Good news for those ‘mature’ Leyton ward residents who still love to shake a leg to some funky tunes.
The popular tea dances sponsored by Team Leyton, Waltham Forest Council, GLL and CLM (the delivery partner of the Olympic Delivery Agency) are to continue for another year!
According to the information I’ve been sent, Mix Master Steve Stratton will continue providing the super duper entertainment and caberet.
The only change is now the venue, which has moved to:
The Plum Tree Studios, First Floor, 787 Leyton High Road (opposite Waltham Forest Direct), Leyton E10.
If you’re local, and know a Leyton ward based Senior Citizen who you think would benefit from a nice couple of hours out of the house enjoying some good music and company between 2.30 and 4.30pm on: April 28th, May 26th, June 30th, July 28th, August 25th, September 29th, October 27th, November 24th, December 22nd, January 26th 2010, February 23rd 2010 or March 30th 2010, why not let them know about the tea dances and encourage them to go along?
I don’t know……a Freedom Pass to zoom around London and now the continuation of the Tea Dances – Leyton’s Senior Citizens have never had it so good… 
March 31st, 2009
I have dedicated some time this 2009 Mother’s Day weekend to getting in touch with and thanking some of the many mothers in my life.
For me, just being a God Mother to little Sofia is such an honour, I can’t imagine what it must feel like for women who have their own.
Motherhood for me isn’t just about whether you were raised by or live a particular woman, rather I believe it’s about women just being there for and caring for other people. That’s why I’ve always felt like I have many mothers in my life and remain grateful to all of them.
Over the past year in particular, I wouldn’t have survived without a very strong support network of some seriously formidable women, all of whom have acted as a mother figure, in one way or another, during what has been the worst period of my life.
The first mother I must obviously thank again this year is Jane (pictured holding a 1978 version of me in Leyton ward’s beautiful Coronation Gardens’ Park). She has quite simply been my rock. We’ve always been close and I’ve always been grateful that I can talk to her about any subject in the way I can close friends, but nothing beats the closeness of our relationship following all the false rubbish that was thrown at me politically and in court in 2007, and continues to plague our daily lives now.
The irony of the situation is that I wouldn’t change what I’ve been through with mum for the world. Yes, it’s been awful and traumatic but it has also been the period where I have never felt so loved and cared for by my mother.
Indeed, the respect and love I feel for mum has only been strengthened by us having had to go through it mostly on our own, without a husband or a father to support us, just as mum had to raise me and my sister completely on her own.
But we believe the solitary journey will only make our eventual victory to reclaim my innocence and reclaim respect for the voters of Leyton ward all the more sweeter.
I don’t just want to thank my own biological mother this year. Both she and I would jointly like to thank all the women in our lives from our family, our friends in London and around the UK, women in the local Leyton community, our friends abroad, women from the local and regional Labour party and other political parties, and women we know from the faith and non-faith communities, who’ve quite simply been the best mothers in the world to both of us during the past year – Julia, Patsy Scott, Jean George, Mary George, Paulina George, Ioni George, Georgiana Ulysses, Eliza Felix, Agnes Joseph, Mary Tuffin, Jane Duran, Alberta Henderson, Jane Welfare Peck, Enide Freeman, Nicky Gavron, Diane Abbott, Sabine Groeben, Dawn Butler, Kobra Avarand, Helen Jeffery, Jessica Mitchell, Jacqueline Craig, Edna Brockhurst, June Young, Jan Morris, Liz Davies, Sue Brackell, Surya Turner, Stella East, Jean Cavaliere, Margaret Gordon, Nazlee Mahomed, Sarah Podro, Rachel Suff, Silma Cobham, Sophia Khan, Yvonne Bailey, Pauline Stewart, Venetta Ndebele, and Zita Holbourne.
Just a massive, massive thank you to all of you again this 2009 Mother’s Day weekend.
We hope that one day soon, we’ll once again be in the position to be as good a mother to you as all of you have been to us.
Happy Mother’s Day!
Lots of love,
Miranda and Jane
xxx
March 22nd, 2009
Point Blank, a wonderful music education college that specialises in working with disenfranchised young people, are running a free one week accredited Radio Production course between 23rd – 27th March and still have a number of spaces available.
The course will be run in either Hackney or Leytonstone.
Funding is available to assist with travel expenses.
NCFE Introductory Award in Radio Production:
This course provides an insight into the radio industry through an overview of the development and production of radio programmes.
Participants also have the opportunity to develop their research, communication, ICT and teamwork skills by working in small groups to produce a radio show.
Course duration:
30 hours – Course level: Level 2 – Qualification title:
Introductory Award in Radio Production 500/1196/0
Qualifications:
An introductory Award at level 2 is equivalent to 25% of 1 GCSE grade A to C.
Who for?:
To be eligible for the courses applicants will need to be a resident of one the five Olympic host boroughs (Hackney, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Newham, and Greenwich) and be aged 16 and over.
If you live in Waltham Forest and know of anyone who you think may be interested in taking part, please contact:
Stanton LaFoucade, Team Leyton’s Deputy Neighbourhood Manager,
on: Stanton.LaFoucade@walthamforest.gov.uk as soon as possible.
March 12th, 2009
