Thank You Award Winners 2012

2 Up Our Street

Page 3 Easton and Lawrence Hill

Neighbourhood Management

Page 4-5

Thank You Awards

Page 6 Annual Report

Page 7

We need you

Page 8 Neighbourhood Forum

and Neighbourhood Partnership

Page 9

Welfare reform

Page 11 Stapleton Road

Page 13

Personal responsibility

Page 14 Fighting back against FGM

Page 15

Sound of Sudan

Page 16 Parents push for play

Page 17

Primary school places

Up Our Street 3

Welcome to the Winter 2012 edition of Up Our Street

Illegal parking, rubbish, street drinking - these are some of the issues that we hear about on a regular basis. This year in Up Our Street we have written about these issues to try and get everyone to think

about them and how they impact on the neighbourhood. It is impossible to completely eliminate these things in a busy urban environment but we understand it can be frustrating when you feel there is a problem but you see no solution. Local people can influence decisions but it can be difficult to agree

about where to target resources and what the priorities are. We want to thank everyone who responded to our stories about parking and street drinking. One thing the responses showed us was that we all

think differently about things and what frustrates you may not frustrate your neighbour. We will continue to use this newsletter to encourage debate about what it means to live together in a busy

urban space. For information, the delivery times of Up Our Street have changed slightly. You will still get four copies a year. The next edition will be Spring 2013.

In September we spoke to 342 people using Stapleton Road at different times of the day. We

asked them one question: Do you think Stapleton Road has got

better or worse in the past year?

2012 Out of 342 people:

43% said better 20% said worse

12% said stayed the same 25% said don’t know

2011 Out of 310 people:

44% said better 24% said worse

23% said no change 9% said don’t know

To find out more about Stapleton Road Working

Group contact us on 903 9975.

Lawrence Hill underpass

In September we spent a morning out talking to 100 people using Lawrence Hill

underpass. We knew that people were crossing the roundabout

even though the traffic was very busy and we wanted to find out why. We found out that it was mainly because it was quicker, although a handful said it was

because they didn’t like the underpass. The majority of

people we spoke to said they thought the underpass was fine

and they felt safe during the day. It was a bit different at night

though with more people saying they wouldn't use it. Four things we have raised with the Council

to get sorted: Broken lights, flooded drains smelly passages and better

signage.

Xmas lights Christmas Lights

Competition

We will be out and about on Tuesday 18

December to judge who is bringing a bit of sparkle to

the area. Prizes for best house, best flat, best business and best street.

Contact 903 9975 to nominate.

4 Up Our Street

Thanks to everyone who came to our AGM and Thank You Awards on Thursday 18 October. It was a really fantastic evening with 82 people attending.

Look out for nominations for our 2013 awards in August.

Up Our Street 5

If you would a like a copy of Easton and Lawrence Hill

Neighbourhood Management’s Annual Report for 2011-2012

contact Stacy on 377 3638 or stacy@eastonandlawrencehill.org.uk

Turn over to see part of the report showing what we achieved in the last

year. Thanks to Pak Butchers, Burges Salmon and Sovereign Housing Association for

helping fund the Thank You Awards.

Congratulations to all this year’s winners Ellie Abudeip Amanda Attwood John Barker Jan Bartlett Garry Brandrick Steve Brocklehurst Bonny Brown Mariateresa Bucciante Dawn Campbell Mike Clarke Hannah Crudgington Jo Curtis Richard Curtis Alison Donohue Faith Dyer Tom Foley

Liz Gallett Ayan Hassan Fatoum Houssein Dave Iles Linda Jones Liz Jones Saada Jumale Harriet Kilcommon Magda Kowalik-Malcolm Halima Kulane Tommy Lane Mike Pickering Maggie Reardon Sonny Richards Kevin Rogers Camelia Sawyers Owen Smith Errol Thompson Mark Stone Tyrone Tovey Shelia Yunis

6 Up Our Street

Up Our Street 7

EASTON AND LAWRENCE HILL NEED YOU!

Could you be a Board member? Do you enjoy reading Up Our Street? If you feel inspired by anything you have read or seen in our newsletter then maybe you’d like to get more involved in our work?

Easton and Lawrence Hill Neighbourhood Management is a charity. We have four staff members and we are managed by a Board of Trustees. These are local residents who are volunteers and nominees from voluntary organisations. The Board decides what we should focus on.

The role of the Board Make sure that we are meeting the needs of local people. Decide on priorities for our work. Manage the staff team. Oversee the budget. Manage our properties (The Old Bank and four shops on Avonvale Road). The staff team does the day to day work and the Board focuses on policy and strategy.

What would you have to do?

Do you have a vision for the future of your neighbourhood? We are looking for people with energy and ideas to join our Board and help us keep improving the area for the future. If you think you could be part of our team bringing about positive changes then we would love to hear from you. We want our Board to reflect our neighbourhood.

Board meetings, training and away days Come to a Board meeting every six weeks and occasional sub group meetings. These are in the evening and last for two hours. You would have to read Board papers before the meeting which we send out in the post. We have about two ‘away days’ a year which are when the Board plans the work of the organisation for the future. We also offer training about being a Board member and how to do this well.

Staying in touch and making decisions In between meetings we often have other things we need to tell you and decisions need to be made. It is useful, but not essential, if we can contact you by email or phone during the day.

Good with numbers? We need a Treasurer. You don’t have to do our accounts or process any payments. We have a Finance Manager who does this. We just need another pair of eyes and someone who is good with numbers to check over the budgets and give us any useful advice or point out where we could save money. If you have experience of managing buildings, even better!

What next?

Call us on 0117 903 9975 or visit www.eastonandlawrencehill.org.uk

Easton and Lawrence Hill Neighbourhood Management Board at our AGM in October

8 Up Our Street

Ashley, Easton and Lawrence Hill Neighbourhood Partnership

Tuesday 12 March 6.30pm to 8.30pm

Unitarian Chapel Hall, Brunswick Square Call 0117 903 9975

News from Ashley, Easton and Lawrence Hill Neighbourhood Partnership (NP)

Expanding population Increasingly over the past two years residents have been voicing concerns about squeezing more and more homes on small plots of land and the feeling that there is a strain on resources and space, for example parks and roads. Official estimates are that Lawrence Hill ward has grown in population by 18%, Easton by 9% compared to the city average of 8%. These figures reflect what people have been experiencing for some time. The NP wants to find out what can be done and what is being done to manage this situation and make sure there are the services that people need.

Traffic and environment sub groups – interested? The NP is forming two sub groups one on the environment and the other on traffic and transport. These are open to residents who are not members of the NP. You need to be able to make a commitment to attend regular meetings over the next 12 months. For more information you can read the terms of reference at www.eastonandlawrencehill.org.uk or call 903 9975.

Don’t forget – there are local funds for doing small scale environmental improvement works and addressing highways and traffic issues. If you have ideas or concerns that you would like considered get in touch.

Bristol Temple Quarter Enterprise Zone is in our area. Attend the Forums and find out what is happening and what this exciting development means for

local people.

Much of the discussion at the September meeting of the NP was

about issues residents have raised at Forum meetings which have proved more difficult to address. A senior

Council officer was asked to respond to ongoing concerns about street

cleansing (litter in particular). We will continue to progress this issue.

If you’d like to see a copy of the questions and responses the NP put

to May Gurney, call 377 3638 or visit

www.eastonandlawrencehill.org.uk

New bus stop on Avonvale Road funded by the Neighbourhood Partnership

Up Our Street 9

Do you get housing benefit?......If you are between 16 and 64 and live in a Council or housing association property with a spare bedroom then your housing benefit is going to

go down from April 2013.

Benefit cap….. From April 2013, there will be a limit to the amount of benefit that households where no-one is in work can receive - the benefit cap. It will not apply if someone in your household is receiving disability benefits. The benefit cap will affect

larger families in private rented properties. Any amount above the cap will be taken off your housing benefit.

Universal Credit is coming...... Starting in 2013, all new claims of income support, child tax credit, working tax credit, housing benefit, jobseekers allowance (JSA) and

employment support allowance (ESA) will become one benefit called UNIVERSAL CREDIT. Existing claims of these will gradually be transferred too.

Getting online - the time is now!.....The Government’s aim is to manage all benefit claims online as Universal Credit is introduced. You can find out about learning how to

use computers on the next page.

Disability Living Allowance becomes Personal Independent Payment…. Starting with new claims in April 2013 (for working age people) or when your circumstances change form October 2013. If you already get DLA and are over 16, you will be reassessed over

the next couple of years. If you get a letter from DWP about your claim you need to phone them or get someone to help you contact them.

Where can you go for help? www.adviceguide.org.uk www.dwp.gov.uk

Citizens Advice Bureau - 1 Quay Street, BS1 2LJ St Pauls Advice Centre - 0117 955 2981

From 2013 there will be big changes happening to benefits and it WILL affect you

or someone you know.

10 Up Our Street

All around the

country, including here in Easton

and Lawrence

Hill, community organisers are knocking on

doors and listening to people about their neighbourhoods. They’re asking people

what they love about where they live, what worries them, and what they’d like to see

change. It’s all part of a national programme aimed at helping people in

communities come together to take collective action on the things that matter to them. The community organisers’ job is to be out on the streets knocking on doors

and talking to you about anything you want to get off your chest or get done

where you live. The organisers in our area are Steve, Rebecca, Meredith and Nick.

They are based at Barton Hill Settlement and St Werburgh’s Community Centre but spend most of their time out meeting local

people. Although the work of the community organisers is separate to our work here at Easton and Lawrence Hill Neighbourhood Management, we are

interested in their work with local people and we hope it will mean even more positive improvements to the area.

Read more: www.cocollaborative.org.uk

Left to right: Steve, Meredith, Rebecca, Nick

The future’s digital

More and more services are moving online from paying bills and banking to

shopping and reporting things to

the Council.

In 2013 the majority of benefits are going to be applied for and

managed online.

Now is the time to prepare yourself......it can be daunting at first but there is help out there for

you to grasp the basics and move on from there.

Free or low cost computer courses

Get IT together Marius Jennings - 07785462568

Local Learning - 143 Lawrence Hill 0117 941 1711

Learning Communities Team 0117 903 9750

City of Bristol College 0117 312 5000

WEA at Barton Hill Settlement 0117 916 6500 / 0117 955 6971

Where can you use computers for free?

Trinity Road Library St George Library

Bristol Central Library Jobcentre, 442-450 Stapleton Road

Easton Community Centre, Kilburn Street Visit www.getonlineathome.org

Barton Hill’s Tenant Management Organisation Housing Solutions wins Learning and

Development Award at Bristol City Council’s Tenant Participation Awards

Up Our Street 11

STAPLETON ROAD ARTS AND EVENTS COMING SOON

**** Running until 1 January All-You-Me Nationz is encouraging as many residents and businesses (particularly Rawnsley and Twinnel House) to have festive lights in their windows. Let’s show everyone that Stapleton Road is a shining location. **** Looking for ways of cutting costs at Christmas? Need some ‘me’ time? Ladies go along to OSCAR, 256 Stapleton Road on Thursday 6 December, 12pm to 3pm card making and gift swapping (£3 donation). Bring up to 3 unwanted items and swap for something else. Natrahl Beauti Holistic Therapies will also be offering some wonderful massage tasters . **** Some say 21 December will herald a new golden age of peace, light and prosperity. About time! Expect some happenings on the shortest day and longest night of 2012. Digital projections will take place during Kwanzaa, a Pan-African festival running from 26 December until 1 January. Each day focuses on a different principle for example ‘Umoja,’ the Swahili for Unity. **** Let’s skip into 2013 with Family Double Dutch skipping sessions! Launching with a screening of Disney’s film ‘Jump In’, this weekly class is open to women and children of all ages, fitness levels and abilities. Sessions start on Tuesday 15 January, 4pm to 6pm at Newton Hall. Feel free to get in contact if you have artwork, photos of the area, photos of your native homeland, thoughts, ideas, concerns or cash!

Contact cleo@jahlakekoncepts.co.uk or call 07771825035

Have you seen lots of

pigeon poo on the

pavement?

Report it to get it

sorted on 922 2100

ADVERT Bristol City Council DESIGNATION OF AN AREA FOR

ADDITIONAL and SELECTIVE LICENSING Following on from recent consultation, Bristol City Council has on 8

th October 2012

designated Stapleton Road and surrounding streets subject to Discretionary Licensing scheme. The Designation shall come into force on 15

th April 2013 for five years.

Additional Licensing designation applies to all Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs). It excludes those larger HMOs which are already subject to mandatory licensing, any statutory exemption and those

subject to the selective licensing designation.

Selective Licensing designation applies to all privately rented properties occupied under a tenancy or a licence unless it is an HMO that is subject to mandatory licensing, additional licensing or subject to any

statutory exemption. Upon the Designation coming into force on 15

th April 2013 any person who operates a licensable

property without a licence, or allows a licensed property to be occupied by more households or persons other than as authorised by a licence or breaches licensing conditions is liable to prosecution and may

be fined.

We will be holding a series of meetings in the coming months with landlords and those residents who indicated during consultation that they wish to join a Discretionary Licensing Focus Group. We will also

attend acommunity meetings to keep residents updated. If you require any further information regarding this designation please look at our webpage:

www.bristol.gov.uk/discretionary licensing or contact the Council’s Private Housing Team by telephone on 0117 3525010 or by e-mail: private.housing@bristol.gov.uk or by writing to Private

Housing Licensing Team, Bristol City Council, PO Box 595(AC), Bristol BS99 2AW

Lord Lieutenant Mary Prior presenting CCM Chair Graham Donald with the

award

In October, Crisis Centre Ministries, which runs The Wild Goose on

Stapleton Road, was awarded the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service - well done to them!

12 Up Our Street

Let’s party! By Sue Mara

Even though the sun refused to shine, Colston Road in Easton burst into bright colour for its 2012 street party on Sunday 30 September. With bunting, balloons and greenery festooning walls and lampposts, and cars banned for the day, residents took over the street to mingle, play and party with the neighbours. Highlights included a delicious bring-a-dish banquet, cake bake competition judged by Billy from Café Joanna on Chelsea Road, and henna hand-painting and glitter tattoos. Also on offer were games, races and arts/craft for the kids, plus live music featuring Lumbago Trio, Miss Cecily, and One Star Awake. Who’d have thought so much talent flourished amongst us? And what a treat to see our kids enjoying the rare freedom of playing freely and safely in our closed-off street. Perhaps we should make this a monthly event. At the end of a wonderful day, everyone agreed it was our best street party yet. Thanks to Cafe Joanna and Chelsea Road Mini-Mart for their generous sponsorship.

Up Our Street on BCfm One Love Breakfast every

Wednesday from 8.45am to 9.15am. Listen out for your

local news from your local station.

ADVERTS

Up Our Street 13

Who’s responsible? The basis of neighbourhood management work is about residents influencing services to make them more efficient and more relevant to the local area. We encourage people to report problems and to hold services to account to make sure they are doing their duty to residents and offering good value for money. This can be as simple as a phone call or ticking a few boxes on a website and it can also require patience and determination. The majority definitely benefit from the care and concern of the local activists who demand better. When everything comes together it can be hugely rewarding and real change does happen. There are people who take the time and care enough to pick the litter in their street just because they prefer not to look at it and know that really it’s not worth while for the Council to send someone to pick up two crisp packets. Could more people do this? Are we too quick to look to the Council to sort everything out? After all, how does the litter get on the streets in the first place? For the rest of us who don’t invest this time and energy that the stalwarts do, is there more we could be doing to look after where we live? Public services must be transparent and responsive to the needs and concerns of residents and we need to feel we are getting good value for money, but as individuals don’t we also share some of the responsibility for making our neighbourhood a good place to be? There’s a simple equation – if we didn’t drop litter we wouldn’t need to

pay someone else to come and pick it up. What’s the answer? Do we just accept that dealing with litter is part of life and therefore part of our tax bill or would we prefer that money got spent on something else? For some people there was a time not too long ago when households took pride in the area outside their home or shop and perhaps gave it a sweep or even a wash (and some people still do). They didn’t own the pavement but they wanted it to be tidy and they did it themselves rather than waiting for some ‘other’ to do it for them. The state of the pavement outside reflected on them. Was it ever like this? Is this a rose tinted view of the past? It is true that we contribute financially towards this being done for us – we pay income tax and council tax and for that money we expect a certain service. But what if we all took a bit more care of a small space, what would the impact be across the whole area? We live in a densely populated part of the city and we face some challenges as a result. We hear a lot about pavement parking and parking on double yellow lines. This makes some of us angry and we want someone to blame. Often the first in the firing line are the police or Council. Why aren’t they ticketing these cars? But perhaps we should be focusing our attention on the drivers. When we know friends or neighbours are parking in an anti-social way could we ask them not to do so? Is there anything we can do as an individual or as a street to make sure it is safe for

everyone? Another complaint we often hear is that people don’t know something is happening or how to influence decisions. If we don’t know something is it someone else’s fault or is it our responsibility to find out? In our experience people find a way when they are motivated to do so. What responsibility is there on the individual to find out things that are important? In Easton and Lawrence Hill we are lucky. We have a neighbourhood management team. We have a newsletter delivered to 13,400 homes and 30 notice boards. We have a website, a Facebook page, and a Twitter account. We organise Forums and put posters up across the area. We flyer people’s homes and survey on the streets. We knock on doors and attend events. We send out text updates and email bulletins. We go on local radio and use the libraries. But still people say they don’t know about things, they didn’t hear about it, who told them about it? Or are we all exercising some degree of choice – if we don’t read the leaflet that comes through the door is that the fault of the people who made the leaflet or the person who chose not to read it? These are conundrums! Is your blood boiling having read this or are you nodding to yourself? We’re interested in your views. If you want to be more involved in your community, you have an issue that is affecting you and you have ideas for how to solve it we’d love to hear from you. Contact us on 903 9975 or stacy@eastonandlawrencehill.org.uk

Local artist competition: In the last edition of Up Our Street we met local author Emma Russell. Could

you design covers for E.J.Russell’s new books, a brand new series? The winner will receive royalties from book sales and get wide coverage for their work globally, as the book will be available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, WH Smiths, Waterstones and others. Artists are invited to send in their drawings and the winner will be picked just before Christmas. If you are interested, please email Emma to get the design specifications and get creating. Email myth_4u@yahoo.com by 24 December (please put ‘Local Artist Competition’ in the subject line).

14 Up Our Street

Fighting back against FGM

In the last edition of Up Our Street we mentioned Silent Scream, a film highlighting the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). We were lucky enough to meet Faduma Dualeh, 14, Rukhsar Mussagi, 16, Muna Hassan, 18, Ifrah Hassan, 18, Harpal Kaur, 18 and Susan Nzamba, 18, who made the film to bring this difficult subject to light, despite meeting resistance from others in their communities. “We started the project because some of us were aware of FGM but not how harmful it was. A doctor came and talked to us and when we realised the extent of it we thought we needed to do something” says Muna. FGM is defined as ‘all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.’ It is practiced in countries across the world.

Integrate Bristol Project Manager, Lisa Zimmerman, helped the girls bring the project to life. Lisa thought the girl’s plan for a film about FGM was a great idea. “FGM is very important and is not being dealt with. There is a lot of misunderstanding out there that this is a Somali issue or a Muslim issue but it’s not. We have young people from six different FGM affected communities working on the project, including some Christians. In Islam FGM is actually haraam - you are not allowed to hurt others” said Lisa.

“Very little is being done due to cultural sensitivity gone mad. This is child abuse and needs to be treated as such.” FGM is not mentioned anywhere in the Koran but the girls feel that religion is used to pressure young women to go through with the procedure because they don’t want to go against what they are told is a religious practice. As the girls researched FGM they realised it is about culture and not religion. It is part of a world wide culture of suppressing and controlling women, like feet being bound in China and corsets in Victorian England. Faduma says she feels that there is a lot of pressure on young women. “The tradition has been around so long. You are told by relatives that you won’t get married if you don’t do it and that it makes you clean and pure.” Rukhsar agrees “yeah they tell you it is religion but it isn’t and we want to tell more girls about that.” Like all forms of abuse many suffer in silence for fear of speaking up. Many parents are uneducated about the practice

and know little about the fact it is illegal or how dangerous it is. The girls also hope to educate boys so that in future the practice dies out. They are campaigning for better education in schools and for health professionals who are ill equipped to deal with cases they see. In July the girls organised a conference attended by 300 delegates highlighting the issue. At present there is very little data about where this is happening so it is hard to reach those who need help. Rukshar is certain education is the key. “If we know about it we can protect ourselves. More women need to be educated about it and that it is not in our religion and to be given the confidence and support to say no and stand up for themselves.” There is no rest for these determined young women. They are currently writing a play about FGM and other issues such as khat use and domestic violence which they hope to show at Bristol Old Vic next summer. To contact Integrate Bristol or watch the award winning film Silent Scream visit www.integratebristol.org.uk

Left to right: Faduma, Muna, Harpal, Rukhsar, Ifrah and Susan

Up Our Street 15

Sound of Sudan

Easton and Lawrence Hill are home to people from interesting and varied backgrounds. In this issue we meet two residents originally from Sudan. It is thought that the UK is home to one of the oldest and largest Sudanese Diaspora in the west. Sudanese migrants have traditionally included professionals, business people and academics, and more recently asylum seekers fleeing Sudan's second civil war. There are an estimated 1000 Sudanese living in Bristol. The community is very integrated into British life and many work as professionals and in the service sectors such as taxi driving and security. We met Mohammed El Sharif and Mohamed Makawi who settled in Bristol over ten years ago. Mohammed is married with four sons and works for the NHS as well as doing freelance training and Arabic translation. Mohamed lived in London and came to Easton to do work experience with BAE systems and ended up staying and is now happily married. Mohammed and Mohamed are both extremely active in the Sudanese community, founding The Sudanese Community Association, which plays an active role in helping Sudanese migrants integrate and settle. It offers help and advice to its members, runs

social and cultural activities and educates the British community about Sudanese culture and folklore. The two men also present Voice of Sudan, a weekly radio show on BCfm. “The show started as a platform to introduce the Sudanese community to Bristol. Now it is internationally recognised and we debate difficult political and social issues that it would be impossible to talk about from within Sudan” says Mohammed. “We also inform the Sudanese community about important local news.” The show is listened to by Sudanese across the globe. “We wanted to be able to give people a voice” adds Mohamed. Free speech is an issue close to both men’s hearts. “I was a journalist in Sudan. I came here as a refugee because the political situation was getting too difficult. It was dangerous to criticise the Government and I didn’t like the way things were going.” Mohammed made the difficult decision to leave his home to seek asylum in the UK which was known for its tolerance and free speech. Mohamed agrees, “I was very active in politics so I also came as a refugee. At first there were very few Sudanese people but the number is growing.” One of the reasons for this is continued unrest in Sudan. The country has been in turmoil since it gained independence from

Britain in 1956 with civil war between north and former south Sudan. Now the issue is lack of equal citizenship and instability in many parts of the country. The north is more influenced by the Arab world, Egypt and the

Gulf, and is the centre of political life. The south was more influenced by Africa. We call ourselves Afro-Arabs” says Mohamed. Tolerance and free speech are not the only reasons some Sudanese refugees come to the UK. As a former colony, Sudan has many British influences – there are even British style post boxes in the capital Khartoum! Another factor is language, as English is easier to learn and very useful. Mohammed and Mohamed both feel at home here but part of their heart remains in Sudan. “Sudan is a richly diverse country with around 400 tribes and 200 languages with a mix of political and religious views” explains Mohammed. By nature, Sudanese people tend to be honest and open and easily able to integrate. “You can not really say something is typical Sudanese food or music because there is so much diversity and we all look quite different” says Mohamed. For both men their radio show has become their mission in life. Helping Sudanese people but also giving back to the British community that has helped them. “It is our hobby. We enjoy doing it and feel it is important work and will carry on as long as it is needed.”Voice of Sudan is broadcast in Arabic on Sundays from 3pm to 5pm on BCfm 93.2fm. The Sudanese Community Association can be contacted at 38-42 Chelsea Road, Easton.

Mohamed Makawi and Mohammed El Sharif

16 Up Our Street

Parents push for more play

Our resident journalist Emma Russell has been out meeting mums in Whitehall to find out what they are doing to improve local play spaces.

Rehana Khaliq was widowed three years ago with two sons and a two month old baby. Most people would have struggled to cope and maintain their family life under the circumstances. Rehana however persevered, without other family and support and then went several steps further. She took a community development course called ‘Play In Action’ at the Limes Nursery in Whitehall. This course was set up by Bristol Learning Communities Team co-ordinated by Edwina Provansal and Easton and Lawrence Hill Neighbourhood Management helped promote the course with parents at the Limes Nursery. Rehana says the course helped improve her confidence and language skills and got her talking with other women. The aim of the course is to encourage children to play outside and Rehana’s children were really proud of her. Not only had she taken a big step on her own, she was learning extra ways to improve the lives of her children and meeting other mums. She says the course facilitators Louise Lyles, Emma Grant and Linda Priar were so supportive which led to her next step. Raising her family on her own, she wanted the best for them and to be able to have play time outside, but she didn’t just think of herself and her children. She thought of her community too.

Inspired by the course, Rehana went to Bristol City Council with the action group and gave a presentation to Tom Williams, a youth and play service’s officer, seeking funding to create a secure outdoor play space for children in Whitehall. She said she was very nervous of her reception and that she was speaking in a second language. To her delight, a letter was received from Bristol City Council confirming that the Play In Action group had been successful with their application for £80,000 for works on the Bristol to Bath Railway Path at Whitehall. It means that a safe place for children to play for an hour or so after school will be created by the Bristol to Bath

Railway Path, close to Whitehall Primary School and The Limes Nursery. What started as an idea has led to the creation of a play space encouraging safe outdoor play for kids in Bristol and a place for mums to hang out and catch up, bringing together the schools, Bristol City Council, local organisations and families. It is a real triumph of positive communication and collaboration within the community. It is also an inspiring story and an example of how one person can positively challenge and overcome grief and adversity, benefiting not just herself but her family and her community as well. Another presentation about the future play space was given in November by the Governors of Whitehall Primary School and The Limes Nursery. Rehana says the course and acceptance of her idea has built her confidence and she is delighted that her children and the community will have the opportunity for extra playtime after school. She also encourages other women to join the Play In Action group and bring their children to the new play area in the spring. Watch this play space. If you are interested in Play In Action contact Edwina Provansal on 0117 914 5475 or edwina.provansal@bristol.gov.uk

Free Steiner School for Easton? By Sheena Mapson

Most parents in Bristol will know that the city is going through a crisis in school places. But one group of local parents is taking matters into their own hands, hoping to create a new Steiner School that will be free and open to all. Steiner Schools offer an alternative to mainstream schools, with a creative ethos and multi-disciplinary lessons. Their supporters say that they provide an engaging and stimulating learning environment for children, but until recently all UK Steiner Schools have been fee-paying. However, the free school system, which provides government funding for new schools while allowing considerable freedom in how they teach, could change that – Steiner Free Schools will be opening in Frome and Exeter soon and Bristol could be next! “Bristol urgently needs new schools, and we all know lots of people who would love to send their children to a Steiner School if they could,” said Joe Evans, a member of the group. “We decided that instead of sitting round complaining, we should try to create the kind of school we really want for our children.” The group has a website (www.steineracademybristol.org.uk) where you can find more information or find them on Facebook www.facebook.com/steineracademybristol

Local mum Rehana Khaliq

Up Our Street 17

Places pressure worries parents

Since we last covered the issue in January, there has been some progress in tackling the issue of the shortage of primary school places. With new data being available from the 2011 census, the Council has better figures to work with in its planning for the future and has been successful in securing £37m from Government for additional places. From 2006 to 2010, the population of Bristol rose by 8%. In Easton the figure was 9% and in Lawrence Hill it was a whopping 18%. It is likely that we will see another rise when 2012 data is available. The Council has been consulting on its School Organisation Strategy which sets out how it will find new places across the whole city. One problem is that it is not easy to develop sites in the inner city, where space is at a premium. An added pressure comes from how places are allocated. Priority is given first to children in care, second to those with siblings already at the school followed by where you live. It’s a complex juggling act that is hard to balance and inevitably means some parents do not get their first choice school or have to travel further than they would like. The Government guideline is that a primary school should not be more than two miles from home – but two miles can seem like a long walk with a toddler! The Council has to look at the picture from a citywide perspective. In 2012 there were 29,760 places for 29,199 pupils – the Council met its obligation to provide a place for every child. However the spaces are in the schools which might be less popular or on the outskirts of the city, so do not tell the true picture of the pressures in our area. The School Organisation Strategy has the following

information about what places we have:

School Places Places 2012 needed in 2016 Bannerman Road 45 59 Barton Hill 90 74 Easton Primary 90 85 Hannah More 60 76 Millpond 60 62 St Nicholas Tolentine 30 36 Whitehall Primary 60 93 Total 435 485 What has happened in our area so far to meet the growing need? Hannah More Primary expanded from one to two reception classes. Easton Primary expanded from two to three reception classes.

Barton Hill Primary has ‘bulge’ classes where additional pupils are added as a temporary measure pending a decision on the size of the school for the long term. Plans for 2012 to 2016 Continued ‘bulge’ classes at Barton Hill and exploring expanding the building for more classes. Possible expansion of Whitehall Primary in the next two to three years. What to do next? If you have a child who should be starting school in September 2013, (if they will have their fifth birthday between September 2013 and September 2014) then you have until 15 January 2013 to make your primary school application. Most people will get one of their three preferences but the best way to ensure you get a place that you want is to get your form in on time and use all three of your preferences. Local schools will be happy to host visits and answer questions. More information about the process is available

at www.bristol.gov.uk/schooladmissions or ring

the team on 0117 903 7694.

At the time of going to press we were organising a meeting for parents who were concerned about where their children are going to go to school. If

you’d like to know what happened at this meeting get in touch on 0117 377 3638 or

stacy@eastonandlawrencehill.org.uk

18 Up Our Street

Neighbours watching

out for each

other Neighbourhood Watch is one of the biggest voluntary crime prevention initiatives in the UK. Essentially

Neighbourhood Watch schemes are made up of groups of like-minded people who come together to make their communities safer. Not only does Neighbourhood Watch help in targeting particular problems such as burglary, vandalism and car crime, it is also a great way to rekindle community spirit and improve quality of life. It’s about people looking out for each other, crossing barriers of age, gender, race and class to create real communities that benefit everyone. People join Neighbourhood Watch to make the areas where they live safe, friendly and pleasant places to be. It is about making sure that no one has to feel afraid, vulnerable or isolated in the place where they live. It’s about people looking out for each other. Neighbourhood Watch groups are owned and run by the people of their communities, not the police. So the approach you take is entirely up to you. It's more about communication

than crime. Communities where Neighbourhood Watch operates become more friendly with people looking out for each other and research shows they experience a fall in crime.

A recent example of a Watch taking action is when a man was knocking on residents’ doors on a Bristol street asking for money, saying that he had just moved to the area and needed money for the electricity meter. He targeted the elderly and managed to obtain hundreds of pounds by conning them. The Neighbourhood Watch coordinator sent out a message to the members of the Neighbourhood Watch to tell them to be alert. The man was later located and arrested by police with help from the Neighbourhood Watch. The police work alongside the schemes by giving help and advice on crime statistics, problem solving initiatives, and crime prevention. Neighbourhood Watch is run by the community - the police can help as can the Council, Victim Support and Crimestoppers. You may also qualify for a discount on your home insurance premiums if you are a member of a registered scheme.

There are only a handful of schemes in our area so it could be an exciting new development on streets where there are strong community links. The Neighbourhood Watch scheme could benefit your community tremendously.

If you want to set up a scheme contact your neighbourhood policing team on 101.

There is useful information on www.bristolnhwnetwork.org.uk

Barton Hill Settlement’s farmhouse development By Joanna Holmes

Work started on site in August to redevelop the farmhouse building at Barton Hill Settlement. The front elevation is being retained as local opinion wanted one of the oldest buildings in the area to remain in contrast to the many new buildings and because many people see it as an important landmark. The redeveloped building will be larger than the old version as it will go out a little further at the back and have a larger top floor. The building will be much more environmentally friendly and the different floor levels will be changed so that there is good access from a new lift. The NHS Children’s and Adolescent Mental Health and Lumsden Walker teams will be tenants of the refurbished building. This will bring much needed services into the heart of the community so local people can access them easily. The new staff are keen to work with Barton Hill Settlement staff and tenant organisations to look at other added improvements to services which can be made through their location at Barton Hill Settlement. The building programme is on track to be completed in May 2013 and we look forward to an entertaining opening event soon after, to which everyone will be most welcome.

You can contact the team at Barton Hill Settlement on 0117 955 6971.

Above: Plans for the Settlement Below: Construction in progress

Up Our Street 19

Event celebrates project supporting isolated families

The Bilingual Family Project was set up three years ago to support the increasing number of economic migrants, refugees and asylum

seekers in the city. It offers interpretation services, advice about housing, health and education, and aims to help families struggling to integrate into British society. The citywide project is based at the

Beacon Centre and is made up of eight mentors who speak Somali, Polish, Punjabi, Urdu and Romanian. Contact Frances Hopcraft from the Bilingual Family Project on 07941312154.

Church Road By Simon Webb

Businesses on and around Church Road - including Dig In and Blue Skies Photography - are

hoping to make their area look and feel more attractive through a recent successful funding bid. We want to get areas of Church Road painted and buy in small trees in pots to go along the road. At

Christmas and into the New Year we will put battery powered twinkling lights on the trees to create attractive night time lights. We will be

looking at putting planters in permanently along the pavements. We also want to look at cycling

provision and creating seating areas or places where people can socialise or people watch. We will be doing research which will inform a

bigger application for much more money to the sustainable transport fund in January. Ultimately we would like to set up a business improvement

district. Anyone wanting to help can find out more at www.facebook.com/WhatIfRedfield

Two local high streets awarded £10,000 from Mary Portas pilot project

Old Market by Paul Bradburn

We will improve signage to Old Market, create visitor guides (we already have a very popular heritage

guide), design and make a retail guide/website and several other smaller one-off improvements that will enhance the area. In real terms the money is not a

huge amount considering the work that has to be done to regenerate our high street so we are also looking at fund matching schemes that will make what we have

go much further. One avenue we are exploring is using some of the money to employ a place-making director to co-ordinate and help deliver the most value from our resources. It goes without saying that all we are doing

with the high street runs side by side with our Neighbourhood Plan which is all based upon the

premise of creating a stronger and more sustainable community neighbourhood in and around Old Market.

This endorsement of our work so far is fantastic.

www.oldmarket.org.uk www.oldmarketquarter.co.uk

20 Up Our Street

HELP TO A HEALTHIER LIFESTYLE

Health Promotion Specialists

Health Community Development Workers Health Trainers

Working with local people in our area to promote healthier lifestyles

Healthy eating and weight loss Get fit and active

Swimming, walking and cycling groups Understanding your wellbeing and health difficulties

Regular health checks Personal health plans

Help for people with long term illnesses Information about cutting down on alcohol

Support to stop smoking Sexual health advice

Mental health awareness Breastfeeding information

Working with groups and one to one support For referral and further information please

contact us at: Inner City Health Improvement Team

Easton Community Centre, Kilburn Street, Easton, BS5 6AW. Tel: 0117 377 1038

ROSEMARY EARLY YEARS CENTRE Haviland House, Great Ann Street, St Judes, Bristol BS2 0DT

Rosemary Early Years Centre is a nationally recognised centre of excellence on

your doorstep.

Do you live in St Judes/Old Market/The Dings/Newtown/Easton?

Do you have a three year old child? If so we can offer you one of our few remaining nursery places – 15 hours free high quality nursery education.

We welcome visits to our Centre. To make an appointment to discuss your needs please call 0117 9031467.

ADVERT

Up Our Street 21 ADVERT

22 Up Our Street ADVERT

Bethesda Community

Arts Cafe 138A Church Road, Redfield

(opposite NatWest)

Open Wednesday to Friday 10am-2pm

Good food for a good price Friendly Welcome

Wednesdays from 11.30am to 1.30pm Stay and Play £1

Organised activities

Kids Kafe

Up Our Street 23 ADVERT

Winter is coming – keeping warm and saving money – what’s not to like?!

Nearly a third of homes in our area don’t have insulation. This means that when you have the heating on to keep you warm this winter, a lot of that heat will be

escaping into the air outside. And with energy bills on the rise that isn’t good for your wallet or the environment. There is help out there for both private home

owners and renters.

The Green Deal The Government has a new scheme where you can borrow up to £10,000 to make your homes more energy efficient. The loan will be repaid over 25 years as part of

your energy bills. The person in charge of the energy bills is responsible for repayments (even if the property changes hands) – the debt stays with the

property not the person because it is the property that is benefiting. Find out more at www.greendeal.co.uk

For local advice and help on energy saving contact

Centre for Sustainable Energy on 0800 082 2234