer letters than ever.

The equipment and facilities need to reflect that, hence the significant investment in Swindon to transform and modernise the operation here.

It was fascinating to see the work that goes on behind the scenes.

Postmen and women perform an incredibly important function in our community, and I want to thank all the Royal Mail staff in Swindon for their hard work. On other matters, I wanted to mention two events which have brought the country together this week.

Firstly, Sunday saw the closing ceremony of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. England finishing top of the medal table is a fantastic achievement. It was great to see Jazz Carlin, a Swindonian swimmer, win a gold medal. Jazz used to train at the Link swimming pool and you may remember her taking part in the re-opening ceremony there last year.

Congratulations also to Laura Halford, who belongs to Esprit Gym in Headlands, and won three medals.

On every measure, the Commonwealth Games were a huge success for the country as a whole. As with the London 2012 Olympics, it’s important we build on their legacy to promote sport, health and fitness for all. I know Swindon is leading the way in this area, and I’ll continue to support this.

Secondly, we have just seen the moving events to remember the centenary of World War One. So many people across Swindon turned off their lights and lit candles to mark the anniversary on Monday night. It was a fitting way to remember the sacrifices made by so many brave men and women from Swindon a hundred years ago.