The Forum office will be closed until after the New Year holiday.

Happy Christmas everyone!

Do you need to become a BRITISH CITIZEN?

Do you already have ESOL Entry Level 3 or ESOL Level 1 (also known as B1 and B2)?

Do you need to pass the Life in the UK Test before you can become a British citizen?

And do you need help getting ready for it?

Can you come to Darnall Forum on Monday mornings between 9 and 12.30 for ten weeks starting in January?

The course will cost £245. To find out more please contact Nazia (nazia@darnall.org.uk) or text Neil on 07800 536642.

NEW Life in the UK Course

• Would you like to join our new fast track preparation course for the Life in the UK Test? 
• Do you have ESOL Reading and Writing certificates at least to Entry level 3 (B1) or above? For our course we would actually recommend ESOL Level 1 (B 2).
• Can you come to Darnall Forum on Monday mornings between 9 and 12.30 for ten weeks starting in January?

The course will cost £245. To find out more please contact Nazia (nazia@darnall.org.uk) or text Neil on 07800 536642.

Muslims Encouraged to be Good Neighbours

Lord Nazir Ahmed has launched a new pamphlet about Muslim values which encourages members of the Muslim community to build bridges with their neighbours. Copies of the leaflet are available from Darnall Forum and the PMC.

Chair of Darnall Forum, Mothour Rahman, said: 'We at Darnall Forum believe in building harmony in the community, and anything which encourages peace, love and unity, and the integration of different communities into the life of their neighbourhood, is something we are glad to support. We are pleased to be able to help distribute this pamphlet, which is also supported by the Muslim Council of Britain and the East London Mosque.'

The picture shows Mothiur with Neil Bishop, the manager of the Forum, and Zahira Naz, who is one of our community workers.

Pictures from our Hallowe'en Event

This is a montage of pictures from our most recent community event, held at the Tinsley Tingas Centre to celebrate Hallowe'en. About 300 people of all ages and cultures came together to have a good time celebrating a traditional British Hallowe'en and to find out about other more serious opportunities to get involved in community life. The event was sponsored by Meadowhall and British Land.

Community Groups Meet to Think About the Future of Darnall

A wide range of voluntary and community groups, including local mosques and churches, have begun meeting to think about the future of Darnall and the help and resources that its residents need. Some of the group representatives are pictured meeting in 'plenary session', and local religious leaders are pictured taking part in a 'workshop session'.

If your group wasn't represented and you would like to get involved, please contact Neil at darnallforum@gmail.com.

Don't forget our Fright Night Hallowe'en event this Wednesday, sponsored by Meadowhall and British Land. Be very scared to miss it! 

(See our October 12 post for full technicolour details.)

Enjoy Fright Night with Darnall Forum at Tinsley Tingas! (Sponsored by British Land & Meadowhall)

Minutes of Our Annual General Meeting

MINUTES of the Darnall Forum Annual General Meeting

Held at Darnall Forum, 5pm Wednesday 3 October

Attendance 11 people attended.

Apologies were received from 3 people.

The minutes of the last annual general meeting were agreed to be a true record.

There were no Matters Arising.

The chairperson presented the annual report and accounts and made some remarks about it, thanking funders, volunteers, trustees and staff for their support and explaining what the figures really mean for the sustainability of the Forum’s work.

The annual report and accounts were adopted and the independent examiners, Nicholson & Co, were reappointed.

One vacancy for a trustee was filled by Mr Mehran Rehman. The current trustees were reappointed.

Community Issues

There was a discussion about the plans to open a new community gym in Tinsley and the need to have more affordable gym facilities in the area.

Neil Bishop gave a report on the campaign to try to get local people recruited onto the workforce at IKEA and Meadowhall. He reported that British Land are being much more supportive than IKEA. The Council's Economic Environmental Well Being Scrutiny & Policy Committee has promised to look again at the Council's involvement in big recruitment drives like this.

Some students from Sheffield University explained a project they are working on to try to create an additional community space at PMC. As the University are considering how they might be able to make use of it, Neil Bishop suggested that they look at the feasibility of delivering conversion courses there for new residents coming to work in the UK from overseas. An example would be people currently working as care workers while they raise the funds for and undertake the conversion course to register as nurses in the UK.

AOB – None.

Our Chairperson's Annual Remarks

We need to have an Annual General Meeting every year to comply with charity law. Neil has printed a copy of our annual report and accounts which you can look at during the meeting if you wish or you can call into the office to see them. They are also on the Charity Commission website.

I should just like to make a few comments about them:

• Please remember that they don’t describe how things are today, but how they were on 31 December last year.
• The accounts show that our income actually increased last year. This is only because of the huge efforts made by Neil, Zahira and Nazia to save money. This included working fewer hours while still trying to do as much work for the Forum as the could.
• You will see that our total funds on 31 December were £40,184. Some of this was money which we needed to keep to spend in 2018. That left us with £29,380.
• But this is not what we had in the bank. Because we are only paid gradually by the Council, we usually have about half that amount in the bank at any one time. We need this much money for cash flow reasons. That is why the staff had to make savings.
• Darnall Forum Trading, which ran the post office for us, also owed us some of that money - £2,569.

Despite making more cuts to what we do, we still managed to help a lot of people with ESOL and IT classes, employment advice, keepfit, sewing classes, cake decorating  and confidence building. We organised fun events for the community to mark International Women’s Day, at Hallowe’en and Christmas, as well as an Autumn fair and a coach trip to London to visit the museums there.

We have also campaigned on behalf of local people to try to get more local jobs at IKEA and Meadowhall. That campaign was still going on at the end of last year.

Finally, I should like to thank all of our funders, without whom none of this work would have been possible, and the trustees, staff and volunteers for their dedication and support.

Come and celebrate another year of Darnall Forum's work

Come and celebrate another year of Darnall Forum's work at our Annual General meeting in our offices on Wednesday 3 October at 5pm. 

It's twenty years this October since the Forum first began work in Darnall, so we shall be announcing an exciting opportunity to celebrate all the good community work that has been done by local residents and community workers during that time.

The meeting is also an opportunity to hear more about our work and the campaigns we have been involved in, look at our annual accounts and elect our trustees.

It is open to anyone who lives or works in Darnall.

Photos from our Fun & Information Day on 6 August

Zahira with some of the people who came along

London Museum Trip

Ladies, Let's Talk Politics

On Saturday 21 July we held a special four-hour event called "Ladies, Lets Talk Politics". It was funded by the Women's Vote Centenary Fund, which was set up by the government's Equalities Office to celebrate 100 years since some women were first given the vote in Britain.

We wanted to encourage Black and Minority Ethnic Women to get more involved in politics and make their voices better heard. 60 women came together at the Church of Christ in Darnall. 

They heard how they could overcome barriers to getting their voices heard in party politics (from women speakers belonging to The Greens, Labour and the Socialist Workers). Speakers also explained how to make a difference on single issues. They spoke about combatting race hate, helping faith communities make a positive difference in their neighbourhoods and campaigning against war crimes in Syria. 

Most of the women felt inspired to get more engaged in politics or community activism and they agreed to meet again in the autumn to support one another. If you would like to join them please contact zahira@darnall.org.uk.

How to be a good neighbour in Darnall

Join a discussion with a local panel at the Church of Christ in Darnall tomorrow evening at 6pm. For more details contact colin.harvard@sheffield.gov.uk or phone him on 07775 407063.

Please note that although someone from the Forum will be taking part in the panel this is an event organised by the Council and we are not in any way associated with the leaflet publicising it which the Council has circulated.

Who got the jobs at the new IKEA store?

When the new IKEA store was approved there was concern about the impact it might have on air quality in Darnall Ward, where pollution already often reaches harmful levels. The Council decided, after considering all the evidence, that 'on balance' it would be a good thing to allow the new store to open because 'the jobs and training' that it could provide would be 'likely to particularly benefit the local deprived communities of Tinsley and Darnall,' and 'help to address social and economic inequalities' between Darnall and other more prosperous parts of the City. The Council also said that the new jobs created here would 'help offset some of the health impacts' of the new store.

So who actually got the jobs? In the store itself just over 6% of the jobs went to people who live in the S9 area. In the call centre, which is located inside the store, 11% of the jobs went to people who live in S9. S9 includes Darnall Ward but is a bigger area.

Is this 'a healthy outcome' for the people of Darnall Ward, as Councillor Denise Fox, the chair of the Council's 'Economic and Environmental Well Being Scrutiny and Policy Committee' would like us to believe? 

Our MP, Mr Clive Betts, said that he was 'extremely disappointed' when a 'misleading' article published in The Star just before the store opened gave the impression that 'a high percentage of people recruited by IKEA came from Darnall and Tinsley,' when this was not true. He also said that he was concerned that no-one in the Council could 'see that anything has gone wrong at IKEA' because he wanted to be reassured that the Council has 'learned lessons'.

Have things gone well, or did they go wrong? Are there lessons that need to be learned? What do you think?

New Women Only Gym Session

Migration Matters Event

Migration Matters have been working with some of our learners. Here's another chance to catch up with them.

Photos from Last Saturday's Women's celebration Event in Darnall

These are some of the pictures taken at last Saturday's women's celebration event in Darnall, sponsored by Awards For All and the Meadowhall Centre, which was postponed because of bad weather in March. Unfortunately, data protection rules limit the sort of pictures we can make available on the blog.

Photo Montage from our latest Women's Celebration Event on Monday 7 May in Tinsley

These are some of the pictures taken at the women's celebration event in Tinsley, sponsored by Awards For All and the Meadowhall Centre, which was postponed because of bad weather in March. Unfortunately, data protection rules limit how many of our pictures we can make available on the blog.

Designing Safeguarding posters

Mendi

The Romano Jilo Dancers

The Together Women stand

Local Women Nominated for Centenary Award

The six nominees from Darnall for the Women's Centenary Award, posing in front of the bust of Queen Victoria at the Town Hall with Councillor Mary Lea (far left) and Councillor Zahira Naz (to the right of the bust)

These are the six local women who were nominated by Councillors Mary Lea and Zahira Naz for the Centenary Women’s Award which was created to celebrate 100 years of women having the right to vote.

1. Lindsay Boot and Jackie Naylor, both of Darnall and teaching assistants at Phillimore School, were nominated for collecting an impressive £250,000 to regenerate the nearby Phillimore Park
2. Sylvia Hamilton was Chair of the Friends of High Hazels Park for many years and, as Chair of Darnall Forum, brought much needed European funding into Darnall.
3. Halima Mohamed has been working with the African Women’s Health Group for nearly 20 years. She has encouraged local women to learn how to speak English. She has been empowering women to do things for themselves and supporting them to educate themselves by  improving skills and learning new skills. She has helped women improve their social and mental health by offering various skills and training. She has supported 100’s of women to increase their confidence through her advocacy work over the past 20 years. 
4. Ferzana has been organising trips for women in Darnall and Tinsley for years. A lot of women would never an opportunity to travel to the beach or go shopping in Bradford, for lots of difference reasons ranging from low income to having no transport, but thanks to Ferzana hundreds of women and children every year get to travel to different places.
5. Reema Al-khayat is very active within the Darnall community and has been involved in many different organisations and projects: 

• Chevin Housing Association
• Anti-Social Behaviour group, 
• The regeneration group
• Darnall Forum 
• Volunteer at Handsworth Grange Community School 
• Volunteer Arabic teacher at High Hazel Community Centre 
• Volunteer at Darnall Well Being
• Website Development Consultation

Darnall Post Office is Under New Ownership

We were proud to reopen the post office in August 2010, after it had been closed for almost a year. We ran it for more than seven years, until yesterday afternoon, when we transferred ownership to a new locally owned business venture. We wish the new owners well.

We would have loved to go on running the post office but funding pressures have meant that we needed to recover as much as we could of the money we sank into it when the post office first reopened.

International Women's Day Celebration in Tinsley

Although the Darnall event has had to be postponed because of the bad weather, the Tinsley International Women's Day celebration is going ahead as planned.

Darnall Post Office and Darnall Forum are OPEN for business again

Please note that we have returned to our normal opening hours after yesterday's closure, which was caused by the bad weather. 

If you have a class at the Forum your tutor will let you know if it is not going ahead.

The International Women's Day Event on Thursday 8 March has now been POSTPONED

Due to the bad weather we have been unable to get around all the community groups we wanted to talk to about next Thursday's event, so it has been postponed. We will announce a new date as soon as we are able.

Darnall Post Office

We have had to close Darnall Post Office today. The Forum offices are also closed. We are sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.

International Women's Day Event Thursday 8 March

New Research Aimed at Older People

How easy do you find it to get to the places you need to go? A student at Sheffield University is undertaking research aimed at understanding walkability and community access for older residents in Darnall.

The researcher is looking to conduct relaxed recorded ten minute telephone interviews with volunteers aged 65 and over. He's also happy to meet older people's groups.

For further details, or to volunteer to take part, please contact neil@darnall.org.uk .

New Squash Sessions for Local Women

New Zumba Sessions for Local Women

New Gym Sessions for Local Women

Darnall Forum wins funding from Sport England to help local women become more active

People on a low income face many pressures that can make it really difficult for them to fit physical activity into their lives     This project will focus on local minority ethnic women and support them to get more physically active     It’s funded by Sport England through a grassroots programme they are running to improve people’s health and mental wellbeing through sport and activity

A pioneering project by  Darnall Forum to help local people on a low income become more active and healthy has won backing from Sport England.

The Forum has been awarded £8,180 as part of Sport England’s strategy to improve people’s health and mental wellbeing through encouraging more grassroots sport and physical activity.

Sport England is funding a wide range of projects around the country, using varying approaches to help people to feel healthier, happier, more confident and able to cope with life’s pressures, or more connected to their families and communities.

Sport England research[i] shows that a third of people on low incomes do less than 30 minutes of exercise that gets them slightly out of breath each week. People on higher incomes get twice as much exercise.

Zahira Naz, the community development worker at the Forum, has worked hard to raise awareness among local Black and Minority Ethnic women about opportunities to get more physical exercise, and she finds that they often respond very positively, but they also face even more obstacles than other people in getting involved in sports and physical activity. ‘This project will help us, and local sports venues such as Davys Sporting Club in Darnall, which is a not-for-profit sports facility, to get more BME women involved in sport and keep fit activities,’ she said.

Sport England Executive Director, Mike Diaper, said: ‘Darnall Forum has a strong track record of working with their local community and we’re very excited by how their project could make such a positive difference to people’s lives.

‘We know that people on a low income can face many pressures that make it difficult for them to be as active as they would like to be. So we’re working with community-focused organisations across the country to find ways to help people fit physical activity into their lives in ways that work for them.

‘The lessons we learn from this local project will really help to shape our work with similar groups across the country.’

Zahira said, ‘To find out more please email me on zahira@darnall.og.uk, or drop in to our office or ring 0114 249 0099 on any weekday afternoon.’

 -ENDS-

About Sport England

Sport England is a public body and invests more than £300 million National Lottery and government money each year in projects and programmes that help people get active and play sport.

It wants everyone in England, regardless of age, background, or level of ability, to feel able to engage in sport and physical activity. That’s why a lot of its work is specifically focused on helping people who do no, or very little, physical activity and groups who are typically less active - like women, disabled people and people on lower incomes.

Sport England has pledged to invest more than £250 million over four years encouraging inactive people to become active. This award is one of 26 just announced by Sport England, with a further £3 million funding specifically aimed at helping people on lower incomes to be announced later this year.

The health benefits of becoming active include reducing the risk of many chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, some of the most common cancers, and many mental health conditions.

About Darnall Forum

Darnall Forum is a local community organisation and registered charity based in Darnall. It aims to regenerate Darnall and build the capacity of local people and community groups to bring about positive change in their lives and their neighbourhoods.

[i] Source: Sport England Active Lives Survey Nov 15/16.

Inactivity rate for lower income groups, such as shops assistants, waitress, long-term unemployed or never worked is 33.5%

Inactivity rate for higher income groups, such as chief executives and doctors, is 16.7%

Find out all about the Drop & Go service in our community post office

Don't take our word for it. Find out what an expert had to say about our "Drop & Go" service for letters and parcels by clicking here.