This initiative came off the back of a suggestion by Labour Councillor Emma Daniel, floated the suggestion on facebook and twitter over the weekend.
Cllr Emma Daniel
Emma said:“I think we as a local authority should be doing everything we can to support the excellent work of FareShare locally in providing essentials for those most in need. That’s why I called for the receptions of council buildings this week to be opened for donations to our city’s foodbanks and I am glad this has now been done.”
Further information about FareShare in Brighton & Hove, CLICK HERE:
Food banks now at Council Customer Service Centres
Brighton & Hove City Council is collecting non perishable food items in support of FareShare.
Customers and staff will be able to donate items at the Customer Service Centres in Brighton and Hove until Friday 3rd May.
Further information regarding FareShare in Brighton & Hove can be found at http://www.faresharebrightonandhove.org.uk/
Outcomes from last year’s funding by the Rainbow Fund have highlighted the value of grants to local LGBT and HIV community groups.
Working with Brighton Pride, the Brighton Bear Weekender and other fundraising groups and venues to maximise the money available to give out, community organisations such as GEMS, who work with gay older men in the city, have been able to increase their frontline work with men suffering from isolation and loneliness.
Robert Douglas from GEMS, said:“Firstly we wish to thank the Rainbow Fund for supporting us when we are in need of financial assistance as a group whose sole aim is to take older gay men in Brighton and Hove out of isolation. The gay community is getting older and increasing in numbers here in Brighton and Hove which makes our support group even more important. We cannot do this without financial help from organisations like the Rainbow Fund even despite all our admin team being unpaid volunteers.
“The grant received from the Rainbow Fund in 2013 has enabled us to extend our services and reach out by way of a new website and printed literature. In the past we have had to accept that we could not afford printed literature and used photocopy leaflets and cards.
“Now we can have details of the services we offer put into public areas, doctors receptions and with other Brighton and Hove groups. Reaching gay men in isolation has always been very difficult through lack of funding.
“With the financial help received from you we have been able to extend the services in the group to include more visits outside Brighton and Hove by coach. We can now give assistance to those guys whose only income are low pensions, the chance to go to swimming baths once a week for much needed exercise. We can now afford to get speakers to our group who can inform them about medical problems, social services available in Brighton and Hove and many other subjects to improve the health and security of our members.
“Without your funding we would have had to cut back all our services which in this difficult time of cuts in social services would mean a greater number of Brighton’s gay men being thrown into depression and more isolation.”
Robert concluded:“Thank you to the Rainbow Fund and Pride for your much needed financial assistance and hope you will be there for us again in the future as the number of guys needing support steadily increase.”
Paul Elgood
Paul Elgood, Chairman of the Rainbow Fund, said:“This is exactly how the Rainbow Fund can best support LGBT and HIV groups in our community. This volunteer-led group for older gay men is making a huge impact amongst its beneficiaries. Loneliness and isolation can often be as much a killer as ill health, with a dramatic impact on life expectancy. Thanks to our funders, such as Brighton Pride, there is a very clear benefit to the community through funding such as this.”
For more information about Rainbow Fund, CLICK HERE:
X Factor winner Sam Bailey performs at first class fundraiser.
Manchester Pride 2014 kicked off this years fundraising campaign in style by raising £9,185.88 for the Manchester Pride Community Fund at its annual event held under the wings of Concorde.
Hundreds of people from Manchester’s LGBT community and their friends attended to hear the winner of The X Factor 2013, Sam Bailey perform live.
The evening opened with a performance by Twisted Tubes, a ten piece brass fusion band comprised of current students and graduates from the Royal Northern College of Music, who surprised guests by emerging from Concorde itself and delivering a fun and theatrical set from the airplane’s steps.
Sam Bailey
Sam, who counts Gary Barlow, Sharon Osborne and Michael Bolton amongst her celebrity fans, brought the audience to its feet as she belted out tunes including her number one hit, Skyscraper and the title track from her number one debut album, The Power of Love. Her set closed with a standing ovation from the audience.
The evening was hosted by comedian Lee Peart, who previously hosted Manchester Pride’s Big Weekend in both 2012 and 2013. He led the crowds through a charity auction, which saw attendees bidding on a number of lots, including a VIP experience for 14 people at Miley Cyrus’ forthcoming concert at Manchester’s Phones 4U Arena, a tour of the brand new Coronation Street set at MediaCityUK and a Disneyland Paris® Christmas Experience.
The red-carpet gathering which included a sparkling drinks reception and four course dinner, plus VIP tours of the Concorde airliner, was attended by celebrity guests including Bruno Langley and his son, BBC Breakfast’s Stephanie McGovern and former Hollyoaks star Nicole Barber-Lane with her Emmerdale husband Liam Fox.
Charity patron and Emmerdale star, Alicya Eyo, welcomed guests to the event telling them: “Young people need pride, to know that it’s not only OK to be gay, it’s actually really brilliant to be gay.”
Mark Fletcher, Director at Manchester Pride, said:“What a night it was. We’d like to thank our guests for giving so generously and enabling us to more than double the amount we raised at last year’s Supersonic event that we’re able to donate to the charitable causes we support through the Manchester Pride Community Fund.
“Last year we raised £4,149 at our inaugural event and increasing this figure to £9,185.88 in year two has kicked off our 2014 fundraising campaign in the style that we aim to continue.
“The evening was great fun and embodied the true spirit of Manchester Pride: charity, good fun, local talent and amazing acts. Sam Bailey was breathtaking and got most of the room on their feet, Twisted Tubes and Felix Hagan and the Family were fantastic and ‘First officer’ Lee Peart tied it all together perfectly.”
Supersonic exists to raise money for the Manchester Pride Community Fund. This fund provides support for LGBT and HIV charities and organisations in Greater Manchester.
There’s much more to Manchester Pride than the Big Weekend and, since 2003, the festival has grown to include the Pride Fringe which encompasses a series of art, culture, heritage, debate, sport, music and film events celebrating the great diversity of the LGBT community. The Manchester Pride Festival 2104 kicks off this year on August 1 with the Pride Fringe.
Brighton & Hove Labour Party have launched their new office at 99 Church Road, Hove.
They have used the shop window to attack the Greens poor recycling and rubbish collection record in all wards across the city. Green councillor Ollie Sykes, is deputy chair of the Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee.
He has already admitted that: “There is no doubt that recycling rates in the city have faltered over the years.”
Peter Kyle
Peter Kyle, Labour Parliamentary candidate for Hove & Portslade believes that they can hardly cover up something which stares residents in the face every day. He said:“Nor can they ignore the statistics – recycling rates peaked in 2008/2009 and have “faltered” since The Green Party took over administration of the City in 2011.”
So what will Labour do? A Brighton & Hove Labour administration are promising to focus on getting the basics right – such as keeping the city streets clean.
Simon Kirby, MP for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven, is embarking on a bus tour of the constituency to hold constituency advice surgeries on a specially convened bus.
Simon Kirby, MP
Simon said:“I am always keen to be as accessible as possible to my constituents and my regular advice surgeries are one way I try and do this. I am delighted to be taking my advice surgeries on the road to reach even more people right across the constituency.”
The Kemptown MP’s initiative, in conjunction with Brighton and Hove Buses, is part of “Catch the bus week” which aims to highlight bus travel. Simon will be live tweeting throughout the day from @SimonKirbyMP.
The surgery bus will be on Madeira Drive tomorrow at 10am by the Brighton Pier and will be stopping at Brighton Marina, Whitehawk, Rottingdean, Telscombe Cliffs, Peacehaven, Saltdean, Woodingdean and Moulsecoomb.
Simon added:“I hope this will allow me to meet even more people and to take up cases on their behalf. I have met many hundreds of people at my advice surgeries since being elected and I always do my very best to help. Speaking to constituents is one of the most enjoyable parts of being a Member of Parliament.”
Nancy Platts, Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven has today launched a website and postcard campaign in an effort to prevent drastic cuts to the local fire service.
Nancy Platts, Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Brighton Kemptown & Peacehaven
With only six weeks to go before East Sussex Fire Authority members vote on the proposals on June 5, Nancy is urging local residents to say ‘enough is enough’ to their Councillors and ask them to vote to save the fire service.
Nancy said:“I am launching this campaign because the consultation exercise being carried out by East Sussex Fire Authority has been poorly publicised and is full of jargon.
“We have just five fire engines for the whole of our City and these proposals would take one away at a time when our population is growing and more properties are being built. Four fire engines alone are needed for incidents in high rise buildings.”
She continued:“This is a busy City and our local economy thrives on tourism and our many lively festivals, so it can be hard for fire engines to travel quickly from one end of the City to the other. We need more resources not less – losing one fire engine will leave us desperately short in times of emergency.”
All Labour members of the fire authority have committed to voting against the extreme cuts to the fire service but Nancy claims that Tory, Liberal Democrat, Green and UKIP councillors have either voted in favour of consultation on this plan or have expressed no view against the cuts.
To ask your local Councillor to ‘save our fire service’, CLICK HERE:
The manager of a Turkish restaurant in Brighton has been fined £260 after council officers found people smoking inside the premises.
Ali Cill, 29, manager of Ottoman Cuisine, in Lewes Road, pleaded guilty to charges of failing to stop people from smoking inside his restaurant, when he appeared at Brighton Magistrates Court last week.
Brighton & Hove City Council Environmental Health Officers visited the restaurant on January 10 following noise complaints. While inside the restaurant dealing with the complaint, the officers noticed that people were smoking and that there were ashtrays on the tables which were full of cigarette butts. Extinguished cigarettes were also found on the floor of the restaurant seating area.
The officers also noticed a woman throwing a lit cigarette in the hot ashes of the cooking area.
Mr Cill told the court:“On that day it was a client’s party and when the officers arrived, people were smoking outside. It was a private party.” However, he admitted he was aware of people smoking inside of the restaurant and was fined £120, ordered to pay £120 costs and £20 victim surcharge.
Cllr Pete West
Councillor Pete West, chair of the council’s Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee said:“We hope this prosecution sends a strong message to those businesses that are flouting smoke free legislation. In Brighton and Hove we will investigate alleged offences and take robust enforcement action for those businesses that fail to comply with this important public health measure.”
During National Smile Month, ‘Dental Hygienist of the Year’ Christina Chatfield will be walking from Kirriemuir in Scotland where she had her first dental practice to Brighton in Sussex.
Christina Chatfield
Christina is undertaking the walk to raise awareness of the health benefits of a healthy mouth, while highlighting issues such as mouth cancer, the HPV virus, diabetes and heart disease, as well as addressing the self-esteem of people suffering with dental anxiety.
She has been in training in Brighton for the last 6 months to get ready for her monumental walk which commences on Monday, May 19. She will be taking a route down the east coast of England, passing though Edinburgh, York and London before arriving in Brighton where she has her own Dental and Hygiene Practice on Queens Road.
All money raised will be shared between the British Dental Health Foundation and Heart Your Smile.
You can get yourself sponsored to accompany Christina on any section of the walk, or simply make a donation to recognise her amazing efforts.
For more information about Christina’s challenge, CLICK HERE:
Leading Labour Party representatives in the City have made clear their opposition to The March for England which is planned for Brighton and Hove on Sunday, April 27.
Cllr Warren Morgan; Leader of Labour and Cooperative
The decision to allow the march to take place on the seafront between Brighton Pier and the bottom of West Street was taken by Sussex Police with the reluctant support of Brighton and Hove City Council. In the past protestors were allowed to march from Brighton Station through the city centre to Victoria Gardens on London Road, which caused chaos and brought the city to a standstil. A counter protest is expected on Sunday.
Councillor Warren Morgan, Leader of the City Council’s Labour and Co-operative Party Group, says:“The March for England is seen by many as being closely associated with far-right racist groups like the English Defence League. Their march causes fear amongst residents and disruption to businesses. I have told organisers to their face that they should take their event elsewhere and are not welcome in our City.”
Purna Sen: Parliamentary Labour candidate for Brighton Pavilion
Purna Sen, Labour’s Parliamentary Candidate for Brighton Pavilion, added: “I am proud to live in such a tolerant and diverse place as Brighton and Hove. Its diversity is one of the factors that makes Brighton and Hove such an interesting place in which to live and adds to the City’s international reputation. Much of the event will take place in the Brighton Pavilion constituency and that is no place for an event which many associate with a message of intolerance and hatred.
“I believe many local people share my feelings and so during this week I am asking people to tweet #NotWelcomeHere or email me at NotWelcomeHere2014@gmail.com with a photo of themselves holding an A4 sign saying “The MfE is not welcome here because ….’ and giving their reason. I’ll be publicising people’s views at the end of the week.”
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