London Global Climate Strike video: These young people means business - and it's not business as usual!

The sheer verve and vitality of the children and young people at Saturday's Global Climate Strike demonstration was exhilarating. I've captured just a few moments here and included a few frames of  some carefully disposing of their satsuma peel - just to prove how carefully they look after the environment!

End drug-related crime - Public Meeting: How drugs affect us and our community - Brent Civic Centre May 21st

End drug-related crime - Public Meeting Drugs affect us and our community

7pm-9pm Tuesday 21 May 2019 Brent Civic Centre Grand Hall Tea and coffee from 6.45pm

How can we stop the violence and exploitation caused by drugs? Have your say – make a difference 

Find out:

• whose lives are affected by drugs

 • how drugs fuel exploitation, crime and violence 

 • what the police are doing 

 • how mentors with first-hand experience can help 

What can we all do now and in the longer term?

How can parents help?

How can young people help? 

How can schools help?

How can policy and legislation help?

 Hear what the panel say. Ask them questions. Make suggestions.

 PANEL

•  Louis Smith, Police Superintendent, North West London
• Tom Sackville and Mary Payne, Brent substance misuse service
•  Danny Coyle, Headteacher of Newman Catholic College 
•  David MacKintosh, drugs policy adviser
•  Brent Youth Parliament member 
• St Giles Trust mentor for schools

 Organised by Brent Safer Neighbourhood Board

Have your say on health provision in Brent on September 3rd

To book a place or ask a question email brentccg.engagement@nhs.net

Young people have been missing in many of the  recent consultations on health as have parents of young children. It is really important that you have your say.

Brent Clinical Commissioning Group sent this message with the poster:

We would be grateful if could please share this information with your family, friends and community associates as we would like as many of those Brent service users and local residents who have not yet attended one of our Health Partner Forums to come along and enjoy an evening of debate and discussion about health and social care in Brent.

You will be able to share your views on health and care services directly with the clinical, social care commissioners and service providers who attend the event.   There will also be opportunities to work with us on transforming healthcare across some of the priority areas for people in Brent for the forthcoming year.

We need to know numbers attending in order to confirm numbers with our caterer for the hot buffet supper.  Please therefore either call us on 020 8795 6107 or 6122 or send us an e-mail to either of the following:  

Brentccg.engagement@brent-harrowpcts.nhs.uk or brentccg.engagement@nhs.net   

Grant offered to gather young people's views on health engagement

From Health Watch Brent

Health Watch Brent - Gathering Views Small Grants

Health Watch Brent are awarding grants of up to £200 to local organisations and community groups to help gather views on key areas for health and social care services in Brent. E.g.:

1. What services young people you engage use (doctors, clinics,family support services etc) 
2. The perceived quality of such services
3. How they can be improved
   

These grants can be used to cover the cost of engaging young people (e.g. via 30 a minute focus group). This could include room hire, printing, or even covering volunteer/staff expenses. 

The objective of Gathering Views is to encourage people to share their views via our Healthwatch survey.  Full details will be outlined soon. Please complete the expression of interest form to apply for this grant: http://goo.gl/Kq20DM 

For further information, please contact membership@healthwatchbrent.co.uk / 07825 215 652

Greens call for more regulation of tobacco industry that 'profits from death'

In the face of mass-lobbying by the tobacco industry Greens in the European Parliament are set to vote in favour of protecting people’s health by increasing the regulation of smoking.

Keith Taylor, the Green Party MEP for the South East, is backing Cancer Research UK in calling for strong regulation of tobacco products.

The European Parliament will vote next week on the Tobacco Products Directive. Proposals supported by Mr Taylor include increasing the size of health warnings on tobacco products and banning flavoured cigarettes.

Mr Taylor said:

Next week I’ll be joining my fellow Greens in the European Parliament in taking decisive action to protect people’s health.

I’ll be voting to protect young people from products aimed at enticing them to begin smoking.

The tobacco companies lobbying against this piece of legislation are shamelessly trying to protect their profits by blocking new rules that will prolong the lives of thousands of people.

In the UK 80% of smokers start by the age of 19 and more than 207,000 children, some as young as 11-years-old, start smoking.

We have a duty to protect the most vulnerable - our children in the UK and right across Europe - from the dangers of tobacco, which causes debilitating disease, costs economies millions in healthcare and lost labour, and continues to kill 100,000 people in the UK alone every year. 86% of lung cancers are a result of tobacco use.

Mr Taylor went on to say:

It’s no surprise that a quick look into the people behind pro-smoking campaigns shows that they are funded by the tobacco industry. ‘No, Thank EU’ for example is a front for the shadowy lobbying firm ‘Forest’ which is mostly funded by the tobacco industry.[2]

I hope that MEPs from the other political parties follow Greens in rejecting the desperate crowing of the tobacco lobby by voting for increased regulation of this industry that profits from death.

1)      http://www.forestonline.org/about/faq/

Competition for Brent young people to take part in Civic Centre opening performance

As regular  readers will know I have been a critic of the Brent Civic Centre since it was first planned, particularly on the grounds that it was too expensive and too grandiose at a time when the Council was closing half our libraries and other amenities and cutting jobs.

It is there now and I want to see it working for the people of Brent in the way County Hall and the Festival Hall worked at the time of Ken Livingstone's GLC adminstration: open to the public and groups and at the heart of the community.

I probably won't be able to stand the hype at the opening ceremony but here is what the Council is planning. It is a pity that this competition is advertised in the school holiday and closes before children return so the message is unlikely to get out as widely as it deserves:

The opening ceremony

We are celebrating the opening of the civic centre on 6 October 2013 with a grand spectacle of music, dance, arts and performance. Find out more

21 ambassadors for 21 wards

We are looking for young ambassadors to represent each of Brent's 21 wards at the opening ceremony.
The ambassadors will officially open the building with the Mayor and the Leader of the Council as well as feature in the spectacular finale.

How to enter

For a chance to win and play a central role in this historic event simply send your drawing/collage/ photograph or write a poem which illustrates:

"What you love about where you live!"

Please send your entry with your name, age, address and a contact number to competition@brent.gov.uk or post to: Competitions, Floor 4, Brent Civic Centre, Engineers Way, Wembley, HA9 0FJ.

You must be a Brent resident aged 7 to 16 years to enter the competition. Winners have to be available to attend the ceremony on 6 October 2013, as well as some dates during September for film/sound recordings related to the finale performance.

The closing date for entries is Friday 30 August.

For more information about Brent Civic Centre visit www.brent.gov.uk/civiccentre

Brent Central hopeful calls for Labour to embrace entrepreneurship

Sabina Khan promised something different as a candidate for the Brent Central Labour nomination and her  post on Progress on-Line LINK is certainly that.

Writing as a 'businesswoman and Labour activist' she calls for Labour to embrace entrepreneurship to harness the energy and creativity of youth:

There is another way to approach this. It involves making use of the third sector and social enterprise to promote collaborative working with communities to offer a practical vision for young people to engage in the world of work. By establishing a single national social enterprise operating across the country, funded and supported by central government, with the remit to help young entrepreneurs in turning their ideas, passion and creativity into businesses generating income and profit and a livelihood for them.

In addition this would support community groups to focus on developing young people as potential entrepreneurs. If a young teenage mother has a passion and talent for clothes and fashion, the community group should have the tools and support in place to spot the opportunity and encourage her to pursue her passion through the social enterprise. This government-backed enterprise would utilise the services of industry specialists, able to help and develop people and their ideas based on their own knowledge and experience of starting and running businesses. This last point is important as it needs to be a body seen to be competent and being able to ‘walk the walk’ in delivering in its goals.

It is often said that the best ideas and successful businesses arise during hard times.  Labour needs to position itself as the party of choice for young people by offering hope and a vehicle for their aspirations through innovative models such as this. By implementing this entrepreneurship scheme in conjunction with Labour's youth job guarantee, this will offer a real chance for everyone which breaks away from the idea that jobs are made only within the confines of existing businesses. Labour should commit itself to helping young people start their own businesses in this way.

There is only one comment so far on the article but the individual concerned seems to be well aware of Sabina's ambitions:

I can tell from your article you are a no non sense person and an Innovative Leader. Please take my word and do - become a politician. Britain needs people like you.

I felt the conviction, passion, attitude and strenght when I read your article and hope your idea can become a policy for the next Labour Goverment.

If I was eighteen years old or parents of an eighteen year old and you were my Member of Parliament candidate or your policy was on the table I will vote for you any day because I know you will make a difference to my life.

Schools urged to book for Brent Climate Change Conference

Free Invitation to “Brent Students Conference on Climate Change”  20 March 2013

Brent Council, in conjunction with the College of North West London, and Brent Campaign against Climate Change are organising a conference open to all students in Years 11–13 and Further Education. The conference will be held at the Dudden Hill Campus of the College of North West London, Dudden Hill Lane, NW10 2XD.

I hope you have already received the Climate Change invitation letter, sent by post on 13 December.

The aim of the conference is to increase awareness of climate change and discuss ways to lessen and  adapt to its effects. To encourage the engagement and participation of the young people, the conference will hold a number of environmental activities.

The event will also provide information and advice on relevant courses in Further and in Higher Education and careers in related industries. 

The conference will run from 10.00 am – 3.45 pm and be divided into three sessions:

Morning Session: The Issues of Climate Change

Short introductory talks and Q/A with a panel of speakers.

Lunch Session: Courses and Careers

A tour of the college’s Industry Week displays and an opportunity to talk to employers and admissions tutors. 

Afternoon Session: Tackling Climate Change

 

Supervised workshops exploring how students can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate climate change in their schools & colleges, or through participation in community and campaign groups.

                                                        

Free lunch and refreshments will be provided.

I would be grateful if you could bring the details of this letter to the attention of your staff/students and encourage them to attend the conference. Teachers wishing to bring a group should express an interest by e-mailing environment@brent.gov.uk by Friday 8 February 2013, with an indication of likely numbers.

We would be happy to answer any further queries you may have, please call 020 8937 5564. Alternatively a team member accompanied by a Councillor can visit your school to discuss the conference. We will be contacting you in due course to see if you would like to arrange for a visit, either to meet with staff or talk to groups of students.

Yours sincerely,

Davide Pascarella

Environmental Projects & Policy Officer