kensıngtonnews

INSIDETHIS ISSUE

The 2007 Kensington RegenerationSummer Fun Day proved to beanother outstanding success.

This success was all the moreremarkable because, in the middle ofone of the wettest spells of summerweather for years, the clouds clearedand the sun shone for the fourth year

of the Kensington event.As a result, local residents turned

out in force with an estimated 6,000people passing through the gates ofFairfield Police Club at some pointduring the Fun Day on SaturdayJuly 7th. This was around double theattendance in 2006.

Early birds had the chance tomeet Hollyoaks star Emma Rigbywho performed the openingceremony. Emma, who playsHannah Ashworth in the popular TVsoap, signed autographs and posedfor photographs with fans.

Also on hand was popular BBCRadio Merseyside presenter AlanJackson who compered the eventthroughout the day.

Attractions at the event ranged froma fun fair and a mini farm to musicand dance in the performance tents.

There were also open airperformances from the KensingtonMonarch Majorettes and the QueensOwn Highlanders pipe band.

Meanwhile, in two other marqueesthere were more than 40 stallshighlighting the work of public sectoragencies, community groups and

voluntary organisations that areactive in Kensington.

Commenting on the Summer FunDay Kensington Regeneration ChiefExecutive, Lynn Spencer, said:“Obviously in the run-up to the eventwe were very concerned about theweather but we were incrediblylucky – the sun arrived pretty muchas the event got under way and wewere able to stage all the activitieswe had planned.”

Kensington Regeneration BoardMember, Enid Bristow, added: “Thiswas our best Fun Day yet – it getsbigger and better every year and therewas such a good atmosphere. It was areal boost for the community.”

See pages 4 and 5 for morenews and photographs from the2007 Kensington RegenerationSummer Fun Day.

If you receive your copy ofKensington News through the postyou should also have received acopy of the KensingtonRegeneration New Futuresnewsletter with it.

This special publication puts thespotlight on the wide variety oftraining and job opportunitiesavailable in the area thanks tosupport and funding fromKensington Regeneration.

The newsletter shows how local

people have benefited from theseopportunities in a wide variety ofsectors and provides advice on howyou can take advantage of similarones in the future.

Kensington Regeneration’sLifelong Learning, Employment andEnterprise Manager, George Allen,commented: “Helping residents tofind work or move to better jobs isabsolutely vital in terms of thewider regeneration of this area.

“The New Futures newsletter

demonstrates that we now have aproven track record in helpingpeople to access training and jobopportunities.

“I would encourage everyone inthe area to read it and find out howthey or other members of theirfamily can benefit from them.”

If you did not receive a copyof the New Futures newsletterwith your copy of KensingtonNews you can obtain one byringing 0151-233 6136.

August 2007 Issue 26

Local views, local issues

Local filmmakerheads to New York

PAGE 3

Schools Ministerpraises Academy

PAGE 2

Event put jobsin the spotlight

PAGE 3

Festival focus onCongolese culture

PAGE 7

Fun in the sun!

OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOU

Stepping out in style – the Kensington Monarch Majorettes.

Emma Rigby, who plays Hannah Ashworth in Hollyoaks, meets young fans at the event.

For further information contact KensingtonRegeneration on 0151 233 6136.

WELCOME TOKENSINGTON NEWS

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If you would like to registerwith us to receive up-to-dateinformation on KensingtonRegeneration events,meetings etc via your mobile,please contact us via text on07976 383790

A Kensington school is top of theclass, according to Ofstedinspectors.

Kensington Infants School wasgiven the highest grade possible forall aspects of its teaching and careof pupils.

Inspectors reported: “It is difficultto see what more Kensington InfantSchool could do for its pupils. It isan outstanding school which providesfirst-rate care and support for allwho attend.

“The high number of pupils forwhom English is an additionallanguage benefit particularly fromthe skilful intervention of teachersand support staff.”

The report went on to praise theHead Teacher, all teaching andsupport staff and the Governors forthe leadership, management andstandards of education and personal

care provided for the 200 pupils.Head Teacher Jenny Comish said

the glowing report was a reflectionon everyone involved in the life ofthe school:

“This is a fabulous confirmationof a school community that isworking together for the good of thechildren. Our last Ofsted report fromfour years ago graded us as ‘verygood’ and now we have improved tobecome ‘outstanding’.

“In that time we have developedour learning environment and a lot ofthat is due to the support we havereceived from KensingtonRegeneration.”

Kensington Infants, along with itssister school Kensington Juniors,moved into a new building in 2002which was opened by Cherie Blair.

Funding from KensingtonRegeneration has provided extra

security which stopped a spate ofbreak-ins, additional play equipmentand funds for activities aimed atimproving attendance.

It has also supported the highly-acclaimed Music For Life projectwhich provides weekly workshops bymusicians from the Royal LiverpoolPhilharmonic Orchestra in allKensington schools.

Kensington’s Chair of LifelongLearning, John Caton, said: “Peoplein Kensington deserve the very besteducation for their children and thatis what they are getting atKensington Infants.

“All the schools in our area havebenefited from regeneration fundingand many are now getting greatreports from Ofsted. It is extremelysatisfying to know that KensingtonRegeneration is playing a part in thesuccess of these schools.”

This month’s Guest Editor ofKensington News, new BoardMember Enid Bristow,writes:

I would like to welcome you tothe August issue of KensingtonNews, the community newspaperfor the New Deal area.

As it’s the height of summer –although you wouldn’t believe itwith the weather we’ve had – it’sthe time of year for the big openair events in our area and in thisissue we look back at all of them.

There was our own KensingtonRegeneration Summer Fun Day, ofcourse, at the Fairfield PoliceClub. Thanks in part to a rareafternoon of sunshine this was ahuge success, attracting morelocal residents than ever before.

You’ll also find reports on twoother established events – theAfrican Kensington Festival andthe Newsham Park Festival - aswell as two important additions tothe Kensington events calendar,the Edge Hill InternationalFestival and the CongoleseIndependence celebrations.

It’s very encouraging that allthese festivals were very wellsupported, in spite of very heavyrain in the case of Newsham Park.

I would like to take thisopportunity to thank everyoneinvolved in organising theseevents. As well as providing localresidents with a rich source ofentertainment ‘on their doorstep’

they really do help to bring ourcommunity together.

In this issue you can also readabout a number of other majorsuccess stories for Kensington.

They include an outstandingOfsted report for KensingtonInfants School, a local filmmakerwho has had his work accepted forshowing at the New York FilmFestival, another award for theAcademy of St Francis of Assisiand young musicians from localschools performing with the RoyalLiverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

It’s a pleasure to have so manypositive developments to report injust one issue of this newsletter.

I do hope you enjoy readingabout them, and that you find thisissue of Kensington News bothinteresting and informative.

As ever, we welcome anycomments you have on its contentsand any suggestions for topicsyou’d like to see in future issues.

You can get in touch withus via the contact details on theback page.

With best wishesEnid BristowKensington Regeneration

KENSINGTON SCHOOLIS TOP OF THE CLASS

Page 2 Kensington News August 2007 Issue 26

John Caton and Jenny Comish (front) celebrate the Ofsted success with pupils and staff.

Kensington RegenerationCompany has changed its statusto become a Community InterestCompany, or CIC.

The move provides the frameworkfor regeneration work to continue inthe area beyond the 10-year lifespanof the New Deal Partnership bylocking in the Company’s assets forthe good of the local community.

This means that the assets will beavailable to generate income whichcan in turn be used to fundcommunity projects in the area.

Kensington is thought to be thefirst of the Government’s39 New Deal forCommunitiespartnerships tohave becomea CIC.

KensingtonRegeneration

Operations and Finance Manager,Anne-Marie Turner, explained:“We opted for the CIC model as ithas the interests and values of thecommunity at its heart.

“The new structure will be thevehicle through which we can providea legacy to the area at the end of theNDC’s lifetime.

“We will be leaving a CIC Boardin place to continue the good workcarried out by KensingtonRegeneration over the previousten years.”

Kensington Regenerationchanges its status

Mr Knight, who was attending aconference on school design, said theacademy was ‘an incredible exampleof what can be achieved when youcombine creativity and imaginationwith the right resources and planning.’

The academy was the first in thecountry to focus on the environmentas its specialist subject and its

building incorporates a wide range of‘green’ features.

These features recently helped theconstruction team behind the project– Birse Build – to win a third majoraward for the project when itlanded the Royal Institute ofChartered Surveyors (RICS) UKSustainability title.

The academy’s architecture hadalready won a Green ChampionAward and the RICS North WestQuality of Life Award.

Earlier this year Governmentfigures revealed that the Academy ofSt Francis of Assisi was the fastest-improving school in the country atGCSE level.

Schools Minister praises Academy The Academy is the fastest-improving school in the country at GCSE level.

Kensington’s Academy of St Francis of Assisi was praised by Schools Minister Jim Knight on his recentvisit to Liverpool.

Kensington News August 2007 Issue 26 Page 3

A derelict building that hadfrequently been used for flytipping has been demolished andcleared. The site will be used as acar park in the future.

The demolition work wascarried out by unemployedLiverpool residents on placementwith a Government New Deal forYoung People project, organisedby the Liverpool office of TNG Ltd.

Then ‘green’ organisation Circlegot involved as part of its drive toimprove recycling rates in theconstruction industry.

By hand sorting bricks andother material the company isable to recycle up to 90 per centof the waste that would normallybe taken to landfill.

Circle is a joint venture betweenhousing associations RiversideGroup and PLUS and constructionfirm the Seddon Group.

Three unemployed Kensingtonresidents recently found work withthe company with the help ofKensington Regeneration.

Commenting on the clean-upKensington Community Learning

Centre Development Manager,Alan Tapp, said: “This project hasbeen really good news foreveryone who uses the centre andalso for local residents in ourneighbourhood.

“Previously the site was a realeyesore which attracted ratsbecause people were constantlytipping rubbish on it.

“The fact that the facelift hasprovided work placements for youngpeople, and that the waste has beendisposed of in a ‘green’ way, aretwo real bonuses,” added Alan.

Major transformation forLearning Centre grot spot

Kensington Regenerationrecently staged a special eventto raise awareness of trainingand job opportunities in theNational Health Service –Merseyside’s biggest employer.

Information on hundreds ofemployment opportunities wasavailable at the open day at the JobBank including positions as nursingassistants, radiologists, theatreassistants, dental nurses and hospitalsecurity staff.

Information and advice was onoffer at the event about the bestroute into the NHS including well-established schemes like AmbitionHealth, Routeways Into HealthEmployment and the Health Cadetsprogramme.

Staff from organisations includingJET, Jobcentre Plus and Step Closer2 Work were also on hand to offergeneral job-related advice onsubjects such as matching skills tovacancies, benefit checks and

completing online application forms.George Allen, Kensington

Regeneration’s Lifelong Learning,Employment and EnterpriseManager, commented: “Health is akey sector of the local economy andhere in Kensington we have the RoyalLiverpool Hospital on our doorstep.

“With the wide variety of

healthcare jobs available, and plansin the pipeline to redevelop theRoyal, this is a good time forKensington residents to beconsidering a career in this field.”

Information about all the jobopportunities currently available inthe NHS can now be accessed onlineat www.jobs.nhs.uk.

NHS jobs in the spotlight

Kensington Regeneration hasappointed two new BoardMembers representing the localcommunity.

They are Norma Lee, who chairsRoyston Residents’ Association andthe Edge Hill Housing Focus andIssues Group, and Pauline Sui, whoruns the Liverpool ChineseBadminton Association, which isbased in Kensington, and also has abusiness in the area.

Norma Williams, Chair ofKensington Regeneration, commented:

“I am very pleased to welcomeNorma and Pauline to the Board.

“Community Board Membershave played a vital role in the workof Kensington Regeneration over theyears because it’s their localknowledge which has helped to‘set the agenda’ for the work of theorganisation.

“I’m sure that Norma and Paulinewill carry on this tradition and makea valuable contribution to our workin the future.”

Welcometo NormaandPauline

A young filmmaker from Kensingtonrecently had a movie accepted forshowing at the world’s biggestindependent film festival.

Alex Harrison jetted off to Americato spend two weeks at the New YorkFilm and Video Festival where hisshort film – Blood On The Bath Tiles– was being shown.

Alex has been studying for a BA invideo production with creative writingand film studies at BuckinghamshireChilterns University.

He has received help from theKensington Regeneration bursaryscheme which provides full-timestudents from the area with financialsupport which they ‘pay back’through getting involved in voluntarywork in the local community.

Alex recently completed hisvoluntary work at Phoenix PrimarySchool where he was working as ateaching assistant.

Blood On the Bath Tiles tells the

story of an American who moves toa flat in London which he discovershas a murderous past.

A trailer for the film can be viewedat www.youtube.com/laasvegasfilms(the odd spelling of laasvegas iscorrect!).

Alex commented: “The New YorkFilm Festival shows films from allover the world so it was a prize initself to be accepted.

“But I’d like to emphasise that Icouldn’t have achieved what I haveachieved without the bursary - it’sbeen a really big help.”

Kensington Regeneration’s Chairof Lifelong Learning, Employmentand Enterprise, John Caton, added:“I would like to congratulate Alex onhaving his film accepted by such aprestigious festival.

“His is the latest in a series ofsuccesses by Kensington studentswho have been involved with ourbursary scheme.”

KENSINGTON FILMMAKERHEADS FOR NEW YORK

Members of the Circle team are pictured on site sorting out some of the building waste.

Pauline Sui Norma Lee

Alex Harrison - heading for the Big Apple with his film.

Students and staff at Kensington Community Learning Centre will benefit from a major clean-upoperation that has been completed on a nearby grot spot.

The Healing SpaceNow open inKensington

The Healing Space provides a range of affordable

complementary health and wellbeing activities in one location. Healing Space offers individual treatments in • Aromatherapy • Acupuncture • EFT (emotional freedom techniques) • Homeopathy • Massage (therapeutic and remedial) • Reflexology and Reiki. Small group sessions in Yoga, Health Meditation and qi gung are also available, together with workshops to support people wishing to reduce dependence on nicotine, alcohol and other substances.

For further information contactMaria Barrington, Healing Space,

298 Kensington, Liverpool L7 2NRTel: 0151 264 8500

Information on hundreds of job opportunities was on offer.

Page 4 Kensington News August 2007 Issue 26

The fourth KensingtonRegeneration Summer Fun Dayonce again proved a big hit withlocal residents.

Around 6,000 of them descendedon Fairfield Police Club during theevent on Saturday July 7th, arounddouble what was already a recordattendance in 2006.

Perhaps it was the kind weatherthat helped to make the eventespecially popular this year.

After weeks of wet and oftenwindy weather local people seemeddetermined to get out into the openair and enjoy a rare day of warmsunshine with their family and friends.

Kris Waite from KensingtonRegeneration, the organiser of the

event, commented: “In the weeksleading up to the Fun Day events hadbeen cancelled or rained off half waythrough all over the country so wewere pretty worried, particularly asmost of our activities take place onthe field at the Police Club which canturn to mud very quickly.

“Even on the morning of the eventthings weren’t looking good withheavy cloud and the odd spot of rain.

“But then, just as the eventopened, the sky cleared and the sunshone for the whole afternoon. Wecouldn’t have planned it better andwithout doubt the best weather forweeks was a key factor in the hugeincrease in attendance this year.”

As Kris explained, the aim of the

Fun Day has always been to offersomething for all age groups and thiswas certainly true again this year.

Children could enjoy everything fromface painting and a fun fair to farmanimals and a football tournament.

For the adults there were musicalperformances, displays, craft standsand a wide range of stalls featuringthe work of local organisations.

These included Community Seven,Kensington Fields CommunityCentre, St John’s Community Centre,L’Arche Community Centre, GEARSand Merseyside Regional ChineseAssociation.

Other groups as diverse as theFriends of the Williamson Tunnelsand Liverpool Organic Gardeners

also took advantage of theopportunity to promote their work atthe Fun Day.

Meanwhile, a packed programmeensured there was always somethingnew for visitors to see.

Early on the big attraction wasactress Emma Rigby, alias HannahAshworth from Hollyoaks, whoperformed the opening ceremonywith the help of popular RadioMerseyside presenter Alan Jacksonwho compered the event.

Later there were interestinglyvaried programmes of music in bothperformance tents.

In one the highlights includedsongs about Liverpool by childrenfrom Sacred Heart High School, rap

and breakdancing from HomegrownMusic and Indian dance by theRangdlai Dance Group.

In the other there was a musicalmedley to celebrate Liverpool’s 800thbirthday from students at BroadgreenHigh and other schools, Africanmusic and dance and a performancefrom the always-popular KensingtonCommunity Choir.

Elsewhere on the showgroundthere were attractions as varied asstorytelling, a five-a-side footballtournament, paintballing, arts andcrafts and an army recruitmentdisplay.

Children also had the chance to sitin a fire engine and a police car, andto try the sirens in both!

The third African KensingtonFestival once again proved a bigsuccess with more than 1,000people attending a wide varietyof activities at KensingtonCommunity Sports Centre andBotanic Park.

The two-day event supported byKensington Regeneration includedmusic, dance, art, drama, textiles,fashion, jewellery, mask andcostume making, sport, socialhistory, storytelling, a drummingworkshop and food.

Kenneth Ndingindwayo, Chair ofthe Liverpool African Associationwhich organises the festival,commented: “This was a fabulousevent, attended by a large numberof local people who really enjoyedtheir taste of African culture. I’dlike to thank everyone who attendedand supported our festival and ourfunders including Kensington

Regeneration, Community Sevenand Riverside Housing.”

This year’s event featured anumber of new stallholders offeringCaribbean foods and also dishesfrom areas of Africa notrepresented in the past.

And the fashion show was alsobigger and better than before with ashop from Manchester not onlyhaving a stall but also providing arange of clothes for the show.

A wide range of music was onoffer throughout the weekend withMusica Africa, a band from theCongo, performing on both days anda group from South Africa capturingthe mood of the festival with a songentitled God Bless Africa.

Homegrown Music also presentedsome exciting performances by upand coming young singers fromKensington.

Football remains an extremely

More than1,000 attend third A

Competitors in the popular football tournament. Drumming up a storm at the festival.

Creating a smoothie with pedal power.If you want to get ahead, get a hat!

Cathy Yu from the Merseyside Regional Chinese Association.

The Queens Own Highlanders Pipproved very popular.

Summer Fun Dayis the best yet

And visitors of all ages wereinvited to make their own fruitsmoothies by riding a bike andgenerating the pedal power tooperate the mixer!

Overall the feedback on the eventwas very enthusiastic. One localresident told Kensington News:“This is the third Fun Day I’ve beento. It’s always a good day out andthe weather this year was a bonus.

“What I like is that there’s alwayslots to see and do and theatmosphere is really friendly – justloads of people out and aboutenjoying themselves and supportingthe event.”

Kensington Regeneration BoardMember, Enid Bristow, said: “The

great thing about the Summer FunDay is that it brings the communitytogether – residents of all ages cometo the Police Club to have a goodtime with their family, friends andneighbours.

“At the same time, the event is auseful opportunity for organisationsworking in the area to highlight whatthey do and get their message acrossto local people.”

Kensington Regeneration ChiefExecutive, Lynn Spencer, added:“The big challenge for us is to makethe Summer Fun Day bigger andbetter each year.

“We’d be delighted to receivesuggestions from residents on howthey think we can do this in 2008.”

Kensington News August 2007 Issue 26 Page 5

SUMMER FUN DAY SPONSORSKensington Regeneration would like to thank the following organisations

who sponsored the 2007 Fun Day:

African Festival

PRIZEWINNERSApple iPod - Linda Kirtchley ofHampstead Road

Sugababes concert tickets -Thomas McKay of Gresham St

£40 Empire voucher - LindaPower of Lockerbie Road

£25 HMV voucher - Kelly Jevansof Edge Lane

£25 Marks and Spencervoucher - Mrs Williams ofGladstone Road

Attractions ranged from fashion...... ......through to dance.

pe Band

Kensington RegenerationBoard Member Enid Bristowmeets Emma Rigby.

Children took part in a range of art activities

(above left and right).

Chatting at the St John Ambulance stand. Young dancers take to the stage.

All smiles from these two youngsters atthe third African Kensington Festival.

Dancers from Homegrown Music.

popular feature of the festival andthis year matches in the annualmulti-cultural five-a-side footballtournament were held both at thesports centre and Botanic Park.

Countries represented includedNigeria, Zimbabwe and Sierra Leonetogether with teams from localschools. Trophies were presented in arange of different categories.

The festival weekend concluded

with an evening celebration for theorganisers and participants at theFairfield Police Club.

Kenneth Ndingindwayo added:“Everyone who turned out enjoyedthemselves at the festival. We had alot of new events and activities thisyear and for 2008 we hope to includea number of new sports includingbadminton, netball and basketball.”

Torrential rain didn’t dampen thespirits of visitors to this year'sNewsham Park Festival.

Two stages featured liveperformances on both days at theevent with Eton Road from TV’s TheX Factor headlining the attractionswhich also included UrbanStrawberry Lunch (playing old oildrums!), the St Francis of AssisiAcademy Band and the AcademyIdol and Junior Pops competitions.

Other performers included theKensington Community Choir, singerTeddy Dymz, African dancers andmusicians and Polish dancers.

Ullaloom Theatre Company, whichhad been working with schools in thearea, also presented a performanceabout local history and youngstersfrom St Sebastian’s Primary gave anoutstanding ribbon dance display.

Other attractions included circusacts, animals from Rice Lane CityFarm, sideshows and a range ofinformation stalls.

Organiser Lisa Harrison said:“There was a fantastic turnoutalthough it was like Glastonburybecause of the rain. We have a lot oftalent in our area – the performanceswere outstanding and everyone was

smiling despite the weather.”Organisers are already thinking

ahead to next year when they plan tohave even more acts and exhibitorsand aim to see the festivalrecognised city wide.

Newsham Park Festival

Police officers in Kensingtonrecently welcomed a party oftheir Swedish counterparts tothe area.

The visitors were on a fact-findingmission to Merseyside as part of thedevelopment of neighbourhoodpolicing in their own country.

The Kensington Police Team –funded by Kensington Regeneration –has developed close relationshipswith the local community, leading to

the successful targeting of anti-socialbehaviour in the area.

Inspector Dave Charnockcommented: “The Kensington approachis seen as a model of good partnershipworking in the community.

“It has succeeded in securing ahigh number of Anti-socialBehaviour Orders (ASBOs) and thishas helped to reduce the fear ofcrime in the area.”

Swedish police visit

Page 6 Kensington News August 2007 Issue 26

Schools in Kensington have beencelebrating Liverpool’s 800thbirthday in a variety ofdifferent ways.

For example, the focus at SacredHeart Primary was on the oldLiverpool Royal Infirmary whichoccupied a site near to the school.

Pupils carried out extensiveresearch into the old hospital,visiting the building and talking topeople who worked there.

They found out about a number ofinteresting features including itsunusual circular wards and its horse-drawn ambulance station.

Anne Edwards, a Learning Mentorat Sacred Heart, commented:“The children produced somefantastic work including a radioprogramme and an amazing mosaic.

“The project was a real eyeopener - pupils walk past the oldinfirmary every day but we knewvery little about it until now. It hasshown us that you can find historyon your doorstep if you look.”

Meanwhile, young people at fourother local schools staged a musicaljourney into the past to celebrate thecity’s 800th birthday.

The pupils from Broadgreen High,

Kensington Juniors, New ParkPrimary and Knotty Ash Primarypresented a musical medley thattook the audience from medievaltimes through to today, recallinglandmark occasions in Liverpool’shistory.

Broadgreen High Deputy Head,Sam Burns said: “The show was ahuge success. Everyone who wasinvolved should be extremely proudas they all looked fantastic.”

The show reached a wideraudience recently when excerptswere performed at the KensingtonSummer Fun Day.

Schools celebrate city’s birthday

Edge Hill-based theatre company20 Stories High has justcompleted a drama and hip hopproject with more than 30students at Liverpool CommunityCollege who are studying Englishas a second language.

The Journeys Project involved thestudents who are from a numberof different countries recording a CDwith a variety of poetry and raptracks that can now be heard onwww.myspace.com/20storieshigh.

One of the students, Jean-Luc,went on to perform a rap entitledLeave Me Alone in Swahili andEnglish at the Edge HillInternational Festival.

Julia Samuels, Co-artistic Director

with 20 Stories High, said:“The whole idea of the project wasto develop the students’ selfconfidence as well as their skills inEnglish, drama and music. It was anabsolutely brilliant project andeveryone enjoyed it.”

In November 20 Stories High willlaunch its youth theatre giving localyoung people the opportunity to takepart in weekly drama sessions.

In addition the company’sproduction of a play called SlowTime, about young offenders, willtour local schools and youth clubsduring October and November.

For further information telephone0151-260 5185 or email:info@20storieshigh.org.uk.

RAP CD BOOSTSENGLISH SKILLS

Above and right – fun for all at Newsham Park.

Pupils pictured with the mosaic dressed in the old-fashioned infirmary uniforms that were created as part of the project.

Some of the students who took part in the project.

KENSINGTON NEWS CROSSWORD

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SOLUTION ON PAGE 8

The youngsters are part ofKensington Regeneration’s Music forLife project, which has involved fivemusicians from the PhilharmonicOrchestra ‘adopting’ a school forweekly workshops and performances.

Choirs and string groups performedalongside Philharmonic musicians infront of fellow pupils, teachers,parents and Kensington RegenerationBoard Members and staff.

Kensington Regeneration’s Chairof Lifelong Learning, John Caton,

said: “This was a fabulous event.It was a real delight to see thechildren performing on the stage ofsuch a prestigious venue as thePhilharmonic, and they were superb.”

The five schools involved in Musicfor Life are Kensington Infants,Kensington Juniors, Sacred Heart,Phoenix Primary and St Sebastian’s.

The project, which is now in itsfourth year, also receives supportfrom the Foyle Foundation.

Kensington News August 2007 Issue 26 Page 7

KEY STAGE FORLOCAL PUPILS

Some of the pupils who performed at the Phil.

A wide range of Kensington performers took part in the parade.

Kensington joined in thecelebrations to mark the 47thanniversary of Congoleseindependence recently.

As part of a major new event forthe area musicians, poets and hip-hop storytellers provided a uniqueinsight into the culture of theCongo through performances at theNewsham Park Festival and atKensington Junior School.

The event was organised by anew arts organisation, YambiAfrica, with the support ofcommunity groups including theCongolese Association ofMerseyside, the Ephrata Church,the Mannecachee Church and theMerseyside Congolese Football Club.

The performances weresponsored by KensingtonRegeneration , Community Sevenand Liverpool CVS.

Highlights of the event includedperformances by the Ephrata Choirand the Mannecachee Choir, hiphopartist Gaylor Mupingu and twoCongolese bands based outside thearea, Nouvelle Alliance fromManchester and World Musicafrom Chester.

Drumming, dance and poetrywere also part of the eventcelebrating the country receiving itsindependence from Belgium onJune 30th, 1960.

Organiser Thierry Bwaka said hewas very pleased with the way the

celebrations had gone: “Everyonewho attended seemed to reallyenjoy the event and the excellentperformers who took part. It’scertainly something we would liketo repeat next year.”

In the meantime, Thierry and hiscolleagues are looking intoorganising another Congolese eventin September, this time linking intothe official launch of Yambi Africa.

Kensington Regeneration ChiefExecutive, Lynn Spencer,commented: “We were reallypleased to be able to support thisevent which attracted interest fromall sections of the community –it was great!”

CONGOLESE CELEBRATIONS

Kensington once again played animportant role in the city’s LordMayor’s Parade in June.

A number of local groups tookpart in the event which saw a slightchange of emphasis this year, withmore static performancescomplementing the parade.

These took place on Castle Street,where the Congolese Choir

performed and at St George’sPlateau where therewas a display by

Indian dancers from Kensington. There were also performances at

Williamson Square where ElectricBoogie were the Kensingtonattraction.

Other groups linked to the NewDeal area who were involved in theevent included musicians from theLiverpool Hindu Centre, the UnitedColours of Kensington face painters,the MDI African dancers, Hohodza,the Bolger Cunningham Irish dancersand dancers representing the

Merseyside Regional ChineseAssociation.

Kensington Regeneration BMEOutreach Worker, Martin Pinder,commented: “It was very pleasingto see so many Kensingtonorganisations involved in the paradeagain this year.

“They were all a real credit toour area and made an importantcontribution to the overall successof the event.”

Kensington plays a key rolein Lord Mayor’s Parade

A regular new date has been setfor the panel that considersapplications for the NewCommunities Fund.

In future the panel of localresidents will meet on the firstWednesday of every month.

Applications need to be sent toKensington Regeneration a weekbefore this in order for them to beprocessed in time for the meeting.

The New Communities Fund givesgroups based and working in theNew Deal area the chance to applyfor grants of £250 to £2,000 for awide range of community developmentactivities which will support thewider regeneration of the area.

Janet Grimes of KensingtonRegeneration’s New CommunitiesTeam commented: “We think that

having a fixed date for the panel tomeet will streamline the way thefund operates and make it more‘user friendly’ for local communitygroups and voluntary organisations.”

Janet added that communityparticipation is vital to the successof this scheme: “Local people knowwhat the priorities are in their ownneighbourhood and the NewCommunities Fund helps to give themthe tools they need to tackle them.”

For more information on thefund and an application pack contactthe new Communities Team on0151-233 6189.

Regular new datefor grants panel

The event featured many excellent performances.

Children from five Kensington schools took to the stage at Liverpool’sPhilharmonic Hall recently to show off their musical skills.

Are you aged 13 to 25?A new magazine needs your voice...Work has just got under-way on the first edition of the newKensington youth magazine.

Called Kidz on Kenny (a title chosen by young people themselves)it is being produced by and for young people in the area who wantto see their work in print. If you’re aged 13-25 you can get involved inputting the magazine together at sessions being run at local youthclubs over the next couple of months. The magazine is young peopleled and will deal with a range of issues that you as young peopleare interested in that are important to you and your local area.

Contact Richard at YCN on 0151 702 6960 or Anita at Kensington Regeneration on 0151 233 6182 for further information.

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JOB BANK4 TUNNEL ROADLIVERPOOL L7 6QD

t 0151 233 6136f 0151 233 6137w www.kensingtonregeneration.come newthinking@kensingtonregeneration.comtext 07976 383790

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we’reall earsWe want to hear from youabout life in Kensington.

Whether you’ve got a newsstory you’d like us tocover, or you want to haveyour say by sending us aletter with your views on alocal issue, KensingtonNews is for you.

Please get in touch with ususing the contact detailsbelow, clearly markingall submissions‘Kensington News’.

We look forward to hearingfrom you!

Page 8 Kensington News August 2007 Issue 26

More than 2,000 people –double the number expected –attended the Truck Stop event atEdge Hill railway station withvisitors from as far afield asManchester and Wales joining localresidents to enjoy a wide variety of

activities and entertainment.The festival – officially opened by

award-winning Liverpool dramatistJimmy McGovern – was organisedby Metal Liverpool in conjunctionwith a group of local organisationsand individuals called CreativeEdge. It was one of a number ofevents that are being organised inrelation to the station.

Activities on the day includedVictorian games, film screenings,poetry sessions, dancing, portraitpainting, music, walking tours,kids workshops, a speakers’ cornerand much more.

Ceri Hand, Director of Metal,said: “The event was fantastic andfar exceeded our expectations interms of the diversity of the audience.

“The weather played ahuge part in its successand meant that peoplestayed for the whole day.The different performanceswere also spectacularand the feedback wasgreat from everyonewho filled inquestionnaires.”

As buildingsat Edge Hill

station are to be developed into anarts centre, to be launched in thespring of next year, organisers arenow hoping to stage an even biggerfestival in 2008.

KENSINGTON CROSSWORD SOLUTION

Designed and produced by Kaleidoscope ADM and Alexander Corporate Communications

Martin Pinder is pictured with pupils Kamika Lawless and Chyenne Johnson.

These attractive costumes proved a big hit at the event.

Edge HillInternationalFestival

Exhibition celebrates school links with Croatia

Enthusiastic support at the festival!

Say cheese!

The sun made one of its rare appearances this summerfor the first Edge Hill International Festival.

Year 3 pupils at St Anne’sPrimary have been involved in aninternational collaboration withyoung people from the Istria area,arranged via Merseyside educationaland multi-media charity Twin Vision.

This involved pupils from bothcountries using creative photographictechniques to document their lives.

The exhibition brought together100 images taken by the children inLiverpool and Croatia which enabledboth participants and visitors tounderstand more about thesimilarities and differences betweenthe two cultures.

This is not the first time that TwinVision has worked with St Anne’s.Several years ago the school workedon a joint photographic project withsome deaf children in India.

The Croatia collaboration wasfinanced in part by a NewCommunities Fund grant fromKensington Regeneration.

Martin Pinder, the organisation’sBME Outreach Worker, commented:“We were very pleased to supportthis worthwhile project which hasresulted in an excellent exhibition thatdemonstrates the talent and enthusiasmof the children in both countries.”

A recent photographic exhibition celebrated a Kensington school’slinks with Croatia.

ACROSS: 1 Contemptible; 7 Merit; 8 Plain; 9 Own; 10 Constrain;11 Resume; 12 Fellow; 15 Pertinent; 17 Air; 18 Edict; 19 Tooth;21 Independence.

DOWN: 1 Cartographer; 2 Err; 3 Patent; 4 Impatient; 5 Llama;6 Unanswerable; 7 Minus; 10 Committee; 13 Leash; 14 Centre;16 Reign; 20 Old.

For further information contact Kensington Regeneration on 0151 233 6136.

Shop for Jobs Open DayAre you looking for a job in retail, leisure, hotel and catering,security and customer service? Are you interested in the newCity centre opportunities?Then come along to our event on Thursday, 9th August 2007, 10am to 3pm at the Job Bank, 4 Tunnel Road, Kensington, L7 6QD.

Kensington Regeneration is working with Shop for Jobs and SouthLiverpool Personnel to help local people into the new jobs in the Liverpool1 (Grosvenor /Paradise Street Project) and Kings Dock development.

This event will offer:• Information on the employers and the available jobs• Registration with the Shop for Jobs Team• Information on pre-recruitment training• In-work benefit calculations

For further information, ring Kensington Regeneration on 0151 233 6136.

Upcoming dates foryour diary:

Edge Hill NeighbourhoodAssemblyTuesday 7 August6.30pm – 8.30pm

City Centre Jobs Fair Thursday 9 August10am – 3pm

Liverpool 800th BirthdayCelebrations Parties to be held on27th August

...STOP PRESS...

KENSINGTONSPORTSCENTRE

ACTIVITIES Kicks ProgrammeSponsored by Liverpool andEverton CoachesEvery Tuesday 4pm – 6pmEvery Wednesday 5pm – 7pmEvery Thursday 5pm – 7pm(indoors)

Active Parks Programme Every ThursdayLine Dancing 10am – 11amTai Chi 11am – 12 noon

Street Dancing Every Friday 5.30pm –6.30pm Age 11 upwards

Futsal – Football Skills Every Friday 4pm – 5pm Age 8-125pm – 6pm Age 13 upwards