ISSUE 9Dec 2003

YYOOUURR NNEEWWSSLLEETTTTEERRMerry Christmas Knowle West from all the newsletter team!

By the look of the fantastic Christmas lights ondisplay around the estate in recent weeks, peoplehave been getting into the festive spirit in a bigway. But who will win the “Best Dressed House”competition? (see page 4). Winners will beannounced in our next issue.Some great news…due to popular demand, anda need for more space to fit in all the articlesabout everything that is happening withNeighbourhood Renewal, there will be moreissues of the Knowle West Newsletter in 2004.Instead of four there will be six!

If you have any comments about these, or anyother articles in this edition, please contact:AAnn iittaa PPeeaa rrcceeNeighbourhood Renewal Participation GroupFilwood Community CentreFilwood BroadwayKnowle WestTel: 908 4248anitapearce.nr@knowlewest.co.ukffrroo nntt ccoo vveerr :: ttoottss ggeetttt iinngg ssoo mmee eexxeerrcc iissee ,, aa rr tt iicc llee ,,pp aagg ee 88,, ff aann ttaass tt iicc KKnn ooww llee WWeesstt CChhrr iissttmmaass ll iigghh ttss,,pp aaggee 44

The achievements and efforts of many wererecognised and rewarded on Saturday 15thNovember at Filwood Community Centre. HTVanchorman Peter Rowell congratulated the winners and presented them with their awards.Amongst the long list of winners, teenagerBecky Belgium received the Young PersonAward, Margaret Jordan was praised forOutstanding Achievement and Denise Britt wasThe People’s Choice winner. Rose Manning wonthe Lifetime Achievement Award and received astanding ovation. A much overdue accolade!The full list of awards and those who won themfollows:

Susan Smith - ChurchesBecky Belgium - Young PersonArthur Jones - NewcomerJean Saunders - Senior CitizenMargaret Jordan - Outstanding AchievementGraham Blacker - Non-residentDenise Britt - People's Choice Vera Collins - Good NeighbourInns Court Residents Association - Community Safety Rose Manning - Lifetime Achievement

The evening was a great success. It was wellattended and everyone enjoyed themselves.

HEARTS & STARS AWARDS

WWW.KNOWLEWEST.CO.UK

On Monday December 1st the Knowle WestMedia Centre had a celebration of all the workmade on the VID project, a digital arts projectinvolving 7 young disabled people.There was a display of digital prints and otherartwork, and a screening of videos made by theyoung people. There was also video footage ofmusic and drama workshops, and computer displays of digital animation. Cluna, the leadworker, presented everyone with a certificate,and the evening was rounded off by playingpass the parcel, listening to music and eatinglots of good food. A great time was had by all!AAnn nnaa OO lliivv eerr KKWWMMCC

VID PROJECT

02

RRoo ssee MMaann nniinngg && PP eetteerr RRoo wwee ll ll

WWoouu lldd yyoouu ll iikkee ttoo wwoo rrkk ii nn TTVV oorr rraaddii oo??‘Writing in the Margins’ is a scheme being runby the BBC to encourage new writing in placeswriting is not normally found. I am a poet andwriter and have been asked by the BBC to runa scheme in Bristol. I want to get together agroup of 8 or 9 people (from age 16 up) whoare really keen on writing and haven’t really hadthe chance before. We will meet either everyweek, or every two weeks for 2 hours until April2004. We will look at developing your writingwith an eye to getting it on the BBC. Yes – itcan be script ideas, plays, radio plays, TV, oral

history or poetry. You can work alone, or with a friend or a group - whatever you want. The BBC, on their part, will come down and introduce the scheme and give us (some) access to their archives etc. They can also have successful writers come and talk to you. The sessions will be free!

If you are interested, please call me, Ralph Hoyte on 07791 136 780 or email me at: ralph@hoyte.org.uk

Overcomingobstacles can bea tremendouschallenge. Lifecan be like amaze, where youwish you weretall enough tolook over thehedge. Or maybea castle, whereyou tend to stayin one familiar room that is warm and cosy.Much safer then opening an unknown door toan unknown room (never been that fond of spiders myself). The truth is the obstacle andthe challenge will tell the story.

When I was a little girl I loved to be on the stage.I was always the Queen on the throne. I canremember telling all the footmen where to go.The stage gave me a voice, a form of expression.This set me free from a very troubled childhood.The little girl that was seen and not heard sudden-ly had a voice.

Painting was something else I loved. My imagination would run wild with pages of vibrantlittle monsters; pink, blue, green-eyed with purplespots and spiky hair. I always seemed to bebehind with my reading and my spelling wasnever very good. This made a huge dent in myconfidence which has stayed with me. Until oneday I found the “ Spell Checker ” on the computer.This opened the door for me. What was once ahuge creative writing block for me suddenlybecame the maze and the castle.

I am now in the early stages of writing a book.The title will be The Felt-maker’s Passion. Myinspiration for this was learning how to make afelt bag. I will be running felt-making coursesnext year, which is the next chapter in my life.

I am sharing this with you in the hope that itwill be a source of encouragement. We all have astory to tell. I hope that you all have a JoyfulChristmas and allow yourself to open the doorinto a creative New Year. BBeess tt WWiisshh eess,, TTrraacceeyy PPoo oollee

....ttoo iinnsspp iirr ee yyoouu,, hh eerree ’’ss aa ll oovv ee llyy pp iieeccee ooffwwrr iitt iinngg ffrroomm KK nnoowwllee WWeess tt rr eessiiddeenntt TTrr aacceeyyPPoooo llee

MY STORY OPORTO - AN INSIDE VIEW

03

Seven young people from the Knowle areamade Portuguese friends in an exciting visit tothe twin town of Oporto for five days at theend of October.

Our visit was hosted by a group from theEscola de Bagium in Rio Tinto. We had a tourof the city to take photos, a day of activitiesand traditional games in the school, and a visitto a traditional Portuguese restaurant. Thegroup loved the change of environment andculture, and getting to know their Portuguesefriends.

A few lucky adults accompanied the youngpeople - Dave Howe, of KW Youth Forum, SamHancock, of the Children's Fund, and myself, JoHansford, from KW Media Centre.

The photography work from the trip will beexhibited after the return visit by thePortuguese on February 22-27. This coincideswith the 20th Anniversary of the twinningbetween Bristol and Oporto in 2004. Look out for the show next year!JJoo HHaann ssffoo rrdd KKWWMMCC

NEIGHBOURHOOD RENEWAL

On the most recent Neighbourhood RenewalTour Heather Barham and Anita Pearce targetedfamilies and young people. They also did aquestionnaire about Environment & Housing(see small info box below).

”We spoke to parents as they were collectingtheir children from schools around Knowle andvisited Eagle House Youth Centre and TheMede Centre talking to young people,” saidAnita. When asked what they would like to see

happening around supporting families, mostparents said they would like to have more afterschool clubs available near them. The resultsare being taken to the NR Supporting Familiestheme group.

The young people we talked to did not knowwhat Neighbourhood Renewal was – only theKnowle West Newsletter! They all liked it,thought it was good and kept them informedabout what was going on.

NR - THE NEXT LEG!

A LOAD OF RUBBISH......

Business West are bringing a roadshow to KW inJanuary to let everyone know about two newprojects which could benefit businesses in ourarea.

II tt ''ss YYoouurr BBuuss iinn eessss is the name of a newscheme which aims to increase:

l

employment opportunitiesl

numbers of unemployed going into self-employment

l

the profile and business confidence in the area

l

survival rates of businessesl

the number of socially excluded groups seeking to start a business

l

business use of ICTl

access to finance

IITT @@ WWoo rrkk offers advice, training and support tobusinesses needing to consider their IT capabilityincluding trading online from 2005.

Ffi: contact Amanda Salamon tel: 915 2654 email: amanda.salamon@businesswest.co.uk

ANOTHER ROADSHOW ON ITS WAY

CHRISTMAS LIGHTSNeighbourhood Renewal is once again holding acompetition to find the house with the best displayof Christmas Lights. Street Wardens will judge asthey do their rounds and the prizewinners will be

announced in the next newsletter. Do you have afavourite? Ring the Street Wardens and let themknow.

04

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05

STREET WARDEN NEWS WWee hh aavvee hhaadd aa vveerryy bbuu ssyy aauuttuu mmnn bbee iinn ggiinn vvoo llvveedd ww iitthh tthh ee llooccaa ll ccoommmmuunn iittyy..

IInnnn ss CCoouurr tt RReessii ddeenn ttss::In September the Wardens, council officials andthe Police accompanied Inns Court ResidentsAssociation on a walkabout pinpointing problemsto draw up an action plan towards solutions.Many improvements are already happening,notably the recently installed motorcycle barriers.

FFoooottbbaa llll TTrraa iinnii nngg ::Senior Street Warden TonyMorris runs training ses-sions for girls’ footballat Broad Plain and boys(5-8 years) at EagleHouse. Tony has suc-cessfully raised severalthousand pounds to sustainthis project. Ffi: contact Tonytel: 908 4222.

AAnn ttii SSoocc iiaall BBeehhaavviioouurr rreeppoo rrtt iinngg ffoorrmmss::

Local residents are able to report any AntiSocial Behaviour by using the confidential“self reporting” forms, which are available atthe following locations:

The Mede, The Park, Filwood CommunityCentre, Area Housing Office, BroadburyRoad Police Station, The Kabin, FilwoodBroadway, NHS Walk in Centre.

Residents can also phone the Anti SocialBehaviour hotline on 908 4223.

This is an extremely useful tool for agenciessuch as the Police, Council and StreetWardens who endeavour to reduce theeffects of Anti Social Behaviour. To date thisscheme has been successful.

PP rrii zzee DD rraaww

Our latest Prize Draw Winner from thosewho participated inthe Crime Survey isShawn Beldham, pictured here with his £25 Asda voucher!

TThhee ffee sstt iivvee sseeaassoonn iiss uu ppoonn uuss aanndd wwee wwoouull dd jjuuss tt ll iikkee ttoo rreemm iinn dd yyoouu::

1. Don’t leave your tempting presents on view in your car.2. If you leave your house unattended, leave lights and television on.3. Put all boxes and wrappings into bin carriers or take them to a tip.4. Be safe coming home. If going out to parties etc book a taxi or arrange a lift with friends.

All the Street Wardens would like to wish you a very merry Christmas and a peaceful new year.

DON’T BE A VICTIM OF CRIME AT CHRISTMAS

CAR CLEARING SCHEME

The Car Clear Scheme to remove abandonedvehicles before they are attacked by vandalsand arsonists has been extremely successful inKnowle West.

Avon Fire Brigade, Avon and Somerset Policeand the Street Wardens are working effectively together.SSttrreeeett WW aa rrdd eenn CCaa rrooll DDoo nnaavvaann iiss uunn aabb llee ttoo ffiinndd

aannyy aabbaanndd oonn eedd ccaa rrss ff oorr oo uurr pp hhoo ttooggrraapphh eerr

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ACHIEVEMENT

YOUTHMOVES FOR KNOWLE WESTYouthMoves is something you will be hearing a

lot about in the future. It is the name given to apartnership of groups that has recently secured£1.5 million over the next 3 years for youthwork in Knowle West.

Local resident Gary Blake has been involvedwith the YouthMoves initiative from the begin-ning and has agreed to chair the new companyset up to be responsible for the funding, todevelop future plans and to build an even widerpartnership.

“This is really exciting news for Knowle West,not only have we won a substantial amount ofmoney to benefit young people, we have alsocreated a new way for different organisations to

work together” he commented.The partnership involves Bristol City CouncilYoung People’s Services (BCCYPS), KWDT, The Mede, Broad Plain Youth Club and FilwoodClub. The funding is coming from SRB6, Urban2 and BCCYPS.

Barry Scrase, the South Bristol Young People’sServices Manager, is delighted with YouthMovessuccess. “It is essential that organisations work-ing with young people combine forces effective-ly to make best use of the limited resources thatare available” he said. “Winning this fundingproves the benefits of working together andover the next three years we have the chance toreally build on that.”

POSITIVE FUTURES UPDATETT hhee PPaarrkk NN eettbbaa ll ll CC lluu bbThe club has expanded from one to three adultteams and two youth teams, mainly local resi-dents. The under 12s are top of the league!All the club members would like to say a bigthank you to Johnny Boyce of DesignScaffolding, who has sponsored them withtracksuits.UU nnddeerr 1133 ss FFoooottbbaall llThis team is an amalgamation of players from allthe youth clubs in KW. They had a perfect startto the season with a 7-3 victory overMangotsfield in November. Why not considerjoining us at training on Wednesdays 6.30pm atFilwood Community Centre?FF ii llwwoooodd YYoouu tthh CC lluu bbThis youth club is thriving. There are now 43local members aged 8 to 17. It offers a pooltable, tennis, football and art. There will be aChristmas Card competition with prizes for thebest ones. All new members are welcome to jointhis friendly club, open three times a week onMondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays 6.40 –9.00pm.

NR have supported Hengrove Community ArtsCollege & Post 16 Centre with funding for theirown School & Family Link Worker (S&FLW).

Like the S&FLW who has been working with theKnowle West Primaries over the last 2 years,this worker will work with key partners in thecollege, e.g. Learning Mentors, the EducationWelfare Officer and the School Beat PoliceOfficer to impact directly on attendance levelsin the school through support of students andthe students’ parents/carers and families.

Advertisements for the post will follow a seriesof 3 training sessions run by I.R.I.S with an aimof encouraging as many local people as possibleto apply for the post.

Contact Jemma Keegan on 0117 903 9808 for details.

Hengrove is to become Bristol’s first pilot FullService Extended School.

Funding for this means that the College canstaff a support team to put the following servic-es in place, either on site or through partner-ships with other agencies off site: ChildcareServices; Health & Social Care Services; Family& Lifelong learning; ICT Services; StudySupport Services; Sports & Arts services.

Manager, Liz Rowbotham, has now beenappointed, and will be in post from January. Thesupport post of Childcare DevelopmentManager and Administrator/PA will be adver-tised before Christmas.

Please contact Jemma Keegan or Liz Rowbothamon 07967 808442 for details.

HENGROVE NEWS

07

Building Communities

It is to regenerate Filwood Broadway!The project will:

l replace Filwood Community Centre with a

newly designed NeighbourhoodCentre

l help to improve the environment of

Filwood Broadway

l provide better shops and services for

local people

l create jobs, protect jobs and offer learn-

ing opportunities.

Working together for the future of Filwood BroadwayWhat is the aim of the Building Communities project?

Ask yourself this question:Do you agree that Filwood Broadway could do with improving?

If your answer is Yes we would like to ask younow to support this important project actively.

A reminder of how you can have your say inmaking these decisions:

l Get in touch directly with your Resident

repre- sentatives on the ProjectBoard

l Come along to supporters’ group meet-

ings:6pm – 8pm on the following dates at

Filwood Community Centre.

Monday 12th January 2004

In addition to all this, we will be regularly

updating you about the Building

Communities project through your Knowle

West Neighbourhood Renewal newsletter.

Building Communities will continue to

have a slot in each issue in the New Year

Community centres: The Community Development team is writ-ing to all the centres of community activity.The idea is that we will go out to groups tokeep people up to date with the decisionmaking process.

Are you a member of a group that wouldlike to find out more about the BuildingCommunities Project? Call Hannah Morganor Janet Tomlin on 9531329

Street representatives: We want to set up a network of these, ini-tially for the roads that are closest toFilwood CommunityCentre – particularly Barnstaple Road,Instow Road, Hartcliffe Road, FilwoodBroadway, Bantry Road, Carlow Road, BelfastWalk, Tyrone Walk, Kinvara Road, MarwoodRoad and Connaught Road.. Would you beinterested in representing your street, or afew houses on your street by passing oninformation about and getting opinions about

Wider Consultation

The Project Board is made up of 15 peo-ple, including 6 resident representatives,the chair of the Knowle WestDevelopment Trust and representativesfrom Bristol City Council, the BristolPartnership and the RegionalDevelopment Agency.

The supporters’ group will be open toeverybody and we want to make it as

representative of the whole area as possi-ble.

Don’t worry if you lose the dates listedabove – we will be advertising eachmeeting in the local press, local shops,community centres and churches so keepan eye out! You can also give HannahMorgan a ring on 9531329 to get updatesabout meetings and decisions.

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FAMILY SUPPORT

NURSERY NEWSTwo years ago a group of community mindedpeople started to bid for funds to open aNeighbourhood Nursery. They were successful!Parents in the Filwood ward can now look for-ward to three years of subsidised childcareplaces.

Builders have been on site at The Park for threemonths converting parts of the old MerrywoodSchool into a centre that will deliver full daycarein a specifically designed environment.

Due to open early next year the Nursery willoffer 36 places. There will be a room especiallyfor babies from birth upwards, a room for undertwos and a room for over twos.

There will also be a crèche for 24 places whereyou can book a place if you need childcare foryour child for less than four hours in any oneday.

The Nursery will also be able to offerFoundation stage places for 3 and 4 year olds.

This means if you have a child that is eligible fora nursery place in school we can deliver thatnursery curriculum as a free session for yourchild.

If you wish to receive further details or registerinterest in securing a place, or visit the nurserythen please contact Kate Jones - Sure StartChildcare Development Officer tel: 0117 9039805

12 staff and parents from Knowle West passedtheir British Gymnastics pre-school assistantcoach awards with flying colours at the end ofOctober ! This nationally recognised award willenable them to lead gym sessions for toddlers.

An intensive 4 day training session took place atNovers Infants school in the spring and candidatesthen had to complete 15 hours of practical workwith children as well as submitting a logbook toshow evidence of planning and safety awareness.

The training will enable the staff and parents toprovide high quality pre-school gym sessions forthe children of Knowle West , and to supportthe very popular community sessions at theMede. Tracy Matthews, the Sure Start ActivityWorker who organised the training said “ I’vebeen very impressed with the commitment shownby the candidates, and I’m very proud of them all”. Congratulations to Nadia Porter, Kerry Doggett ,Debbie Rees, Paula Johns, Sandra James, andChristine Webb (Sure Start parents); VickiSadler and Jane Jenkins (Early Years Centre), AliSmith (Connaught), Celia White and LinMunford (Novers Lane nursery) and HelenRichards (Sure Start).

At the end of November the Knowle WestDevelopment Trust announced it had to closeits Family Support Service due to funding problems.

Denise Britt, resident chair of KWDT explained.“The Family Support Service lost a significantamount of funding at the end of Septemberand failed to win some new funding at thesame time” she told Knowle West News.”Normally this would have meant closing theservice from September but because we knewhow important it was for Knowle West theKWDT Board decided to fund it until the endof November from our own reserves whilst

efforts were made to find new funding.Despite considerable efforts being made new funding could not be secured in the timescale.”

The Trust Board is now doing everything it can,continuing working alongside NeighbourhoodRenewal Partnership and other agencies, to finda way forward which represents the best inter-est of the community of Knowle West.

KWDT is in the process of contacting users ofthe family support service to pass on informa-tion of alternative services.

For further information contact Michael Webb(0117) 9084236

Denise Britt (Chair)Knowle West Development TrustDec 2003

TODDLER GYM

FAMILY SUPPORT SERVICE CLOSES

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LOCAL COMMUNITY

A COMMUNITY MARKET FOR KNOWLE WEST?

Knowle West could have its own lively communitymarket by the summer.

Ours is one of several areas in Bristol beingconsidered as one of a network of markets inselected Neighbourhood Renewal communities.Community Markets Development Officer forthe city council, Mike Cardwell is interested tohear if residents, businesses and communitygroups would welcome the idea.

Mike says, ”If you want to see a colourful, useful,vibrant market happening in Knowle West weneed your support. Please take part in the consultation. But more importantly you canmake the market a success by coming to doyour shopping there. This will be your marketso make your voice heard.”

The market would be weekly, selling a widerange of fresh, affordable food such as vegetablesand fruit, prepared foods (bread, cakes, pies)and household provisions as well as plants,flowers, toys, books, fabrics and giftware.

Experienced traders would work alongside localresidents, community groups and enterpriseswho wish to trade or to raise funds for theirprojects. So get working on your bright businessidea. Remember - the Body Shop started outon a market stall and just look at its success!Business support and training will be available.

Questionnaires will be circulated to gather localopinions about this. Ffi: contact Mike CardwellBristol City Council Community MarketsDevelopment Officer on 922 2410

The Community Composting project running atFlorence Brown Community School in LeinsterAvenue has been running for over a year. Theoriginal project was based on recycling greenwaste from local gardens and organisations, aswell as from the school grounds.

A massive injection of cash was received in thesummer of 2001 which came from theNeighbourhood Renewal fund and the SITAEnvironmental Trust to enable us to purchasemachinery.

The project is primarily educational, to promotecomposting and give young people opportunitiesto work with specialist equipment. Last year weprocessed 22 tons of Christmas trees and ourmachinery will be used to do the same this year.We produce other things too: carvings and rusticfurniture; fuel; mulch; soil conditioner. The project has attracted visitors from all overthe country.

Children Interested in Agriculture (CIA) hasgained funding from Wessex Water and TheGreater Bristol Foundation. The compostingproject will be providing compost to enrich thesoil to make these vegetables a true communityeffort, in that they will be grown from the recycledbrambles, weeds and privet hedges of KnowleWest.

DD iicckk BBeerr rryy ,, DDeepp uuttyy HHeeaadd FF lloorreennccee BBrroo wwnn CCoo mmmmuunnii ttyy SScchhoooo ll

COMMUNITY COMPOSTING

10

TACKLING ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR

BOBBY VAN - REASSURANCE ON WHEELS

One of the force’s most successful crimereduction initiatives has recently celebrated itsthird birthday.

The Bobby Van has been visiting the burgledhouses of South Bristol since October 2000,when it was officially launched by HRH ThePrincess Royal. More than 950 homes, over 100of which are in the Knowle area, have beenvisited by carpenter Richard Read (pictured).

The Bobby Van visits elderly and vulnerablevictims of crime in a bid to help reduce therisks of them becoming repeat victims. Manypeople lack the resources to make sure theirhomes are secure. Locks, bolts, door-chains,viewers and window locks are professionally fit-ted, free of charge. Smoke detectors, suppliedby Avon Fire Brigade, are also fitted and lowenergy light bulbs, courtesy of London Electricity.

The idea for the Bobby Van came after statisticsshowed that homes, which have been burgledbefore, are more likely to be burgled again. Ofthe 950 homes which have been visited by theSouth Bristol van only four have been targetedsince. The scheme can also visit other vulnerablepeople such as victims of domestic violence.

Crime Reduction Officer PC Andy Boulton(pictured) is the Bobby Van co-ordinator.He said: “The last three years have been hugelysuccessful for the van. The reduction inrepeat victims of burglary is tremendous. Werealise that the elderly often suffer from alarge fear of crime and so we also do a lot ofproactive, preventative work, making theirhomes secure and making the residents feelsafer.”

The Avon and Somerset Police CommunityTrust organised the sponsorship and supportfor the Bobby Van scheme, which now haseight vans operating around the force area.Richard Read, who has had Victim Supporttraining said, “You only have to read some ofthe many letters of appreciation that havecome in from people to see how worthwhilethe Bobby Van scheme is”.

"People feel that their homes are so muchsafer after being visited by me and my van.”For more information please contact RichardRead or PC Andy Boulton at the South BristolCrime Reduction Unit on 01275 818181.

Crimestoppers is an independent charity work-ing to fight crime. It is not run by the Police. Itdoes however work in partnership with otheragencies, including the Street Wardens and thePolice by providing valuable information aboutcriminal activity.

In September a joint initiative with the SouthWest Crimestoppers. Inns Court Residents, thePolice and the Street Wardens held an OpenDay at The Mede. A similar initiative based inthe Filwood area is now under way with the co-operation of the KW Drugs Forum and otheragencies.

To date, people like you nationwide have pro-vided Crimestoppers with information that hasled to the arrest of over 53,000 criminals. Yourinformation has resulted in the recovery of over£64 million of stolen goods and has taken over£70 million worth of deadly drugs off thestreets. And as you all know from the televisionand newspapers, this information has beeninstrumental in locking up murderers, rapistsand armed robbers.

Well done to Knowle West residents! Since September the Crimestoppers

Hotline has received three times the number ofcalls from you. Two of the pieces of informationled to drugs warrants on two independentaddresses. But…other parts of South Bristolget many more calls to the Hotline, and as adirect result, they get more focused policeaction targeted against the criminals. Let’smove the action more into Knowle West. Justpick up the phone and ring Crimestoppers freeon 0800 555 111.

CRIMESTOPPERS IN KNOWLE WEST

NEW SECURE POLICE AIRWAVES

LAGS MEETING

DRUGS - IMPORTANT EVENTS FOR KNOWLE WESTOn 30th September, Ian White CBE the HomeOffice Special Advisor on the Bristol DrugsStrategy visited Knowle West. He was shownaround the estate by the Wardens and spenttime with various agencies on the Broadway.He was very supportive of all the work that isgoing on in the community. His visit culminatedin an open meeting at Filwood CommunityCentre where he discussed the Bristol Strategyand made suggestions as to how the KnowleDrugs Forum and what it is trying to achieve,can fit into that. He particularly encouraged

the Drug Forum to establish a clear set of factsand figures about the situation around druguse locally (how many people it affects, whatdrugs are being used, what services exist andhow to use them to the best effect and wherethere are gaps) which we can use to influencehow the Drug Action Team provides resourcesto areas like Knowle West and communitygroups. This was an encouraging visit thathighlighted the positive partnership workingthat is happening and the impact this is havingon the community.

On 19th November there was a major conferencethat launched a blueprint to bring all the statu-tory and voluntary agencies who work with drugusers and their families, together. The conferencelaunched the assessment of Bristol’s DrugsStrategy, written by Ian White CBE, the HomeOffice Special Advisor. It was chaired by BarbaraJanke – Chair of the Community Safety & DrugsPartnership and Leader of the Council, comment-ing on the conference, she said the aim is tobring all the services together in Bristol andmake sure that people who need help comefirst and are provided with an all-round, holisticservice.

The conference was attended by professionalsfrom the Council, Avon & SomersetConstabulary, Bristol Primary Care Trusts, edu-cation and other public bodies. Other attendeeswere drug services and community organisa-tions and drug users and their families.

As well as presentations by Vic Hogg (DrugLegislation and Enforcement Unit, Home Office),Kate Croucher (Chair of the Drug ServicesProviders Forum and Manager of KWADs), Paul(a KWADs Client,) Paul Rowlandson

(Community Safety Director, GOSW) and PaulHayes (Chief Executive of the NationalTreatment Agency) there were workshopsbased around the central theme of the NationalDrugs Strategy that gave everyone the oppor-tunity to explore ways to improve working inpartnership to tackle drugs in Bristol. Key actionpoints from these workshops will provide theframework for future service delivery in the city.This conference was very positive and demon-strates publicly for the first time everyone’scommitment to delivering on the drugs agenda.

Further information available atwwwwww ..sswwdd rruuggsstt rraa tteeggyy .. iinnffoo// tthheemm eess//bb rriissrr eevv

KKaattee CCrroo uucchheerr -- CC hhaa ii rr ooff DD rruu gg SS eerrvv iicceessPPrroovv iiddeerrss FFoorruumm && MMaannaaggeerr –– KKWWAADDss

THE KNOWLE WEST DRUGS FORUM

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Knowle West Police Officers are now hitting thestreets with new equipment designed to tackleCrime and Disorder. The Airwave Communications system has arrived!

So what is Airwave? It is a state-of-the-art, integrated, digital, mobile radio communicationsservice. It cannot be listened in on by any criminal– even those who consider themselves rocket scientists - because it is impossible to be scanned.This will help make your community a safer placein which to live, not only day to day, but alsoduring major incidents and emergencies, when

effective communications really can help save lives. By 2005 all Police Forces will be equipped with Airwave and

all policing areas will be able tocontact each other on the street

at the press of a button. With a totally safe radio network

that cannot be scanned by criminals, moremembers of the community should feel easierabout giving vital details of witnessed crimes.

IInnssppee ccttoo rr MMaa tttt AAyy rreess

The next Filwood Public Local Action GroupMeeting will be held in the hall at the FilwoodCommunity Centre on Thursday, 22nd Januaryfrom 7 - 9p.m. It is a public open meeting that

brings together both statutory and non-statutory agencies to discuss issues ofconcern relating to crime and disorder in thearea.

NEW FACESAre there no new faces atthe moment? There are several and we will introducethem to you in the nextedition.

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All articles express the views of individual contributors and do not necessarily representthe opinions of the Neighbourhood RenewalSteering Group.

THANKS TO....................The Neighbourhood Renewal Participation Group: Anita Pearce, Sister Joanna, Margaret Jordan, Denise Britt,Joyce Jenkins and Ann Smith. NR Manager Keith Houghton.Jo Hansford for photos including front cover.Heather Barham and Hannah MorganAll at KWMC, who facilitate the production of this newsletterEditor: Barbara Benson projects@kwmc.co.ukDesign: Rowena Dugdale mail@rowenadugdale.com

The Bristol Objective 2 programme is part financed by European Community (ERDF)

CLOVERDOWN DOORSTOP GREEN....On 25th October over 25 local people filled 3skips of rubbish and planted over 100 wildflowerbulbs. Bluebells, daffodils, snakes head fritillaryand garlic bulbs will be flowering in the spring!

By clearing the scrub, a huge amount of litterhas been revealed and meant several more daysof waste removal by volunteers, trainees andstaff from Hartwood Enterprises, including theremoval of asbestos from the site.

All Green waste has been recycled by FlorenceBrown school recycling project (see page 9)Over 40 needles have been removed from thesite.

Look out for more Community workdays in theNew Year including fruit tree planting in earlyFebruary. Ffi contact: Ken Kennedy, CSV Environment Tel: 935 9710

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ELECTRIC DECEMBEROnce again, the whole worldcan come to Knowle West,through the Electric Decemberonline advent calendar. Ifyou have not yet had thechance to open and vieweach day’s ‘presents’ with aclick of the mouse, check it out:wwwwww ..eellee ccttrr iiccddeecc eemmbbeerr ..oorrgg

NEWSLETTER NEWSIn the next edition: how thisnewsletter is put togetherand how you can learn orimprove some basic mediaskills e.g. photocopying,scanning a picture, editingtext and designing a leaflet.KWMC will put on easy,short workshops for all inthe New Year.

RAGSAs a result of the CelebratingDiversity event RAGS anda group of local peopleare to explore new ways toimprove the quality of lifefor Black and MinorityEthnic residents in KnowleWest.If you are interested ingetting involved, or findingout more, contact AnnHowell or Hannah Morganon 953 1329.

LOCAL FILMS ON TVTwo locally made films ‘TheWall Around My Heart’ and‘Hair’ have been showntwice on HTV. ’The Wall Around My Heart’is a 10 minute poetic docu-mentary made by ClunaDonnelly, in collaborationwith Michael Smith, a youngartist living in Knowle Westwho has autism and thefilm is his perception of theworld. It came out of adisability equality arts projectcalled Brave New World runby Knowle West MediaCentre.