YMCA Celebration and Tour

On Saturday afternoon I visited the YMCA in Forest Road where Tim Pain, Chief Executive and his staff had organised a day of fun and activities. The event was to mark 44 years of the YMCA providing sports, fitness and leisure facilities for the community and it was great to see so many people and young children enjoying themselves. What is exciting is that the YMCA have already started work on building a bigger and better sports centre and I look forward to visiting the new centre once this is completed.

The most fantastic part of the day was when I was asked to bury a time capsule on site to mark the date in history and for future generations to find. Who knows what the next 44 years will bring or what the people who find the capsule will make of its contents!!!

 

Rededication at St Michael and all Angels Church

I was delighted and indeed honoured to share in the re-dedication and blessing of the Calvary of St Michael and All Angels Church on Sunday. Thank you to Father Alex Summer for making me feel so welcome.

I am sure I speak on behalf of the local Asian and Islamic communities when I say that were all deeply saddened and concerned over the vandalism of the Calvary earlier this year. Such acts of violence will not be tolerated in our Borough and rather than let this sort of thing tear our community apart it only serves to bind us together. It is so important that in times such as these, we all come together as a community, irrespective of faith, to build upon stronger relations and social cohesion.

Damilola's insight into Citizenship Ceremony

This morning I had the pleasure of meeting Damilola Olaniyi, a 16 year old work experience student from Eastbrook Sixth Form.  Dami has been gaining lots of invaluable experience, assisting colleagues in the Cabinet Office over the past three weeks.  Dami’s training came to an end yesterday, but not before she took part in the Citizenship Ceremony, where she saw British citizens participating in a ceremony which welcomed them to Britain and to Waltham Forest.   I hope you enjoyed the Ceremony Dami.  May I wish you every success in your chosen career!  

More Memorable Events

I've had another busy few days - and what a mix of engagements there has been. After the Bag-athon (see previous post) on Thursday morning, I was delighted to be able to welcome a new vicar to the Borough. The Rev'd James Waddell has become vicar of the Cornerstone (the Parish of St Catherine and St Paul) in Leyton. I wish him every success in his new role and look forward to working with him in the months ahead.

On Friday, I was invited to a reception to honour the achievements of Basir Kazmi MBE. Mr Kazmi is a much-published poet who has had his services to literature recognised by Buckingham Palace.

 

Leytonstone Big Weekender - Lion-el

Saturday was a particularly busy day. At the Leytonstone Big Weekender, I teamed up with a rather eye-catching character called Lion-el who helped me collect some cash for my charity appeal. I'm grateful to everyone who contributed, and especially grateful to Lion-el for coping with a warm day and all that fur. As I never saw Lion-el and Cllr Paul Braham together at the same time, I have a sneaking suspicion I know who was behind the mask. Joking aside, thank you Paul for all your hard work. After that, I made my way to Beaumont Road for 'Beaumont Day'. Organised by London and Quadrant Housing Association, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, Beaumont Day gives residents a chance to enjoy a street party and spend some time with their neighbours. I certainly enjoyed my visit, so a big thank you to everyone who worked so hard to make a success of the day.

With Mr Murad Saeed



My last engagement on Saturday saw me meet with Mr Murad Saeed, the youngest ever person to be elected to Pakistan's National Assembly. As I said to him, as young people in office, we are duty-bound to show other young people that they can and should play a part in the life of their community.

On Sunday I was back on the streets – this time at a party with residents from Randolph Road and Wingfield Road in Walthamstow Village. Last year, Wingfield Road residents did a community project for the 2012 E17 Art Trail, and for 2013 they kept the impetus going in their street and extended it to Randolph Road as well. Events like this take a lot of organising, but the benefits are worth it when people come together and strengthen their neighbourhood spirit. I certainly enjoyed being there.

With Rahat Fateh Ali Khan

Yesterday I was part of City Year's 4th anniversary celebration. City Year asks young people to commit to a year of service, working with school children as mentors, role models and coaches. They run breakfast clubs, organise after-school clubs and help pupils with extra support with maths and English. With that experience and with additional training provided by City Year, the volunteers (called corps members) improve their own career prospects. Lammas School and Sports College has had 11 corps members helping them. It’s all very impressive.

After that, I went on to the House of Lords for a reception with Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, the Qawwali singer. Qawwali is the devotional music of the Sufis (Muslim mystics) and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan trained with his famous uncle Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan from an early age. His collaborations with a range of artists, particularly in the USA, have meant that Qawwali has been introduced to a much wider audience and his current UK tour has been a huge success. I felt very privileged to meet with him.





Have a Heart

This morning I lent my support to the British Heart Foundation's 'Bag-athon'.  The Foundation has set up a drop point in The Mall, Walthamstow, to encourage people to donate unwanted items that can be sold in BHF shops.  It's a great opportunity to free up some cupboard space at home and do something good for charity.



From Playground to Cricket Ground

Wednesday morning was 'back to school' for local children...and me too!  I was at Woodford Green Primary School for the unveiling of new playground equipment.  The kids were really excited and couldn't wait to try out the latest addition to their playground.  It looked to be a lot of fun.

In the evening, I was down at Leyton Cricket ground to watch a charity cricket match.  The match, organised by the Elliott Davis London League, was raising funds for Haven House, a children's hospice in Woodford Green.  The weather was simply perfect and just right for watching the game.  And there was the added bonus of an appearance from England and Essex bowler Sajid Mahmood.  For cricket fans, the day couldn't get any better and it was great to know that a really deserving cause was benefiting too.

A Busy Fortnight!

I’ve had another busy couple of weeks in the Borough and beyond, meeting people and sharing celebrations with them. A high point was being at Willowfield School when the students got their GCSE results. As a former pupil at the school, it was great to see so many proud and happy faces. Congratulation to them and students throughout Waltham Forest who did well in their exams.

Equally impressive was the hard work that the Scouts had put in to the annual conservation project in Epping Forest. The Scouts work with the Epping Forest Centenary Trust on four sites in the forest and do a great job with help of a band of willing adult volunteers.

I was lucky enough to go to three Eid celebrations last week – one with the Indian Muslim Federation, another with the Senior Citizens’ Asian Group and a Council-led evening of entertainment at Walthamstow Assembly Hall. And because Waltham Forest is such a fantastically diverse Borough, I was also made very welcome at the Shri Nathji Sanatan Hindu Temple at Whipps Cross where we celebrated Lord Krishna’s birthday.

      After leaving the Temple I went to the William Morris Gallery to greet a group of Palestinian teenagers who were in the UK as part of the ‘Common Ground’ Palestinian-UK Exchange project. They seemed to really enjoy Lloyd Park in the sunshine and the guidebooks of the gallery that they received as gifts.

Over the weekend I enjoyed the Pak Cultural Society’s Pakistan Independence Day celebration and also attended the 34th Khatam-e-Nabuwat conference. On Monday I was honoured to receive two high-profile guests in the Parlour – Zafar Mahmood Mughal, the Deputy Attorney General for Pakistan, and M. Lehrasib Khan Gondal, a Supreme Court advocate and Vice Chairman of the Punjab Bar Council.