News

South Bermondsey Partnership Launches New Website

Go to www.southbermondseypartnership.org.uk to find out more details of their work.

Please also click here to view a copy of the South Bermondsey Partnership's August 2008 e-Bulletin.

PCT Involving People Newsletter

The PCT Involving People Newsletter for August is now ready to view. Please click here.

Enterprise Partnership Newsletter

The  Enterprise Partnership Newsletter for July and August is now ready to view. Please click here.

Consultation on access to adult social care services

Adult Social Care have launched a consultation on who should receive the adult social care services that help people live independently.

What is the consultation?

They are consulting on a proposal to raise the level of need and risk at which people can receive adult social care. This would mean only providing services to those who are assessed as having substantial or critical levels of need. This would not include those with moderate needs.

Southwark is currently one of only eight London boroughs that provide adult social care services for people assessed as having moderate needs according to the government’s eligibility criteria.

Why are they having this consultation?

The consultation has been prompted by changes in the way central government funds councils, which mean Southwark will receive nearly £35 million funds less than before over the next three years. As a result, the council must find savings of £2.5 to £3 million from the adult social care budget every year for the next three years to balance the whole council budget.

At the same time there is an ever increasing demand for adult social care to help people live as independently as possible.

When is it happening?

The consultation takes place from June 30 to September 26 2008 and all older people, adults with physical or learning disabilities, adults with mental health needs and carers who receive ongoing community services have been sent the consultation information. Social care and health organisations in Southwark will also be encouraged to provide feedback.

After the consultation

The feedback received throughout the consultation will be reported to Southwark Council’s executive on October 21 2008 which will make a decision about access to social care services. No changes to care will happen unless and until a final decision is made in October.

Find out more about the eligibility consultation. Or download the 'Your views matter, consultation on access to adult social care in Southwark' (pdf 459kb) document which provides full details about the consultation.

Contact Adult Social Care

Trained staff will be available to answer questions and reduce potential anxieties. A hotline telephone number has been set up – 0207 525 1597 - or can be contacted by e-mail – adultsocialcare@southwark.gov.uk. The opening hours are Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm.

Adult social care
Tel: 020 7525 1597
adultsocialcare@southwark.gov.uk
Mabel Goldwin House
49 Grange Walk
Bermondsey
SE1 3DY


Opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm

Bermondsey Carnival

Dragons, elephants and lamas took to the streets of Bermondsey for the Bermondsey Carnival. A huge elephant, a flight of dragons and a Peruvian lama were sighted in Bermondsey. More than 200 young people from Bermondsey and Rotherhithe created costumes and performed songs and dances for this year’s ‘Countdown to 2012’ themed carnival.

The procession departed from Spa Gardens travelling along Grange Road into Southwark Park Road ending at Southwark Park. The highlight of the procession culminated at The Blue Market where people gathered and watched the procession. Also at The Blue were art workshops where local people took part in t-shirt screen printing and face painting. These workshops were provided by Bermondsey Artists Group (BAG) and Arts Express. Rhythms of the City were also on hand at The Blue with live samba music.

SE5 Forum

The SE5 Forum has some exciting projects in the pipeline, including working with community partners to set up an art, crafts and farmers market in Camberwell.

The market is the work of Mark Dodds, former chair of the Forum, who now heads up Camberwell Business, a body representing business interests in SE5. The market project will begin in Spring 2009 and is likely to be set up as a Community Development Trust. Camberwell Business is supported by the Camberwell Area Co-ordination Team and works with Urban Space Partners.

The Forum also plans to create a Youth Forum section on the website, www.se5forum.org, and has commissioned Oblique Arts to work with various youth groups and individual young people in SE5 to develop this. The Youth Forum will include voting and polling facilities, giving young people a chance to make their views known. Website designers are currently being interviewed for this project.

Behind the scenes, the Forum has spent the last six months working with consultants GK Partners towards formal incorporation. It is also finalising arrangements to move into offices in central Camberwell, which will give it a base and a focal point in the community.

For more information about SE5 Forum or any of these projects, email info@se5forum.org or call 020 7274 8045.

LGBT Design Competition

A new art competition is announced for young people who live, work, learn and/or socialise in Southwark.

The competition is an opportunity for schools, colleges, youth groups and individuals (aged 11 – 25) to create a piece of artwork that looks at and/or demonstrates the positive contributions that members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans (LGBT) community make.

I would like to encourage any young people you know to take part. They can be a group, a class, individuals and/or youth groups.

There are some great money prizes to win, plus a chance for a selection of the entries to be part of an exhibition that will take place in Southwark in February 2009 as part of the 5th national LGBT History Month.

We are hopeful that through the project, young people will be more aware of the positive contributions that the LGBT community make and hopefully break down some barriers between communities.

Further information on the project can be found at:-

www.southwark-lgbt.org

Or contact Dax Ashworth the LGBT Community Development Worker at Southwark Council on:-

dax.ashworth@southwark.gov.uk

020 7525 5659

South Bermondsey Partnership Annual Review 2007/08

The South Bermondsey Partnership Annual Review 2007/08 can now be viewed here.

Accredited Training: Communication & Public Life

Would you like to understand more about public life and develop effective communication skills in making a difference in the Society?

This course will equip you with the skills of:

This free OCN accredited course aims to maximise the strength of each participant’s contribution to public life through raising their self awareness and confidence; learning how they fit into society as Active Citizens; and demonstrating the value of citizenship.

Venue: John Harvard Library, 211 Borough High Street, London SE1 1JA.

There is no fee, but commitment to complete the course would earn you an OCN accredited certificate.

“Public Life can be good fun - everyone has something to contribute”.

For more information or to book contact Seray on 020 7403 2936 or email seray@volunteercentres.org.uk

South Bermondsey Partnership Update

This months’ e-bulletin from the South Bermondsey Partnership is now ready to view. Click here.

You and Your Money: How to Manage Money in the Credit Crunch

A new booklet 'You and Your Money' is now available providing positive and practical advice on managing the household budget and dealing with debt. The booklet is a self-help resource but also provides details of where people can go to get free help in Southwark. It contains information about the difference between priority and other forms of debt, and also fuel poverty, affordable credit and potential financial help in the form of grants, loans and state benefits.

We know that bills are rising and budgets under pressure. This booklet makes it easier for people to get the information they need to help themselves, or where further help is available free of charge locally.

Click here to view the pdf booklet

Follow this link to the Southwark Council Website.

New Guide for Parents of Children With Disabilities

Finding the right information about services for a child with a disability or special needs can be daunting for parents, so we've tried to pull together as much relevant information as possible into this pack.

Whatever the child's needs, whether they be health, education or social care related, we hope parents will find the answers in the guide. We've also included information about childcare, leisure, transport and housing.

Please contact the family information service free on 0800 013 0639 or email family.info@southwark.gov.uk for a copy of the publication.

The South Bermondsey Partnership Establishes Intergenerational Partnership

The South Bermondsey Partnership has established an intergenerational partnership between eleven different organisations, which include Age Concern, Time and Talents, Extend Schools in Bermondsey and Rotherhithe, the Pumphouse museum, Southwark Mediation and Southwark Works.

The partnership seeks to achieve two main aims: firstly, to provide a framework for partner organisations to develop an integral intergenerational strategy to address community priorities; secondly, to promote intergenerational strategies to achieve quality of life in Bermondsey and Rotherhithe.

This follows the efforts that were initiated in late 2006 with the creation of a neighbourhood intergenerational partnership between Ilderton Primary School, SLFHA's sheltered unit at Arundel Court and the Links' pensioners group.

The group will be responsible for accomplishing a wide range of tasks including the creation of a resource directory of organisations that provide intergenerational activities, programmes and resources to the local community; share information among practitioners and individuals interested and facilitate meetings; deliver a programme of educational activities to raise awareness about the importance and the impact that intergenerational programmes and activities can play in the local community; and plan and develop interventions.

The group discussions have led to the formulation of joint up interventions which are expected to be delivered in partnership:

· A video project that seeks to document the past and present life in the community.

· A healthy living initiative

· An environmental education programme

· An employment programme

· A programme aimed at raising the skills of young people and older people, and

· A regeneration initiative aimed at reclaiming a public space for people from all ages

For more information about this initiative, please contact Carles Ferrer Miralles on 020 7525 0934, or email carles.ferrermiralles@southwark.gov.uk

Southwark Park Banstand 2008

Presents free sunday concerts 2-4pm throughout the summer. Click here for event details.

Active Citizens Hub: New Training Programme

A new training programme for May – to October 2008 is out now! Take advantage of the FREE training coming up and gain skills, increase your confidence, meet others from Southwark & get more active in the community.

Brochure on Extended services in Bermondsey and Rotherhithe

Bermondsey and Rotherhithe Area Management along with the Extended Service Coordinators for the two areas have designed a brochure on Extended Service provision within the locality. It contains a map of the area with information and locations of various parts of the Extended Services core offer such as child care, parental support, a varied menu of extra curricular activities and advice and guidance.

By 2010 every school is expected to become an extended school. Schools are not expected to provide all parts of the core offer themselves on the school site but will have to direct parents and families to the relevant services. The purpose of this map is to signpost the range of extended services and activities on offer. It is a resource for children, young people, parents and practitioners to provide the core offer to residents of Bermondsey and Rotherhithe.

There will be large poster versions along with fold up brochures displayed in all schools, libraries, children centres and other community venues in Bermondsey and Rotherhithe. Every school pupil will be given a brochure to take home from school. The work was funded by Neighbourhood Renewal.

If you require copies please contact Ben Skelton on 020 7525 090

Click here to view the Extended Services poster.

Indices of Multiple Deprivation

The Southwark Alliance Analytical Hub has released a report mapping the level of deprivation in Southwark using the 2007 Indices of Deprivation. This report can be found on the Population Profiles page.

For more information please contact the Analytical Hub on 0207 525 0279 or mailto:analyticalhub@southwark.gov.uk.

NRF to WNF

In December, the government confirmed the closure of the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund at the end of March 2008. The NRF programme has been an important aspect of Southwark Alliance’s approach to tackling deprivation over the last seven years. It has supported large scale thematic progammes covering health, education, youth and violent crime and employment, funded a wide range of community capacity building and active citizenship activities, and enable the development of area working approaches across the borough.

Examples of NRF achievement include:

When the government announced the end of NRF, they also announced details of the Working Neighbourhoods Fund. The WNF should have a focus on tackling pockets of worklessness, and developing skills, employment and enterprise within the borough. It is about £7m per year for three years. This is about £4m less than the NRF. In February the council and the LSP made the final decisions on allocation of this funding, which will continue to go towards important programmes aimed at tackling worklessness, health improvement, achievement at Key Stage 2, tackling violence, promoting active citizenship and embedding area working.

Further information can be obtained from: Jenny Wingate, Renewal Manager, 020 7525 7425, jenny.wingate@southwark.gov.uk

Forthcoming events

For a list of forthcoming Southwark Alliance events, and those of our partners click here.

SE5 Forum goes to the market