Hearing what Havering’s residents have to say is really important to us and we’re regularly looking at ways to improve opportunities for residents to let us know what they think. At past events we have had a wide range of questions for the panel with everything from road and pavement repairs through to the plans for the St George’s Hospital site.

I really hope that you’re able to make it down to myplace on 10 June to put your questions to the panel. If though you’re unable to make it, we will be webcasting it and the film of the session will be available live on our website.

Best wishes,

Michael

(The event will be taking place on Monday 10 June from 7pm to 9pm at My Place Youth Centre, Gooshays Drive, Harold Hill, RM3 9DJ.)

Princess will be working closely with the Council and Youth Council over the next two years to ensure that the views of young people in Havering are represented within the Borough, across London and the rest of the UK.

As part of her role Princess will advise Councillors on youth issues, work with other bodies to further young people living, working and studying within the Borough and strengthen links between the Council and Havering Central Youth Council.

I have no doubt that Princess will make an excellent Young Leader, having already demonstrated leadership skills in her roles as Deputy Head Girl, School Council Leader and Business and Enterprise Squad Leader at school. Princess has also demonstrated her willingness to get involved in the community by providing free Maths tuition for young people in Havering.

In her campaign statement Princess listed some very exciting aims, including the initiation of workshops with the police and local young people amongst others. I look forward to working with her and her team over the course of their term in office.

Havering Council, in partnership with the Romford Contemporary Arts Programme, are providing a range of free courses ranging from creative writing to fashion and photography. The courses themselves are part of a project called NICHE, which stands for Non-Institute of Collaborative Happenings and Endeavours.

The courses, delivered by professionals, focus on 12 key personal attributes identified by Havering’s Brighter Futures’ programme including, independence, curiosity and problem solving. The Brighter Futures programme was launched in April and aims to improve the employment opportunities and lives of others.

Those teaching the courses are young professionals, distinguished in their subject areas, include Gemma Seltzer, author of ‘Speak to Strangers’, will lead a creative writing course to teach about kindness and consideration. Jack Stinger, a freelance Theatre director whose work has been performed at venues such as The Royal Court, will lead a course on production, including managing budgets.

These free courses will help Havering’s young people develop the core skills and confidence that are vital to getting on in today’s world, in a creative and stimulating environment, and I would encourage all young people in the Borough to visit NICHE in the Quadrant Arcade, Romford.

For more information about NICHE, visit: http://www.wearercap.co.uk/

Havering’s residents have shown on many occasions that we know how to have a good time and Saturday was no exception as many of you came out to join in the festivities and cheer the parade. The sun even came out too!

There was plenty for everyone to see and do throughout the day, ranging from stilt walkers to free face painting. Leading the parade featuring the Romford branch of The Royal British Legion Band & Corps of Drums and The Hornchurch Drum & Trumpet Corps with Romford’s Town Crier was a particular highlight for me.

Events like last Saturday’s are a great opportunity for all of Havering to join in and celebrate England’s rich heritage, strong community and long history.

I’m sure that everyone who attended on Saturday had a great time, and I hope that you all enjoy St. George’s Day today.

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The position of Young Leader is a very important position due to the role they play in promoting youth participation in Havering, most notably as a vital link between Havering Council and Havering’s Central Youth Council (HCYC), ensuring that the views of Havering’s young people are heard. As part of their duties the Young Leader of Havering will; work in partnership with the HCYC, as well as other regional and national Youth assemblies; develop ideas to further younger people who live, work or study in Havering; and advise Havering Councillors on youth issues.

I’m extremely happy to support this initiative as turnout and public engagement amongst young voters is frequently low, and for many, voting in this election will be their first experience in the electoral process. We hope that giving Havering’s young the opportunity to democratically elect their own Young Leader will help encourage public engagement and participation in the democratic process.

This exciting role will benefit the whole community, affording greater representation to Havering’s youth and rejuvenating how the Council engages with young people.

If you would like to know more about the role Young Leader and the upcoming election, or if you would like to stand as a candidate to be the next Young Leader of Havering, find out more using the links below.

http://www.havering.gov.uk/Pages/Campaigns/Young-Leader-Election.aspx

https://www.facebook.com/havering.youngleader

Last week Havering Council launched with partners Age Concern Havering, HAVCO and Havering Museum their new Active Living programme.

The Active Living programme will provide Havering’s residents aged over 50 with opportunities to learn new skills, meet new people and make a contribution to their local community. An active lifestyle is also a healthy lifestyle, with recent studies demonstrating that those who are socially active are 50% less likely to develop dementia and have a significantly reduced risk of high blood pressure.

The Active Living programme has four key strands:

         Social – To provide opportunities to meet new people and forge new friendships.

         Healthy – To provide new opportunities for exercise and wellbeing to our older residents.

Supported – To ensure that our older residents have access to a network of support through friends and dedicated workers. The scheme will also provide a network of trusty handymen to help prevent rogue traders.

Involved – To provide opportunities for people to contribute to their local community.

As Havering has the oldest population of all London Boroughs it is important that we not only improve leisure and learning opportunities for our older residents, but that we provide opportunities for those that wish to give something extra to society to do so. In the past many retired residents have expressed a wish to do community work but have not known where to begin, but I’m confident that this programme will help!

More information on Active Living can be found at: www.havering.gov.uk/activeliving

This evening I will be attending the Local Government Chronicle  Awards Ceremony 2013, where Havering has been nominated for awards in the Business Transformation and Public/Private Partnership categories.

Our transformation programme has been at the centre of our efforts to deliver better value for money for local people. We have been able to save millions of pounds for residents by changing the way the council does business, by reorganising our back office and redirecting money to the frontline. All this work has helped us to freeze council tax whilst protecting the most vulnerable in society.

The Local Government Chronicle noted that “The Havering 2014 transformation programme has shaped a quiet revolution in the borough delivering millions of pounds in savings without slashing frontline services” – But there is still more to do and we’re continuing to look at ways to reduce costs whilst protecting the services that residents value and rely upon.

The Council has also been nominated for an award in the Public/Private Partnership category for its Banking Protocol. Working together with local police, local banks and Age Concern amongst others we  have been able to prevent over £76,000 being taken from our residents by fraudsters. This is a real achievement and something I am especially proud of.

If you’d like to write to me about the awards or anything else please feel free to get in touch.

Best wishes,

Michael

English: Langtons House, London. I took the picture myself. Category:Images of Havering (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

On Tuesday 26 March we will be holding our second Havering Community Questions event, this time in Hornchurch at Langtons Hall. The event will take place from 7pm until 9pm and is a great opportunity for residents to put their questions and comments to the leaders of Havering’s main public services. On the panel will be myself representing the Council, we will have Chief Superintendent Jason Gwillim from the local police and Dr. Atul Aggarwal from the GP led Clinical Commissioning Group who be representing the health service. Chairing the meeting will be Maria Thompson, the Principal and Chief Executive of Havering College of Further and Higher Education.

At the last event the panel heard from residents about their concerns and about the issues of importantance that matter to them. I think events such as these are a really great way to hear about what local people think, so if you’re able to come along it would be good to see you there.

For more information, please click here.

Best wishes,
Michael

From April the responsibility of HIV prevention in the Capital will transfer from Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) to Local Authorities. London Council’s last week agreed to a joint work programme to improve the commissioning of these services across London.

While the finer details of this initiative are being resolved, Leaders have agreed to extend some of the work of the current Pan London HIV Prevention Programme, which was due to terminate on 31 March. Extended schemes will be subject to more stringent programme management, for an initial period of six months, with potential for extension, to ensure that this valuable service is improved and continues.

The new joint approach will be led by Directors of Public Health, who with stakeholders and experts, will develop a needs assessment to inform future commissioning of HIV prevention services. This assessment will also inform decisions on whether to jointly commission services on a London-wide basis on the future.

The improvement of the Capital’s HIV prevention programme is essential as nearly half of all people with HIV in the UK live in London and a third of new diagnoses take place in London. Improvement to the prevention strategy will help to make sure that Londoners are educated about HIV before it’s too late, enabling earlier diagnoses and treatment.

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