NATIONAL DEMONSTRATION LIBRARIES MUSEUMS AND GALLERIES SATURDAY 05 NOVEMBER 12 NOON

Hi

We would like to make sure you are aware of the important national demonstration to defend Libraries, Museums and Galleries. Supported by PCS, Unison, Unite, Jeremy Corbyn, Green party plus many local campaigns this is a very important national demonstration for all those who want to see an end to the attacks on our Libraries, Museums and Galleries. Please add your support

NATIONAL DEMONSTRATION 

LIBRARIES MUSEUMS AND GALLERIES

SATURDAY 05 NOVEMBER 12 NOON

https://www.facebook.com/events/282708008768589/

We also hope you may be able to support these protests and strikes (see below):

·         Tomorrow Thursday in support of the fourth day of strike action by PCS privatised security guards striking against private company Engie for fair pay

·         Saturday in support of workers at Ritzy Cinema fighting for the London Living Wage

Support from SERTUC Public Services Committee

PROTEST DETAILS

Date: Thursday 22 September

Time: 9.30 – 10:30 am

Place: 5 Hatfields London SE1 8DJ.

PCS Contact: Sarah Taiwo, email: saraht@pcs.org.uk Tel: 07788 128 008

All supporters welcome even if you can only stay for short time. Please bring your  trade union banners, flags and whistles.

 On the 22 September, Met Police security guards who work for private company Engie will take their fourth day of strike action. To mark the last day of planned action, PCS members and supporters will be holding a protest outside Engie Head Office near Waterloo in central London. 

The guards, who are based at 999 control centres in Bow and Hendon rejected a 1.5% pay offer. They are suffering worsening pay, with real terms rates falling year on year. Starting salaries are now less than £22,000 in London, including working nights for no extra pay. In comparison, security guards still directly employed by the Met Police earn £31,500.

This is the first industrial action that PCS members have ever taken and each strike day since the 9 September has seen 100% turnout by members in the dispute over pay.

Other ways you can show support:

  Donate to our commercial sector hardship fund, account number: 20244707, sort code: 0-83-01

Send cheques to the PCS London and south east region, 160 Falcon Road, London SW11 2LN

Email messages of support to londonbargaining@pcs.org.uk

More information:

http://www.pcs.org.uk/en/news_and_events/pcs_comment/pcs_comment.cfm/successful-strike-by-met-police-security-guards-to-continue-for-fourth-day

THE RITZY STRIKES BACK - JOIN THE GALACTIC PICKET LINES

12 NOON SATURDAY 24 SEPTEMBER /// THE RITZY CINEMA BRIXTON

MORE INFORMATION

https://www.facebook.com/HackneyLivingwage/

VIDEO

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_olYGoaNkWk

Attachments area

Preview YouTube video THE RITZY STRIKES BACK - JOIN THE GALACTIC PICKET LINES

THE RITZY STRIKES BACK - JOIN THE GALACTIC PICKET LINES

Transition Kensal to Kilburn : pollution monitoring & Public meeting The next meeting of Brent Connects Kilburn is scheduled for 7-9pm on Wednesday, 21 September 2016

Transition Kensal to Kilburn <mail@ttkensaltokilburn.ning.com>	8:43 PM (35 minutes ago)
to me

Dear all, This hot topic is high on the agenda across the city, and coming to our area: We will be carrying out some pollution monitoring in the TTKK area, putting up tubes on 24th September - see below if you would like to join in. There will also be a public meeting on the subject on the evening of 21st September.  All are welcome.  More details below. Best, Janey Monitoring in our area. If you would like to join me to put out some monitoring tubes round our area at 3pm on Saturday 24th September please email me onjaneymcallester@gmail.com.  We are joining a project run by the London Sustainability Exchange and will put the tubes out for ten days, collecting them on the 8th and sending them back for analysis, so it would be great if you are available on that date too.  There will then be comparison with other areas and discussion of the results - we can meet again to talk this through and decide how we want to use the information.  Let me know if you'd like to join in. Public meeting The next meeting of Brent Connects Kilburn is scheduled for 7-9pm on Wednesday, 21 September 2016 at London Interfaith Centre (aka St Anne and St Andrew's), 125 Salusbury Road NW6 6RG. The first item on the agenda is Air Pollution in Brent: What's Being Done About It? Who's responsible for monitoring and assessing air quality in Brent? What effect has air pollution on health and wellbeing? How can we improve air quality in the borough? Join us for a BBC ‘Question Time’ style interactive session for answers to these and other burning questions on tackling air pollution in Brent. Brent is one of the London boroughs that has recorded some of the worst nitrogen dioxide levels, according to air quality monitoring statistics. Come and find out more, increase your understanding of the positions of these key stakeholders and support Brent’s ongoing commitment to ensuring the borough is a safe place to live, work and play. Panellists Aaron Kiely, Campaigner – Friends of the Earth Tony Kennedy, Head of Transportation – Brent Jennifer Barrett, Senior Regulatory Service Manager – Brent Oliver Lord, Principal Policy Officer (Air quality / green transport) – Greater London Authority On 13 September 2016, the Boundary Commission is expected to publish its draft proposals for new parliamentary constituency boundaries for England. There will be a reduction of five constituencies in London which could mean significant changes for Brent’s current arrangements. Brent’s electoral services team will be discussing how these changes will affect the borough. Please email brent.connects@brent.gov.uk if you have any questions in the meantime. I look forward to seeing you on 21 September, and thank you for your continued support. Visit Transition Kensal to Kilburn at: http://ttkensaltokilburn.ning.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network

Proposed NHS cuts in North West London:

BREAKING: our people-powered investigation has uncovered Jeremy Hunt’s secret plans for our NHS. [1] So far, these plans - drawn up for every single area across England - have been kept under wraps. That changes today. Here's what our investigation found for North West London: The draft plan talks about "reducing demand for acute services by approximately 500 beds" which in practice means cutting that number of hospital beds By 2021, the health and social care system in North West London is projected to be £1.04 billion short of the funds it needs to balance its books while maintaining the same level of care for patients These plans are huge and complicated. Together we’ve started to shed light on them. But we just don’t know enough yet. [2] If we want to have our say on our local NHS services before it’s too late, we need to see every detail. The next step is to take this to our MPs. They’ll be concerned about changes to the NHS too. If MP after MP puts pressure on Jeremy Hunt, it could be enough to force him into publishing his full plans for our NHS. So, Peter, will you sign the petition asking Dawn Butler to lift the lid on the plans for the NHS in your area? SIGN THE PETITION Right now these plans force local NHS leaders to make impossible decisions to save money. But they could be so much better. Imagine an NHS with state-of-the-art technology, and doctors and nurses who have the time to look after every single patient properly. An NHS that puts patients before budget cuts. So 38 Degrees members are building a massive people-powered campaign across the country. From Liverpool to Canterbury, York to Leicester, 38 Degrees members in every area are demanding we see the full plans and get the chance to have our say on them. Together, we’re saying that patients - not politicians - should decide the future of our NHS. Peter, will you join thousands of other people and call on your MP to demand that these secret plans for our local NHS are out in the open? SIGN THE PETITION We’re already making progress together. Already, a quarter of a million of us have signed the petition calling on Jeremy Hunt to lift the lid on the plans. [3] And thousands of us chipped in to fund the people-powered investigation that’s splashed all over the media today. [4] Some of these plans for our NHS are downright scary. From the proposed closure of an A&E in The Black Country to hospital wards in Leeds, these plans will mean a different NHS for all of us. [5] A lot’s still unknown - and it’s up to us to find out the truth. Thanks for being involved, Maggie, Rachel, Laura and the 38 Degrees team PS: Thousands of 38 Degrees members chipped in to pay for an expert investigation to get the scoop on what the plans look like. The experts looked at everything they could find about the plans in every single area, to give us the information you see in this email. But lots is still unclear, and some areas haven’t released any details about their plans to the public. You can see the full investigation here, including what we know about every plan across England: https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/nhs-investigation-blog PPS: The 38 Degrees staff team have tried our best to make sure that the information in this email is accurate and right for your area. But there’s a chance that some people who live on the borders of two NHS areas might see information about the plans for their neighbouring NHS in this email instead. If you spot any problems with the information in this email - or have more information to share about your local plans - please email the staff team atnhssecretplans@38degrees.org.uk NOTES: [1] 38 Degrees blog: Is our NHS at risk of cuts? NHS England’s “Sustainability and Transformation Plans” explained: https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/nhs-secret-plans-faq [2] 38 Degrees blog: The 38 Degrees crowdfunded investigation into secret NHS plans: https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/nhs-investigation-blog [3] 38 Degrees petition: Jeremy Hunt - Reveal your plans for the NHS: https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/nhs-secret-plans-natp [4] BBC: NHS cuts 'planned across England': http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-37186455 The Guardian: NHS plans radical cuts to fight growing deficit in health budget: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/aug/26/nhs-plans-radical-cuts-to-fight-growing-deficit-in-health-budget [5] See note 2

38 Degrees is funded by donations from thousands of members across the UK. Making a regular donation will mean 38 Degrees can stay independent and plan for future campaigns. Please will you chip in a few pounds a week? Start a direct debit

Grunwick Changed Me

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07npvfh

Grunwick Changed Me

Listen at http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07npvfh

 

Maya Amin-Smith explores the impact of the Grunwick dispute, which began in August 1976, and finds out how members of her family became involved, and how they look back on it now.

The Grunwick dispute, at a film processing plant in north west London, is widely regarded as a landmark in British trade union history. For the first time, a high-profile strike involved women from South Asian immigrant communities, many of whom were fairly recent arrivals in the UK. Few if any had experience of industrial action - and the press at the time quickly noticed what they called 'strikers in saris', an image which challenged the perception that strikes were largely led by white men.

But aside from the public legacy of the Grunwick dispute, what was the personal impact on the people involved?

Maya Amin-Smith was born fifteen years after the strike was abandoned, into an Indian family of East-African immigrants. Her family had settled in the Chapter Road area of Dollis Hill where the Grunwick factory was situated. Indeed, two of her great aunts worked at the film processing plant themselves.

There's little sign now in the narrow streets of Dollis Hill that this was once the site of a long and bitter struggle, but now that the dust has settled, Maya explores the impact that this industrial action has had not only on her family, but on families like hers within the South Asian immigrant community, and how it's remembered now.

Michaela Secondary Free School punishes children for having hard-up parents

Friday, 29 July 2016

Michaela Secondary Free School punishes children for having hard-up parents

I suspect not many of my readers also read the Daily Mail so here is a brief summary of an on-line story carried by the Mail LINK.

Katharine Birbalsingh who hit the headlines when she became Michael Gove's darling after she told a Tory Conference that the education system was broken based on her experience at a London secondary school, is head of Michaela Secondary Free School in Wembley Park.  The school advertises its strict discipline policy and 'private school ethos' and has a laudatory comment from Boris Johnson hanging on its exterior.

The Mail story is not about the school's strict umbrella code (black or navy blue only) or its service to parents whereby they can text pictures of school shoes they are about to buy for approval LINK, but about its attitude towards the children of hard-up families.

The Mail reveals that children whose parents are behind with meal payments are put in lunch isolation, being made to sit on their own for the whole lunch hour, and are given a sandwich instead of a hot meal with dessert.

The Mail quotes a letter from the deputy headteacher, Barry Smith, to unemployed care worker Dionne Kelly. Dione had paid by the time she received the letter but her child was punished anyway:

The deadline for this term's lunch payment was 1st June 2016. You are currently £75 overdue. If this full amount is not received within this week your child will be placed into Lunch isolation.

They will receive a sandwich and a piece of fruit only. Only when the outstanding sum is paid in full will they be allowed to eat lunch with their classmates.

Birbalsingh told the Mail that the letter was sent in an attempt to encourage the parent to change her ways and support her son by paying for his food.

Sam Royston of the Children's Society said, 'No school should punish and potentially stigmatise a child because a parent has not paid for, or is unable to afford, school meals.'

http://wembleymatters.blogspot.co.uk/2016/07/michaela-secondary-free-school-punishes.html