Green Lane Masjid, a mosque and community centre in Birmingham, has donated £1.2million to Human Appeal, a leading humanitarian aid charity in the UK. The money will go to providing flour for starving people inside Syria and to help Syrian refugees in Lebanon during the winter.

Human Appeal’s flour distribution project is renowned throughout the international aid community as one of the best in the world, it feeds 200,000 Syrians a month. Intentional organisations like the UN have worked with Human Appeal on this project.

The total donated is £1,234,000, mainly by members of Birmingham’s Muslim community, this was raised through regular collections in the mosque, through fundraising dinners, organised street collections and many other methods of raising money.

Othman Moqbel, Human Appeal’s Chief Executive, says of Green Lane Masjid’s support for Human Appeal “We are very grateful for Green Lane Mosque’s support. £1.2million is the equivalent of 4,113 tonnes of flour, which could feed up to 832,000 Syrians.

“This week has seen the plight of Syrians recapture international attention, so money to alleviate their suffering is needed more than ever – especially such a staggering amount”.

“We can’t emphasis enough on the importance of distributing flour to the bakeries of Syria. 9.8 million Syrians are classed as food insecure, with 6.8 million severely food insecure. Food production in Syria has also hit a record low with the 2015/2016 cropping season at the lowest ever. The wheat harvest estimate is approximately 1.5 million tonnes which, 55% lower than the pre-conflict average.

“Bread constitutes a major part of the Syrian diet, however, poor harvest, price hikes in agricultural inputs and loss of agricultural infrastructure has increased the price of bread by 87% in public bakeries. Shares of household expenditure on food has increased tremendously with families spending more than half of their incomes on food.

“Human Appeal began delivering flour to hard-to-reach and besieged areas of Syrian from 2011, today we have reached 3.7million people with our flour and the feedback we get is always positive and they are grateful to receive the food because most of them don’t have the 300 Syrian Pounds needed to buy a bag of bread. Human Appeal currently provides the bread for about 208,000 beneficiaries every month. For an average of 17 bakeries each month, we provide the flour to keep them in operation, giving their staff a regular income and liberating them from being dependant on humanitarian aid.”

Faculty of Science & Engineering students at the University of Wolverhampton have joined forces to raise money for charity after attending a teambuilding residential recently.

The fifteen students, studying for a range of courses including Quantity Surveying, Building Surveying, Construction, Civil Engineering, Genetics and Molecular Biology and Biomedical Science, attended a three day teambuilding residential at Open-door Adventure at Dolben Hall, St. Asaph in North Wales as part of the University’s successful Career Development Week and decided that collectively they wanted to make a difference.

The students, who call themselves ‘Selfless Spirits’ have raised nearly £700 for the YMCA Sleep Easy fundraising initiative that was held at the University recently.  Sleep Easy raises money to help change the lives of vulnerable young people.  The ‘Selfless Spirits’ spent the night sleeping rough in the grounds of the University to highlight the plight of the homeless.

Angela Nash, Senior Lecturer in Architecture and the Built Environment in the Faculty of Science & Engineering, said:  “Following a very impactful teambuilding trip which included night-time caving, raft building, assault courses and a campfire for some social and team-bonding activities this fairly disparate group ranging from first year degree students through to PhD students have taken their teambuilding further than we could have imagined.”

Hannah Wildwood, one of the students, said:  “We were really impressed with the residential during Career Development Week and were inspired to create a group which focuses on raising money for the YMCA.  So far we have held an end of event party, have taken a hottest curry challenge and are planning more group events.”

Anyone wanting to donate to the ‘Selfless Spirits’ can find their fundraising page here.

Meet four of the runners proudly representing their home nations as part of this year’s Simplyhealth Great Birmingham 10K featuring the Commonwealth Run.

Organisers of the Simplyhealth Great Birmingham 10k have created a distinctly Commonwealth theme at the event to raise the profile of the city’s bid to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games.

And runners representing Canada, Jamaica, England and Wales, gathered at Birmingham’s Council House in Victoria Square to meet each other for the first time.

Taking place on Sunday, 30th April, the popular city centre run is now less than a month away and will feature elite teams from as many Commonwealth nations as possible, with 20 countries now signed up.

Meeting for the first time were runners Alison Fox (Canada), from Nottingham, Thomas Glave (Jamaica), from Birmingham, Graham Williams (Wales), from Smethwick and Adam Guy (England), from Birmingham.

They were joined by Birmingham-born Ian Stewart, one of the world’s leading distance runners between the late 1960s and mid-1970s, who flew the flag for Scotland.

Admin worker Alison, who hails from Ontario but now lives in Nottingham, has lost a remarkable 11 stone in weight since she started running following a family bereavement.

Alison’s grandfather was born in Scotland and after completing a study-abroad year in Leeds in 2011 she applied for a UK ancestry visa to allow her to live and work in the UK.

“I only started running two years ago when I was trying to lose weight,” said the 29-year-old. “I discovered I really enjoyed it. Before, I couldn’t run five-feet, let alone 10K!

“I’ve now lost just under 11 stone and I recently completed my first marathon.

“I’m really excited to be representing Canada at the Great Birmingham 10K,” she added.

“One of my running heroes is the Canadian marathon record holder Lanni Marchant and I asked her for some advice before my first full marathon and she even congratulated me after I finished it.”

Liz McColgan, one of Britain's most distinguished athletes, will be jetting into Birmingham from her Qatar base to take part in the Commonwealth Run as she captains the Scotland team.

A two-time gold medallist over 10,000 metres at the Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh in 1986 and Auckland in 1990, as well as winning the 1991 World Championships and silver at the 1988 Olympic Games, she achieved further gold medal glory at the 1992 World Half Marathon Championships, 1991 New York City Marathon, 1992 Tokyo Marathon and 1996 London Marathon.

Liz will be among the 7,000 people running, jogging or walking this year’s Simplyhealth Great Birmingham 10K on Sunday, April 30.

“With a population of over a million people in the city and an array of Commonwealth nationalities, we’re looking forward to a spectacular day in Birmingham,” said Great Run Communications Director, David Hart.

Walsall College Construction student, Grace Morgan has been shortlisted for a national 2017 BTEC Award.

The BTEC Awards, now in their seventh year, aim to recognise individuals for exceptional achievements while working towards their BTEC qualifications.

BTECs are career-based qualifications designed to give students the skills they need to move on to higher education or go straight into employment.

Grace is in the second year of her BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma in Construction and The Built Environment and has been offered a scholarship by Northumbria University to study a degree in Building Surveying.

Construction Lecturer at Walsall College, Andrew Stubbs, said: “From day one Grace has shown a real passion for learning and a clear desire to develop her skills and knowledge of the sector.

“She completed her work experience placement with Turner and Townsend, an international project management firm based in Birmingham and received excellent feedback from a senior quantity surveyor.

“She is also keen to promote the sector and has volunteered her time at school career days to talk to youngsters considering following the same path as her.

“We are delighted that she has been shortlisted as it is testament to the dedication she has displayed as well as her hard work and efforts on all her assignments.”

Curriculum Manager for Construction at Walsall College, Barry Hill said: “We have some exceptionally talented students at Walsall College so we are very proud when they receive external recognition. Grace has worked hard and I’m confident she will be successful in her chosen career path when she completes her studies.”

Studying BTEC qualifications help students to develop a range of practical knowledge and skills to prepare for and progress in their chosen career.

Classroom style teaching combined with project work and practical, work-related activities help to develop students' behavioural skills, which can include teamwork, creative thinking and presentation skills.

More employers and Higher Education institutions than ever before are choosing BTEC-qualified candidates for their academic and practical knowledge and skills.

After 18 months of conservation and structural repair works, Guernsey's 'Little Chapel' is fully open to the public as of Saturday 8 April 2017.

Thought to be the smallest chapel in the world and one of Guernsey's key tourist attractions, the Little Chapel has been hiding behind scaffolding since October 2015 while it has undergone re-stabilisation works, reinforcement of retaining walls, and roof and spire repairs.  The work has included using historic photographs from Guernsey archives to re-apply original decoration, repair damaged crosses, and restore the chapel's eminent mosaic finish.

The chapel, which measures just nine feet long by five feet wide, can only accommodate a few people at a time and its walls are unusually made up of thousands of fragments of china, seashells and pebbles. Nestled in Guernsey's inland parish of St. Andrews, the current chapel is over 90 years old, built by Brother Deodat, an exiled French monk, to emulate the sacred grotto at Lourdes. It had survived 90 years with virtually no damage, even during the WWII German occupation.

The project has so far cost £180,000, while the overall anticipated investment will be around half a million pounds once new flooring and lighting have been installed. A re-ordering of the beautiful landscape around the chapel will also take place to provide better access and viewpoints, as well as more extensive planting of trees and shrubs. A small interpretation building set within the landscaping will tell the story of the Little Chapel, its construction and restoration, and provide toilets for visitors. Guernsey's CCD Chartered Architects and Interior Design donated their time and expertise for the repair and restoration of the Little Chapel at no charge.

The full opening of the chapel aptly coincides with the first day of the Channel Islands Heritage Festival, which celebrates the history of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark and Herm with a series of events, activities, tours and exclusive openings over five weeks from 8 April 2017. The chapel is free to visit, however donations are essential for its continued repairs and horticultural enhancement.

A major new study published by the Carnegie UK Trust revealing trends in library use across the UK and Ireland is challenging stereotypes about who uses public libraries in England.

The research, which compares library use between 2011 and 2016, has revealed that young people aged 15-24 years are the most likely age group to use libraries in England (51%), whilst those over 55 are the least likely to use a library (43%). Meanwhile almost half (46%) of 25-34 year olds are also now using public libraries, a rise of 2 percentage points since 2011.

As well as reaching more young people, many public libraries in England are also now serving many more people who don’t read books. Libraries across the UK have begun providing a much wider range services and activities in recent years. More than a third of people (37%) in England who read only one book a year now say that they use their local library. Forty percent (+5 percentage points from 2011) of people who only read one book every six months also now identify themselves library users. 

These trends are good news for English public libraries as they seek to attract new customers and protect their funding. However, the Carnegie UK Trust’s research also confirms that libraries across the UK and Ireland face a number of significant challenges. Overall library use in England has seen a decline of 4 percentage points from 50% to 46% since 2011 and all UK nations have experienced seen a steady decline in the number of  people using the library ‘frequently’.

Martyn Evans, Chief Executive of Carnegie UK Trust says that libraries must make a persuasive case for continued investment in staff and services if they are to continue to meet the needs of local communities.

He said: “Public libraries remain an immensely popular civic resource, both in England and across the rest of the UK and it’s extremely promising that there’s been a rise in library use in England amongst those aged 25-34 and amongst non-readers.

“However, we know that the future success of public libraries depends on how effectively they respond to the changing needs of their communities. Local authority budgets are under severe pressure. All of us who value libraries’ rich and varied contribution to our wellbeing must provide clear and compelling evidence of their impact if future investment is to be secured.

“We also know that the public want libraries to do even more. People in England told us that they would be more likely to use the library if they had better information about the activities on offer, if they could access more Council services there, if the library held more events or had a café or coffee shop on site.”

Neil MacInnes, President of the Society of Chief Librarians said: “The Carnegie UK Trust’s unique report is the only report that enables us to look across the UK and Ireland at how public libraries are used and what people think about them. It depicts the state of play, challenges and the opportunities ahead for public libraries in England.

“It is clear from the research that public libraries in England have an enduring place in people’s hearts and that they are highly valued services. We need to ensure that libraries continue to prosper and deliver against key policy goals and wellbeing. The Trust’s recommendations set out a way in which we can all work towards a thriving future public library service.”

The ‘Shining a Light’ report   is the result of a unique five year study by the Carnegie UK Trust and IPSOS Mori into public library use in the UK and Ireland The report is the only one of its kind, enabling data on changing use and attitudes towards library services to be compared across the individual jurisdictions of the UK and Ireland. Around 10,000 face-to-face and telephone interviews were involved in total in 2011 and 2016 combined.