THE SOHO TIMES

Mid-day Mantra at The Symphony Hall with Dr Jyotsna Srikanth and Creative Leap bring some colour to Handsworth Park

geoff.henderson — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 12:52:28 +0000

My interest in ‘Indian’ music goes back to the sixties when the pop groups such as The Beatles and Rolling Stones introduced me to the music of the sub continent through artists such as Ravi Shankar. Having lived in Handsworth for the last twenty years and Birmingham for around forty with its vibrant ‘Asian’ community I’ve slowly become more educated to the vast wealth and variety of music that this community has introduced to the people of the UK and Birmingham. SAMPAD who are have this year been celebrating their 20^th anniversary are an organization that have played a vital role in this educating process by regionally, nationally and internationally promoting the appreciation and practice of South Asian art forms, be they British Asian or originating from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Since earlier in the year they have been presenting free Saturday lunch time concerts once a month under the banner Mid-day Mantra. This month the event hosted Dr Jyotsna Srikanth a violinist based in London who has played at major world wide festivals including WOMAD and who has just released her latest album ‘Fusion Dreams’. The Symphony Hall setting seemed perfect for the concert where she was accompanied by instrumentalist playing mridangam, morching, tabla and keyboard. The artist lined up for Saturday 11 December is Utsav Lal the ‘raga pianist’. To find out more about Sampad and hear Dr Jyotsna Srikanth check out these links.

www.sampad.org.uk

www.myspace.com/violinjyotsna

www.youtube.com/indyworldmusic

CREATIVE LEAP TREE ART IN HANDSWORTH PARK

Closer to home, this month also saw Creative Leap ‘Paint the Park’, the park being Handsworth! Creative Leap is a professional development programme for new and emerging Birmingham based artists providing funding for artists thereby enabling them to turn their creative ideas into reality. The scheme was aimed at individuals who want to break into working in the arts sector or who are at an early stage of their career as an artist and have had limited opportunities to produce and showcase work. Taz Lovejoy was one of 15 artists selected for the programme run in partnership by Sampad, Ulfah Arts, and The Drum and supported by Birmingham City Council and Burton Cultural Partnership.

After a series of workshops with artist Taz Lovejoy, a local youth group from Lozells Methodist Church and Worth Unlimited painted a coppice of silver birch trees by the main entrance on Holly Road. I have only seen pictures of the work so far the grand opening for the public being this Sunday 28 November between 12 noon and 2pm, where you can see the finished installation and meet the artist and the young people involved. I must admit although it sounds fun and looks colourful I did have some worries about toxic paint killing trees etc. However I have been assured that all the paints used are eco-friendly and will degrade naturally over time but whether this might encourage tagging on trees by ‘artists’ less scrupulous in their choice of materials …well I hope not. Check out Taz’s blog where the picture is from and see what you think or see you there on Sunday.

www.paintthepark.com.

Story: Andrew Burchell

Pictures: Susanna Bearfoot

Inhabit: Community tea room and art space

Nosheen — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 10:23:23 +0000

Harambee Organisation has allowed Hybrid to convert the old Harriet Tubman Bookshop into a community tea room and arts space on Grove Lane in Handsworth just off the Soho Road.

Hybrid has been commissioned by Birmingham City Council to produce the Inhabit programme to contribute to the Culture on Your Doorstep strand of Birmingham’s Cultural Strategy.

The Inhabit project is running across the city to open up empty shops to encourage people “to meet, have a cup of tea, enjoy taking part in creative workshops and share their stories and experience”.

The team are keen to hear from people who may wish to get involved and use the space.

Karen Meng from Hybrid said, “In addition to a regular programme of activities and drop-in sessions for tea and cake, we are keen to hear from local groups and organisations about how they would like to use this temporary space. We are there to offer activities but also to support work that is already going on. We would like to connect our artists to local people so that the work we produce is rooted in the community and its residents.

All of our events (including abundant tea and cake) are absolutely free.”

Hybrid will also have a series of exhibitions and workshops on the programme, which can be found on there website or in the shop.

The Community tea room opening hours are:
Tuesday 11-2 Crafts with Mel Tomlinson
Wednesday 11-4 Various activities with Strange Ways Collective
Friday 2-6 Photography with Anand Chhabra

For further information please contact Karen Meng: karen@hybridconsulting.org.uk , 0121 236 1669.

Also have a look at the Inhabit post card and Hybrid website to learn more.

Inhabit_postcard_handsworth

www.hybridconsulting.org.uk

Street Audit on Soho Road

Nosheen — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 11:31:10 +0000

When the Soho Foundation team did the street audit along the Soho Road on 3rd November with local residents, council officers, Living Streets and Amey, Birmingham City Council’s PFI highways contractors, residents made clear their views that clutter was a potentially dangerous nuisance.

Eunice Campbell from Lozells was very concerned about the quality of the environment – especially about the amount of litter; and there was a lot of it about on the Soho Road – especially bin bags left next to guardrailings.

Dorothy Gabbidon from Handsworth pointed out where street traders’ stalls didn’t leave enough space for pedestrians and where illegally parked cars on the pavement forced pedestrians to walk on the busy roadway.

We noticed where poles had been removed but sharp stumps were left sticking out of the pavement. All of this has been reported in the de-cluttering audit passed on to the council’s officers.

In the video below have a listen to a discussion with Birmingham City Council officers and local residents.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Soho Oscars for Local Heroes

geoff.henderson — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 10:08:20 +0000

Do you know an unsung hero who takes pride in their local community? Someone who tirelessly works to improve and benefit their area?

The annual Soho Oscars awards provide an opportunity for individuals, groups and organisations to get recognition for their contribution in Soho.

This year there are 10 categories in which to nominate: Active Citizens Award, Arts & Culture Award, Environmental Achievement Award, Golden Citizen Awards, Local Business Award, Most Developed Neighbourhood Forum, Most Developed Resident-led Group, Partnership of the Year, The Safer Community Award and Young Person of the Year.

Closing dates for nominations is Monday 8th November with the award ceremony being held on Thursday 18th November, 6-11pm at the Richardson Suite, West Bromwich Football Club.

Colin Hanno, neighbourhood manager for Soho Finger & Gibb Heath said: “”These awards are a great opportunity to celebrate the strengths of Soho and highlight the positive aspects of the neighbourhood. There are lots of examples of local residents giving up their time and helping others so it is vital that we acknowledge their work. I hope people will get behind the awards and think of a local individual or group who deserve this recognition and nominate them.”

If you know an individual or a local community group or service that has made a real difference in Soho, give them the opportunity to receive recognition for their hard work.

For more information please contact Colin Hanno, the Neighbourhood Manager for Soho Finger and Gib Heath at colin.hanno@birmingham.gov.uk or visit his blog here.

Soho Road Photographic Exhibition at Wolverhampton Art Gallery

geoff.henderson — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 09:55:39 +0000

It was through my daily browse of the UK’s online newspapers that I chanced upon an article regarding Liz Hingley’s photographic exhibition at Wolverhampton Art Gallery entitled ‘Under Gods: Stories from Soho Road’. The picture used from the exhibition to illustrate the article was of Hockley flyover, giving a view from the middle of the road looking towards Handsworth. Not a view I was accustomed to even though I often travel on the 74 or 79 bus on the way back from town to my home. My usual vista from the wheelchair user’s spot on the bus is of the burnt out Mohammed Ali Centre before it rounds the roundabout under the flyover. In my experience pictures related to Handsworth are few and far between in the press so I was immediately intrigued. I phoned the gallery informing them that I was a citizen journalist from The Soho Times and was granted a preview of the exhibition. So with helper in tow, there is access to Winston Green Metro station but the slope is formidable, we arrived at Wolverhampton in minutes and were soon being shown round Liz Hingley’s exhibition.

The pictures seek to reflect the diversity of religious communities centred around the Soho Road in Handsworth from an intimate perspective providing a view of Handsworth life that might otherwise remain hidden from the people outside of that particular religious practice. Sikhs practising yoga, the inside of a mosque or Buddhist Temple, a baptism at Canon Street Baptist church or Mrs Clarke with her church hats. Initially as I am an atheist I felt that the pictures, by centring on religious practice, were perhaps emphasising differences rather than the communality the residents of Handsworth share. A member of staff pointed out to me “it is the ignorance of other’s religion that most often leads to conflict which these picture help to break down”. Well I thought to myself Richard Dawkins might have something to say about that, but another day for that conversation. However, above the pictures are quotes recorded while the project was being undertaken and one of them from a six year old states “if everyone could be friends about their religions the world would be better than this” and for me the ‘Jain and Catholic neighbours’ picture where two young girls are captured together with a sitar suggesting for me the universality of music in uniting people was my favourite.

As we were leaving my companion asked me “do you think the people of Handsworth will see this exhibition?” “Well”, I replied, “I live in Handsworth and have made it to Wolverhampton”. But for sure it would be great if the pictures could be exhibited closer to where they were taken. When we arrived back on the Soho Road my friend wanted to buy some sweets to take back to Stroud and as it was Diwali the shop was packed. I waited outside where a couple of young lads had a small table selling a sparse selection of ‘everything a pound’ goods. We started to chat, Morrison’s opening, the cost of renting a shop, no market in Handsworth for small traders, the cost of studying and no work at the end of it, and then I brought up the subject of the exhibition. Caught up in the trap of defining people by their religion I asked curiously if the shop we were in front of was owned by Hindus or Muslims “we’re all one init” stated the eldest boy matter-of-factly without answering me directly making me the atheist feel somewhat foolish.

The exhibition is on at Wolverhampton Art Gallery till 26th February 2011 with a related exhibition ‘Faith Stories’ beginning 20th November which has artwork produced by young people from Whitmore Reans looking at diversity of faith groups in Wolverhampton where young people have participated in a week long project with Liz Hingley to capture images that represent their religion. There will be an official launch evening of the show on the 8th December at 7.00pm and people are invited to come along.

In case you can’t make it to Wolverhampton there is a video at the FOTO8 website that shows all the pictures with a soundtrack including the ambient sounds of Soho Road along with the recorded quotes.

Story: Andrew Burchell

Photographs: Courtesy of Liz Hingley

Links

Wolverhampton Art Gallery: www.wolverhamptonart.org.uk/wolves

Liz Hingley’s website: www.lizhingley.com

FOTO8 website: http://www.foto8.com/new/online/photo-stories/1187-under-gods

Soho Times Citizen Journalists Help Out at the BBC

geoff.henderson — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 13:46:34 +0000

On the 20th October budding Citizen Journalists from the Handsworth area visited the BBC in the Mailbox for a training session. Little did they know that they would end up being in front of the camera not behind it.

The visit coincided with live coverage of the Government’s Competitive Spending Review. BBC news staff were looking for a local response to the announcements and members of the attending group were asked for their input and opinions. This really brought the tour of the BBC facilities to life and showed how hard their staff work to cover such an important news event.

As a key part of the Sense of Place Citizen Journalism training the group had a tour of the BBC facilities and also heard from BBC journalist Patricia Hoskins on how to get the best out of an interview and how to create an acceptable editorial policy for the Soho Times community newspaper.

Free Training to Become a Place-Shaping Champion

geoff.henderson — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 13:38:34 +0000

Following up on the Sense of Place project’s recent success at the Homes & Communities Awards 2010 an invitation is being extended for you to get involved with the next stage of the Sense of Place project.

Outlining the offer Nick Corbett, Director of Urban Design and Enterprise at Urban Living, stated “We are offering an exciting opportunity for individuals to be trained by the BBC as citizen journalists. Participants will be trained in journalistic techniques; the use of social media, such as Flickr, YouTube, and Twitter; and they will be able to get involved in local housing issues and in creating more inspiring streets”.

The attached flyer has been produced to help promote the training programme so please have a look and get in touch if you’re interested or circulate it to any community place-shapers who you think might be interested. For a copy of the flyer click here.

The accompanying prospectus provides much more detail on the range of training activities as well as information on dates, times and venues. For a copy of the prospectus click here.

For further information please get in touch via the form on the ‘Contact Us’ page or contact Nosheen Kosar, the Project Coordinator, on 01922 474480.

Sense of Place Project Wins a High Commendation

geoff.henderson — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 09:24:36 +0000

Urban Living’s Sense of Place project has won a High Commendation at the Homes & Communities Awards 2010. It was the only project to be highly commended within the category of “Leadership of Place”.

The judges praised the Sense of Place project for using participatory arts activities and digital technology to engage residents of Birmingham’s Handsworth and Soho districts in shaping their area’s future.

The awards ceremony was held at London’s Roundhouse, where Sarah Montague, presenter of Radio 4’s flagship Today programme, said: “the judges were particularly impressed with the project’s approach to engaging and empowering residents to make a difference to their lives and community.”

Urban Living’s Nick Corbett, who initiated the project, said: “Sense of Place has shown us how to deliver neighbourhood renewal by equipping community place-shapers. I’d like to congratulate the professional team who delivered the project, including our four citizen journalists. I’d also like to thank everyone in Birmingham who made the project such a success.”

Two other projects in Birmingham also won awards, including Aston Hall and the Balsall Heath Forum.

Links:

Aston Hall
Balsall Heath Forum
Urban Living

Nabeel Hamdi Workshops Stimulate the Coproduction Debate

geoff.henderson — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 15:53:07 +0000

As interest in the Big Society and in coproduction starts to gather pace delegates at a recent workshop series had the opportunity to hear how these initiatives are being taken forward elsewhere.

Led by widely renowned Professor Nabeel Hamdi, an advisor to the United Nations and a pioneer in the field of community action planning, the workshops featured presentations on coproduction and new ways of working with the private and voluntary sectors and how to ‘do more with less’ – lessons in empowerment and how to work more effectively and collaboratively as a place shaper.

The workshop delegates were also treated to a presention by Karen Cheney of Birmingham City Council and Paul Slatter of the Chamberlain Forum who gave a brief insight into ‘Looking Sideways’, a new study from the Chamberlain Forum looking at the way neighbourhoods and neighbourhood services are coproduced in Birmingham. More information on the report can be found on the related story on this site.

We’re delighted to say that the proceedings of the workshops were captured on video and can be accessed from the links below.

Day 1

1. Introduction to Action Planning

2. Participation and Community Engagement

3. Question and Answer Session

4. Birmingham Approach to Coproduction 1

Day 2

1. Workshop Introduction

2. Birmingham’s Approach to Coproduction 2

3. Introduction to Community Participation

4. Group Discussions

5. Action Planning Tools and Techniques

6. Coproduction examples from around the world

Of course progressing the coproduction agenda will require input from a wide range of stakholders including policy makers, regenerational professionals, neighbourhood managers and importantly, representatives of the local community. For this reason we have added a coproduction topic to the Soho Foundation discussion forum. Please click on the menu link above to access the forum, hear what’s being said and have your own say!

Coproduction report sets the scene for neighbourhood services in Birmingham

geoff.henderson — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 14:59:05 +0000

Looking Sideways is a new study from the Chamberlain Forum looking at the way neighbourhoods and neighbourhood services are coproduced in Birmingham. The research was commissioned by Birmingham City Council as part of the city’s Community Asset Transfer Development Programme.

The central idea is that community assets (tangible assets like buildings and less tangible assets like community networks and ’social capital’) are key factors in how well public services can be delivered.

A copy of the full report can be accessed here.

A briefing paper released earlier in the year can be accessed here.

For more information on the Chamberlain Forum and their work click here

Note: At a recent Sense of Place workshop on coproduction both Paul Slatter of the Chamberlain Forum and Karen Cheney of Birmingham City Council gave presentations on the report. Copies of their presentations will be posted to the Soho Foundation site shortly.