Big Birmingham Bikes (BBB), a pioneering Birmingham City Council scheme to get residents onto two wheels, has jointly won the 2017 Ashden Award for Clean Air in Towns and Cities.

BBB offers free bicycles to Birmingham residents living in deprived areas. Recipients also receive basic training in cycle maintenance and BBB provide lessons for those who lack confidence in cycling or have never ridden a bike before. The scheme is part of Birmingham City Council’s Birmingham Cycle Revolution (BCR), which aims to make cycling an everyday way to travel around the city, which in turn brings significant health and environmental benefits.

The Ashden Awards are given to pioneers in sustainable energy and are a globally recognised measure of excellence. Along with 12 other organisations, BBB will receive its Award on Thursday June 15 at a prestigious ceremony at the Royal Geographical Society in London. Former Vice-President of the US Al Gore is the keynote speaker and Channel 4 presenter Krishnan Guru-Murthy will host the Awards.

BBB shares its Award with Nottingham City Council, which is funding greener transport through a workplace parking levy.

According to the Ashden judges: “This inspirational project is not only getting people out of their cars and onto their bikes but is also improving the health, wellbeing and mobility of an often hard-to-reach demographic. There is huge potential to replicate the scheme and other cities should take note as its simple pragmatism could really help to reframe the national environmental debate.”

BBB is targeting people in some of the most deprived areas of Birmingham and is linking up with community groups, including homeless and mental health charities, to ensure that the bikes reach those who will benefit from them most. Bike recipients are from a broad range of cultural groups including some for whom bike riding is uncommon, particularly for women from black and ethnic minority backgrounds.

Thanks to BBB’s work, 11 new recreational cycling groups have sprung up. BBB is also leading practice rides along popular commuter routes to encourage people to use the bikes as a means of transport as well as for enjoyment. This can be a big help for those looking for work as it can enable them to access training and job opportunities when no other transport options are available. Additionally, fully segregated all-weather cycle lanes are being installed on both the A38 between the city centre and Selly Oak and the A34 between the city centre and Perry Barr as part of the next phase of the Birmingham Cycle Revolution to encourage more people to cycle in safety and confidence along two of the city’s most important commuter routes.

New research by the House & Garden Festival has found that over half (53%) of people in the UK can’t wait for the arrival of summer so they can indulge in spontaneous drinking celebrations. In addition, 1 in 10 people stated that they are partial to a morning drink as it becomes “more socially acceptable in the summer”.

Summer party activities, particularly those involving a tipple, also become a priority with 44% of people saying that champagne tasting is their idea of a dream summer party, followed by 11% with wine-pairing. A flower arranging workshop and canape making class follow jointly with 8% each.

More than a third (36%) of people said that they feel summer has officially arrived due to the longer days, whilst 1 in 10 (15%) said that their signal for the arrival of summer is the first time they bare their legs. Being able to laze about in the great outdoors is the greatest summer excitement for almost half (46%) of people, whilst simply being able to bask in the warmer temperatures is the highlight for over a quarter (26%) of people.

But it does seem that Brits have a love-hate relationship with summer with over half (52%) of people saying that what they hate most about British summers is that it rains too much. So when it comes to making party plans, a Plan B is actually the most important thing on the agenda for 61% of people.

This seems to stem from experience as 72% of Brits say they have hosted or been to an outdoor event that subsequently had to be cancelled or unexpectedly moved indoors due to poor weather. It might also explain why alongside a trusty barbecue, a gazebo is the most important summer party piece of equipment for 34% of people, followed by a parasol or umbrella for 16%.

However, Brits demonstrate their stoicism with over 63% of people saying that despite unexpected showers, they are determined to stay upbeat and refuse to let the weather rain on their parade.

Nashwhite, Leamington Spa transformed their dreams into reality by winning the greatly sought after 2017 Afro Look Award during the prestigious L’Oréal Colour Trophy Grand Final.

On Monday 5th June, 2017 the salon’s creative 6-month journey came to a dramatic finale at Battersea Evolution, London.  Over 1000 of the hairdressing industries most acclaimed and famous figures filled the dazzling venue with immense applause as Nashwhite, Leamington Spa rushed to the stage to collect their iconic award – The L'Oréal Colour Trophy. TV & Radio Presenter Nick Grimshaw and Charlotte Mensah handed the team their award during a moment they will never forget.

"We are overwhelmed to have won the L'Oréal Colour Trophy Afro Look Award! This is such a massive achievement for the two of us at such an early stage in our career's and an absolute honour. This has been one of our main focuses since February, investing so much time into developing and creating our winning look, learning along the way and expanding our skills. We're looking forward to advancing further in this field and can't wait to get started! Huge thanks to L'Oréal Professionnel, the judges, and the Team at Nashwhite.”

Over 1000 photographic entries were received for the L’Oréal Colour Trophy and just 400 salon teams make it through to the final events.  Back in May a powerhouse team of seven renowned salons went head to head inside the L’Oréal International Academy, London during an intense live final that exploded creative talent in every direction.

Each team created their look on a model of African/Caribbean descent that encapsulated their knowledge of Autumn/Winter 2017/18 catwalk trends infused beautiful make-up and fashion led styling with technically excellent colour and precision cutting skills. The highly respected judging panel was made up from Junior Green of Junior Green Salon, Michelle Sultan of Hype Coiffure, Charlotte Mensah of Hair Lounge, Craig Chapman and Kim Johnson.

Nashwhite will now embark on an amazing year of promotional, creative and business building activity including a 3 day European trip to shoot their winning look with a professional photographic team, interviews and profiles in the trade press and countless other opportunities.

The Aldermore SME Future Attitudes report reveals today that two thirds (69%) of West Midland based small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – representing 285,000* firms in the West Midlands with under 250 employees – say they have a diverse workforce, with almost half (45%) stating that improving diversity in the workplace is a focus over the next 12 months.

The report, which surveyed over a thousand senior business decision-makers across the UK, found that there are a number of reasons why they would describe their organisation as diverse. These include having an employee base with a wide age range (44%), being open to making adjustments for disabled employees to ensure they are not placed at a disadvantage (41%), having an ethnically diverse employee base (39%) and having a positive female to male ratio across the company (39%). Over a third (35%) of SMEs in the West Midlands also have female employees at a senior level and over a quarter (29%) employ diversity initiatives to ensure a positive work environment free from discrimination

Moreover, over a quarter (27%) of SMEs in the West Midlands admit to being much more likely to do business with a supplier, partner or provider that is well known for its inclusive employment strategies.

Despite this positive picture, a fifth (21%) of small and medium sized businesses in the West Midlands say they have no intention of becoming more diverse over the next year and an additional fifth (21%) said that increasing diversity is a low priority. This could be because their workforce is too small to be considered diverse (49%), but, at the same time, some SME leaders in the West Midlands also confessed that they tended not to attract a diverse range of potential employees (10%).

Carl D’Ammassa, Group Managing Director, Business Finance at Aldermore, said: “According to the last census**, the West Midlands is the second most diverse region in the UK so it is to be expected that the vast majority of small and medium-sized business owners in the region describe their workforce as diverse. However you define diversity, be it by age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation or disability, promoting a diverse workforce should be a key consideration within any business, since employees from a range of backgrounds can offer different experiences to help drive the success of progressive businesses. “

‘A New Hope’ volunteers of Zong 4G’s flagship CSR program took the opportunity over this weekend to spend an iftaar with the street children of Islamabad. The children dwell in the urban slums of the Bari Imam area and sustain themselves by washing cars, picking garbage and selling small merchandise on the streets.

Earlier this year, Zong 4G had setup a 4G internet lab for these children at their school, connecting them to the virtual world for the first time. Since then, Zong’s volunteers have been delivering Internet awareness sessions to these children in a renovated and more modern environment. Recognizing the fact that Ramzan is a time of sharing prosperity and helping the neglected segments of the society, the volunteers took iftaar packages for the children and shared the meal in a festive atmosphere.

Zong 4G, a China Mobile Company, is a socially responsible organization that has always aimed to create an impact in the society by delivering on multiple social causes. Zong’s volunteers have shown a great resolve in contributing towards their civic duties in the past and continues to build on the momentum generated since the launch of the program. With a 75% market share and plans for 100% 4G upgrade by the end of this year, Zong is dominating the 4G arena propelling the country towards a new, brighter future. Activities such as these provide considerable impetus to the cause of enhancing social inclusion that in turns supports Zong’s desire of a prosperous Pakistan.