Community News

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As forecasters predict an end to freezing temperatures next week, leading rural insurer NFU Mutual is warning to people to beware of the signs of frozen pipes and take steps to avoid repair bills which can run up to £8,000 and beyond.

Extreme cold weather greatly increased the chance of water in pipes around the home freezing. When the water in pipes freezes, it expands, causing the pressure inside the pipe to build up.

Ngozi Fulani returned to Buckingham Palace to receive a face-to-face apology from her interrogator, Lady Susan Hussey. In a statement, the palace said Ms. Hussey, who served for more than six decades as a lady in waiting to Queen Elizabeth II, pledged to deepen her awareness of the sensitivities involved.

British born Ms. Fulani accepted the apology, with the palace stating that it appreciated that no malice was intended, adding that there was “warmth and understanding” during the meeting.

A community is being asked to vote on plans to set up a neighbourhood council that would act like a parish authority, overseeing certain services. Proponents say the proposal, for Balsall Heath, in Birmingham, would benefit the community as local people would act on their behalf.

It would, however, involve a precept being added to council tax. Birmingham City Council said the city already had two neighbourhood councils in operation.

A government regulator has found widespread failings at the housing association that rented out a mouldy flat to the family of Awaab Ishak. The two-year-old died from a respiratory condition caused by exposure to the mould, a coroner ruled.

The Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) said Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH) had failed to treat Awaab Ishak's family with fairness and respect; saying that it was addressing failings and making changes to its board.

Retail trade union Usdaw has welcomed the support of the shopping public for supermarkets to keep their doors closed on Boxing Day.

A YouGov opinion poll of 1,763 UK adults, commissioned by the union, has found that 79% support their local supermarket closing all their stores on Boxing Day. Usdaw’s own surveying found that 97% of supermarket workers also want the closure.

London community organisation, BTWSC/African Histories Revisited, will mark the 58th anniversary of the passing of Claudia Jones with an online conference this Saturday, entitled ‘Repairing Histories 2: Commemorating Claudia Jones @58’. The aim of the Repairing Histories conferences, which mixes academic and community historians, is to have papers that improve or expand the knowledge of the subject, mainly by highlighting the little-known aspects of that history, or challenging the received wisdom.

With the big holiday getaway about to kick off, new booking data revealed by Saber shows improved travel confidence and emerging holiday destinations of choice for global travellers. Saber's analysis reveals that booking windows for the holiday period are approaching pre-pandemic levels, while the number of Christmas and New Year bookings have skyrocketed compared to last year.

Children from a Birmingham school visited Edgbaston Stadium to kindly lend their support to the BrumWish Christmas gift appeal.

The pupils from Anglesey Primary School, in Lozells, spent time unboxing and sorting out some of the thousands of presents donated by members of the public, Bears fans and businesses.

Flowers, balloons and soft toys were left by mourners gathering for a vigil after the deaths of three boys who plunged into an icy lake.The three, aged eight, 10 and 11, were pulled from a lake in Babbs Mill Park, Solihull, but later died.

Police said searches of the water would continue throughout Tuesday but have stressed there is no suggestion anybody else is missing.A six-year-old boy who was also rescued remains in hospital.

Dozens gathered for the vigil in Kinshurst.Members of the public and police officers initially went into the water to try to get the children, before the victims were reached by specialist water rescue-trained firefighters who got the group out.A police officer had to punch through the ice to rescue to boys, West Midlands Police said.

Solihull councillor Ian Courts said: "We are completely stunned at what's happened.Clearly our thoughts and prayers have to be with the families in this situation. I can hardly imagine what the families are going through."

At least one of the boys attended St Anthony's Catholic Primary School which shut on Monday after the incident. The school reopened on Tuesday morning.

Chair of governors,Marcus Brain, said: "It's a very, very close-knit community, we've got families that have been here for five generations, everybody knows everybody else.Everybody I've spoken to... are in an utter state of shock."

Mother-of-four Comfort Konfor said she had not been able to sleep and had just kept praying. "The image keeps coming to mind of children," she said.

Pastor Emil Kerekes, from Connection Church Kingshurst, said he wanted the families to know they were here to support them. All the other church leaders and group leaders in the local community, we want to get together and maybe come up with a plan to somehow help them," he said.

Police believe there were a number of witnesses at the lake they are yet to speak to and are urging them to come forward.Supt Harris said the families affected by the tragedy were "absolutely devastated".

He added: "Also this time of year, it's on the run-up to Christmas, so close to the event itself, also adds to that tragedy.The force said they were doing their very best to support the families.

The Phoenix Newspaper sends its condolences to the families of the children involved.

Strikes have disrupted everything from train services to postal deliveries and teaching in schools.

More workers are expected to walk out, as demands grow for improved working conditions and pay increases to keep up with rising prices.According to the Office for National Statistics, in September alone, 205,000 working days were lost to strikes.

Rail workers, border force, ambulance staff,Royal Mail workers, teachers, university staff, baggage handlers, driving examiners, bus drivers, junior doctors (in England), and up to 100,000 civil servants have voted to strike across different government departments.

Nursesare set strike – for the first time in its 106 year history- in England, Wales and Northern Ireland after a meeting between the union and the health secretary ended in deadlock after ministers refusing to discuss pay with the RCN (Royal College of Nursing).

After a meeting with Health Secretary, Steve Barclay, the RCN’s general secretary, Pat Cullen, said there was no more on offer from the government and stressed the distress from the profession at being forced to strike.

“The government was true to its word – they would not talk to me about pay,” Cullen said. “I needed to come out of this meeting with something serious to show nurses why they should not strike this week. Regrettably, they are not getting an extra penny.

“Ministers had too little to say, and I had to speak at length about the unprecedented strength of feeling in the profession. I expressed my deep disappointment at the belligerence – they have closed their books and walked away.”

NHS bosses got people to celebrate the service of nurses every year with a clap on its birthday. It started in 2020 with an applause on the 5 July, the NHS's 72nd birthday following the success of the weekly Clap for Carers, which encouraged people to clap for the NHS and key workers to thank them for their work during the coronavirus pandemic. 

However,followingthe UK’s Brexit in 2020,and the subsequent departure of some 40,365 NHS nurses – equivalent to one in nine–unions say they need to feel valued, respected, and prioritized and want to feel safe and valued in order to best care for their patients and want improved working conditions. 

Migrant healthcare workers, who were the mainstay of the industry,were said to have been forced to return to their countries of origin, after the expiry of visas – leaving their British counterparts doing the work they were doing all the time, during their stay here.

Newly qualified nurses have been offered a pay rise of 8.7%, with experienced nurses set to get uplifts of between £2,450 and £2,751. But, in defiance, theyhave voted to strike over pay, as other health workers are balloted.

Strikes across England, Wales and Northern Ireland are planned for Thursday 15 and Tuesday 20 December. The Scottish government agreed a 7.5% pay deal with the Unite and Unison unions on Monday, which called off their strikes. 

Sources say the industrial action was expected to last for 12 hours on both days – most likely between 8am and 8pm.RCN Scotland is balloting its members on the offer and is due to announce the results next week.

Work in Birmingham to address air pollution and the climate crisis has been highlighted in the Government Chief Medical Officer's annual report.

It says: 'significant work is underway to create spaces for people that encourage exploration of the city via sustainable methods' and highlights a range of projects from the city council and partners.

Thousands of sea cadets around the country are benefitting from new boats and equipment, following a generous donation earlier in the year from the Naval Club and Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Officers’ Association (RNVR).

The funding has made it possible for Sea Cadets to purchase four new RS21 training keelboats, whose sleek design is particularly suited for cadets’ team-sailing activities and competitions.

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