podcasts « Birmingham Local Democracy Week

Posts Tagged ‘podcasts’

Friends of Jasmin Fields podcast

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth

Ray Brookes, John McGill, Adam Noon and Sonya Williams

Friends of Jasmin Fields campaigned for a piece of land in their neighbourhood which had been left to rot and attracted fly-tipping. It was full of rubbish, but a group of local people organised a clearing up day, and then gained funding to fence off the area and renovate it and start looking after this small piece of parkland in Brandwood End – now the Jasmin Fields Nature Reserve.

The group have engaged the local school, have had young people volunteering to be a park ranger, and now the area is full of wildlife and is a place for families come to play, walk their dogs and enjoy the area they live in. The group hope they have empowered the local community. For their work, they have now been nominated for the Community Group category of Birmingham’s Local Hearts Award.

[podcast]http://podnosh.com/files/2009/10/Grassroots-Friends-of-Jasmin-Fields1.mp3[/podcast]

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth
Tags: Brandwood End, environment, Jasmin Fields, podcasts
Posted in Blog, Local Hearts Awards, People's Stories | No Comments »

BETI podcast

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth

Indu Daji and Electra Soudy

Electra Soudy and Indu Daji have been nominated for the Community Group Local Hearts Award for the work they have done with BETI, which they set up 10 years ago to empower women and give them training and support.

Indu focuses on muslim and hindu women and Electra with single women and voluntary groups – helping those coming to Britain who may be abused by their relatives and in-laws, assisting their learning of English and giving them the advice and guidance they need to get on the job ladder.

The group aim to liberate women in Birmingham who suffer under their families, feel estranged, or are being forced into arranged marriages. Both women have a background which has led them to this work – Electra ran away from her Greek home because her father was setting up an arranged marriage, and Indu also suffered when she moved to the city, but was given confidence by Electra.

The two women also inspire and motivate each other, and are well-known in the community as people other women can come to for help, shelter and advice. Here’s their story.

[podcast]http://podnosh.com/files/2009/10/Grassroots-BETI-group.mp3[/podcast]

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth
Tags: BETI, Electra Soudy, Indu Daji, podcasts
Posted in Blog, Local Hearts Awards, People's Stories | No Comments »

Jenni Rowley podcast

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth

Jenni Rowley, isn’t your average 20-something woman. She spends her evenings out on the streets in Northfield, trying to prevent Anti Social Behaviour and crime in the area and getting young people involved in a number of projects. One of these projects is the Beyond Midnight Bus, which parks up in Northfield, kitted out with DVD players, stereo, internet and recording studio and has become a place for young people to hang out and talk about what they want to see in their area.

As a support worker for INVOLVE (while she is not in her day job in property management), a community group in the Northfield area which aims to help get funding for local projects young people want to do. Jenni says working on the streets with young people and local authorities has opened her eyes and given her confidence. She tells us how excited she is to be nominated for the Young Person’s Birmingham’s Local Hearts Award, in the young people category.

[podcast]http://podnosh.com/files/2009/10/Grassroots-Jenni-Rowley.mp3[/podcast]

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth
Tags: Jenni Rowley, Northfield, podcasts
Posted in Blog, Local Hearts Awards, People's Stories | No Comments »

Matthew Ebo podcast

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth

Steven Barratt and Matthew Ebo

Here’s the story of Matthew Ebo, the Handsworth minister whose work for the community until now, has gone unnoticed. Now Matthew has been shortlisted for the active citizen category of Birmingham’s Local Hearts award, nominated by his friend and co-worker, Steven Barratt.

A lot of his work centres around the National Black Boys Can Association, a group for 9-16-year-olds which meets every fornight to help them with schoolwork and teach them good citizenship. Previously a Special Constable, he also works for the Central and West Victim Support Scheme – helping victims rebuild their lives.

Matthew was inspired by his baptist minister and mother, and he is now the pastor of the Church of God and Prophesy – he said his religious upbringing helped him and without his wife’s support now he could not spend so much time doing voluntary work. Here’s his story.

[podcast]http://podnosh.com/files/2009/10/Grassroots-Mathew-Ebo.mp3[/podcast]

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth
Tags: Handsworth, Matthew Ebo, podcasts
Posted in Blog, Local Hearts Awards, People's Stories | 1 Comment »

Faith and Climate Change podcast

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth

Maud Grainger and Keith Budden

Four years ago, after running an Islam and the Environment Week, Maud Grainger decided looking at climate change with faith communities would be a great way to take action. The group Faith and Climate Change was set up by Maud Grainger with help from Keith Budden, who has nominated the group for Birmingham’s Local Hearts Award, in the community group category.

Birmingham has over one million of the population belonging to a faith, and this was too big a group not to help with combating climate change, said Maud. The programme has now been replicated across the UK – looking at climate change in terms of values regardless of faith. Why else would a group a young muslim men from Small Heath meet some old Quakers in Bournville? To look at how they installed solar water heater in the Friends Meeting House. Looking at climate change has brought these communities together. Here, they tell their story.

[podcast]http://podnosh.com/files/2009/10/Grassroots-Faith-and-Climate-Change.mp3[/podcast]

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth
Tags: Maud Grainger, podcasts
Posted in Blog, Local Hearts Awards, People's Stories | No Comments »

Erma Lewis podcast

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth

Erma Lewis

Six years ago Erma Lewis started the ‘Wheelchair recycling, we can do’ project which refurbishes old and disused wheelchairs for people on NHS waiting lists or for family events and one-offs. This project sprang out of an appeal she ran following storm damage on her one time home island of Jamaica.

As a former nurse, Erma had seen the problem of people being unable to leave hospital for want of a wheelchair. She began to think that if she was able to find and ship old wheelchairs to the Caribbean then perhaps she could also provide them locally. Now the idea is a registered charity and a team of volunteers repair wheelchairs at a workshop in Harborne.

This podcast was recorded just before the Local Hearts Awards in Birmingham in October 2009 – where she was shortlisted in the category of female active Citizen.

[podcast]http://podnosh.com/files/2009/10/GrassrootsErmaLewis.mp3[/podcast]

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth
Tags: Erma Lewis, Harborne, podcasts, Quinton
Posted in Blog, Local Hearts Awards, People's Stories | No Comments »

Michael Tye podcast

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth

Michael Tye and Eunice McGhie-Belgrave

This is the story of Michael Tye, the man who helped set up Aston Vision Ministries Association in 1984, which aims to reach people in the community, help with language and work to integrate asylum seekers into the community. For his relentless work in engaging the community in Aston, he was nominated by Eunice McGhie-Belgrave for the Birmingham Local Hearts Award, in the active citizen category.

Michael said people know communities help them so want to give something back but he questions those who do community work for self-aggrandisement. He wants to work towards the common good – and is not so keen on being the one in the spotlight. Here he tells us his story.

[podcast]http://podnosh.com/files/2009/10/Grassroots-Michael-Tye.mp3[/podcast]

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth
Tags: podcasts
Posted in Blog, Local Hearts Awards, People's Stories | No Comments »

Suzanne Coward podcast

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth

Suzanne Coward and Linda Kelly

When Suzanne Coward’s daughter Sarah, who has learning difficulties, turned 23, she realised she could use direct payment money to set up a cafe, Stepping Stones. Situated in Sutton Coldfield at the United Reform church, the cafe offers a day experience for people with learning difficulties to hang out, socialise and feel enabled to do things which they wouldn’t often get the opportunity to do.

Suzanne saw a gap in the north of the city, where there were no social enterprise services for people with learning difficulties. She wants to encourage healthy living, exercise and creating things which are meaningful for people with learning difficulties. Linda Kelly, Senior Youth and Community Development Worker in Sutton Coldfield, has nominated Suzanne for the active citizen Local Hearts award for the work she has done for children with learning difficulties.

[podcast]http://podnosh.com/files/2009/10/Grassroots-Suzanne-Coward.mp3[/podcast]

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth
Tags: podcasts
Posted in Blog, Local Hearts Awards, People's Stories | 2 Comments »

Noorin Akhtar podcast

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth

Noorin Ahktar

Noorin Ahktar wants to change Britain. She goes out interviewing the people at the top – leaders of the council, councillors, public service providers and holds them to account in a way accessible to her community. Her aim is to make sure some communities know about the changes being made in public services – she promotes and raises awareness in ethnic communities – she now has a rogramme called ‘Community Time’. She has set up a blog, and uses radio and tv channels to make the short programmes in English, Urdu, Punjabi, and a number of different languages.

Noorin thinks some communities are wrongly perceived as ‘hard to reach’ – she challenges this point of view with her truly innovative and brilliant work. Her inspiration is the fact if people of aware of what is going on around them, they will have the knowledge to be able to do things.

Manjit Singh nominated Noorin for the active citizen award, one of the shortlist categories for Birmingham’s Local Hearts Awards.

[podcast]http://podnosh.com/files/2009/10/Grassroots-Noorin-Akhtar.mp3[/podcast]

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth
Tags: Handsworth, Lozells, Manjit Singh, Noorin Akhtar, podcasts
Posted in Blog, Local Hearts Awards, People's Stories | 1 Comment »

Chris Birdsell podcast

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth

Chris Birdsell and Bob Flack

Chris Birdsell isn’t your average pub landlord. Along with running the Varsity pub in Harborne, Chris is chairman of the local “pub watch” which alerts police to incidents on the High Street, he’s on the committee for the Harborne Traders Association, Harborne Village Centre Partnership and on the committee for Harborne Carnival. He’ll know who to put you in touch with, and regularly opens up the pub for community events.

Harborne Village Centre Manager, Bob Flack, nominated Chris in the active citizen category for the Birmingham Local Hearts award, because he recognised the innovation he has for local projects and the ability to drive projects to their end. Chris recently started a local artists evening – allowing those in the community to showcase their work. He said he always has people coming into the pub asking for help, and often he will find ways to help the people help themselves – opening the pub in the evening for them to hold fundraising events and meetings, and putting them in touch with the right people.

Chris has been described as the eyes and ears of the community, and said his motivation has to be the people. Here’s his story.

[podcast]http://podnosh.com/files/2009/10/Grassroots-Chris-Birdsell-2.mp3[/podcast]

Posted on 20th October 2009 by Nick Booth
Tags: Bob Flack, Chris Birdsell, Harborne, podcasts
Posted in Blog, Local Hearts Awards, People's Stories | No Comments »