Supported by City of Wolverhampton Council and financed by Government, a Wolverhampton charity has announced a project to put a collection of unique video interviews online. The Black and Ethnic Minority Experience Foundation (BE-ME) has received funding from the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government to make available video recordings of interviews with people who migrated to Wolverhampton in the mid 20th century. Windrush Generation Experiences Online will digitise 108 interviews carried out at the turn of the century. The original interviews, which are preserved at Wolverhampton City Archives, detail the struggles and achievements of Caribbean and other settlers and…
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Following the successful ‘Lockdown Edition’ of its workshops for music-makers and composers from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds, Opera North is seeking applications for next spring’s Resonance programme, and planning for a return to collaborations in person, with live scratch performances in front of audiences. Launched in 2017 and supported by PRS Foundation, Resonance offers professional musicians and composers based in the north of England and working in any genre the opportunity to develop new ideas, to collaborate with performers from other disciplines, and to take their work in new directions. Subject to the COVID-19 situation, successful applicants for the new round of residencies…
A unique performance has been recorded by staff at Wolverhampton Music Service to inspire and galvanise young people across the city to make music. Staff have jointly performed Blinded By Your Grace Pt 2 by British rapper Stormzy – himself seen as an inspiration and positive role model within the music industry. He was the first Black British solo artist to headline the main stage at Glastonbury and has taken positive action to reduce educational inequality, setting up a scholarship fund to help academically gifted Black British students to study at Cambridge University. Recorded by staff separately at home, the…
Funding tools launch completes comprehensive cashflow management platform that already equips accountants and businesses with forecasting, planning, and debtor management features Fluidly has added end-to-end funding tools to its award-winning cashflow management solution, offering pre-qualified funding options to millions of businesses within minutes. Together with the platform’s existing features – forecasting, planning, debtor management – the newfunding tools equip accountants to deliver essential cashflow advisory as the UK economy recovers from the impact of Covid-19. By pinpointing future cash shortfalls and showing, at a glance, which clients are eligible for different types of funding from specific providers, accountants can help…
The council’s youth services has received a £3,000 grant from Cycling UK as part of the Big Bike Revival initiative. Dr Bike is visiting parks in Sandwell to fix children’s bikes this autumn. Children’s bikes can be taken along to any of the sessions where an expert will spend a maximum of 30 minutes repairing and giving bikes safety checks including looking at breaks, gears, tyres. No booking is necessary. Councillor Joyce Underhill, cabinet member for best start in life, welcomes the project. She said: “More and more people are taking to riding bikes and I am delighted, thanks to…
Shoppers and pub goers are being urged to vote with their feet and avoid businesses not following Covid-19 guidance. Pubs that aren’t taking contact details and shops where people don’t wear masks should be avoided, Sandwell Council has warned. And Sandwell businesses are being urged to take action to follow the Government’s measures to keep infection rates down – or risk losing customers. Sandwell Council’s Deputy Leader Councillor Maria Crompton said: “People need to vote with their feet and avoid businesses that aren’t taking Covid-19 seriously. “Our message is that if a shop, pub or restaurant isn’t keeping you safe…
The innovation network, KTN, in partnership with Innovate UK and The Prince’s Trust has launched the #IdeasMeanBusiness initiative, aimed at helping 18-30 year olds transform their diverse ideas into successful businesses. Research from Innovate UK, the government’s leading investor in research and development, showed that half of young people in the UK think their age is a barrier to business success with nearly a third lacking the confidence they need to turn their idea into reality. “There are many barriers when setting up a business,” says Siwan Smith, Lead for Diversity and Inclusion Programmes at KTN. “We need to ensure…
Nearly 2,700 Sandwell tenants have received additional housing payments worth more than £1.5 million to help them sustain their tenancy through difficult times. Sandwell Council is sixth out of 315 Local Authorities for the amount of discretionary housing payments (DHPs) paid when compared to how much government funding they have received. The council’s Revenues and Benefits Service administers the scheme, working with the Department for Work and Pensions, landlords, housing and welfare rights officers. The payments help tenants who need extra financial support to pay the shortfall between their benefit entitlements and their rent bill. These shortfalls can happen due to the size…
Residents and businesses in Sandwell are being urged to have their say on what improvements they would like to see as part of the Government’s Towns Fund £75 million investment in Sandwell. There will be £25 million available per town selected to develop innovative regeneration plans. Last year, the Government announced that 101 towns would benefit from the Towns Fund deal – including West Bromwich, Rowley Regis and Smethwick – in Sandwell. Councillor Danny Millard, cabinet member for Inclusive Economic Growth, said: “It is very important that the public gets to have their say putting forward ideas that will directly…
The news means that any unauthorised traveller incursions can now be moved on quicker and save money. Under the new rules travellers arriving in the borough will be immediately directed to the new site. If they refuse the police and Dudley Council officers can move them on quicker than ever before. Council bosses today hailed the completion of the much-discussed site as a major boost. Councillor Patrick Harley, leader of the council, said: We made a very firm commitment to get this site up and running to help protect public land, and the public purse from unauthorised encampments, and I…