A video produced by Sheffield Muslim Community Forum about the Food Bank Appeal.

Food Bank Appeal Up-date

Sheffield Muslim Community Forum and Darnall Forum have been working very closely with volunteers and local food banks for months to encourage one another, share ideas and work out how best to tackle some of the challenges of food poverty in our local communities. Great things can happen when like-minded people get together and work to build a cohesive society. 

God bless everyone who came out yesterday to support us and to everyone who donated food and cash for our Food Bank Appeal. 

Real donkey to head nativity procession on Saturday 19 December

Messages of Christmas 'Peace and goodwill to all people' and 'Good news for poor and oppressed people' will be at the heart of this year's nativity procession through Darnall. That hope has been kept alive by carols sung on the streets down the centuries.

Nearly 200 years ago, in Sheffield and many other parts of Yorkshire and North Derbyshire, the local carols, (with different words and tunes from the traditional ones), were seen as too much about the rights of all people to a better world for the local squires and industrialists to stomach, and they had them banned from the churches !

  

It is in the spirit of good-neighbourliness and hope for peace that the Darnall Churches invite people to sing along with our Nativity Procession - a new route from last year and this time a real donkey !

St Alban’s Church, Chapelwood Road  – set off at 2.00pm with stops for traditional carols on:

 Basford Street,  Balfour Road, Barnadiston Road, Gainsford Road, Ronald Road, outside The Terminus pub, Main Road,

to finish at Church of Christ, Station Road  which will be open for hot refreshments from 3.00pm

Small Business Saturday

Darnall Post Office is just one of 5 million small businesses across the UK. We're not owned by the Queen or the goverrnment. We're a non-profit organisation owned by the local community.

If you don't use your local post office, and your local shopping centre, you will lose it. Please support us and other small businesses. And by use us we mean please give us your custom. 

Buying stamps on-line, or franking your own mail and dumping big bags of it in our office, does not help to keep us open. How far would you have to go to post pre-paid mail if we closed? Handsworth? Attercliffe? Pond Street in town?

Find out more at www.smallbusinesssaturdayuk.com.

Not In Our Name!

Following the atrocities in Paris members of our Women's Voices group in Darnall decided that they wanted to say, 'Not in our name!'

One of the members of the group who decided to join in is a Christian and she said that the indiscriminate bombing of ISIS territory in retaliation for the atrocities is not in her name too.

Most members of the group didn't want to show the whole of their face on-line. Some were afraid they might be victims of hate crime. Some wanted to conceal their faces for religious reasons.

The Group said, "We are here to say Not in My Name because our religion is not a religion of terrorism, it is not a religion of war but of peace and co-existence."

S9 Food Bank Appeal Features on Radio Iman

Sylvia & Neil Hamilton from Living Waters receive the Donation from the team at Iman FM

Syvlia and Neil Hamilton on air at Radio Iman FM

Sylvia and Neil Hamilton from the Living Waters Christian Fellowship, which acts as the local depot for the Burngreave Food Bank in Darnall, spoke emotionally on Radio Iman FM about the support the Food Bank has received from all sections of the community, and particularly from local Muslims. Radio Iman itself has made a donation.

Future of the Clover Group of GPs' Surgeries

The future of the Clover Group, which runs the GPs' surgeries at Darnall Primary Care Centre and the Highgate Surgery in Tinsley, is in serious doubt. NHS England is putting the services which the Clover Group provides out to tender. The lowest bid is likely to win.

We realise that many people will feel that it is already too difficult to get an appointment to see a doctor or nurse practitioner and will wonder whether putting the Clover Group under new ownership might actually make things better! This is unlikely to happen, however, because there is less money on the table and the new owners could be a national or international group of doctors and investors who will not know anything about the needs of local people. 

We believe that the best way to deal with unacceptable waiting times is to talk to the Clover Group about this and ask them to make some changes, not to take a gamble that new owners might provide a better service.

The Clover Group has invested a lot of energy and resources in supporting local programmes that help patients to cope with diabetes, mental health issues, keeping fit and healthy living. This cuts down on the amount of time patients need to spend with GPs and nurses and saves money that can be spent on other important things. 

It is also exactly what NHS England have said GPs ought to be doing all over the country, to reduce the growing pressures on their services and make their resources go further. Unfortunately, all of this will be put at risk if a new owner comes in who is unaware of what has been happening.

The government has made it compulsory for the Clover Practice to be put out to tender, and there is nothing we can do to prevent this unless there is a change in the law. What we can do, however, is to ask NHS England to consult us about it first, so that the design of the tender can take what is happening here into account.

You can read more about this on Professor Mark Gamsu's blog. He is a visiting professor at Leeds Beckett University and a leading expert on involving local communities in public health.

Send us a tweet or an email if you live in Darnall or Tinsley and agree that you would like to be consulted. Better still, contact NHS England by tweeting to @NHSEngland or email  https://www.england.nhs.uk/contact-us/ . Tell them you have read Darnall Forum's blog and you support what it says and want to know when the consultation is going to start.

Women's Voices in Darnall Ward

Women's Voices Course

The Women's Voices course is now fully booked. But you can register for the next Women's Voices course next term by calling Darnall Forum on (0114) 249 0099 and leaving your details, or by sending us an email.

Darnall Well Being AGM Tonight

Darnall Well Being

Invites you to their

Annual General Meeting

Tuesday 10^th November

5:00pm – 7:30pm.

At Darnall Primary Care Centre.

The theme for the evening is

Celebrating

15 Years of Darnall Well Being

·       Meet their team of staff and volunteers

·       discover last year's highlights

·       Hear about DWB’s rich history

·       Help them look forward to the next 15 years

Refreshments from 5pm, light buffet 7.30pm

Please call (0114) 249 6315 to confirm your attendance.  The staff, directors and volunteers at DWB look forward to seeing you!

S9 Food Bank Appeal

Thank you to everyone who came out to support the S9 Food Bank Appeal on Saturday. We had a great response from local residents and volunteers from across Sheffield.

Local residents making a food donation

Councillor Iqbal helped us plan for the day and came to lend a hand

Local taxi drivers gave us their support

The African Women's Help Group donated food

Thank you to Orchid Hair and Beauty, the African Women's Health Group, S9 Communication, Darnall Post Office, Sheffield Muslim Community Forum, Councillor Mazher Iqbal, Sheffield Taxi Drivers, Sheffield Asian Media Forum, Darnall Forum and its Community Organisers, BBC Radio Sheffield, Sheffield University, Bangla Bazaar and most of all the volunteers who helped out today. Without you guys it would have never been possible. 

The food was donated to the Living Waters Christian fellowship and we raised £431 on the day! 

Of course, we are still collecting. Donations can be dropped off at Darnall Forum or Darnall Post Office.

Some people like to carp, and criticise us because the majority of the people we work with are of South Asian heritage. They seem to think this is unfair, even though people from South Asian cultures and backgrounds are in the majority.

How refreshing it is, then, to see generous people from all the different communities in Darnall coming together to support a good cause, and to see Christian and Muslim organisations and volunteers working together to help those most in need.

Sylvia Hamilton from Living Waters Christian Fellowship, which acts as the local collection and distribution point for the Burngreave Food Bank, said, "Thank you so much for supporting the Food bank in Darnall with a collection of food.  Zahira and all the volunteers, you were absolutely brilliant in the way you organised the event and got involved.   The result was awesome in spite of the weather. I hope you all get chance to have a rest and recover. Keep up the good work!"

Bonfire Night

Fireworks at Don Valley Bowl

Darnall Forum took some young people to the After Dark event at Don Valley Bowl on Guy Fawkes' Night. 
Free Tickets were given to Zahira Naz by Cllr Mazher Iqbal and Cllr Mary Lea, to reduce anti social behaviour in Tinsley. The local youth workers also took older youths to the event. 

Litter Picking on the Greenlands and Stovin Estates

Litter pickers in Darnall

Darnall Forum Community Organiser Zahira Naz, Millie from Amey and volunteers took part in a litter pick as part of a Day of Action organised by South Yorkshire Housing Association on 3 November on the Greenlands and Stovin Drive Estates. Free safety alarms, and information on safety were also offered by Sheffield City Council officers and Police officers at Stovin Drive. 

Love Food, Hate Waste

Last week's 'Love Food Hate Waste' training was delivered for us by Peter from WRAP. Some of the ladies agreed to be photographed, but some preferred not to appear and some preferred not to show their face. Each participant received a Food Champion pack and other resources.

Food Bank Collection at Bangla Bazaar on Saturday

In 2013-14 food banks fed 913,138 people nationwide. Of those helped, 330,205 were children. Rising food and fuel prices, static incomes, under-employment and changes to benefits are some of the reasons why increasing numbers of people are being referred to food banks for emergency help.

Darnall Forum and Sheffield Muslim Community Forum are working alongside local residents to launch the S9 Food Bank Appeal. Please pledge your support.

Gifts of food will be collected on our behalf by Living Waters, who work with the Burngreave Food Bank and the Trussell Trust to provide a local food bank service in Darnall.

The idea of getting the local Muslim community involved in the food bank phenomenon came from an Asian Taxi driver living in Darnall.  He wanted to do something positive in the community to improve community cohesion and to counteract the negative media bias about Muslims. Local people hope this project will show Muslims and Christians in a positive light, especially as they are working together to support people in need.

Darnall Forum’s community organiser Zahira Naz says, “I contacted Sheffield Muslim Community Forum as they had already done something similar to support the S2 Foodbank appeal.  They were happy to support us, alongside Sheffield Asian Media Forum.”

Zahira left food boxes at the Subud Centre, Darnall Forum, Darnall Post Office, Orchid Hair and Beauty, S9 Communications and Rassam’s and they have been filling up. She says, “Local businesses have been happy to support us.”

Darnall’s local ward councillors are also supporting this project. Councillor Mazher Iqbal, who is involved in the Food Poverty Strategy for Sheffield, says, ‘It’s a wonderful idea.’

He will be helping Zahira and other volunteers to collect food and other urgently needed grocery items outside the Bangla Bazaar on Staniforth Road, from 11am till 3pm on Saturday 7 November.

Watch the video here 

Love Food Hate Waste, Friday 6 November 10am-1pm

Food lovers can save money! So why not join our free, fun and interactive "Love Food, Hate Waste" session, where you'll learn:

• Top tips to help you make the most of your food and save up to £60 per month
• Ideas on  how to pass the message on, to help your family, friends and community

The session will take place at Darnall Post Office. Space is limited. Phone Zahira on 0114 249 0099 for further information or email darnallforum@gmail.com

Dr Alan Billings viists Darnall Forum

Dr Alan Billings hands over a cheque for £5,000 towards our community work

Dr Alan Billings, the Police and Crime Commissioner for South Yorkshire, paid us a visit last week and handed over a cheque from his community grant fund to help us with our work. He is pictured (second from left) with, left to right, our manager Neil Bishop, our community organiser Zahira Naz and our finance officer Rahat Esmail.

Darnall Forum AGM, 6pm on Tuesday 27 October

All local residents, traders and workers are invited to come along and have your say about our post office and our community work, and other local issues.

Darnall Post Office Resumes Normal Service

Darnall Post Office seems to be working normally again after the phone line was repaired yesterday by BT Openreach.

Darnall Forum AGM 6pm Tuesday 27 October

Please join us here at Darnall Forum, next to Darnall Post Office, to help celebrate the achievements of Darnall Forum in 2014 and shape its future. 

There will also be an opportunity to look at our annual accounts for 2014, which are already on-line (search for Darnall Forum), and to raise your concerns about the local community.


The meeting is open to all local residents, traders and people who work in Darnall and Attercliffe.

Darnall's Meadowhall Heart

The Darnall Heart at Meadowhall until 23 October

During
 the Twenty-fifth anniversary celebrations at Meadowhall there is a display of hearts depicting different aspects of life in Sheffield, including neighbouring communities like Darnall. The Darnall heart is pictured with, left to right, Sylvia and Neil Hamilton from the Friends of High Hazels Park, Darren Pearce the Chief Executive of Meadowhall, Mothiur Rahman, Chair of Darnall Forum, and other executives from Meadowhall and British Land. You can see our heart opposite Next, where it will be until 23 October. It was designed by artist Laura Hallett.

As well as sponsoring the heart, British Land sponsors Darnall Carnival and Darnall Forum as part of its community outreach work.

Interruption of Service at Darnall Post Office

We apologise for the temporary closures that have affected the branch last Wednesday, Friday and today. This has happened because of a telephone fault that developed on Wednesday morning, which has affected our IT system. BT Openreach and Post Office Ltd are aware and are trying to rectify the fault.

New Food Bank Appeal in Darnall

List of foods that we need

In 2013-14 food banks fed 913,138 people nationwide. Of those helped, 330,205 were children. Rising food and fuel prices, static incomes, under-employment and changes to benefits are some of the reasons why increasing numbers of people are being referred to food banks for emergency help.

Darnall Forum and Sheffield Muslim Community Forum are working alongside local residents to launch the S9 Food Bank Appeal. Please pledge your support. 

Gifts of food will be collected on our behalf by Living Waters, who work with the Burngreave Food Bank and the Trussell Trust to provide a local food bank service in Darnall.

Thank you to the Darnall Ward councillors who have already pledged their support towards the S9 Foodbank appeal. They will be involved in the planning and organising of the appeal. Please see a list of foods we urgently require.

Contact Zahira for further information.

Litter Picking in Attercliffe

Volunteers litter picking in Attercliffe

Thanks to our brilliant volunteer Reema and her boys, and Darnall Forum Vice-Chair Nahid Karim, who did a litter pick yesterday on Bodmin Street, Britnall Street and Worksop Road in Attercliffe. 

If you would like to do a litter pick on your street, we can lend you the litter pickers, gloves and sacks. Please contact our community organiser, Zahira Naz, for more information on how to organise a litter pick on your street. 

Adult Community Learning In Darnall Is Now Under Threat

The government is planning to save money by making further cuts to its budget for adult community learning. This could mean the end of IT, ESOL and other classes in Darnall.

Already, besides our post office, adult community learning is the most popular service we provide. We regularly have a waiting list for our courses and some learners have to wait for a whole year before they can join the class they want to attend.

The latest cuts, which would see money switched from adult community learning to apprenticeships, will mean fewer classes and even longer waiting lists. It is possible that the service could be closed down completely.

Why not ask your councillors and your MP, Clive Betts, to complain to the government about these cuts? Why not write to the Prime Minister, telling him that without locally based community learning you and your family won't have the skills you need to play a full part as citizens of Sheffield and the UK?

Our Next Community Litter Pick

Litter awaiting collection outside Darnall Post Office after our last community litter pick

Our next community litter pick will be on Thursday 12 November at 10am.

Litter Picking with Amey in Darnall Today

Our community organiser, Zahira Naz, getting stuck into the litter

Thank you to everyone who helped out during the Community Litter Pick today. We litter picked on Main Road, Greenland Road, Staniforth Road, Senior Road and in the Station Road car park. A group of walkers took litter picks and litter picked at High Hazels Park. And a group of ladies said they will litter pick on Saturday around the Attercliffe area. 

Amey helped us with the litter pick

Thank you to  Amey for supporting us and picking up the rubbish afterwards. Next community Litter Pick 12th November at 10am meeting at Darnall Forum. 

You can read more about the litter pick on East Sheffield Insider's blog.

Darnall Carnival a big success in spite of the showers

This year's Darnall Carnival was a big success despite being blighted by showers for the first part of the day. After lunch the sun came out and more than 4,000 people came into High Hazels Park to enjoy the fun. The Lord Mayor, Councillor Talib Hussain, opened the carnival with local councillors, Mazher Iqbal, Mary Lea and Dianne Hurst.

Visitors enjoyed a range of attractions and information stalls, ranging from a conjurer to Bhangra music star Zack Knight, who took top billing on the stage.

Carnival organiser Zahira Naz said, "The carnival was a big success again, building on Darnall's reputation for being able to put on a good show. It's all thanks to the many volunteers who helped with stewarding and organising for the event, or came to provide information stalls. Next year we are hoping to grow even bigger."

From left, carnival organisers Zahira Naz, Nazia Fazil and Nagina Hussain pose with a Minion and Princess Elsa from Frozen

More pictures from this year's carnival

Umer Kayani posing with (left to right) carnival organisers Zahira, Nazia & Nagina

Zack Knight on stage at Darnall Carnival

Darnall Forum Chair Mothiur Rahman, Lord Mayor Councillor Talib Hussain & PMC Chair Mohammed Ali visit one of the stalls

Darnall Forum Chair Mothiur Rahman and Councillors Mary Lea (far left) and Dianne Hurst (centre) with staff from Darnall Well Being, helping them decorate their stand

A local resident gets up close to one of the Zubaidah Belly Dancers who performed at the Carnival

Lord Mayor Councillor Talib Hussain with Councillor Mazher Iqbal at in front of one of the stands

The morning AFTER the carnival...

High Hazels' Park the morning after the carnival. Thanks to Zahira and the Community Payback scheme operated by the Probation Service not a single piece of litter remains! 

More pictures from yesterday's carnival

Thanks to Zahira, Nazia and the rest of the team for a wonderful carnival

Undaunted by the weather, thousands of people enjoyed Darnall Carnival today. Here are a selection of photos from the day.