Tea & Social at the Sons of Rest – six months on!

In May this year, a small band of us got a few supplies from the local shop, and served some tea and coffee to a handful of passers-by in Handsworth Park. Now, six months later, we've expanded to serving upwards of thirty regular and new visitors every Wednesday with home-made soup and snacks, fresh fruit …

Conservative Governments – bad for your health

I was very happy to be asked to share my thoughts for the Green Party newsletter this month: https://greenworld.org.uk/article/cuts-health-services-are-cuts-our-health

Ward Plan

This evening was the opportunity for residents of Handsworth to develop a new Ward Action Plan. Going straight from work, from solving problems to hearing about more problems! The last ward action plan was written in 2018, covering issues like reducing fly-tipping and waste, addressing concerns around HMOs and exempt accommodation, crime and antisocial behaviour, …

Handsworth Ward Forum 28.Jun.22

Last night I attended the Handsworth ward forum in the sports hall. Half an hour into the meeting, there were 13 residents in attendance, out of a population over 12,000. I was a bit disappointed. I don't blame residents for not going though: It wasn't widely advertised - you have to opt in to an …

Community Connections in Handsworth

With Kalpana outside the Sons of Rest, Handsworth Park. There are community initiatives that take months of planning, multiple funding applications, steering committees, consultations, business plans and long evaluation. And there are times when you just need to put the kettle on... Today was our third weekly drop-in coffee session at the Sons of Rest …

#MentalHealthAwarenessWeek

We're all aware of mental health, so... job done? The thing is, being aware of an issue doesn't mean we're even adequately equipped to deal with it (see also climate, pollution, political corruption, housing crisis, cost of living crisis...) There's a dichotomy of meaning when we talk about mental health; we might mean health as …

Results

Let's be honest, there was never any chance of anyone except incumbent Labour candidate Hendrina Quinnen sweeping the vote here. The results in Handsworth tell a picture, and quite a disturbing one at that.. The total number of votes cast was 1,686. There are over 7,000 registered voters. 5,314 voters... didn't. Labour win because voters …

Eve of Local Elections

Some thoughts on the local elections ahead of tomorrow's vote: It is not a popularity contest on what you think of the UK government. It is about your bin collections and local shops and roads and schools and social care and parks and pavements and parking and buses and knife crime and street lights and …

Eid Mubarak

The years of COVID have been so difficult for everyone of us who wanted to gather in celebration. Now at last families and friends are able to join in important dates again, and so I wish all my neighbours Eid Mubarak.

Stephen Lawrence Day

April 22nd is Stephen Lawrence Day, set up in memory of a young man who was murdered in a racially-motivated attack in 1993. The killers were racist thugs but, significantly, the investigation by the Metropolitan Police was so badly run that the Macpherson Inquiry was ordered and found the police force to be institutionally racist. …