celebrating international women’s day · 2017. 8. 8. · spencers and then went on to set up my...

Voice of the Burngreave Community

Issue 111 • April 2014 • Free to everyone in Burngreave www.burngreavemessenger.org

Story:Yiwen Zheng | Photos: Lisa Swift

Women in Burngreave joined inthe celebrations for InternationalWomen’s Day in March.

International Women’s Day on 8th Marchcelebrates the economic, political andsocial achievements of the past, presentand future. Its origins are rooted in thestruggle for women’s rights for fair payand working conditions, universalsuffrage and equal rights. It has beencelebrated worldwide since 1911.

Nearly 200 women celebrated on March12th at Verdon Recreation Centre. Therewere stalls, activities and workshops atthe event, including Somali dance,Zumba, henna, a live DJ, and laughingyoga. The women enjoyed delicious foodand refreshments.

The celebration was organised by healthworkers, Tahira Faiz, Somshun Nessa andShima Nazir and were assisted by AislinnAdams and volunteers who run awomen’s project - Feeling Good - whichstarted last September. It givesBurngreave women a chance to socialise,exercise, knit, sew and get health advice.

Local resident Ursula Myrie gave aninspiring speech at the event. Ursula, whoruns the Adira support group in Fir Vale,talked about her experience of domesticabuse and encouraged women who aresuffering to seek help.

“I have two daughters and we moved toSheffield to flee domestic violence. I feelbetter in myself now and I want to givesomething back. So I set up Adira tosupport single parents. You cannot livein fear forever. I say to others, ‘I found away out so can you.’”

Adult students from Byron Wood School’sEnglish class wrote about theirexperience of International Women’sDay.

“When we arrived there were lots ofactivities like hairdressing, eyeexaminations, facials and things for sale.We drank coffee and ate biscuits andfruit. We really enjoyed it there!’’Ebtesam Obaid

‘‘The hall had a lot of people. Womendid henna and massage. After that theyplayed music and some people danced. Ienjoyed it very much.’’ Dama Abdi

‘‘I saw someone doing make up, a ladywith books from the library and someonewith flowers and plants. I ate some fruitand bought a book for my daughter. Itwas a nice day, I loved it.’’ Dhua Shaif

‘‘It was great. We experienced handmassages, great free food and henna aswell. We also saw great hair productsand there was a nurse who checkedpeople’s blood pressure. Everything wasfree. It was very good.’’ Khadra Liban

Celebrating International Women’s Day

Burngreave women honour International Women’s Day: Supporting women’s enterprise in Fir Vale, looking after eachothers’ health at SADACCA, and inspiring the next generation at the Town Hall. See page 4 for full stories.

2 BURNGREAVE MESSENGER

Green City Action has a vacancy for the post of

Toolbank Co-ordinatorSalary: £10 per hour plus 5% pension contribution.

This post is part-time at 7 hours per week and isfunded until 31st March 2015.

Purpose of job: To enable groups and individualsundertake gardening and DIY projects by giving helpand advice, hiring out tools and equipment, toolmaintenance and project publicity.

Applicants must have experience of using andmaintaining a wide range of gardening and DIY toolsand equipment.

Closing date: Monday 28th April 2014 at 5pm

Interview date: Wednesday 7th May 2014

For an application pack please contactGreen City Action on email at:

[email protected]

Or by phone on 0114 244 0353

www.GreenCityAction.org.ukwww.facebook.com/GreenCityAction

Registered Charity 1095725

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ISSUE 111 • APRIL 2014 3

Next copy deadline: 14th MayIssue published: 31st May

Burngreave Messenger Ltd,Abbeyfield Park House,Abbeyfield Road, Sheffield S4 7AT.

Tel: (0114) 242 0564

[email protected]

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The Burngreave Messenger is acommunity newspaper with editorialindependence, funded by the Big Lottery,Foyle Foundation, Trusthouse CharitableFoundation, the Garfield WestonFoundation, the Scurrah WainwrightCharity, local residents and ouradvertisers. Registered Charity: 1130836

All content is copyright BurngreaveMessenger Ltd or its voluntarycontributors, not to be reproducedwithout permission. We aim to increaseand encourage communication inBurngreave. Each edition is put togetherby an editorial team who write articlesnot otherwise credited.

This issue’s team: Priya Blackham,Michelle Cook, Rohan Francis, SaleemaImam, Douglas Johnson, Graham Jones,Jamie Marriott, John Mellor, Lisa Swift,Yiwen Zheng.Proofing and editing: Fran Belbin,Gaynor Carr, Robert Shaw, Julia Shergold,John Steers, Muneebah Waheed.

Roof repaired

Now the scaffolding is down, AbbeyfieldPark House is looking out over the parkwith its newly-repaired roof.

This important work will preserve thishistoric building in the centre ofBurngreave and help security in the park.

The Friends of Abbeyfield Park are nowlooking for new trustees so we hopethose who care about the future of thepark will come forward and be a part ofit. Details are on page 23.

The Burngreave Messenger office is nowdownstairs at Abbeyfield Park House,please use the side door when you visit.

Changes to

concessionary

travel passesStory and photos: Graham Jones

Public transport is vital inBurngreave where over 50% ofhouseholds have no access to acar, compared with 30% acrossthe whole city. Even car ownerstake the bus to town or theNorthern General Hospital becauseof prohibitive parking charges.

Funding for transport – which comesfrom the four councils in South Yorkshire– is being cut by £8.3 million this year.Part of the cuts will affect bus passes fordisabled people and over 60s.

Passholders will no longer be able totravel for free on buses or trams before0930 or after 2300 on weekdays. Theywill also lose free rail travel in SouthYorkshire.

The FreeBee bus will be withdrawn onSunday 27 April 2014.

A 50p fare increase will be put in place onall community transport services fromMonday 31 March 2014. This includes theDoor 2 Door, Dial-a-Ride and ShopperBus services. It will be the first fareincrease in four years.

Child fares will remain unchanged at 70pa trip.

Some fightbacks

At the budget meeting on 7 March 2014,Sheffield councillors promised £12,000 tohelp disabled children travelling to schoolin Sheffield.

The announcement is a big success for allthe parents who campaigned against therestrictions. They told councillors the cutswere not just unfair, but a false economybecause they would make it harder foryoung people with disabilities to becomeindependent travellers. It would result inincreased demand for special needstransport.

The parents also hope it will apply topasses for carers to escort a disabled childor young person to school or college - butthis has yet to be confirmed.

At the other end of the age spectrum,around two hundred protestors gatheredin Barnsley where councillors from acrossSouth Yorkshire had voted to cut bus passuse. Plans for further protests include amass of elderly and disabled

concessionary pass users boarding a trainon 31st March, the first day of the cuts,and refusing to pay the fare.

Members of Sheffield Royal Society forthe Blind (SRSB) held a protest andlobbied Sheffield City Council on 7thMarch. Blind people are concerned at thedifficulties of handling change andchecking tickets.

Deaf people in Rotherham havecondemned the changes too.

A legal challenge against the changes hasbeen presented by Sheffield Law Centredue to alleged breaches of the EqualityAct. The Law Centre has asked the SouthYorkshire Integrated Transport Authorityto reconsider and postpone the changes.

... but even more bad news

First Buses will increase bus fares by upto 13% from Sunday 30th March. BenGilligan, Managing Director for First,said:

“We have worked hard to keep anyincreases to a minimum. We appreciatenobody likes any increase to fares but ithas been necessary to review some of ourprices to meet the ongoing challenge ofrising costs to our business. However wehave frozen a number of our fares,including all of our South Yorkshire-widetickets and all our month and annualtickets.”

First plans to invest £10m in new busesin 2014, following last year's investmentin 41 new buses.

New prices from 30th March

• NEW! Child Week Ticketintroduced at £5

• NEW! Child Day Ticket introduced at £2

• Sheffield £1.30 - £1.90 fares increase by 10p

• Sheffield £1.50 - £2 fares increase by 20p

• First Day Sheffield increases by 20p to £3.80

• First Week Sheffield increases by 50p to £12

• Student single fare increases from 80p to £1


Supporting womenThe Women's Group at SADACCA(Sheffield And District AfricanCaribbean Community Association)celebrated International Women'sDay by focusing on the topic ofwomen’s health.

Carmen Franklin, the organiser, said,‘‘International Women’s Day was startedto encourage women of all cultures andnationality to meet together, to listen toeach other, to gain confidence and toshare information and skills.’’ Chair ofSADACCA Women’s Group Myrtle Walkeralso said, ‘‘Women are important and ourgroup provides education and support towomen. Our members share differentideas and sing together. Our group has ahistory of over 30 years.”

After a welcome speech and introductionby the Chair, NHS Mental Health Officer,Shima Nazir, gave the first speech on theimportance of mental health for women.Then there was information fromCatherine Davis about Breast Cancerawareness.

Guests then enjoyed lunch while childrenfrom a local dancing school Romano Jiloperformed. All the food was provided bywomen from SADACCA Women’s Groupwho were volunteers.

After lunch, Christine Handley, who wasfrom SYBRG (South Yorkshire BiodiversityResearch Group) talked about theHarvesting Our Heritage project, which isabout how different cultures use differentplant species to make medicines. MaxwellAyamba gave the last presentation onEcological Therapy to inspire people toheal themselves with nature and exercisein the outdoors.

To finish the day women enjoyedtherapeutic massage, bringing to an enda successful and meaningful celebrationof International Women’s Day.

Inspiring womenBurngreave women took part inevents at the Sheffield Town Hallon Saturday 8th March to celebrateInternational Women’s Day.

Sheffield Women’s Network Chair,Councillor Jackie Drayton, introduced the

event which aimed to encourage girls andwomen to challenge stereotyping and tobelieve that they can achieve anythingthey set their minds to.

The event included a panel ofinspirational women including SuePearson, Chiwoniso Mukome, ElenaRodriguez-Falcon and Safiya Saeed, whoshared their life stories. Safiya Saeedfrom Burngreave said:

“I was born in Abu Dhabi in 1972 andcame to Sheffield in 1985 when I was 13.I learned English in 6 months, went tocollege, later I got a job in Marks andSpencers and then went on to set up myown business, Saf Saf Hair and Beauty.I won Cosmopolitan’s Ultimate Women'sWoman Award in 2007 for the business.I am inspired by my daughters and I hope

they see me being strong and are inspiredtoo.”

Responding to a question from theaudience about Female Genital Mutilation,Safiya said, “It is a cultural thing, somewomen don’t think it is wrong to use arazor and needle on a 10 year old girl.My friend in Cardiff started a campaignagainst the practice and I am supportingher. It is illegal, and men say they don’twant their wives cut. Education is themost important tool, and I’m going tokeep talking about it.”

Closing the event, Jackie Drayton,Councillor for Burngreave said, “I hopeyou’ve felt inspired by today and I hopewe will hold out our hands to help otherwomen in the future.”

Enterprising womenInternational Women’s Day wascelebrated in Burngreave in Marchshowing women play a vital role inmodern society.

Usha Blackham, the organiser of thecelebration event in Firvale Centre, toldus the event gave women the chance toleave their home and enjoy themselves.It also helped them develop businessesand boost their income for their familiesby having stalls at the event.

Jabeena Harif brought some facialproducts and helped women to cleansetheir faces and clear toxins through facemassage at the event. Some of herproducts were made of fruit which were

very popular. Customers could makeappointments for the facial service intheir own homes.

Hanan plans to open a women’s hairsalon so she gave free haircuts to womenat the event and talked to them to findout what would be reasonable prices inher future salon.

Jameela runs a beauty salon and awedding party planning service. Shebrought some perfume, candles and handdecorated flower vases to the event tofind out what women like.

Rashida did massage for local women forrelaxation and to raise money forPalestinian women. She also has a homebased business as a part-time job, calledForever Living, selling natural products.

Shahzia sold some household items onher stall on the event, such as jewellery,perfume, clothes and children’s shoes.

The event was an excellent showcase ofwomen’s enterprise.

International Women’s Day Story & photos:Yiwen Zheng


Service to be proud ofStory: Michelle Cook

Rashida Hassanali has been the lead professional inextended services at our local schools for sevenyears. Her post has now been cut, and she leaves inMarch. Rashida spoke about her experience.

“I feel proud that I’ve been able to help create and developopportunities for adults and children to achieve and contribute inall sorts of different ways! When so many of my extended schoolscolleagues across the city lost their jobs in 2011, the local schoolshad the foresight to continue funding my post, to enable thisimportant work to continue.”

Women were at the heart of this work. Rashida was driven byenabling women to return to paid employment or make valuablecontributions to the community. Women were empowered bythis training and then took various posts, some in thecommunity, and in schools as teaching assistants. “Our localschools are full of people who started out by accessing coursesand learning in the schools they now work in!”

Burngreave’s extended services earned respect citywide and waschosen for many pilots and projects as there was confidence andtrust. The government says that schools should be outwardlooking; they hold big budgets, employ a lot of people and have aresponsibility to the community. There is concern this will nowslip and they will become inward facing.

“I’ve been a strong link between the schools and otherorganisations for a long time and Fir Vale family of schools hasbeen involved in lots of exciting and innovative projects as aresult. I worry that this outward-facing approach will be lostwithout this post in the future, and that some of the individualschools will go back to serving their own school communitieswithout looking at the wider context.”

Ofsted has said that extended services enabled outstanding,exemplary practice. Local schools currently work together toprovide extended services so parents can access opportunitiesacross Burngreave and Fir Vale. Parental involvement is now

embedded in all the local schools, impacting on children’smotivation, attendance and achievement. Rashida is particularlyproud of strands of work of her team, making massive progresswith ESOL, family learning, employability programmes andcitizenship through Women’s Voices.

“Giving women the confidence to speak with their own voicesdirectly to those who need to listen to them is my greatestachievement, and it is those women I will always remember.”

As new communities join us, we face new challenges and itremains important that this work continues to the higheststandard. Rashida would like to thank everyone she has workedwith! We would like to thank her and wish her luck in the future.

If you want to know more about these extended services pleasecontact:

Firs Hill: Kath Hobson 0114 242 0109

St Catherine’s: Liz Smith or Tracey Samuels 0114 303 0381

Byron Wood: Smaira Sadique 0114 272 3624

Whiteways: Usha Blackham 0114 242 3169

Owlerbrook: Claire Shaw or Shamila Mudassar 0114 243 8611

Pye Bank: Zabeda Hussain 0114 276 0472

Fir Vale: Janet Lawson or Isabelle Galmes 0114 243 9391

If you’re part of a project or service and want to develop strategicwork with the schools, please contact the relevant head teacher.

Reach up for careers Story: Saiba Mahmood | Photo: Hajara Farooq

Burngreave based group 'Reach up' organised acareers advice day for young people at the Town Hallon 15th March, with support from Sheffieldr. Reach upis an organisation for girls, based on Verdon Street,that helps girls express their views, ideas and opinions.

The group invited people from different professions, including adoctor, dental hygienist, business owner, fire service and police

service, so children from year 8 onwards could get advice aboutthe career they are interested in.

A young volunteer from Broomhall, Ahmed Abdi, who isstudying at university said, “I would advise young people tofollow what you want to do and stick to the subject which you areinterested in.” Doctor Shadia Ahmed said, “It’s important to dovolunteer work, and not to give up even when things don’t go theway you had hoped.” A Special Constable of South YorkshirePolice, Abaid Hussain, advised young people to get involved involunteer policing or the Cadets; not only does it improveconfidence, but it also gives good experience and a stable basewhen applying for other jobs.

The organiser of the event Safiya Saeed stated, “This event was allabout inspiration and getting the right advice from the rightperson. All our guests are here to give advice and are good rolemodels for the kids. It is a city wide event but our main target isBME children.”

The local MP, David Blunkett also took part in the event. He said,“From my own experiences, I want people to have access toopportunities and do things that others think they can’t do. I wasdetermined to succeed and now I am determined to help otherssucceed.”


Admissions plan

on hold at Fir ValeStory: Lisa Swift

Fir Vale School has announcedthat controversial proposals tochange their admissions processare on hold.

The proposed scheme would haveintroduced ‘fair banding,’ which meanspupils have to take an ability test to getin.

In a letter to local parents, councillorsand other local schools, the schoolconfirmed it was suspending itsconsultation process on 18th February. Itwas due to finish on 1st March. Theschool stated:

“On the basis of the responses andagreements already received, governorsagreed with the Local Authority to putthe current consultation process onhold.”

The Council has announced it will be

reviewing the city-wide school admissions

arrangements. Fir Vale School said,

“This will hopefully address concernsregarding the ever-increasing number ofstudents in the Fir Vale catchment area,which by far exceed the number ofplaces.”

Parents of children at local schools

presented a petition against Fir Vale

School's proposals to the Council’s

Cabinet meeting on 19th February.

Local parent Nargis Rahmatullah

presented the petition, telling councillors,

“As well as bringing this petition to theCabinet, we are also making a petition tothe school. We have asked for open andtransparent consultation, which we donot think there has been. We feel theproposals will harm cohesion in PageHall. We feel it would put pressure on thecommunity. We do not think it is fair toask children to go through another test toget a place in school. Parents fromdifferent schools in the area are

concerned about it.”

In response Jackie Drayton, Cabinetmember for Children and Young Peopleand Burngreave local councillor, said,

“Admissions by ability completely goesagainst the Council’s approach. JayneLudlam [Director of Education] andmyself have written to the school toexpress our concerns, not just because ofthe impact it would have on Fir Vale butalso because of the impact it would haveon other schools and other areas in thecity. There has been disquiet from otherschools on the issue.

“I have written to the headteacher as alocal councillor expressing concern thatshe did not tell local elected members, thelocal MP or the Local Authority aboutthe consultation. I have also asked for apublic meeting on the issue.

“Fir Vale School is at the heart of thecommunity and local people want theirchildren to go there, and these proposalswould have prevented that. It is verydivisive.

“We are reviewing the admissions policyfor the city, and we hope all schools willsign up to the city-wide admissionsprocess again, including Fir Vale. If not,we can appeal against any decision tofollow a different admissions process.”

Story: Rohan Francis

Landlords in the SelectiveLicensing area of Page Hallattended a series of Councilmeetings in February and Marchto discuss the conditions of thescheme, which begins on 22ndApril.

At the February meeting, held insideFirth Park Clock Tower, around 25landlords met to hear a presentation byofficers from the Council's PrivateHousing Standards team on the details ofthe 'Standards and Conditions' document.About 200 landlords will now have tocomply with these conditions in order tocontinue renting in the area.

The document lists the conditionsrequired in private rented propertiesincluding the provision of safe andefficient appliances, home security, firesafety, kitchen and bathroom facilities,waste and rubbish disposal, energyefficiency and overcrowding.

Landlords were unhappy that someconditions would mean upgrading theirproperties beyond the levels required bycurrent law. For example, the Council

will demand all private rented propertiesin the Selective Licensing area areimproved to achieve an energyperformance certificate of Band D. Thisis significantly more demanding - andwith a much tighter timescale, than thecurrent EU target, which asks thatlandlords' houses reach the lower Band Elevel by 2018. One landlord said, “Thereis a huge cost to meeting Band D, whichcould be thousands of pounds. Why notset the standard at Band E and helplandlords reach D by 2018?”

Local resident and landlord, AhsanAshraf of Firvale Community ActionTeam, explained, “Whilst we all agreethat property standards set out in lawshould be adhered to, what causesfriction is where landlords are asked tosatisfy Council conditions that are notpart of the general law of the land.”

Similar concerns were raised aboutrequirements for landlords to providekitchen appliances with A-rated or higherenergy efficiency, which landlordsexplained would mean either buying allnew machinery or, more likely, would seethe reduction of 'furnished' properties inPage Hall, making life more difficult forfamilies on low incomes.

At the follow up meeting on March 22ndat the Vestry Hall, the issue ofovercrowding rules were again a cause forconcern. Housing officers pointed outthat existing tenants would be treateddifferently to new ones, with existingtenants allowed to have more people in aproperty. Landlords were concernedabout how they would establish exactlyhow many tenants were living in aproperty especially when familysituations often change, and how theseconditions might lead to discriminationagainst tenants with growing families.Officers said they would look carefully atwhat was expected of landlords in orderto meet the overcrowding conditions.

The Private Housing Standardsteam encouraged landlords to get intouch if they had any questions on0114 273 4680 or email:[email protected]

Licensing concerns in Page Hall


Evaluating mental health careStory and photo: Lisa Swift

Mental Health campaigners Maat Probe Group held arange of events in February to involve people in theirevaluation of mental health care.

The group is asking service users if they have seen any changes intheir treatment on psychiatric wards in the last 18 months. Thiswould show if training staff in hospitals to use de-escalation or‘Respect’ techniques rather than restraint has improved serviceusers’ experience.

At a networking event in the Vestry Hall on 19th February, theyshared their experience of campaigning with other mental healthgroups and service users. The Maat Probe band played upliftingmusic at the Harland Café on 6th February and at the SPACEScentre on Pitsmoor Road on 21st February. Members of thegroup shared their own experience of mental health care, whichhas motivated them to campaign for better services for peoplewho are in hospital with mental illness.

Maat Probe Group member Paul told his story to service users atthe SPACES centre, and about the campaign the group areinvolved in:

“With my struggle continuing I found hope with Maat. I spoketo others about my experience - the good, the bad and the ugly. Ifelt at ease talking to others with a similar experience to mine.Nerves, anxiety, tension, shyness are some of the things I felt.Slowly but surely I found my place with Maat. I found a voice, Ifound opportunity, I found hope.

“A new struggle has started, the struggle to stop people beinghurt, damaged and killed in the mental health system usingdangerous undignified control and restraint methods. We wantedto be heard, we wanted to be understood. We fought, we lobbied,we campaigned, we succeeded in Sheffield. Respect is analternative de-escalation technique which is more respectful. Ifpeople help us with our struggle by filling in the questionnairethat will strengthen our campaign.”

The group hopes that through their research they can spread theircampaign across the country.

To find out more about Maat Probe Group contact Otis Hinds atSACMHA on 07878 219 867.

Fundraising for

Kenyan schoolStory: Schola Cashdan | Photos: Rob Hindle

Firs Hill ESOL Level 1 students,tutors, families and friendsorganised a fundraising event fora school project in Kenya inFebruary.

A big thank you to everyone who helpedand Mrs Dina Martin, Headteacher, andKath Hobson of Firs Hill School, formaking it happen. More thanks to RashaHadi for designing the invitations andFaeza Scott for the cheesecake. We aregrateful also to Rob Hindle from the WEA(Workers’ Educational Association), thecourse organiser who supported us andattended the event. We raised an amazingamount of £700!

Here are the students’ accounts of theirexperience.

Story writers: Amal Ahmed, DekaMohamed, Fatima Al-Hidabi, KhadraYusuf, Layla Husein, Manal Al-Hamidi,Masarat Bibi, Nargis Shakil, NoreenKousar, Roda Oogle, Safia Ahmed,Samar Mohammed, Sobia Bi and Sobia Shah.

The planning stage

First we talked about the event andlooked at the website(www.elimuaction.org) to find out aboutthe project. We had a meeting to decidethe details of the event. We organisedourselves in small groups and one groupprepared the presentation to explainabout the event. Invitations were thendesigned and sent out.

The activities

People suggested different types of foodto sell. We also planned to have activitiessuch as beauty and makeup, hennadecorations, massage and hair styling.We had many other items like toys,books, creams and lotions, handbags,jewellery and ornaments.

Future improvement

Next time we will assign ourselves to dodifferent jobs and put someone to be incharge of each section. We will buycutlery and bags to serve the food and

have boxes for cash collection. In futurewe will also display all the items and puton the prices before we start selling.

How we felt

“On that day I felt excited and delightedbecause it was my first time to dosomething for charity!” Layla Husein

“We felt very happy after the event andwe think we did a magnificent job!”Safia and Deka

“We felt very excited and happy becausewe helped to raise money for the Kenyaschool project.” Masarat and Amal

“It was a lovely day and I got greatexperience of how to organise afundraising event.” Sobia Shah

“After the event I felt very proud ofmyself because I had done somethinggood for someone who needs help.”Noreen Kousar

“We felt very happy after the eventbecause we all did a fabulous job for thisnoble cause.” Sobia Bi and Nargis


Public meeting about Khat Story: Rohan Francis | Photo:Anwar Suliman

On 18th February, local residents attended a publicmeeting at the Vestry Hall to express their anger atthe proposed ban of Khat. The Government has yet toconfirm what date the plant will be banned.

Saeed Abdi from Somali Mental Health, opened the meetingfollowed by vice chair of the Yemeni Community Association YCAGamal Al-Hadideh, who said, “We want to discuss this issue in arational and democratic way. We are not here to promote ordiscourage the use of Khat. We want people to have their say.”

Local Solicitor, Saleh Alnoud, was critical of the process theGovernment had used to introduce the ban. “The use of Khat hasbeen divisive, and has polarised our community for many years.I'm not for or against a ban, but we live in a democratic society.Politicians have ignored expert opinion and done very littleconsultation. This has been forced on the community by theGovernment in a very undemocratic way.”

Sheffield MP Paul Blomfield was concerned about the risks ofcriminalising a previously legal activity, but told the meeting,“Whatever we think, the Government will proceed with the ban.”

Dr Axel Klein, from the University of Kent, had studied thearguments for introducing the ban and was sceptical about thelinks that the Government has made between Khat use and socialharm, organised crime and terrorism. “The Home Secretarywants to show herself to be tough on immigration and that's whatthis ban is about. However, a ban is not irreversible and I will becollecting evidence to show the failure of the ban to reduceharm.”

Simon Finney from the Drugs and Alcohol Co-ordination Team,said he had worked in the service for 30 years and had nevercome across a law change like this before. “This is new to all of usand we are concentrating on communicating to the public thatthe law is changing.”

Police representative Brendan Pakenham said it was importantpeople realised that the law will change and Khat will be illegal.The Police will be proportional and professional in upholding thelaw. “We do not want to see an increase in stop and searchfigures or complaints. However, if people are caught with Khat,they will be cautioned first, fined for a second offence and for athird time an arrest could result in a criminal record.”

Following the panel's presentations, the meeting heard frommembers of the audience who expressed anger and frustration atthe proposed law change. Ahmed said, “The ban was a systematiccampaign against migrants. Just like the ‘Go Home’ poster, it’sabout getting votes.”

A trustee of the YCA told the meeting, “Are we British only on ourpassports, or do we have rights as well? The Government don'tcare about us. Our well educated young people can't even getdecent jobs.”

Mr Hassan said, “This is our way to relax, like other people do atthe pub, and yet there's less problems than with drinking.”

At the time of going to press, Parliament have yet to approve thecontrol of Khat as a Class C substance. Once this approval hasbeen given, the new law will come into effect after 28 days.

Open up

Parkwood Springs!Story & photo: Neill Schofield

The Friends of Parkwood Springsare pressing Viridor, the owners ofthe Parkwood Springs landfill, toopen up the site much soonerthan they have suggested.

The Parkwood Springs landfill is due toclose in 2018 and be restored in 2020.Viridor have confirmed that they aresticking to this plan, despite the fact thatincreased recycling and incinerationmeans the volume of tipped rubbish hasdecreased. Viridor have to apply to theCity Council for planning permission fortheir new plans. They have beenconsulting with local residents, prior toputting in the planning application. Thiswill probably happen in May.

The plans include letting the public ontoa small section of the site and some

improvements to footpaths within thefirst five years after the site is closed. But,according to the consultation document,Viridor want to keep most of the areaclosed for many years.

Viridor want to keep people off therestored site because of the network ofpipes and infrastructure to collectmethane gas, which is used to generateelectricity which Viridor then sell to theNational Grid. The document doesn't set

a time limit but previously the companyhas spoken of up to 40 years.

The Friends Group recently visited theclosed Beighton tip, now called LindleyBank Meadows (pictured left), to see howthe restoration has been managed there.Capping of that site only finished in 2008but already the public have access despitemethane gas being collected and used forelectricity generation in the same way asis proposed at Parkwood Springs.Excellent paths criss-cross the site,including a section of the Trans-PennineTrail.

The Friends Group does not want thepublic to go onto the site until it is safebut we think Viridor should learn morefrom the experience of places likeBeighton. We should not have to wait 30or 40 years for access to this area, whichlinks the northern and southern parts ofParkwood Springs. In particular, we willcampaign strongly against any provisionin the planning permission that restrictsaccess until the gas pipes have beenfinally removed.


Residents support

Burngreave Library Story: Lisa Swift

Residents, families and childrenflocked to Burngreave Libraryon 8th February to support theirlocal library and celebrateNational Libraries Day.

Byron Wood Parents Group ranactivities for children, whileBurngreave Tenants and ResidentsAssociation and supporters of theSave Burngreave Library Campaignprovided cakes, biscuits andrefreshments. The event was alsosupported by Pye Bank Parents Groupand the Burngreave Messenger, and showed how important thelibrary is to people in Burngreave.

One mother at the event, Halima Ahmed said, “I have a child withDowns Syndrome, it is really important that she can mix withother children, so that we can increase understanding betweenchildren. The library is a good place for her to meet children fromother schools.”

Rayan said, “It is important that the library doesn’t close becausekids need to read and get books for homework.”

Idil Arab said, “I love the library because you can do yourhomework on the laptop, and you can learn a lot from the booksthey have.”

Keeping the library open

Burngreave TARA submitted a plan to the Council on behalf oflocal residents in January, which proposed fundraising to keepthe library open with current staff. The Council accepted the

plan, and this prevented the library being closed in April. SaveBurngreave Library Group are now meeting regularly to planfundraising activities. The library will continue with its currentopening hours until September 2014 when the Group will need tohave funds in place to keep it staffed. The group hopes thelibrary will remain staffed by Council employees after September,funded by the community and donations.

The group have said they will not be running the library directly,and will be working to keep it a Council-run service. SaveBurngreave Library Group is supported by local primary schoolsand will be part of Burngreave Tenants and Residents Association(TARA) who will be managing any money that is collected for thelibrary. Margaret Williams, Secretary of Burngreave TARA said,

“We are raising money for staff at the Library, because we knowthe library needs to be a professional service so it can help andsupport local residents and children.”

Library moves to Sorby House

Burngreave Library is moving to Sorby House in March and willreopen on the ground floor, next to the new Housing Office on7th April.

Residents have told the Council they are not happy with themove, but the Council said it will save money,

“Moving the Library into the building ultimately saves taxpayers’ money. The library and housing office functions are beingrelocated into Sorby House as it is no longer financially viableto continue to run them in separate buildings. Sheffield CityCouncil is currently in negotiations with Sheffield Collegeregarding the proposed use of the Burngreave Housing Office andLibrary buildings following vacation by the Council.”

Baby Time restarts at Burngreave Library, Sorby House, Monday14th April, 10-11am. All babies, parents and carers welcome.

Make a donation or get involved

If you would like to help Save Burngreave Library Group to keepthe library open you can join the group, or organise a fundraisingevent or make a donation.

Contact Burngreave Tenants and Residents Association07983 921 653 Monday-Friday 10am—4pm,[email protected] or the BurngreaveMessenger 242 0564, [email protected]

Or visit burngreavelibrary.wordpress.com to make adonation.

Fundraising events

Burngreave TARA Easter Fayre, Burngreave Vestry Hall,Saturday, 12th April 2014,12 noon till 3.00pm

Pitsmoor Adventure Playground Funday,Saturday 26th April, 12.30-4.30pm

A sad farewell to the Burngreave Library building. Thelibrary will reopen in Sorby House on 7th April.

10 BURNGREAVE MESSENGERPage sponsored by Sheffield City Council’s

Healthy Communities Programme

Health development course

In March a group of Burngreave residents completedthe Introduction to Community Development andHealth (ICDH) course, which is an accredited coursethat looks at the issues which matter to you and yourcommunity.

Participants learn about different views on health and what itmeans to them, they identify opportunities for empowerment,they look at building on strengths within the community, how toachieve change for health and developing skills for working withothers.

Course tutor Tahira Faiz said, “It has been an absolute honourand privilege to deliver this course in the Burngreave area. I amextremely proud of all the participants who have worked veryhard on this intensive course. I hope that participants will beequipped with the tools to make a positive contribution in theirown lives and the community. I wish them all the best for thefuture whatever they choose to do, be it further education,running their own groups, voluntary work or paid employment.”

Course participant Ursula said, “I already do community work inFir Vale through my charity Adira which I run full time on avoluntary basis. I am hoping that by doing courses like this it willsupport and strengthen any application grants for funding. I hopethis enables me to get paid to do a job that I love. This course hashelped me to become more confident, sociable and grounded.Tahira as a tutor has taught me the real meaning of patience andprofessionalism. She was understanding, diplomatic and sensitiveto the needs of the students.”

Another course participant said, “On the ICDH Course it felt atfirst like self-counselling which has helped me in my personal life.Also I got to understand people from different countries. I seewith different eyes now and I am more open minded. It has

helped me so much in gaining a better understanding of health, Ihave gained confidence and I have improved my health for thebetter.”

The course really helped local people to develop their skills andconfidence.

Students’ comments on the course included:

“It’s a stepping stone to further education.” Shaiesta

“I gained a broader understanding of public health and met agreat group of people.”

“I gained confidence to speak out. I found out what thecommunity needs and about working with them.”

“The course has given me confidence to do more coursesinvolving helping in the community and confidence to learn morehealth awareness and sticking to it to achieve a qualification. “Naz

“I’ve really enjoyed the course because Tahira has delivered it ina fun and enjoyable way.” Nieda

Health Experience Course

6 week course for anyone over 40starting: Thursday 1st May 201412.30 – 2.30pm at BurngreaveChildren’s Centre, 19 Spital Street.

This course will help to reduce isolationand help you maintain yourindependence.

Find out about the importance of abalanced diet, learn about how a healthydiet can impact on health.

Get motivated to ‘try out’ new activities,learn about opportunities for independenttravel and learn new skills such as mealplanning. You will also developfriendships and social networks throughthe course.

Pain Support Group

Tuesdays 12.30pm – 2.00pm on1st April, 8th April and then once amonth at Sorby House, Spital Hill.

Socialise with likeminded people and gainnew skills to self-manage pain. Includesworkshops around pain management,relaxation, massages and meditation.

Translators are available.

Everyone is welcome. The sessions aredelivered by Sarah Morrey and supportedby Page Hall volunteers.

Diabetes Self Help Group

Next sessions: 12.00 – 2.30pm onMonday 31st March, 28th April,19th May and 30th June atBurngreave Children’s Centre,19 Spital Street.

This is a chance to learn new cookeryskills, socialise and gain new skills to selfmanage your condition.

FREE service running once a month.

For all courses andgroups contact:

Somshun NessaOffice - 0114 213 259

Mobile - 07960 084 119Email: [email protected]

Domestic AbuseAwareness trainingwith Vida

For men and women

working in Sheffield

• Wednesday 21st March

• 9.30am – 4.30pm

• At Sorby House, Spital Hill

To book a place contact SomshunNessa, Community DevelopmentWorker for Burngreave.

For more information on

Vida courses visit the

website at:

www.vidasheffield.org.uk


Emotional

Wellbeing Service

changes livesStory:Yiwen Zheng

The Emotional Wellbeing Service iscontinuing to help BME (Black andMinority Ethnic) ‘isolated’ residents byemploying Emotional WellbeingPractitioners to provide a confidentialservice to address emotional wellbeingissues for the Pakistani community andthe Arabic speaking community (maleand female); primarily in the areas ofPitsmoor, Burngreave, Fir Vale, Page Halland Firth Park.

The team work closely with GPs in thearea. Senior Practitioner Rafieda Nabiexplained that the service has alreadymade a big difference to people, givingthem the confidence to follow their GP’sadvice and to take medication when it’sneeded. She also said,

“The community has seen that thisservice is really needed, and it supports

them. It is completely confidential,people can talk about their day to dayissues and know that they are talking toa professional NHS service. We havebeen able to help individuals, but it hasalso been life changing for the wholefamily.

“Mental Illness is something that canhappen to anyone, and can be triggeredby a death in the family, by havingchildren, by losing a job or byrelationship difficulties. You can get helpand this can change your life for thebetter.”

Emotional health and welling iseveryone’s business. One in four of thepopulation will experience seriousproblems with the following situation atsome time in their lives and the soonerthat people seek help the more effective itcan be.

• Persistent low moods or constantstress

• Ongoing difficulty in sleeping oreating

• Feeling anxious, scared, confused,alone or helpless

• Unable to cope with day to day lifeand relationships

• Difficulty thinking clearly or makingdecisions

• Hearing voices

• Very negative thoughts including selfharm

If you are seeking help or for moreinformation about the serviceplease contact Senior EmotionalWellbeing Practitioner RafiedaNabi on 0114226 2099 or [email protected]

Community Stop Smoking

closes and service changesStory: Emma Msigiti

Over the past five years, I have been employed asCommunity Stop Smoking Worker for Burngreave.Unfortunately, the Community Stop Smoking Servicewill be closing at the end of March due to changes inthe delivery of tobacco control in Sheffield.

My work has involved working with residents of Burngreave, Fir Vale and Page Hall to give advice and support to people whowant to stop smoking, engaging more than 400 people in one-to-one support. As a local resident myself, it has been a realprivilege to be able to help people from my own community, and Ihave been very fortunate to work with some great people whohave made this job an extremely rewarding experience. I would

like to say a really big thank you to all the clients who haveengaged with the service, and for those who have quit, a massive“well done” as stopping smoking is a major achievement.

For others who want to quit but haven’t made it yet, it’simportant to remember that each time you try, you will be a stepcloser to quitting for good. Although my post is ending, you willstill be able to access support from the citywide Smoke FreeService (the contact details and local clinics are listed below).

Another important aspect of my job has been liaising with localschools, community groups and other local partner organisationsto deliver workshops, training, and information sessions. Manythanks to all local colleagues and the Burngreave Health Networkfor supporting and promoting the Community Stop SmokingService.

Stop Smoking support from April

For local Stop Smoking Support, drop in to see a trained stopsmoking adviser at:

• Pitsmoor Surgery, 151 Burngreave Road S3 9DL*

• Swift Pharmacy, 1 Gower Street S4 7HA

• Upwell Street Surgery, 93 Upwell Street S4 8AN*

• Wicker Pharmacy, 55-59 The Wicker S3 8HT

*please note that advisers in practices can only supportregistered patients

Alternatively, you can call into the city centre drop-in service atSheffield Quit Stop, 39 Charles Street S1 2HU, just off PinstoneStreet.

For further information call Sheffield Stop SmokingService on 0800 0684490, visit the websitewww.sheffieldstopsmoking.org.uk or go to the Facebookpage NHSSmokefreeSheffield.

Rafieda Nabi Abdul Razak


Trip to the DeepStory: Amirah Rizam, Asma Haybe,Farrida El-mansoob, Hero Aziz, Nura Ali andFarhia Ali | Photo: Smaira Sadique

On 25th February, during the halfterm week, ESOL students atByron Wood went on a trip to Hull.Here is the Entry 3 studentsaccount of the day:

We went to the Deep aquarium in Hullwith the children. It was a school trip andwe travelled in two coaches. We boughttickets from Byron Wood Primary School.We left Sheffield at nine o’clock andarrived there in one and a half hours.

When we arrived we walked around theDeep and we looked at different fish.They were so beautiful. We took lots ofphotos. There were many differentactivities for the children, for exampleface painting, drawing and carving fishfrom wood. They watched the fish andsaw divers feeding them in the water.

We had a talk about fish and the activitiesthat happen there. Some of the sea lifethat we saw were jellyfish, sharks,clownfish and many more. We enjoyedthe view because we could see the oceanfrom the restaurant windows.

The people who work in the Deep are verynice and friendly. We loved it. It was anamazing trip. The children were so happywe hope to go back again. We wouldrecommend it to anyone. It’s a lovelyplace to go to with your family or friends.

Children at VerdonYouth Club werepractising their roadsafety skills at halfterm.

Road Safety officer, KayleyTaylor, showed childrenhow they should cross theroad, using the Stop, Lookand Listen routine.

Verdon Recreation CentreYouth Club is changing itsopening days to Mondayand Wednesday 4.00pm-5.45pm. The club is for 8to 16 year olds and is runby Burngreave Tenantsand Residents Association.

Climbing challengeStory:Anthony Stevens

On 24th February, Christ Church Pitsmoor and StPeter’s Ellesmere took 20 young people tochallenge themselves at Awesome WallsSheffield, near Petre Street.

The instructors were really friendly and pushed the youngpeople to try many different styles of climbing. The hourflew by, afterwards the young people chatted for agesabout how much they enjoy challenging each other. Theywent back to St Peter’s for drinks, snacks and games.Young people said they enjoyed trying something theyhave not done before.

Make-up

volunteerLocal resident Nawar Adel Alwai,volunteered for a make-up masterclasswith celebrity make-upartist Nina Ubhi inFebruary, as part of aweek of workshops forSheffield Collegestudents.

Road safety at VerdonPhoto: Kyla Galloway


Fir Vale School

Story & photos: Seema Ghazal

On World Book Day Fir Valesecondary school had anoutstanding time: games inthe Learning Resource Centre,Stop, Drop, and Read.

The Learning Resource Centre gavelollipops, signed books and stickers to thestudents, who borrowed more books thanthey normally would.

I interviewed an Y9 student called UmayrHussain who seemed to enjoy reading inschool and also outside of school.

Who is your favourite author and why?

Rick Riordan. I started reading his booksfrom Y4, his stories are fantasies butseem so real. He is very inspiring. If you

read his book or even the blurb you willthink that ‘I have to find out whathappens next’. In other words, it’s a realpage-turner.

What was the last book you read? Anddid you enjoy it?

I read the book Card Turner. I enjoyed itbecause there were a lot of mysteries thatgot solved but in a very tragic way. It alsohad a lot of suspense which made mewant to carry on reading.

Would you say you were a book worm?

Yes, because I am always reading booksor I will be reading Naruto on thecomputer. If I am reading The HungerGames I like to carry on reading till Ifinish the book and move onto the nextsequel. If I read at home, I feel like I amin my own world and I am having thesame adventures the character in thebook is experiencing.

Firs Hill School

Story: Kath Hobson

On Thursday 6th March childrenand staff at Firs Hill dressed astheir favourite book charactersand paraded round the hall in afashion show so everyone couldsee each other’s fantasticcostumes.

The children have been writing reviewsabout their favourite books in the halfterm holiday. The school council judgedthe best ones and they won a £5 bookvoucher. Also the best dressed in eachyear group won a prize.

Year 2 teacher Mr Simpson was dressedas Willy Wonka and won a box ofchocolates!

In KS2 some of the characters includedwitches, crocodiles, rabbits, Superman,clowns and lots of other colourfulcharacters.

Fantastic show at Owler Brook Primary School

Staff put on a fantastic show for the pupils of Owler Brook with a storytimeshow which featured lots of familiar book characters.

The children were in panto mode thanks to the play written by Richard Bradford andLinda Lawrie-Kelly from the Manor Operatic Society. There was lots of singing anddancing and plenty of fun for both staff and pupils.

World Book Day

St Catherine’s School

Haleema Kabir in Y6 with her favouritebook and the review she wrote.

St Catherine’s School joined in the WorldBook Day celebrations, and childrendressed up as their favourite characters.


Anne Gilbert

turns 100Story: Elizabeth & Gordon ShawPhoto: John Mellor

Anne celebrated her 100thBirthday on 15th March and wewent to her home to talk abouther life. She received so manycards that there were just toomany to display them all at once.

One of the cards bears a photograph ofthe Queen; no prizes for guessing whosent that one! The biggest card is an A3sized hand made design done by her greatgranddaughter, who is in the Brownies.The card is well designed, neat andindividual; Anne is clearly very pleasedwith it.

Anne was born and grew up in one of thefarm cottages at Manor Castle. She leftschool in March 1928, aged 14 years. Hermother had just had a baby and wasconfined to bed for 3 weeks. Anne wasneeded to help at home. In September ofthat year she started work as an errandgirl at a dry cleaners’ on Leopold Street.In an upstairs room the clothes werepacked in big baskets ready to send bytrain to Liverpool for the dry cleaningprocess. She carried on working for thesame company and eventually became arelief manageress travelling to Worksopand Derby to cover for staff on holiday.

Since the age of 17, Anne has been amember of All Saints Church (now StPeter’s) on Lyons Street, attendingSunday services and taking part in manyof the social activities attached to the

church. Besides the Girl Guides, whichshe had joined in 1923 as a Brownie, shementioned a football club, civic group,operatic events, tennis and swimming. Iasked if she had taken part in any of thedrama productions she said, “No, morebehind the scenes sort of thing.” She wassecretary of the Tennis Club and playedregularly on courts belonging to a privateschool, Oakwood, on Norwood Road, andalso on one of the two courts at CrabtreeLodge. Friday night was swimming clubat the baths on Sutherland Road followedup with a penny’orth of chips from thechip shop opposite or a 1d Hovis loaffrom the bakery.

It was through the church that Anne mether husband Wilf, a Precision Engineer,and they were married in All SaintsChurch on 16th December 1939. Thecouple moved in with Wilf’s mother andlived on Lyons Street where they broughtup their four children, Jim, John, Pat andTony. “It was very busy, there werealways people coming about the church,or the Scouts or Brownies.”

In 1951 Anne took over a draper’s shop onPetre Street. There were quite a fewshops together, several butchers’ shopsone of them next door to her,hairdressers’, cobblers’, newsagents’ andfish and chip shops. I asked Anne whatsort of things she sold in the shop,“cottons, wool, knitting needles, sheets,clothes and I knew all the customers.They came in regularly and could pay forthings weekly.”

As well as attending the church servicesand attached activities, Anne also helpedto clean the church. She told of thedamage done to the church in the gale inthe early 1960s. “There were over athousand tiles came off the roof and a lotof dirt came in.”

For nine years she worked as a HomeHelp before retiring at the age of 65. Itwas during this time that her husbanddied. She took one week off and thenreturned to work. She went from one jobto the next on foot. One day a regularcancelled at short notice and so Anne wassent over to Halifax Road on foot only tofind when she got there that she had tocollect some washing to take to SoutheyGreen Laundry!

Clearly Anne has had a very active life –tennis, swimming, walking. She did yogafor 16 years and is currently attending aweekly class doing a half hour of carpetbowls plus a half hour of chairobics. Shehas been a member of the Girl Guidemovement for 91 years, as Brownie,Guide, Helper, Leader and is now part ofthe Trefoil Guild. She is enjoying everybit of it. However, she laments the factthat there is a waiting list of girls wantingto join but there are not enough adultvolunteers willing to run the groups.

St James annual feastStory & photo: Graham Jones

On 4th March, St James Church Lunch Club held theirannual feast. Apart from the usual attendees andsupporters, a number of close friends and familymembers came along too.

The excellent meal was provided by outside caterers, giving theregular volunteer cooking team a well deserved break. Apartfrom the food, everyone enjoyed the friendly atmosphere andbeing in a happy group.

Long lost

friendsWensley resident,Surtag Hack, was foundby an old friendthrough a story on theMessenger website.

Carol Fardoe was looking for Ms Hack after they lost touch over40 years ago. “I knew Surtag in Yemen in the early 1960s when Iwas about 12 years old. Even after we left we stayed in touch andsaw each other in London. We lost touch but I had always wantedto contact Surtag again. I saw her story on the Messengerwebsite, so I looked up her address and wrote her a letter.”

Ms Hack told the Messenger, “I was overjoyed to receive a letterfrom Carol, including old photos of us both, and recent ones ofher family. Carol remembered each one of our family. When wewere teenagers in Yemen we would go to each other’s houses, wemade smoothies and we had a little club. Thanks so much to theMessenger for bringing us together after all these years.”


Youth Councillor Daanyaal AlamFir Vale student DaanyaalAlam, has been voted in asa Youth Councillor for theNorth of Sheffield for 2014.

Daanyaal will help to decidecouncil policies that affect theNorth of Sheffield. YouthCouncillors are consulted byvarious council departments onpolicies that affect young peopleand can make the role as variedas they want to. Daanyaal willalso sit on the local Youth Forum.

He will be in this role for one yearand then in February 2015 therewill be elections for the whole of the Youth Cabinet.

Tree planting at Fir ValeLocal children from Fir Vale School planted five newtrees on Wednesday 5th March on Earl Marshal Road,with help from Burngreave councillors .

This will create an avenue of sweet chestnut trees along EarlMarshal Road. The children will also help create an edible gardenfor residents of Crabtree Grange sheltered housing.

For more information please contact Angus Hunter,Community Forestry Officer on 0114 250 0500.

Parkwood OFSTED SuccessStory: Priya Blackham

Parkwood Academy is celebrating their successfollowing their OFSTED inspection in January 2014.

They were awarded a ‘Good’ OFSTED rating overall and also inthe achievement of pupils, the quality of teaching, the behaviourand safety of pupils and in leadership and management.Parkwood has improved as they were previously rated‘satisfactory.’

What does a ‘good’ rating actually mean? It means the schooleffectively provides for all its pupils’ needs and ensures its pupilsare well prepared for their next stage of education, training oremployment.

OFSTED believes, “the academy has improved its effectivenesssignificantly since the previous inspection,” and praised thecombined efforts of “effective leaders, governors and sponsors;committed and capable staff and the students’ own positiveattitudes to learning.” OFSTED even stated: “Elements, such assenior leadership, are outstanding.”

OFSTED was impressed with how improvement has been madein certain areas that were seen as areas to improve at the previousinspection. For example, there has been a ‘major’ improvementin the achievement in mathematics and in the provision forstudents new to the English language. Students at ParkwoodAcademy with special educational needs, who are supported bythe pupil premium, and students from minority ethnic heritagesare said to make better progress than children in other schoolsnationally.

The future for Parkwood Academy looks positive as OFSTED hassaid the rising trend in the last three years “is set to continue.”

Oromo

Language

SchoolThe UN InternationalMother LanguageDay was on 22ndFebruary 2014 and the Oromo community celebratedat SADACCA.

The Oromo language is spoken in the Horn of Africa – in parts ofEthiopia, Kenya and Somalia. Badasso Safawo, chair of theSheffield Oromo Community Association spoke of plans to startthe Sheffield Oromo language school. Two teachers will provide 2hours of teaching in Oromo and children will learn language,history and maths and get help with homework.

Precious wins

design prizePye Bank student, PreciousBryan, won 1st place in theHorrid Henry designcompetition she entered lastOctober.

Precious designed a hat for acharacter from the Horrid Henry TVcartoon. The best designs will befeatured in a brand new episode ofHorrid Henry this year!

Precious received a goody bag, congratulations card andcertificate and her family are really proud.


Hope Community

Allotment projectStory & photo:Yiwen Zheng

Hope Community Allotmentproject is a practical projecthelping people with mentalproblems, while also appealing topeople who like gardening andvolunteering. The project wasstarted by Andrea Hardy ten yearsago.

The chairman of this project, Phil, said heoriginally began to work for the projectbecause he suffered an aneurysmalsubarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) tenyears ago. SAH occurs when blood leaksinto the space between two of themembranes that surround the brain. Itcan cause a stroke. After fighting thisdisease for five years, he joined theproject to do more exercise to improve hishealth. The project provides tools, seeds,compost and training.

Sheena Clark, the organiser, said, ‘‘thevolunteers and service users come onMonday, Thursday and Saturday. Theyplant a range of different vegetables, fruit,flowers and herbs, including potatoes,onions, cabbage, kale, leeks, spinach,broccoli, garlic, lettuce, apples, cherries,

strawberries, blackcurrants, thyme, sageand rosemary. All the plants areorganically grown and the volunteers andservice users take vegetables home afterharvesting. Recently some volunteersbuilt a poly-tunnel which helps somevegetables grow faster and better in warmtemperatures. We sow seeds fortomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and chillisin the poly-tunnels.’’

John, a volunteer, said he retired threeyears ago. He has an allotment plot aswell and gardening at Hope Allotmenthas become part of his routine to helpother users. Michelle, another volunteer,joined the project two years ago. EverySaturday, she walks for 15 minutes to theallotment with her son. She said they getfresh air, meet people and make newfriends while enjoying gardeningvegetables. A new volunteer, Dominic,told me he had become a volunteer twoweeks after he heard about this project on

Sheffield Forum. Currently he spendsthree days a week working here.

Sheena Clark said they raised the funds invarious ways to carry on this project. Thisyear they received £940 from ESH, aconstruction company, supporting themfor the first time. In 2013, theysuccessfully applied for a donation fromTesco. Some volunteers’ children soldflowers in their schools to help raisemoney for the project and they had a stallat the fair at Firth Park Academy. Inaddition, the committee got sponsors anddonations through online applications.They hope more and more people will getto know about this project, come to theallotment to participate and or volunteerto help.

If you would like to join or help,please contact Sheena Clark on07792 605 138.

Old buildings of BurngreaveStory & photo: Graham Jones

This entertaining walk around Pitsmoor on 5th Marchrevealed a wealth of history and the back story oflocal old buildings we pass every day.

The walk was organised by Todd and Francesca of the Walk Boostscheme, part of Activity Sheffield, and is one of a series aroundBurngreave.

The tour was led by Ron Clayton, a ‘Professional Sheffielder,’ wit,raconteur and local historian (a phrase he hates). Ron was well-informed, funny and observant, a natural storyteller. Heintrigued us with his humorous tales of the area. He taught ushow to spot crozzle (a form of black slag used to decorate walls

and buildings in north Sheffield). Ron cleverly recreatedPitsmoor Road in our imaginations as a village street of twohundred years ago. Ron mentioned several times that Burngreaveis a real community.

Apart from viewing wonderful buildings from the outside,including Abbeyfield Park House and Toll Gate Cottage, we werekindly invited into the Vicarage on Pitsmoor Road by Rev PhilipIreson and into the church with its amazing stained glasswindows.

Another highlight was the 18th Century Bay Horse pub, withmany fascinating old features - apart from the regular clientèle.

The walkers themselves made very positive comments on themorning:

“A very enjoyable and informative walk. Ron had given us awonderful insight into this area’s history.”

“A fascinating and informative walk. Didn’t expect to be goinginside the vicarage! We’ve had a lovely morning. Thanks Ron”

“The peek inside the Georgian Vicarage was a real treat.”

“Fantastic walk as usual, good to learn history of Sheffield.”

If you missed this excellent event, there are more Walk Boosts tocome. Hope to see you there!

Activity Sheffield is a Sheffield City Council service thathelps residents lead an active lifestyle. You can improveyour health while having fun, meeting new friends andlearning new skills. If you want to get active, get in touchon 0114 273 4266 to find out more.


Flats to be demolishedStory & photo: Rohan Francis

Foundry Court Flats on Burngreave Road are to bedemolished, following the rehousing of currenttenants.

South Yorkshire House Association (SYHA), who own the flats,have taken the decision to knock down the building after itbecame too expensive to maintain to modern standards. Theflats, near Minna Road, which provided 31 homes, were built in1972. The building is physically connected to Pitsmoor MethodistChurch which shares a lift with some of the flats. The church willnot be included in the demolition.

Since last year, SYHA have been gradually rehousing tenants andtold the Messenger that they did not have a date for demolitionbut would keep neighbours informed. Project Co-ordinator DeeHiley said:

“Disturbance will be kept to a minimum and times of work willbe restricted on the site to core hours. This will ensure that any

deliveries are planned so that they do not conflict with peakpedestrian and traffic times and that on-site provision forcontractor parking is prioritised.”

SYHA will post information about the demolition atwww.syha.co.uk, on Facebook (SouthYorksHA) andTwitter (@SyorksHA). Alternatively, people can callSYHA on 0114 2900 200 to ask questions or get anupdate.

150 years since

Great Sheffield

Flood 1864Story & Photo: Elizabeth & Gordon Shaw

Floods were much in the news thiswinter. 150 years ago, the GreatSheffield Flood of 1864 not onlydamaged and destroyed largeamounts of property; it caused agreat loss of life, wiping out wholefamilies.

The reservoir at Dale Dyke was completedduring the winter of 1863-1864. By 11thMarch 1864 it had almost reached its fullheight. On the stormy night of 11 March,the dam burst and 600 million gallons ofwater swept down through Bradfield andLoxley destroying mills and cottages. Theflood roared on to Hillsborough, thenalong the River Don valley, throughNeepsend, the Wicker and Brightside toAttercliffe, leaving death and destructionin its wake.

The recovered bodies were taken tonearby pubs or the Kelham Workhousewhere the Sheffield Daily Telegraphdescribed the scene:

“We visited the Workhouse yesterdayand a more distressing appalling sight itis altogether impossible to imagine. Weentered a room where lay the dead andwe counted one hundred and twelvebodies. Although there was an anxiouscrowd seeking their loved ones very fewhad at the hour of our visit beenrecognised. Nor is this to be wondered at.Whole streets of houses have been swept

away - fathers, mothers, children,neighbours, friends and there are noneleft to recognise many of the bodies”

More casualties were found in thefollowing weeks as buildings, mud anddebris were cleared. 240 fatalities wererecorded. Others may have died later as aresult of injury or illness caused by theflood.

Burngreave Cemetery

Around 30 of the victims were buried inBurngreave Cemetery. One of the gravesis on the left of the central avenue leadingup from the chapels. The headstonereads:

Peter Webster aged 31 years

Sarah Webster his wife aged 30 years

Also Robert aged 4 years and JosephEdward aged 18 months

All the above were drowned in the floodat Sheffield March 12th 1864

In a moment shall they die, and thepeople shall be troubled at midnight, andpass away; and the mighty shall be takenaway without hand. Job 34.20.v

Another grave (pictured) of the Kingfamily can be found to the left of thechapels near Woodland Walk.

Burngreave Cemetery Chapel is open onSundays: April to October from 11:00a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and November toMarch from 12:00 noon to 2:00pm.

Compensation Claims

A Commission was set up by Parliamentto deal with claims for injury or lossescaused by the failure of the dam. TheSheffield Water Company increased theircharges by 25% for the following fiveyears to recoup some of their losses.Samuel Spooner, a pocket blade grinderof Burngreave Road claimed for loss ofworking tools (£6), loss of wages,employment and rent (£3 15s) anddamaged work (£1), a total of £10.15sand he was lucky in that he received thefull amount.

Elizabeth, widow of Edward Riley ofHillfoot put in a much larger claim of£45.13s. She claimed for loss of anddamage to furniture and effects, a fat pigand piggery, loss of clothing, food, funeralexpenses and administration. Shereceived £15; this barely covered funeralexpenses and loss of food and clothing.

A Doctor at Hillsborough, claimed a totalof £840, including £300 for:

“Damage to Claimant's Practice fromdrowning of Patients, removal of Patients,deterioration of district for practice andfrom Claimants own past and present illhealth.” He was awarded £177.


Councillor Surgeries

Your local councillors, Jackie Drayton,

Ibrar Hussain and Talib Hussain (left to

right) share surgeries on a rota basis.

12th April: 11am-12pm,

Burngreave Library, Jackie Drayton

15th April: 12pm-1pm,

Norwood & Bishopholme TARA,

Talib Hussain

17th April: 2pm-3pm,

Pakistan Advice Centre, Ibrar Hussain

10th May: 11am-12pm,

Burngreave Library, Jackie Drayton

15th May: 12pm-1pm,

Pakistan Advice Centre, Talib Hussain

20th May: 2pm-3pm,

Norwood & Bishopholme TARA,

Ibrar Hussain

[email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]

Contact: 0114 203 7562www.sheffield.gov.uk/northeast

Cabinet inthe CommunityShirecliffe Community CentreThursday 10th April 20146:00pm – 8:00pm

Shirecliffe Road, Sheffield S5 8XJ

Leaders at Sheffield City Council are tohold a ‘Question Time’ style session todiscuss the issues that matter to residentsin the North East Area. The North EastArea ‘Cabinet in the Community’ will betaking place in Shirecliffe this year and isone of seven that will be hosted by theLocal Area Partnerships.

The items for discussion will be put to theCabinet by local people in an hour and ahalf session starting at 6:00pm. This willbe followed by an opportunity to talkdirectly with individual Councillors.

To be part of this you can submit yourquestion on the evening or for a moreinformed response up to five working daysin advance of the session by emailing:[email protected]

Where possible questions will be groupedtogether, so that a more focuseddiscussion can take place. For moreinformation about Local AreaPartnerships and issues affecting yourarea go to: https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/your-local-area


Cemetery beesStory & image: Saleema Imam

With funding fromCommunity First anddonations from lastyear’s Permaculturecourse, we are makingtwo hives in the cemetery.

We have started to build stands and arenow looking for more people to helpmaintain the hives once we receive thenew bee colonies. Does that sound likeyou? Would you like to learn the ropes ata training course, help to increase thebiodiversity in the cemetery and share inthe care of the bees and production ofthe honey?

If so, contact us or visit us in thecemetery any Sunday 11am to 3pm.http://www.friendsofburngreavecemetery.btck.co.uk Saleema [email protected]

Cat control Story: Graham Jones

Love cats or hate them, it is not inanyone’s interest for ourneighbourhood to be overrun byunwanted strays.

The leading charities all agree thatneutering both pet and feral cats is themost effective way to control the catpopulation. For those on low incomes,help is available to pay for neutering.

Male and female cats reach sexualmaturity as young as five or six monthsold. The Cats Protection League (CPL)recommends neutering from 4 months.

A female cat can produce two or threelitters a year. With an average litter sizeof 4-6 kittens, it’s easy to see hownumbers can get out of control. HallamCPL receives up to 40 phone calls a dayfrom members of the public looking torehome unwanted cats or kittens.

Pet cats

Pet cats benefit from neutering, by

preventing disease and unwanted kittens.

Unneutered pets can wander away from

home in search of a mate. These cats

become free roaming strays or form feral

groups. Many cat owners are not aware

that unneutered, related cats will mate

with each other.

Senior Veterinary Surgeon at the PDSA,

Sean Wensley, explains: “Thousands of

much-loved family pets are at risk every

year from potentially life-threatening

conditions, simply because they haven’t

been neutered. Neutering is a vital part of

responsible pet care and is particularly

important in cats, dogs and rabbits.”

Feral cats

Feral cats have been born wild or have

lived away from humans so long they can

no longer live as pets. They are the same

species as our pets and are equally

protected in law.

An uncontrolled feral colony will grow

quickly. If the cats are removed, a new

colony will soon move in. A controlled,

healthy and manageable colony will deter

other ferals from moving in and will keep

vermin levels down.

Good news

At Springfield Vets Surgery at Firth Park,

people on means-tested benefits,

pensioners and students can get their pet

cat neutered for free. Other people on low

incomes will be considered on a case by

case basis.

The CPL may helptowards the costof neutering aferal colony,provided thatthe cats arereturned to theiroriginal site. Youcan apply forfinancial help andpractical assistance.

The PDSA can also offer discounted catand dog neutering for pet owners whoreceive Housing Benefit or Council TaxSupport. The RSPCA might also be ableto help with vets’ fees for neutering andvaccination too.

All of the charities mentioned welcomedonations to help them in their animalwelfare work. A contribution, howeversmall, is always welcome.

Further Information

Cats Protection League0114 327 0348www.catsprotectionshop.com

Springfield Veterinary GroupPractice, 1 Stubbin Lane, Firth Park0114 242 2815 - Leanne Rason RVN(Head Nurse)

PDSA Pets Aid Hospital, 14 Newhall Rd 0114 243 3232www.pdsa.org.uk

RSPCA Sheffield Animal Centre, 2 Stadium Way, Attercliffe 0114 289 8050rspcasheffield.homeip.net

Trout at Firvale

Pre-SchoolStory: Gillian Booth, Firvale Pre-School

The children of Firvale Pre-Schoolhave been learning all abouttrout.

With Helen and Darren from the RiverStewardship Company, the children havehad a fish tank fitted in their nursery andthe responsibility of caring for a numberof Brown Trout, from eggs to youngfingerlings.

The children worked hard to make surethey were fed every day and the chemicalsand temperature in the tank were justright for the trout to thrive. The childrenenjoyed watching the trout grow andswim around the tank. Sacha, aged 3, said“I like the fish. They're getting bigger nowfrom the food”.

The children have shown a great interestin this project. Being able to watch thetrout develop in front of them has reallyhelped the children gain anunderstanding and appreciation of thenatural world around us.

Children and parents will release the troutinto their natural environment of theRiver Don, along with pupils at OwlerBrook School and Pye Bank School whoare also helping to raise trout fingerlings.


Japan visit for local ScoutsStory: Patrick Duggan | Photo: Seema Ghazal

We are pleased and proud to announce that twomembers of 205th Sheffield Saint Catherine’s ScoutGroup will be attending the next Scouting WorldJamboree in Japan in 2015. This is an internationalevent which young people from 160 countries attend.

All of our scout troop put their names forward to attend. Four ofour Troop were selected for interview, Kirsty Whelan, PaulWhelan, Raheem Baker, and Aqeel Hussain. The interview panelselected Kirsty and Paul to go on an assessment weekend. After arigorous weekend we were informed that Paul had been selected,with Kirsty as first reserve. Our next news was that a scout haddropped out, and that Kirsty had a place. There are reportscoming in of Kirsty walking up walls and dancing on ceilings!Kirsty and Paul will now have to raise over £3000 each, some ofthis money will help young people from poorer countries toattend the Jamboree.

To get involved in Saint Catherine’s Scout Group, based onHoltwood Road, contact Alan Whiffin, 0114 246 3728, 07721 730 638. New leaders needed. Each week there areBeavers 6-8 years, Cubs 8-10 years, Scouts 10-14 years.

Playground celebrates St Patrick’s DayStory: Chrissy Meleady

The Craic was mighty in Pitsmoor AdventurePlayground on St Patrick’s Day.

Molly Hanley, aged 10, of theScoil Rince Carney School ofIrish Dance, West Cork,Ireland, accompanied andsupported by Lucy Wragg,aged 11 of Mylnhurst School,undertook a masterclass inTraditional Irish Dancing atthe Playground. Seventy twochildren and young peopleattended, providing anopportunity for them andtheir families to take part inIrish Dancing and music.

Patrick Meleady said, “Theseopportunities help tocelebrate and reflect some ofthe rich cultural heritage of Burngreave and Sheffield as a wholeand build community cohesion.”

Abrar, aged 11, said, “It was a great day. We had a go at learninghow to do Irish Dancing - it’s harder than it looks on the telly!”

Olga, aged 9, said, “It was brilliant and the Irish Dancing wasgreat.”

Playground honoured Story: Patrick Meleady | Photo: Kyla Galloway

Pitsmoor Adventure Playground User Group wasofficially recognised and commended highly at this yearsUK Play Conference in Eastbourne, which represents theUK play sector and community. The judging panelselected Pitsmoor as being one of the six best playworkteams in the whole of England, Scotland, Wales andNorthern Ireland.

Playground worker Laura Watkins said, “It is a great honour andit demonstrates to the Council, and others making decisions oncutting services to children, young people and families, that arush to make cuts is not always right, and that valuable servicescan be lost and can cause detriment. Pitsmoor AdventurePlayground User Group has proven the Council wrong, thisservice was worth saving, play is essential in the lives of childrenand families and if given a chance and support, they can thriveand succeed as we have proven.”

Beavers and Cubs return

Story:Will Hopkins, Beaver Scout Leader

On 19th February, the 76th St Peter's Ellesmere Scoutsinvested our first Beavers and Cubs for eight years!

Beavers and Cubs are perfect for my kids – they meet friends,play games, learn about the world and get outside! Beavers andCubs promise to try their best, help others and respect allreligious faiths.

Beavers (aged 6 and 7) meet Tuesdays 6:00 – 7:15. Cubs (aged 8to 10) meet Wednesdays 6:30 – 8:00. Cornerstone Building,Grimesthorpe Road (top of Carwood Road).

Just come down, or contact Will Hopkins on 07955 546 989, or Nico Hall on 07941 480 380.

Children enjoy a half-term drumming workshop at theplayground, organised in partnership with Haven Housewomen’s refuge

Your PC fixed for a

donation to charityIf you have a PC or laptop inneed of repair, service or anupgrade, local residentZeeshan Khan will fix it foryou and donate the fee tocharity.

Zeeshan is a qualified IT technicianand volunteer at the PakistanAdvice Centre, and is offering toprovide a full computer repairservice for both PC and Mac,including virus removal, setting upparental controls and installing Windows and Office for you, aswell as repairing and replacing parts if needed.

There is a minimum charge of £20 which he will donate toMuslim Hands (or a charity of your choice) - but as it’s forcharity you can donate more if you like! There are no otherhidden costs and Zeeshan will let you know the price of anyparts if they are needed before he makes any repairs.

If you’d like to get your computer fixed or upgradedfor the cost of a donation to charity, then call Zeshanat Zeetec Computer Solutions on 07846 947 048, oremail [email protected]

Facebook: [email protected]

Fir Vale’s Bollywood Fashion

meets

PresidentStory: Aaliyah Khan

On his recent visit toEngland the President ofKashmir, Sardar M.Yaqoob Khan, toured 6cities on a mission tohelp the partially blind inremote parts of Pakistan,Kashmir, Burma andIndia.

With the support of Sheffield'svery own international Nasheed singer Ahmad Hussain, whomesmerised audiences with his melodious voice, the Gift ofVision tour was successful in raising funds to help approximately10,000 people undergo free surgery for cataracts and other visualimpairments.

One of Fir Vale's well known businessmen, Mr Karamat Hussainof Bollywood Fashions on Firth Park Road, attended the event inBradford and had the opportunity to meet with the President andthank him for his commitment and hard work.

Having experienced theshortfall in the level of careoffered to the elderly while herNan was seriously ill, KimberleyDavison set upon the idea ofproviding a mobile servicetailored to each personsindividual needs.

With the numbers of people aged over 65 living in Sheffield setto increase from 83,000 to 103,000 in the next 25 years, thereis no doubt that motivated individuals like Kim can help peopleout with essential services they may otherwise go without.

Kim is experienced and qualified in Food Hygiene, Gardeningand First Aid, and importantly is also CRB checked.

Whether it’s assistance with shopping, gardening,tidying the house, crossword clues or just someone toaccompany you or your loved one to the sewing circle,call, text or email Kimberley for references and seehow Five Rivers can help.

Kimberly Davison: 07903 363 724

[email protected]

Home

support for

the elderly


Left to right - Mr KaramatHussain of BollywoodFashion, Fir Vale, withSardar M. Yaqoob Khan,the President of Kashmir.

Street PastorsStory: Philip Ireson

Howard Golding isstepping down as teamleader of Burngreave StreetPastors, after four years.

The team continues to walkaround the streets of Burngreave,Pitsmoor and Ellesmere every Friday evening, 7.30 to 10pm. Youmay have seen them out with their distinctive high viz jackets andcaps. They provide a safe, friendly presence on the streets.

Community Choir

A community choir meets every Thursday at 7pm in the WelcomeCentre, on Nottingham Street. Contact Natalie on 07984 426 958.Everyone of any ability is more than welcome.

• ConsultationRoom

• NHS & PrivatePrescriptions

• Free Collection& Delivery

• Health CareAdvice

• RepeatDispensing

• Medicines UseReview

Open 7 days a week, 8.00am–10.30pm

(0114) 242 000929 Rushby Street, Fir Vale, Sheffield S4 8GN

Fir ValePHARMACY


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