Lib Dem Council has rejeced the Government’s offer of free grants to provide free swimming for over-60s and under-16s.  Sign the petition which believes Sheffield people are treated fairly – and like people in Barnsley, Rotherham and Doncaster – should have free swimming for over-60s and under-16s from April 2009.  The petition calls upon Sheffield’s Lib Dem councillors to reverse their decision immediately and ensure free swimming is provided in Sheffield for over-60s and under-16s from April 2009.

Please use this link to support this Petition for free swimming in Sheffield for over 60’s and under 16’s

We are very proud to say that Cllr Paul Scriven invited Wendy to debrief him on Monday 1st December on major concerns, desired outcomes and potentially realistic solutions to Youth Crime:

1. really understand the root cause which made young people feel the only way they can be safe is to carry a knife.
2. Listen to young people more
3. Stop assuming “we know”, better
4. Put younger people at the centre of debate on solutions and give them a pivotal role in planning solutions
5. More effective lines of communication in multi-agency working
6. More trained professionals for the community to call on as required.
7. Ensure the punishment fits the crime
8. Use media to present positive images of young people and eliminate distortions
9. Tailor the education system to meet individual needs
10. Provide more preventative facilities, peer mentoring, role modelling
11. Give young people a safe place to build-up their self-respect and self-esteem.
12. Invest more resources and funds in to properly staffed facilities to improve community liaison
13. Involve victims to help their perpetrators accept responsibility and create clearer boundaries
14. Mixed age Community activities centres involving the business community to enable young and old people relate more effectively with each other.
15. CPS, which takes the final decision on charging for crimes, needs to increase the victim’s sense of relevance to reported crimes.
16. Facilitate opportunities for cross-cultural understanding across youth groups and communities.

I will also be asking Paul Scriven to give us similar feedback for us to then feed it back to you with a view to influencing policy at a local level which is integral to our ethos.

Please do not hesitate to share your concerns on youth crime even if you were unable to join us at our Youth Crime workshop.

Workshop on THURSDAY 18th September from 3.30pm – 6.15pm

Youth Crime, Knife Crime and the Gun Crime Culture

How can we make our streets safe again?

We are proud to announce that DLA Piper LLP, the global law firm’s Sheffield Office has generously offered to host this important Workshop.

Facilitated by Perry Walker, Head of Democracy & Participation at leading London think tank, nef (new economics foundation).

 Keynote speaker: Cllr Paul Scriven, Leader of Sheffield City Council 

 PLUS

 • Michael Hunter, Orion Learning & Development Consultancy – formerly SY Police

• Jackie Freeborne, Chief Executive, Business Education – South Yorkshire

• Darryl Dawson, award-winning Connexions PR & Marketing Consultancy 

We will focus on:

• Identifying key priorities

• Reaching conclusions

• Formulating Outcomes

• Action Points and Next steps

Time: 3.30pm – 6.15pm

When: 18th September 2008

Where: DLA Piper LLP, 1 St Paul’s Place, Sheffield, S1 2JX

Registration: 3.30pm for a 3.45pm start

For more details, please call Wendy on 07946 453 258 or 0114 267 8720 or visit our website www.actionforinvolvement.org.uk  The Event Pack can also be downloaded here.
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The Council has set up a petition to support the campaign which you can either sign online at www.sheffield.gov.uk/saveourpostoffices or at First Points and libraries throughout Sheffield.

The more people who sign this petition, the better which is why we are supporting this important action which affects everyone. It would also be really helpful to the campaign if copies of the petition and a poster encouraging people to sign this petition are circulated to anyone who doesn’t have internet access.

If you are able to help then you can either photocopy the petitions when you are running out or contact Beth Barker on 0114 205 3546 at the address below to request more copies. Completed petition sheets should also be sent to Beth Barker at:

Communications Service

Sheffield City Council

Room 302, Town Hall

Sheffield S1 2HH

To make sure we are able to respond to the Government and Post Office Ltd before the end of the consultation, please return completed petitions no later than Monday, 15th September.

We hope you are able to help with this crucial campaign. Your support will be vital in showing just how strongly Sheffield opposed any Post Office closures in the City.

Sheffield City Council’s Save our Post Offices Campaign

We’ve updated our Links Page with some new links.

We’ve found 2 great environmental sites to help all of us increase sustainability on the little things which in turn, can add up to significant things to help us all make a difference to our carbon footprint.

Anti Apathy was founded by neweconomics and then went solo and developed the nag.net website which enables individuals to do one little thing to change their everyday life and reduce our carbon footprint across the range of areas which impact on our everyday lives.

We’ve also added a couple of IT support sites.

Watch this space – we’re planning on re-arranging our links to make them more easily accessible.

Disaster Relief in Burma & China

Over the past week or so we have seen collossal natural disasters wreak havoc in Burma and China with the death of hundreds of thousands of people – children, adults and elderly people – just like us.

We feel many people will want to show solidarity and support for those of our fellow human beings who are experiencing such unimaginable levels of suffering by making donations. In addition to financial donations, blood donations are also needed for the earthquake victims in China.

To ensure your financial donations are channelled appropriately, we\’ve collated some links which we believe to be sound. Please maximise your donation by signing up for Giftaid, a Government scheme which enables charities to claim money from the Inland Revenue for donations made by UK taxpayers. For every GBP1 you give, your appointed charity receives GBP 1.28

Please let us know of any other links you would like us to add to this list.

www.dec.org.uk/
www.maetaoclinic.org/cyclone.html
www.burmacampaign.org.uk/pm/weblog.php?id=P351
www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/may/06/charitablegiving.burma
www.foundationburma.org/
www.eff.org/
www.dimsum.co.uk/forum/noticeboard/topic-1793.html
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/burma_cyclone/
www.redcross.org.uk/index.asp?id=39992

We’re pleased to announce the publication of our Annual Report.

A copy can be downloaded here, and there is also an update to bring you right up to date with AFI happenings up until June 30th 2008.

You might also be interested in our ‘Open Planning Presentation’.  Please note that this is in the form of a Powerpoint Presentation.

We are proud to announce our Open Planning Meeting on Tuesday 24th June 2008 from 4.00pm – 7.00 pm.

Room 1237, 12th Floor of Sheffield Hallam University’s The Owen Building, City Centre Campus

Guest Speaker:  Darryl Dawson of award-winning PR Consultancy Firm, Connexions PR will talk on the value of USPs (Unique Selling Points) and its affect on AFIs activities.

We are also proud to present AFI’s plans for future activities, growth and income generation developed in association with Sheffield Community Enterprise Development Unit (SCEDU) as well as our Annual Report.

To confirm your place please call or text Wendy on 0788 280 3550/07946 453 258 or use our contact form.