Community News

The first of 150 new homes are emerging on the Tap Works Development scheme in Low Hill – with the show home set to open its doors this Saturday (September 29).

Galliford Try Partnerships is delivering the project, which consists of three derelict locations – the historic former Armitage Shanks Tap Works Factory site, and land on Fifth Avenue and Broome Road. Once complete, the homes will be sold under the group’s Linden Homes brand.

Forty of the units will be council homes for rent, with the remainder to be sold as market housing.

The first six homes for market sale on Fifth Avenue and Broome Road are close to completion, while the first 12 council homes on the same streets are set to be handed over to the council in spring 2019.

At the same point, a specialist supported housing scheme of 14 homes on Fifth Avenue for people with mental health needs, which will be staffed at all times, will also become ready for use.

The remaining council homes, as well as market housing for sale, are expected to be completed within three years.

Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for City Assets and Housing, Councillor Peter Bilson, said: “I am delighted to see the Tap Works scheme hit this major milestone.

“This is an exciting time for house building in the city with a host of projects springing up to benefit everyone.

“Work on this site supports the house building programme and will deliver quality homes for all."

Darren Beale, Regional Director of Galliford Try Partnerships, added: “We’re delighted to be working with City of Wolverhampton Council to deliver this mixed tenure development and to transform these derelict sites into homes that people are proud to live in.

“The combination of affordable and starter housing for sale goes some way to satisfy the demand for new homes across the city.”

Hallfield School in Edgbaston today launched a year of special anniversary celebrations by planting a time capsule on the school grounds.

The capsule, which will be opened by future pupils on the School’s 150^th anniversary in 2029, contains artefacts that will give future pupils a snapshot of life at Hallfield School in 2018. This includes photographs and articles of school events in 2018, a school newsletter, items of school uniform, a school teddy, art work, a chess trophy, children’s letters to future pupils and today’s Birmingham Post and First News. The Head Master even took time out to write a letter to future staff and pupils of 2029 for the capsule.

After filling the time capsule up, the School’s Head Master, Mr Morrow, said a few words before burying the capsule in the ground.

Speaking of the event, he said: “We wanted to start a year of celebrations with an event that would capture the imagination of our pupils. They had obviously put a lot of thought and effort into the contents of the time capsule and it will be fascinating to see how life compares in 10 years’ time.”

Hallfield School will be celebrating their 140^th anniversary throughout the academic year with a series of exciting events for pupils, parents, alumni and the local community. For more information visit www.hallfieldschool.co.uk/hallfields-140th-anniversary

Works by some of the very best up and coming artists are being exhibited at the annual University of Wolverhampton MA show, at Wolverhampton Art Gallery from Thursday, September 27 to Wednesday, October 3.

It free show features the work of 45 MA students from Design and Applied Arts and Digital and Visual Communication courses as well as the university's artists in residence.

The exhibition celebrates the talent and creative output of local, national and international students across practices including glass, ceramics, textiles, product design, illustration and photography, video and film.

Councillor John Reynolds, City of Wolverhampton Cabinet Member for City Economy, said: "The artworks cover a diverse body of work and I am delighted the university's MA Show is once again at the gallery. I would also like to wish all the students taking part continued success in their creative careers."

Among artists exhibiting is Kennedy Jayne Glews, who is studying for an MA in Design and Applied Arts, Fashion in Fashion and Textiles. Kennedy, is also the owner of a dance school and teaches in Fashion and Textiles.

She has created a piece called ‘Art of Movement’ which includes moving parts.

Kennedy said: “I wanted to re-invent the connection between costume and dancing and make the costume part of the performance, as well as enhancing the movement of the dancers when they are on stage. By adding light and flexibility to the costumes it marries the two for the performers and the audience.”

Support and advice sessions are being held at four Wolverhampton libraries next month as the city marks Libraries Week.

Central Library is hosting a Coffee and Chat from 10.30am to 2pm on Mental Health Awareness Day, Wednesday 10 October.

The event will highlight support available to help people improve their mental health and wellbeing from organisations including the Community Support Service, Carer Support Team, Starfish Social Hub, Terrence Higgins Trust, St George's Hub, HeadStart Wolverhampton, The Haven, the Children's Society and Wolverhampton Healthy Minds.

Visitors will also be able to see Central Library's new Reading Well for Mental Health book collection, which was launched earlier this year and includes a variety of titles to help people manage common mental health conditions or deal with difficult feelings and experiences.

Meanwhile, members of the Community Support Service and the Carer Support Team will be holding Talking Points sessions at Penn Library on Tuesday 9 October from 11am-12.30pm, Low Hill Library on Thursday 11 October from 2.30pm-4pm and Long Knowle Library from Friday 12 October from 3pm to 4.30pm.

The Talking Points sessions give people the opportunity to speak face to face to members of the Community Support Service and Carer Support Team and find out more about services and support groups available in the local community.

Councillor John Reynolds, the City of Wolverhampton Council's Cabinet Member for City Economy, said: "Our libraries are about much more than just books, and are hosting an increasing number of events and activities such as these where residents can get access to high quality information and advice from a range of service providers.”

It's free to join Wolverhampton's libraries. For more information, please visit www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/libraries.

Libraries Week is organised by CILIP, the library and information association, and takes place from Monday to Friday, 8-13 October. This year, with a focus on wellbeing, libraries across the country will showcase how they bring communities together, combat loneliness, provide a space for reading and creativity and support people with their mental health.

Families can find out more about WV Active's Swim Academy by diving into free pool parties which are being held next month.

Parents and children are invited to visit WV Active Central from 12pm–2pm on Saturday 13 October and WV Active Bilston–Bert Williams from 12pm–2pm on Sunday 14 October to discover the swimming programmes offered at the two City of Wolverhampton Council-run leisure centres.

Instructors from the WV Active Swim Academy will be on hand at both centres to lead free taster swimming lessons and assess people's swimming abilities. And there will also be a free pool party for families with toys and inflatables taking place from noon-1pm on both days.

The WV Active Swim Academy works in partnership with Swim England to offer swimming lessons for children aged between four and 16, and for adults.

The City of Wolverhampton Council's Cabinet Member for City Environment, Councillor Steve Evans, said: “This is a great opportunity for families to find out more about the learn to swim programmes on offer through the Swim Academy at WV Active Central and WV Active Bilston-Bert Williams.

“Swimming is a hugely important skill to have, and our Swim Academy delivers lessons to thousands of children and adults every year.”

Discover the magical forest transformed into a winter wonderland as, inspired by the landscape itself, the National Pinetum lights up for Christmas. The new festive adventure offers families the chance to explore Bedgebury's woodland after-dark and dramatically drenched in seasonal colour.

Highlights for this new trail include the Tunnel of Light; over 1million pea-lights in a 70m long immersive walkway under a canopy of ancient trees. Signing lanterns and fountains of dancing light are found along the mile-long route as well as a scented Fire Garden for an unforgettable experience.

Internationally acclaimed installation artworks from Tilt and Pitaya are also to be found nestled into the forest landscape and lighting hidden nooks of the pinetum.

There are hidden surprises too – watch out for frosty snowflakes, shimmering stars and gigantic baubles where you least expect them. At the Boardwalk, the giant redwoods are surrounded by a carpet of glowing colour-changing globes.

Visitors can complete their stroll under the stars with mulled wine* or hot chocolate* whilst the aroma of roasting chestnuts fills the air. Toast marshmallows* at one of the fire pits, ride the vintage Carousel*, and spy Father Christmas and his elf along the way.

Birmingham’s sporting fans have been praised for their support to some of the nation’s best gymnasts at this weekend’s Trampoline, Tumbling and Double Mini Trampoline British Championships at Arena Birmingham.

Olympic silver medallist Bryony Page returned to Birmingham to win the British title and said “The Birmingham public love gymnastics. It is fantastic to see so many people at the Arena Birmingham this weekend and their support was outstanding.”

Leading over night after her first two routines, Bryony Page’s final routine made sure of the title, as she showcased all of her skill for a total score of 159.165 to become British champion for a fourth time.

Page was pushed all the way by Kat Driscoll who was competing in her 22nd successive British Championships. Kat scored 157.380 to take silver, with defending champion Laura Gallagher taking bronze with 154.880.

Page returned to the sport this summer following an ankle injury and said that it was great to be back competing in front of the Birmingham fans. She said “It feels really good to be back here. The event is outstanding and I’m really pleased with my routine. It’s great to come back after a few years out and win the title. It’s really special to me, especially in front of a home crowd who’ve been so supportive of me throughout my injury.”

An attendance of over 3000 people made this the most successful Trampoline, Tumbling and DMT British Championships for the last five years following its venue change to Birmingham.

Over 500 young gymnasts from 80 clubs took part in the two-day spectacular with youngsters travelling from all across the UK to compete.

There were over 85 competitors from the Midlands region with competitors from clubs including Active8 Trampolining Club, Revolution Gymnastics Club and City of Birmingham Gymnastics Club.

Revolution’s Alicia Field and Bailey Forbes both came away with golds in the Women’s 9-10 Tumbling 9-10 and Men’s 11-12 Tumbling respectively.

Alicia, 10, said: “It feels great to be British Champion. It’s been lots and fun and I can’t wait for next year.”

Bailey, 10, said of his 92.800 score: “It felt perfect to me. I really like the dismount of my routine, and today they all went really well.”

Ethan and Jessica of Active8 both took home top honours in the Disabilities Performance Trampolining events.

Ethan, 11, said: “It was really good competing in front of all my family. The favourite part of my routine has got to be the back somersault, straight and a tuck front with a twist, straight. It definitely wasn’t perfect, but I’m happy.

Jessica, also 11, said: “I’m very happy to have won gold. I love competing in Birmingham because I get to compete in front of all my family. I was really happy with how the routine went today, it was nearly perfect.”

Jane Allen, Chief Executive of British Gymnastics said: “I am thrilled to see so many talented gymnastics performing at such a high-level at the Trampoline, Tumbling and Double Mini Trampoline British Championships in Birmingham. It is great to see so many of the established stars taking part and exciting to see the depth of young talent coming through. The sport has a very bright future and Birmingham has once again staged an outstanding event.”

These are the photographs which capture the Windrush generation nurses who have helped to shape the NHS.

They feature in the Here To Stay exhibition, which will be on show at Sandwell Hospital, in West Bromwich from October to mark Black History Month.

The pictures have been taken by photographer Inės Elsa Dalal.  Those included in the powerful collection include Jennifer Simpson, whose parents came to the UK in the late 1950s.

Her mother began working for the NHS, starting as a State Enrolled Nurse, and worked her way up to become a senior staff nurse. Jennifer followed in her mother’s footsteps and also became a nurse, working at Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, which runs Sandwell, City and Rowley Regis Hospitals.

“I was quite overwhelmed with getting the post because I had quite a few issues which made me think I wasn’t able to get a job,” explained Jennifer, who is a single mum.

“I went straight into theatres for 18 months, but during that course of time I was so interested and motivated by what I was learning that it triggered a desire in me to want to know more.”

She recalled: “The consultant hadn’t got a junior doctor at that time, the role was very new. So here I was, black, female, and a single parent of a disabled child, pioneering this new role.”

Over time, Jennifer carried out various procedures including peg insertions, as well as colonoscopies, and sigmoidoscopies, which are screening tests that use a camera to look at the colon.

“Nurses, particularly black nurses don’t get the opportunity to rise into more managerial places so for me to have pushed and blurred the boundaries between the medical profession was quite something,” she added.

The exhibition will feature Jennifer’s story in full, as well as other employees’ from the Trust.

Donna Mighty, Assistant Primary Care Liaison Manager and Co-Chair of the BME Staff Network, who has helped to organise the exhibition, said: “As a collective, it is important to acknowledge the Windrush generation and the challenges faced then and now.

“The Here to Stay exhibition is about celebrating our nurses – past and present and thanking them for their dedicated contribution to the National Health Service.  We are grateful to all the participants for agreeing to be involved in the project, for giving their time and sharing their stories with us.

“I want to say a special thanks to documentary photographer Inės for curating the exhibitions.”

To find out more head to the exhibition at the Education Centre, at Sandwell Hospital, West Bromwich, from 1^st October.

Planned to coincide with the opening of the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham, EU in Brum is leading the way in calling for the government to ‘Bin Brexit’ by organising a Pro-EU Rally and march on Sunday September 30.

The rally will be attracting cross-party support from Labour, LibDem and even Tory activists who are alarmed at the way the Brexit negotiations are going with groups as diverse as ‘Tories Against Brexit,’ ‘Best For Britain,’ the ‘European Movement’ and ‘Another Europe is Possible’ sporting “Love Corbyn, Hate Brexit” T-shirts and will be joined by LibDems and their ‘Exit from Brexit’ T-Shirts.

After leaving Victoria Square marchers plan to return to the Square to hear a range of prominent anti-Brexit speakers, including Labour Peer Lord Adonis and Philosopher A C Grayling.

Other speakers include activists from groups including ‘RemainerNow.com,’ Scientists for EU and Veterans for Europe, along with Madaleina Kay, recently voted ‘Young European of 2018.’

Adding fun to the proceedings, ‘Best for Britain’ will be bringing their big red ‘Stop Brexit’ button, and ‘Faux BoJo,’ aka Drew Galdron, the Boris Johnson impersonator will be making an appearance.  The day’s proceedings will end with local band ‘The Lost Notes.’

Innovative creations from Birmingham furniture-makers Declan and Tully Gallagher are helping to boost the development of youngsters at a West Midlands nursery.

The Gallagher brothers, otherwise known as Twin Design, have been working with Reginald Road Day Nursery in Bearwood to produce items of furniture to encourage the development of toddlers’ motor skills, such as crawling, climbing and jumping.

The Jewellery Quarter-based designers recently set up the ‘Brunel’ bench at the nursery, which was custom-made to encourage motor skills development and aid children’s colour recognition.

“To the untrained eye, the piece of furniture appears to be a large colourful sofa, but the brilliantly designed bench has been a great success with multiples uses”, said Yvonne Kerr, Manager at Reginald Road Day Nursery.

“As soon as it arrived the children turned it into a ‘secret den’, a ‘big snake’ and a ‘choo choo train’!”, added Yvonne.

“It’s been a brilliant resource to help the children develop their gross motor skills and they’ve enjoyed the various textures of the bench too.”

Research published in July found that children who spend most of their time barefoot develop motor skills differently to those who normally wear shoes, being noticeably better at balancing and jumping.

“Designing and creating furniture that not only looks appealing but also has benefits for learning is what we love doing most”, said Declan, co-founder of Twin Design.

“We’ve also been working on a similar product for a nursery in Edgbaston.”

Twin Design was formed in 2007 during Declan’s final year at Nottingham Trent University, where he studied furniture and product design.

Upcoming projects from the designers include pioneering pieces of furniture for education institutions, combining comfort and practicality with Bluetooth audio technology and wireless phone charging.

October Half Term Visitors will be able to let their imagination fly away with them during October Half Term Holidays, October 20th- 4th November, with a special Halloween themed 'Myths & Legends' week at Birdland Park & Gardens.

Discover why owls are considered to be so wise, where the legend of the phoenix came from, and find out which birds call the Romans believed meant imminent death in a series of fun talks at the renowned Bourton-on-the-Water attraction.

There will be quiz trails to follow, close encounter sessions and feeding displays throughout the holidays.

Watch Keepers feed the King penguins and Humboldts twice daily as well as the pelicans and flamingos.

Journey back even further in time to when dinosaurs roamed the Cotswolds, more than 65 million years ago and embark on a fascinating expedition discovering life-size dinosaurs.

Explorers will be armed with special dinosaur tracker kits, and will venture in to a Jurassic-themed landscape which is home to more than 30 different dinosaurs.

Find Brachiosaurus, Spinosaurus, Postosuchus, Velociraptors and more in the trail. Visitors will also be able to spot giant dinosaur eggs along with complete dinosaur skeletons.

The Jurassic Journey trail is also a fascinating reminder that today's bird species are directly descended from dinosaurs. Other species to look out for are the spectacular flying Pteranodon, Allosaurus, and the mighty Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Along the trail visitors will be able to have a go at searching for fossils in the Dino Dig where there will be activity tables to learn more about dinosaurs.

Leaving the trail visitors will meet Birdland's ratites, prehistoric-looking birds, and will be able to spot the similarities between the live birds and the dinosaurs.

New migrants will be given a helping hand to make Haringey their home with the launch of the council’s pioneering integration programme.

Connected Communities, which begins on 24 September, will help migrants to settle more quickly and successfully into life in the borough, offering the right support for people to handle a range of challenges.

The Connected Communities programme will be based at the Marcus Garvey Library, with residents, service providers and members of voluntary and community groups welcome to drop in or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Outreach and support programmes will take place in a range of venues including children’s centres, libraries, voluntary and community organisations and other pop-up locations within the borough.

Last night community groups gathered at a launch event at the library, attended by Councillor Mark Blake, Haringey Council Cabinet Member for Communities. Cllr Blake said:

“Haringey has a proud tradition of community cohesion and I’m delighted that we will be able to build on that through the MHCLG-funded Connected Communities programme. We know many migrants face challenges when they first arrive. Helping them to integrate better in the borough benefits them and also builds strong, supportive communities. I look forward to seeing Connected Communities take shape.”

Made possible by a grant from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Connected Communities will build upon the council’s existing work to support residents from all backgrounds across the borough. It will offer additional support and advice for Haringey residents who have arrived in the UK during the last ten years to develop a sense of belonging and contribute to and benefit from Haringey’s goal of all residents living well and achieving their potential.

The programme will offer support in these key areas:

Employment: The Haringey Employment and Skills Team (HEST) will have more resources so that they can support more residents into good, qualification-appropriate work. This will include assistance with transferring qualifications, finding work around caring responsibilities and ensuring residents are aware of relevant employment legislation. HEST will also be working with a number of workplaces to deliver English language support.v Housing: There will be additional information, advice and guidance on offer at Marcus Garvey Library, specifically aimed at migrants and other communities most likely to live in HMOs, as well as borough landlords. Parenting and early years: From our Children’s Centres, the Connected Communities programme will encourage take up of Haringey’s free childcare offers and work directly with migrant parents. This work will include an expansion of Haringey’s successful Parent Champions programme ESOL: In addition to their existing programme, the Haringey Adult Learning Service (HALS) will be working with the Connected Communities programme to deliver additional ESOL including English language support in the workplace and parent-friendly ESOL Voluntary and community sector: We will be working with The Bridge Renewal Trust, the Selby Trust and others to increase the capacity of this sector to build strong communities and maximise use of public assets and facilities.

Collectively, dog owners in the UK would pay over £300m on top of the price of their hotels, if it meant they could bring their dogs with them, new research¹ from Best Western Great Britain has revealed.

The survey of 2,000 adults found that the average dog owner would be prepared to pay an additional £15.96 on top of their hotel costs in order to bring their dog along with them. More than one in six (18%) would pay more than £20, while one in ten (10%) UK dog owners would pay over £30. With around one in three (29%) people owning a dog, this means that across the nation, dog lovers could be contributing an extra £304,606,593 to the hotel industry².

The study by Best Western Great Britain explored the population’s holiday preferences, and the lengths they would go to in order to make their getaway perfect.

It was revealed that a staggering one in seven (14%) dog owners in the UK would rather go on holiday with their dog than their partner. The figure drops slightly among more established couples, however more than one in ten (12%) married Brits would still rather holiday with their hound.

They may be man’s best friend, but the survey revealed that it is women who are most likely to feel this way, with 15% saying that they’d prefer to go away with their dog, compared to just 12% of men.

With British tourists clearly so keen to take their dogs away on holiday, Best Western Great Britain recently launched its search for the best holiday pictures of dogs across the country.

As marathon fever hits Birmingham this October, a local hospice has created a 26-mile sporting event that everyone can get involved in – even if they haven’t done any training.

Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice’s ‘i-Marathon’ challenges people to complete 26.2 miles of activity across the month of October.

The virtual marathon will see participants choose their preferred sporting activity– whether that’s running, cycling, swimming, walking or mixture of all them – as well as picking where, when and how they’ll complete it.

So whether that’s one mile of running on the treadmill for 26 days or six miles of cycling every weekend, the i-Marathon is a fantastic opportunity for beginners or people with busy lifestyles to introduce exercise into their day-to-day schedules.

Laura Nash, events manager at Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice, said: “October is marathon month in Birmingham, so we wanted to create an alternative challenge that still lets people get involved and go the distance but at a pace that suits them. We know how daunting 26.2 miles can feel to do at once, so the i-Marathon is a great starting point for people looking to do a marathon in the future or for those simply looking to keep fit and active.”

Participants will receive a free hospice t-shirt when they sign up and for those who reach their 26.2 miles goal and raise the minimum sponsorship, they’ll be awarded their own commemorative medal.

All funds raised will go towards the Hospice, which provides vital care to people and their families living with life-limiting illness across Birmingham and Sandwell.

Laura added: “As well as completing such a gruelling distance, participants really will make a difference to the people and families that we care for. Last year, the i-Marathon raised over £5,000, which will help make beds available for people needing expert care and support at the Hospice.”

Every day, Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice cares for 400 people in their own homes, in their local communities and at the Hospice.

Registration for the i-Marathon is £5 and participants can sign up, here: www.birminghamhospice.org.uk/i-marathon

The sculpting of a statue of a First World War Sikh soldier has entered an exciting stage, as work begins to cast the landmark monument in bronze.

Guru Nanak Gurdwara Smethwick has commissioned the Lions of the Great War monument to honour the sacrifices made by South Asian service personnel of all faiths who fought for Britain in the war and other conflicts.

Millions of men from the Indian subcontinent fought in the two world wars, serving in the British Indian Army.

The 10-foot high statue is set to be unveiled in Smethwick High Street in November to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of the Great War.

Black Country-based sculptor Luke Perry, who is creating the statue, said: “The pouring of the bronze and the reveal of the metal after the shell has been broken off is one of the most impressive parts of creating sculpture.

“There's liquid bronze being poured into red hot shells and everything has to be done in seconds while the work is hot so there's little room for error.

“It’s a really visual part of the process – it looks as dangerous and filled with jeopardy and alchemy as it is!”

The Lions of the Great War statue will be sited between High Street and Tollhouse Way, and Sandwell Council is working with the gurdwara to create a paved public space with seating and lighting.

An adjoining green space, which includes a memorial celebrating inventor James Watt, who pioneered steam power in Smethwick, is also being refurbished with new landscaping to complement the statue and public space.

Guru Nanak Gurdwara Smethwick is covering the cost of designing and building the statue.

President of Guru Nanak Gurdwara Smethwick Jatinder Singh said: “It’s fascinating to see how the statue is taking shape. We are very proud to be bringing this memorial to Smethwick High Street to honour the sacrifice of all those brave men who travelled thousands of miles to fight for a country that wasn’t their own.”

Leader of Sandwell Council Councillor Steve Eling said: “I’m really looking forward to seeing the completed statue. It’s so important we remember the sacrifices made by people for our country.”