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Archive for May, 2010

Wednesday 26th May 7.00 pm-8.30pm at St Francis Church Centre Wretham Rd

B19 1EB. 

There will be updates from the Lozells Neighboourhood Police Team, the new GP practgice at Finch Rd Medical Centre, Family HOusiing Association and the Lozells Neighbourhood Manager

A new initiative is about to be launched in Lozells on a pilot basis. The idea brings together the local police team, especially the Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) working closely with the City Council’s Environmental Wardens.

From early September leaflets will be distributed in the Lozells area with details of a new confidential phone hot line. Local people will be encouraged to make use of the phone number to report on any examples of dumping which they witness.

If local people know who is responsible for dumping rubbish in our area they will be asked to leave details on a completely confidential basis. All addresses which are reported will be followed up with a visit from PCSOs and/or Environmental Wardens.

We hope that by working together in this way we will be able to get to grips with some of the underlying problems which are causing the dumping of rubbish in the area. We know that effective working is always based on a partnership between local people and local services.

The number to ring is 0121 675 8649 

During our weekly Youth Forum, the young people highlighted an environmental concern around the Lozells area.  They were aware and concerned by the fact there were a number of dumping grounds around the Lozells area, where people have been throwing all sorts of household rubbish and furniture out on the roads and pavements, the concern was that not only did this look untidy and reflect negatively on the area and roads the rubbish was situated on, it also posed a hazard to the local young children, people and passers by.   The young people where then challenged to come up with solutions to these problems, after much debate which included possibilities such as signs, patrols, fines etc…

 The young people felt that the dumping was a result of the council not offering enough collections of household waste and rubble and not advertising their services well enough. The young people collectively invited the local councillor to visit the centre, to discuss the raised  issues and concerns and bring them to the Councillor’s  attention. The young people decided to gather some kind of evidence that they could put forward to the Councillor. They began by collating photographic evidence and compiled a report which was subsequently sent to the local council, as well as to various local organisations, and to the Neighbourhood team.

 Included in the report were various courses of action, as suggested by the young people, that could be followed to ensure the issue is resolved in both the short and long term.

Lozells YIP ran a series of workshops, looking at how young people perceive themselves as being disadvantaged and unfortunate. We as a project were interested in comparing our lives to the lives of other young people around the world, to show them just how privileged and fortunate we are, and show the true extent of the poverty and misfortune faced by some young people around the world. We also looked at how certain young people show little or no respect to their parents and immediate family and continually take them for granted.

 What we wanted to do was to show the local young people how fortunate they are to have parents/guardians and close family that they could rely on, confide in and turn to for help in their times of need, and how such luxuries should be appreciated and cherished.  We also looked at how lucky we all are living in a country like England, which is a safe environment, where we have rights and laws that govern our lives allowing us to live the way we do, as compared to poverty ridden third world countries where there is little or no access to basic human rights.  

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With all the hype surrounding the BBC television show ‘The Apprentice’, and seeing young people discussing  the show, commenting on where the contestants went wrong and how they would have gone about things themselves, the Lozells YIP team saw that there was an opportunity for a project. The idea was to give the young people an opportunity to see whether they had what it takes to make a success of themselves within the business world.   As a result Lozells Y.I.P, in conjunction with a local T- shirt printing company called fifty50, developed the idea of an entrepreneurial initiative specifically aimed at young people. 

 The programme was designed to enable young people to learn invaluable business skills, which included designing, costing, marketing, distributing and selling tangible products.  The programme was made up of a 10 week plan, during which the young people were giving a set budget from which they were tasked with designing, producing and selling their own brand of T-shirts.  The young people were given a blank canvass and were empowered and encouraged to use their creative flair, whilst working as part of a small group, with the prospect of designing and then selling their ideas to the wider community. The main aim was to see whether they had the creative ability to cater to the needs and wants of their own chosen customer base.  

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