A hotel manager in Birmingham has launched a sideline career as a legal graffiti artist.

Adam Illes, the assistant food and beverage manager at Novotel’s Birmingham Centre hotel on Broad Street, initially adorned his workplace’s staff canteen and back corridor with his pop art-style illustrations.

Now the hotel has helped him to go public by asking him to decorate the walls of its customer car park.

The first spray-painting is Adam’s interpretation of famous comedian Rowan Atkinson as Mr Bean, and the second is based on philosopher Alan Watts’ thoughts about every person being one of the universe’s waves.

Adam, aged 31, was born in Hungary and moved to Ireland to live and work when he was 18, relocating to Birmingham last summer.

He said: “When I was in Ireland I started spray-painting on walls in Limerick to express myself.

“But I’ve never painted an illegal piece or left my tag anywhere I shouldn’t, and I’m very proud that every painting I’ve sprayed has been entirely legal.

“I got a number of commissions when I was in Ireland and when I moved here started to look for walls where I could paint.

“I spray-painted walls in the ironing room and staff canteen at the Ibis Hotel at Birmingham Airport, and when I started working at Novotel I decorated the staff canteen and the back corridor.

“The manager was so impressed with my work that he’s now allowed me to go public by giving me a free hand to paint the car park.”

Mike Olley, general manager of Westside BID, said: “We’ve found the start of the hidden treasures of Westside in Adam’s work, and it’s great that the public will see some of his paintings in the car park.

“Hopefully other businesses with walls that can be painted might consider commissioning Adam to brighten up their properties as well.

“Who knows? We could soon have our own version of Andy Warhol here on Broad Street!”

Adam added: “I love spray painting and would one day love to make a living out of my work.

“I enjoy spending a whole day being in my own world when I’m spray painting, and the more you do things and put your heart into it, the more your techniques grow and develop.

“I’m grateful for this opportunity and would welcome any other commissions to help make the Westside area brighter.”

Leading social housing association, Black Country Housing Group (BCHG) has participated in the 21 Acts of Kindness initiative launched by St. Michaels School in Rowley Regis.

The initiative, which was started through the school’s Student Voice, encouraged people to carry out 21 acts of kindness in the hope that this will then become a habit in their daily lives.

For 21 days, colleagues from Black Country Housing Group have been challenged to do one kind act each day, and to tick it off on their stamp card.

Collectively, BCHG gathered and donated 73 kilos of food to the foodbank, which is the equivalent of feeding three families or ten single people, and eight kilos of non-food items. Colleagues also donated 11 bags of work clothes for unemployed people on their journey back into employment.

Amanda Tomlinson, Chief Executive, Black Country Housing Group said: “Carrying out an Act of Kindness has been proven to be great for your own mental health and wellbeing. As well as others benefitting from your kindness, doing something for 21 days has also been said to then become a habit in your lifestyle.”

Over the 21 days, colleagues from BCHG managed to facilitate a food bank donation day, where each colleague brought in an item to be donated; and a donation to Suited for Success, a local charity that gives smart and professional workwear to homeless people and people who are unemployed and need suitable clothes for job interviews.

Colleagues from across the organisation, including head office, the residential care homes and Homeforce got stuck in to raise the profile of the campaign and to support each other and the local community.

Kerry Whitehouse, St. Michaels School Engagement Development Manager, added: “The #21AOK initiative promotes kindness and positive mental health which is so important in today's society.  We are often surrounded by negative news stories and can sometimes forget how simple gestures can make a huge difference to someone else's day.   Our students are passionate ambassadors of this campaign which we hope will have a ripple effect across the country.”

This initiative, carried out by employees at BCHG, has helped to boost morale in the team with everyone getting involved to raise funds for the cause. This comes in advance of stress awareness month, which will be running throughout April. Employees will once again be gearing up to help by arranging activities and events to generate awareness for the month, which BCHG will be supporting.

Famous faces from across Birmingham and the Black Country came together this month (MARCH) to celebrate Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice’s 40^th anniversary.

Footballing legend Brendon Batson, media broadcaster Llewela Bailey, Antique Roadshow’s Will Farmer, and comedic character Barbara Nice, who is played by Janice Connolly, all showed their support for the much-loved charity.

The celebrities were joined by local businesses, community groups and big-hearted supporters, who together are on track to raise a remarkable £20,000.

Over 230 guests attended the glittering black tie event, which was held at Edgbaston Stadium on Friday 1 March. They enjoyed a drinks reception, three-course dinner, musical entertainment from Midlands’ band The Bright Eyes, and a lively comedic set from the self-proclaimed ‘most popular housewife in Kings Heath’, Barbara Nice.

The event kick started a year of 40^th anniversary celebrations, which will all honour the care and support the Hospice has provided across Birmingham and Sandwell for the last four decades.

Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice was founded in 1979 by Monica Pearce and was the first independent hospice in the Midlands. A former NHS matron, Monica’s vision was to ‘enable anyone with a life-limiting illness to live their life to the full’ – a mission that the Hospice’s staff and volunteers still stand by today. First known as ‘St. Mary’s Hospice’, the charity cared for its first patient on Monday 5 March 1979.

Former West Brom defender, Brendon Batson, was made patron of the Hospice in 2017, after doctors and nurses cared for his wife Cecily in the comfort of their family home. He said: “The care Cecily and my family received was just incredible. It was a massive comfort that she was cared for at home and I’ll never forget the kindness and dignity the nurses and doctors showed us.

“I’m very proud to be a patron of the Hospice and it was fantastic to see so many people come together to celebrate its 40th anniversary. 40 years of care is an amazing achievement and with continued support, I look forward to seeing the Hospice grow and evolve in the next few decades.”

Tina Swani, chief executive at Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice, added: “We had a fantastic night welcoming generous supporters to our gala dinner and I would like to thank everyone for coming along and celebrating this landmark anniversary with us.

“Whilst the evening celebrated our proud history and the legacy of our founder Monica Pearce, it was also a chance to show the community how crucial hospice care still is in our city today and how demand for it will continue to grow in the future.”

In 1979, Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice could care for 25 people on any given day. Four decades later and the Hospice is supporting over 400 people every day across Birmingham and Sandwell, providing care in people’s homes, in the community, at its Day Hospice facility and at the Hospice’s Inpatient Unit.

The University of Wolverhampton put the WOW factor into employability at an event held at the Springfield Campus recently.

The Faculty of Science and Engineering organised the ‘WOW: Work Opportunities Wolverhampton’ event which was delivered in partnership with Just Finance Black Country and held at the new Elite Centre for Manufacturing Skills Hub on the £100 million regeneration site of the former Springfield Brewery.

The Employability outreach event brought together businesses, education providers and practitioners to inspire and engage with young people, particularly from Black African, Caribbean and dual heritage backgrounds and their parents and focussed on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects in addition to Law, Social Sciences and Health.

Visitors were given tours of the University Campus as well as opportunities to take part in workshops covering topics such as Work & Money, Getting a Job & Keeping a Job, How to Achieve Success and the A-Z of Super Confidence.  There were also mentors and role models from a variety of different businesses and backgrounds on hand to give advice.

Exhibitors at the event included ACCI (African Caribbean Community Initiative), HS2, HSBC Bank, Midland Metro Alliance, West Midlands Ambulance Service and West Midlands Police amongst others.

Dr Petula Nurse, Principal Lecturer in Biomedical Science and Head of STEM Outreach and Community Engagement at the University, said: “This is a new event and we’ve had a very promising response with attendance from a wide range of employers and businesses.

“Young people have come from around the region to find out about the opportunities on offer, giving them an insight into what careers might be available to them but also to be inspired and encouraged to think bigger about their future.

“This event is extraordinary because it has been supported by local churches which are an integral and important part of the BAME community and provide a strong network for the young people in these communities.

Greg Fearon, Resource Manager at Midland Metro Alliance, said: “In terms of our business, people see us building things but we actually offer a wide range of jobs from technicians and engineers through to administration and support staff.

“We are looking for the engineers of the future and we’ve been impressed by some of the young people we’ve spoken to today about potential careers with the business.”

Reverend Cassius Francis, Just Finance Black Country's Development Worker, said: "We are delighted to have been able to work with the University of Wolverhampton to deliver this event.  As we aim for a fair financial system that serves the whole community we are very aware of the crucial part of employability for our young people to achieve this.  I very much hope that we can do this again."

Key partners of the event included the Elite Centre for Manufacturing Skills, Spectra First Ltd, Steve Biko Supplementary School and Wesleyan Holiness Church.

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew has embarked on its most ambitious design project in recent years with the creation of a giant new Children’s Garden due to open to the public on 18 May 2019. Covering 10,000m², it’s the size of nearly 40 tennis courts, and has been designed by a Kew garden designer around the elements that plants need to grow: earth, air, sun and water. Children will be able to play and explore as they wind their way through a landscape filled with over 100 mature trees, discovering hidden treasures and adventure, and developing their love of nature, plants and the outdoors along the way.

Children will enter the Garden through a tunnel of scented Star Jasmine plants before first arriving at a 200-year-old English Oak tree, surrounded by a new aerial walkway 4m above the ground. Here, the journey of discovering what plants need to grow begins! The first element to explore is the Earth Garden, a giant sand pit with a quirky play hut village surrounded by Bamboo plants and tunnel slides for muddy adventures.

Next along the trail is the Air Garden, with winding paths, giant windmill flowers, pollen spheres, hammocks, swings and trampolines. A mini amphitheatre nestled under the trees can be used for storytelling, and the seating area for parents keeping an eye on their little explorers lies in the shade of some of Kew’s oldest Eucalyptus trees.

The Sun Garden is next; a large open space where children can let their imagination run wild beside a ring of sunflowers, Cherry trees and pink candy floss grass. Intricate pergolas festooned with edible fruits will take children on a sensory adventure.

Lastly, the Water Garden, (sponsored by Thames Water) is filled with water pumps for kids to use to control the flow of the water through to another splash pool. Water lily stepping stones will engage children in the water cycle and why it is important to plants.

For those slightly older and more adventurous kids, a giant log scramble sits among the Pine trees, waiting to be climbed. The challenge is to get across to the leaning tower without touching the ground!

Suzie Jewell, Children’s Garden Designer, RBG Kew said: “With the Children’s Garden we really hoped to design and create a unique space for children to play in, that would not only be fun and stimulate their imagination, but also give them a different perspective on how the plants grow and why they are so important. Part of what makes this space so special is that we had existing trees on site around which to map the paths and play areas - it became a play area among the trees – something different in London. I hope that this will lead to a deeper connection with nature and a lifelong love of plants.”

Work on the 10,000m² site, which is close to the existing Climbers and Creepers indoor play space and the White Peaks family café, began in October 2017, and was inspired by the desire to encourage kids to develop a lasting relationship with and love for plants and nature. The site already had 62 mature trees in place, including Eucalyptus and Sweet Chestnuts, and a further 40 mature trees were added to this space, including Gingko and Pines. These ‘old giants’ are part of what makes this Garden unique and will capture the imagination of kids and adults alike as they explore the pathways and different elements of the Garden.

Sandra Botterell, Director of Marketing and Commercial at RBG Kew said: “The new Children’s Garden is a wonderful addition to the Kew landscape and will add real value to the family experience, giving young visitors the opportunity to see nature in a new way. Spaces like this are essential for children to grow and develop a relationship with plants, understand their importance, as well as to have fun.”

Funding for this project has come from private donations and corporate sponsor Thames Water. Fundraising is continuing to complete the project.

Fur-Mamma’s (and Fur-Dads) can come and celebrate being a Fur-Parent at the first ever London Dog Week.  This is no ordinary lunch, TV actress Gemma Oaten will be presenting on the day and there will be giveaways, special guests, lots of interactive activities and features around the venue for you, your Fur-kid, friends and family to enjoy.  Fur-parenting is a chance to encourage the benefits of owning a dog, including improving your mental health and more positive human interaction within a family setting. 

The @puppyclubworld will also be part of the family celebrations encouraging your two legged children to take part in our Doggie Cuddle and Colour Club.  They will be able to have cuddles with doggies and learn more about The Puppy Club House App. There will be activity packs, free mini-trading cards and a special menu for kiddies available from the award-winning chefs at M Restaurant.

Another popular event selling fast is the London Dog Week Fashion Brunch also at M Restaurant.  The first sitting has already sold out for Saturday March 30 with tickets selling fast for the second sitting.  The restaurant will set the stage for diners to experience the funkiest Fashion Dog Walk in Europe.  London’s sassiest dogs from 28 of the UK’s biggest influencers will walk the M runway, strutting designs from talented independent brands.  There will also be a doggie art sale at the restaurant as a collection of our furry friends will be exhibited and for sale from June Schneider of Schneider Art. 

LDW Co-founder, Aneka Johnson says, “London is viewed as one of the loneliest cities in the world, yet dogs are natural people magnets and if we can use their ability to connect people across the capital, then we think it's a great way for people to forge friendships. I really believe that dogs are instrumental in making London less lonely”.

LDW Co-founder, Lois Mallet Walker says “I know both Aneka and I have gone through mental and physical health challenges and our dogs have really helped us through it. Sharing the power of how dogs are therapeutic and can help you keep a healthy frame of mind, alleviate stress and anxiety in addition to uniting its owner with the local community, is the message we want to spread throughout London”.

Proceeds from ticket sales will go to Street Vets and Push Bears Shelter charity helping dogs in need.  To find out more information please log on to www.londondogweek.com.