Fundraiser: Greek Music for Gaza March 2nd, Palestine Trauma Centre

 

Preston Community Library Fundraiser at The Windermere on Sunday 29th January

 

If you do nothing else this weekend turn up for this amazing Fundraiser in Willesden on Saturday to help our Trades Hall survive for another century of struggle!

 

 

 Brent Trades Council took to the airways to publicise the 100th Anniversary of Willesden Trades Hall on K2K Radion this week in a sort of labour movement Desert Island Discs.

Maha Rahwnji interviewed  Mary and Diane to learn about the history of the iconic building. Mary Adossides is Chair of Brent Trades Council and Secretary of the Willesden Trades and Labour Hall Society and Diane White is Manager of BBMC and bassist in band, Akabu.

 

Tickets include food and range from £5 unwaged to £20 general entry and £50 solidarity. Book HERE.

The  Celebration of 100 Years of Working-class History in Brent fundraiser  will be held on Saturday 15th October 2022, from 7pm till late at the Brent Black Music Cooperative (Theorem Music Complex). High Road Willesden. Nearest tube Dollis Hill,  Close to the Trades Council building.

 

 

Programme

 

Akabu - reggae band

Food and Bar

with contributions from

- Dawn Butler MP on why the Trades Hall matters

- Chris Coates, a short history of the Trades Hall

- Fitzroy on the Apollo Club

- Sundara Anitha on the Grunwick strike and screening of a clip from the Grunwick strike

 

 

The history of this amazing building

 

The Willesden Trades and Labour Hall was registered as a friendly society on 30 August 1922. The Trades Hall became the HQ of the Labour Party, but also of local trade unions. 

 

Through the 1920s and ‘30s, the Hall was mainly used for union and LP meetings with popular speakers such as Sylvia Pankhurst. In 1932 the local branch of the National Unemployed Workers’ Movement was given the large hall for 2 days every week and later in October, 60 of the 500 strong Scottish and West Coast contingent of the National Hunger March slept over in the hall. In February 1934, the Hall was under police surveillance during a meeting of 12 women from the Catering Section of the Willesden Hunger March Solidarity Committee. 

 

The Labour Party was still an active presence in the Hall and continued to organise larger meetings there, including on the Cuban crisis 1962. In June 1962, during a brief visit to London, Nelson Mandela was invited to address the Willesden Trades Council in the Anson Hall. 

 

When Willesden and Wembley joined to form the London Borough of Brent in 1965, it became the home for the merged Brent Trades Council. In 1969, the Trades Hall welcomed the London Apollo Club which became a famous London music venue, occupying much of the Ground floor. It is said that Bob Marley played there when he first came to London. During the 1970s until this century, the Apollo Club became one of the most popular reggae venues in Brent. 

 

The 1980s brought dramatic economic changes to Brent with major factory closures of well-known names like Smiths Industries and Guinness. The building became nationally known during the Grunwick dispute 1976-78, when a small group of mainly Asian women workers in a photo-processing factory in Chapter Road took strike action to protest their low wages and poor working conditioning. 

 

By the turn of the century, it was clear that deindustrialisation, had deeply affected the Trades Council’s base and income. The Society, which owns the building, ceased to be a registered. The Trades Hall and the Apollo Club are now closed to the public for health and safety reasons as the older part of the building is in a poor state. Celebrating the centenary of this iconic building and of its rich working class history will provide the opportunity to relaunch the hall and the Apollo Club to serve as a Labour Centre in Brent at a time of revival of the trade union movement.

 

Preston Library Fundraiser Party Sunday December 1st - with the Silvertones

Join toddlers for a sing-along to raise funds for Daniel's Den - Friday March 22nd at The Yellow, Wembley Park

Support London National Park City Crowdfunder to make London greener, healthier and wilder

From Daniel Raven-Ellison London National Park City Campaigner & Founder

After years of campaigning I’m excited for the launch of the London National Park City in July. It’s only happening thanks to the actions of thousands of people like you.

I am now writing to ask for your support again. 

Back our crowdfunding campaign

The London National Park City is a positive, proactive and inclusive way to help tackle many great challenges. The climate crisis, the extinction of species, air and water pollution, children not playing or learning outdoors as much as they should do, threats to essential public space and the state of our mental health are just a few of the problems that, by taking collective actions, we can make tangible progress on.

For me, one of the most exciting things about the National Park City is a set of two simple and powerful questions - “what if?” and “why not?”  It’s these questions that have underpinned our campaign from the beginning.

Set to London being a National Park City, the “what if?” can spark imaginations. What if there was more paddle boarding on our canals? What if my street was amazingly more green? What if there was more outdoor play, learning and exploration in schools? The “why not?”, when enough people start asking it, can create a significant tipping point where the imaginary converts into an expectation that delivers change. If London is a National Park City, “why isn’t there more paddle boarding? Why isn’t my street greener? Why isn’t my school doing more outdoor learning? Why aren't we protecting public space? Why don’t we have more hedgehogs? Why don’t we have cleaner air? Why not?”.

The National Park City Foundation, the charity that we’ve set up to help make the London National Park City a success, is currently running a crowdfunding campaign. I am hoping that you will be willing and able to support it before it ends in 11 days time. Time is running out and we need to get things moving. 

While we’ve led an effective campaign to make London a National Park City, we do not have the resources to scale-up our efforts in time for the July launch without your support.

For it to be as successful as possible, we need as many people as possible to understand what the National Park City is and how they can get involved. We also need to inspire thousands of conversations across the capital that lead to millions of actions that would otherwise not have taken place. Simple things like planting, playing, walking, swimming, cycling and sharing.

That’s why we are crowdfunding to create National Park City Maker, a newspaper-sized guide to getting involved with the London National Park City. We want to get these guides into the hands of influencers. They will also be tools that anyone can use to kick-start conversations with people in their building, on their street or at work. We hope the guide will lead to National Park City inspired groups forming in schools, organisations and communities across London and beyond.

Back our crowdfunding campaign

While the National Park City Foundation has been highly effective in our campaigning, we’ve always relied on campaigns like this one to fund our efforts. Even a small contribution will help us move closer to our target.

If we hit our crowdfunding target we predict we will be able to reach 1 in 25 Londoners. This could have an incredible impact. 

We have some great rewards, including murals by street artist ATM and bespoke gold leaf maps by Urban Good.

Individuals can get their name engraved on the London National Park City Founders’ Stone which will be located in a publicly accessible place in London. You can also get t-shirts, a wooden National Park City aster* for your window and we’ll thank you in the paper too. Why not get copies for everyone on your street or at your work?

Organisations are in a great position to support this campaign. Contribute to the crowdfunder and then distribute copies of National Park City Maker to your staff, service users or customers. If you do so at the right level, we will add your logo to our "thank you" page. Organisations can claim a professional workshop on how to engage audiences from theWholeStory too. 

Small community groups do not have the financial resources that larger organisations have, but they are just as important. London can only become a National Park City because of the work small community groups have done across the capital over hundreds of years. If you represent one of these groups, help us hit our target with £10 or more and we’ll send you you some copies and include your logo in the guide too.

Let’s make something extraordinary happen - please do contribute to the crowdfunding campaign today.

Back our crowdfunding campaign

Sufra Foodbank issues urgent van appeal - please help & join in One Tonne Fundraising Walk

From Sufra NW London

I have some tragic news.

After 5 years of loyal service, collecting and distributing the equivalent of over half a million meals, our lonf-suffering van has suffered a fatal electric failure. The cost of repair does not make it a viable investment. It is now destined for the scrap heap.

Our work is dependent on the van. It runs 7 days/week, 365/days of the year. Though it operates mainly within a 3 miles radius, it has travelled over 10,000 miles in the last year. Without it, the Food Bank might just as well close its doors.

Today, we are launching an urgent Van Appeal to raise £20,000 in the next 6 weeks. We must purchase a replacement in time for Christmas - our busiest time of the year. We simply have no choice.

So, I turn to you, to beg for your support. Please make a donation to our Van Appeal here.

The ONE Tonne Walk 

On Saturday 10 November 2018, we have a major food collection at Asda Wembley Park. How will we get 1 tonne of donated food to the Food Bank?

We will carry it by hand. 

To support the Van Appeal we are launching the most outlandish fundraising walk in history on Saturday 10 November 2018 from 1pm to 4pm. The ONE Tonne Walk will see volunteers carrying crates and dragging yellow bins full of food from Asda Wembley Park, past Brent Civic Centre and Wembley Stadium, down Harrow Road to Sufra NW London.

Along the way we will distribute Van Appeal flyers, protest against food poverty (with banners and placards!) and make a shocking racket with drums and trumpets.

Because we will #FightFoodPoverty.

We need YOU to take part in The ONE Tonne Walk on Saturday 10 November 2018. Please register here.

If you can't carry a heavy crate, you can carry a donation box. If you can't drag a yellow bin of food, you can hold a placard.

Or you can just walk in solidarity with us.

You may want to fundraise. You may just want to protest against food poverty. But together we will raise £20,000 to purchase a new van and enable the Food Bank to deliver over 100,000 meals every year - for many years to come.

Make a donation here.

Sign up for The ONE Tonne Walk here.

Together we can do this. Don't let the team down. 

 Mohammed S Mamdani
Director

'The Silvertones' Sunday fundraiser for Preston Community Library at the Windermere

Fund-raising concerts in Brent this weekend

March 30th: Haringey Against the HDV: The Social. No Permission for Demolition

Haringey Against the Haringey Development Vehicle: 

The Social. No Permission for Demolition

Thu 30 March 2017 19:00 – 23:00 TChances Arts & Music Centre, 399 High Road, N17 6QN

Haringey (Tottenham/Wood Green/Hornsey) is facing the largest attack on Council Housing and public commercial land of anywhere in the UK. This onslaught is opposed by the Labour Party in Haringey,opposed by Unite and GMB, and both MPs have called for a halt. Multiple estates are due to be demolished as the council signs a deal with Australian multinational Lendlease, a known blacklister. We know what happened in Southwark where Lendlease took the stock of council homes from 1,194 to 79.

Under The Cranes. A film by Emma-Louise Williams.

"Using the script of poet Michael Rosen’s documentary play, the film is intercut with rarely seen archive footage, much of which shows the locality’s commitment to social housing. As we hear from the famous – Shakespeare in Shoreditch, Anna Sewell, Anna Barbauld – alongside a Jamaican builder, a Bangladeshi restaurant owner or the Jewish 43 Group taking on Oswald Mosley in Dalston, we see past and present streets, parks, cemeteries and markets."

Q and A with Director Emma-Louise Williams.

Michael Rosen: Comment, questions and poetry from the award winning author Michael Rosen (ps his new book on Emile Zola is excellent).

MC: Ava Vidal: Famed Comedian and star of Mock the Week, Newsnight,Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow, Comedy Central's The World Stands Up, Edinburgh and Beyond and C4 reality show Kings of Comedy.

LIVE MUSIC With the superb Franco/Roma singer FLORENCE JOELLE and Band. A Truly excellent performer and a friend of Tottenham, who else could write an ode to the 29 Bus.

Campaign Update: Find out what is going on with the largest assault on Council owned properties in the UK and how we address it. Featuring Veteran Tottenham Activist Stafford Scott and other local activists and what you can do to help.

If you haven't booked you can still pay at the door.

Still time to book for Thursday's 'Rich man - poor man' Sufra fundraising dinner

 Sufra NW London, the largest provider of emergency food aid in the London Borough of Brent, is organising a fundraising dinner with a twist – which could see local business leaders and dignitaries including the Leader of the Council and the Mayor of Brent, served a tin of baked beans for dinner!

At the Rich Man Poor Man – Gala Fundraising Dinner on Thursday 23 March at Brent Civic Centre, guests will be randomly designated as ‘Rich’ or ‘Poor’. ‘Rich’ guests will receive a luxurious 3-course meal prepared by award-winning caterer Greenleaf, whilst ‘Poor’ guests will be served a few tins from the food bank.

“The event is an opportunity to highlight the everyday reality of those who don’t have enough to eat. Poverty is indiscriminate and in an uncertain economic climate, even working families find themselves unable to afford the everyday cost of living,” said Mohammed Mamdani, Director of Sufra NW London.

The event will be co-hosted by Asad Ahmad (BBC London) and Fatima Manji (ITN News), with comedy by Imran Yusuf, in the presence of local celebrities living in and around Brent.

“In the last year, Sufra NW London has provided emergency food aid to nearly 4,000 people. Despite living in a welfare state, there are so many things that can go wrong. In these times of crisis, we are here to help,” added Mamdani.

The event is sponsored by MyLotto24, Quintain, Cygnet Properties, Beta Charitable Trust, Sisk Builders, Daniels Estate Agents, Segro, Oakray and Print Express, with donations from other local businesses. This funding means that all proceeds from ticket sales will go directly to the food bank, ensuring that the service can keep running for the coming year.

Tickets cost £40 for an individual and £350 for a table of 10 and can be purchased online at www.buytickets.at/SufraNWLondon.

BOOK TICKETS

Grunwick Crowdfunder now open - commemorate 40 years since this epic strike

Preston Library Fundraising Quiz Tonight

From Preston Library Campaign

We are now working hard on plans for a new library in Carlton Avenue East: these quizzes are currently our main source of funds, and we need your support more than ever. We hope to see lots of you this evening.

Don't miss this great Brent fundraising event

 

This is always a great event in a stunning Willesden Green garden. I recommend it but have to declare an interest: I am chair of the Brent and Harrow Palestine Solidarity  Campaign which will benefit from the fundraising.

Fundraiser: Walk the Walk to enable Copland to Talk the Talk

The Anti-Academy Working Party at Copland School has organised a pub walk to take place on Friday 22nd November around London Bridge.

The purpose of the walk is to raise £300 to book a room for a public meeting.

Those wishing to take part should gather in the Old King's Head (King's Head Yard, 45-49 Borough High Street, London, SE1 1NA) from 6 o'clock on Friday.  The walk will start at 7 o'clock.

There will be a Dickensian theme to the walk as participants will visit some of the places mentioned by Dickens in Barnaby Rudge, Little Dorrit and The Pickwick Papers.

Places familiar to Edmund Burke, Geoffrey Chaucer, Oliver Goldsmith, Samuel Johnson, Samuel Pepys and William Shakespeare will be visited.

The walk will finish beside London Bridge tube station.

There will be a cost of £5 for joining the walk