Chuka Umunna MP

The Orange RockCorps programme, a partnership between Orange and RockCorps, which inspires young people to volunteer in the local community has landed in Lambeth.

The Orange RockCorps programme, is a partnership between Orange and RockCorps, which inspires young people to volunteer within their local communities. Orange RockCorps incentivises volunteers by putting on concerts for which you can’t buy a ticket but do 4 hours of volunteer work to earn a pass.

This year’s London concert takes place on 25 September 2009 at the Royal Albert Hall. The performing acts are to be announced shortly but last year they included Busta Rhymes, Ludacris and John Legend.

All Orange RockCorps volunteer projects are completed in partnership and for the benefit of local partners. Throughout August and September volunteers have been set to work gardening in some of Lambeth’s green spaces. The gardening activities in Lambeth are co-ordinated by Progress Community Garden Projects which is run by Streatham resident, Simon Ghartey.

The Lambeth volunteer sites include the Blenheim Gardens Estate and
Glenbrook Primary School in the Streatham parliamentary constituency. Other sites are the Guinness Trust Estate and the former site of Lilian Baylis School on Lollard Street.

The Orange RockCorps progamme has been hugely successful in promoting volunteer work. According to Orange, research has shown that over 96% of the participants would volunteer with Orange RockCorps again, and 57% would volunteer in their local community without the incentive of a ticket.

Chuka Umunna, Labour’s Parliamentary Candidate for Streatham and strong supporter of the programme, said on his visit (29 August 2009) to one of the Lambeth sites:

“This programme is an excellent way of getting young people to volunteer in a funky, positive, and innovative way – it has my 100% support.

“The volunteers are given cool T shirts to wear whilst they work and, on my visit, were being spun some of the best, upfront hip hop and R’n B tunes by a DJ with a first rate sound system to power them through the afternoon.

“The results are there for all to see, for example, at Blenheim Gardens
where 94 volunteers turned out to tender to the estate’s gardens which were in need of some attention.

“What better environment to do a spot of gardening and then get a free pass to a gig after.”

Philippe Castaing, Brixton Green from NewStartMag on Vimeo.

The Brixton Green development is a community project to sustainably develop a large site on Somerleyton Road in Brixton. Its vision is to combine work spaces for local small businesses with mixed-tenure housing, creating a hub for social and environmental enterprises. Chuka is a strong supporter of the project, which hopes to start building within two years.

In this video local restauranteur and Brixton Hill resident Phillipe Castaing, who initiated the project, discusses its aims.

The development will foster social cohesion by combining owner-occupied premises with social housing and providing communal spaces for residents to come together.

A large communal garden will be the centrepiece of the development, providing space for urban agriculture, including vegetable growing, bee keeping and greenhouses – producing 120 tonnes of produce a year.

To find out more, check out the Brixton Green development’s website.

Chuka was invited to No. 10 Downing Street by Sarah Brown last week, attending an event to help promote Chance UK, the mentoring charity.

Both Chuka and the Prime Minister’s wife are supporters of Chance UK, which provides one-to-one mentoring for children aged five to eleven with behavioural difficulties. Mentors help the children, many of whom are on the verge of being excluded from school, to build self-confidence, stability and to channel disruptive energy into attaining personal achievements, acting as positive role models. The charity has a track record of success in helping children overcome behavioural problems, helping them lead happier lives at home and motivating them in school. After passing through the Chance UK mentoring programme, 98% of children achieved a reduction in hyperactivity, emotional issues, conduct problems and problems with peers.

At the 10 Downing Street event, Sarah Brown praised the work of Chance UK, in particular its strength in being able to replicate its programme nationally. Chance UK is established in seven local authorities in the UK including Lambeth, where work commenced in May.

Chuka, commenting on the event, said:

“I am proud to be associated with Chance UK and it was an honour to be invited by Sarah Brown to Number 10 to promote its work. The charity has had a hugely positive impact for children wherever it has been involved, and I am pleased that last month Chance UK began operating in Lambeth.”

After the event, Sarah Brown tweeted Chuka to thank him for attending.

Chuka was a guest on BBC One’s Politics Show on Sunday, discussing Boris Johnson’s cancellation of Rise Festival and promoting the UpRise campaign to save the anti-racism event. To see Chuka’s appearance, follow this link (the Rise feature is at 48mins in)

Chuka is supporting the campaign to save Rise Festival, London’s annual anti-rascism event, which has been cancelled by London Mayor Boris Johnson. The UpRise campaign has been formed in response to the decision, setting up an online petition against the cancellation.

Rise, previously known as the Respect Festival, was first organised by the TUC in 1996 to promote an anti-racism message and celebrate London’s unity in diversity. It also provided space for charities and community organisations to highlight and promote their work. From 2001, Mayor Ken Livingstone took charge of the festival, increasing its size and profile. Featured acts have included the Wailers, Public Enemy, Graham Coxon and De La Soul. Last year’s event was held in Finsbury Park and headlined by reggae legend Jimmy Cliff, with over 60,000 in attendance. However, Boris Johnson was criticised for watering down the festival’s anti-racist message.

Commenting on the cancellation, Chuka said: “The decision to cancel the Rise Festival at a time when all mainstream political parties, including the Mayor’s own party, are fighting to prevent the rise of the far right in the forthcoming European Elections is crazy – he should think again.”

Please sign the Save Rise Festival petition and check out UpRise’s Facebook group.

I am proud to be a trustee of the Lambeth based, Generation Next Foundation, and was honoured to speak at its launch event earlier this month. The foundation exists to empower urban youth, address the lack of activities for young people outside school and, in so doing, undermine gang culture (I am pictured, left, with its founders, Streatham residents Hamdi and Ludvig Bonin).

Generation Next provides opportunities for young people in fashion design, operating its own fashion label, Belvedere Clothing. This means that those involved get a real insight into the industry alongside a financial resource to further their studies, with designers keeping a percentage of the profit made by their designs. The foundation also operates a film production programme, allowing young people to make documentaries on the subjects which matter to them most and at the same time creating a vehicle for positive change. The foundation’s interactive media website gives students the opportunity to upload their work and share ideas.

While providing young people with skills to pursue their ambitions, the foundation emphasises the importance of instilling responsibility, social consciousness and the idea that anything is possible – with hard work. Its other trustees include Martin Offiah MBE, Britain’s greatest ever Rugby League score tryer, Leo Inhenacho, singer with The Streets, and the noted actor and writer Rikki Beadle-Blair.

Too often our young people are belittled and demonised. Crucially, Generation Next’s approach is constructive, encouraging young people to take ownership of their destiny, make the most of their talents and ensuring that their voices are heard. This is why I believe it offers a powerful symbol of hope for the future.

Check out the Generation Next websites by clicking on the links below:
Generation Next
Spotliet

A new grassroots organisation has recently been launched in our borough to bring together the valuable work being done by tenants and residents’ associations (TRAs). The One Community Network, which has been set up by TRA members themselves, is designed to create partnerships between communities under one umbrella organisation, encouraging interaction between residents, housing providers and those who deliver services locally.

This forum will help associations share best practice and expertise, work together on events and support associations with fewer resources. It will also allow associations to speak with a more unified voice when representing residents on the issues that matter locally.

Tenants and residents’ associations already play a hugely important role, providing a crucial forum for getting involved in improving local services. The One Community Network will enhance this work through increased collaboration, delivering a brighter future for residents across the borough.

Below, Dave McEvoy, Chair of Weir Estate Residents Association and of the One Community network, explains the ideas behind the concept:

This week sees the start of Fairtrade Fortnight, helping raise awareness of the Fairtrade brand and the benefits it has brought to workers in developing countries. Sales of Fairtrade goods have gone from strength to strength, growing on average by 40% per year, while the worldwide market for Fairtrade goods is seventy times as large as it was ten years ago.

This trend of ethical shopping reflects a growing awareness of development issues and a desire to influence positive change. Fairtrade goods ensure a fair deal for producers through a guaranteed price and that social and environmental standards are met. The ‘Fairtrade premium’, which is the money paid on top of the minimum price for the product, is reinvested in local development projects, decided upon democratically by the workers themselves. In developing countries, Fairtrade has made huge strides in improving pay, living conditions and opportunities whilst putting local communities in the driving seat.

Trade plays a crucial role in sustainable development. As well as committing significant resources to ethical trading initiatives such as Fairtrade, the Government has led international efforts to secure fairer trading rules. The ‘Aid for Trade’ initiative helps developing countries build their trading capacities, and will receive over £400m a year from the Government by 2010.

At its heart, Fairtrade is about empowering workers in the developing world. Visit the Fairtrade foundation’s website and watch the short film above, from South Africa, to find out more about the gains it can bring.

Chuka has put his diary from Obama’s inauguration onto his Facebook page.

Click here to see what Chuka got up to and to share your inauguration day memories.

Also on the Discussion Board is a thread on how to address violence amongst young people. You can join the debate here.

Carys Afoko

See below for an interview Chuka did with Compass Youth at the Progressive London Conference on January 24th. He spoke about youth engagement at a workshop entitled ‘Young London for a progressive future’ and was interviewed here in the conference hall.

Progressive London is a new coalition, launched by Ken Livingstone and a range of high profile Londoners from across the political, cultural, and artistic communities. It held its first conference last week, and Chuka chaired the closing session.

Find out more about the Progressive London campaign against public transport fare rises here, or visit the website for more information on the coalition.

Carys Afoko