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Aneesa Chaudhry brings Jazz to the Golden Handbag Awards

Jazz chanteuse Aneesa Chaudhry will be opening this years Golden Handbag Show on Sunday, June 21 at the Brighton Metropole Hilton.

Golden Handbag AwardsANEESA, who is musical director of the Brighton based Rainbow Chorus, has built up an international reputation as a jazz performer appearing at festivals all over the world including the Rhythm of the Earth World Music Festival in Bangkok, the Sappho Garden of Arts Festival in Lesvos, Jazz on the Park in Soho, London and the Isle of White International Jazz Diva’s Festival.

Aneesa Chaudhry
Aneesa Chaudhry

As well as being an accomplished performer, Aneesa also works as a vocal coach and team building facilitator, helping people improve confidence in themselves through singing.

This is her first Golden Handbag Show and comes just a week after she co-presented with Mark Yarrow,  the Hand in Hand Gala Concert of LGBT Choirs at the Brighton Dome.

The concert was a huge success and featured performances from some of the best LGBT choirs in the UK and Ireland.

Aneesa conducted the 80 strong Rainbow Chorus LGBT choir which over the last few years she has trained into one of the finest LGBT choirs in the country.

Aneesa has a huge vocal range and when she is not singing solo, performs with the three-piece female trio, Bliss Art.

Her most recent project is the Good Vibrations Choir, for the Martlets Hospice. She has been running vocal workshops since February engaging patients, volunteers, carers, staff and friends at the Marlets. They all came together for the first time as a choir in May and have their first concert planned for July.

All VIP tables for the Golden Handbags have sold out and there are just 20 tickets left for sale on the public tables from Prowler, 112-113 St. James Street, Brighton.

These non reserved tickets cost £20 each and are only available in person from the shop.

On the night, the seats on the public tables are only available on a first come first served basis.

Last chance to enter Brighton Pride community parade

Entries for the Pride Community Parade will close on June 25!

Pride ParadeTHIS year’s Pride community parade is set to be the most colourful and diverse ever as they celebrate 25 years of Pride in our City.

2015’s Carnival of Diversity encompasses everything that has become iconic about the diverse, creative and open-minded community that makes Brighton internationally famous.

The community parade is the spectacle of the year and a chance for you to join with others in what is the liveliest, most colourful, uplifting and empowering visual showcase in the city.

This year the Pride Community Parade will start from Hove Lawns, and will make its way along King’s Road, passing the Peace Statue where so many past Pride marches began, taking in the best of the city’s seafront and ensuring an amazing view for both participants and spectators.

Thousands of people watch the parade every year and it is the best ‘shop window’ for community groups and business to get over their support for Brighton Pride and the message of equality and diversity.

Spaces are very limited and some categories are already full.

Your place on the parade needs to be paid for, before your space is confirmed.

For more details, click here: 

Entries for the parade will close on June 25 and any entries after this date may not be included.

Do you need a lorry for your float?
Brighton Pride have teamed up with Brighton Carriers to facilitate flat-bed lorries in various sizes to make it easier for groups to enter the Parade and design an eye-popping float.

To make things as simple and straight forward as possible for groups with limited carnival experience, Pride have put together some basic packages that can take the stress out of organising a float.

For more details about Pride’s lorry package, click here:


Event: The LGBT+ Pride Community Parade

Where: Hove Lawns

When: Saturday, August 1

Time: 11am

 

Kemptown MP pledges support to Royal Life Saving Society

Simon Kirby MP for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven pledges his support to the Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK) after the charity’s trip to Westminster.

Simon Kirby MP for Brighton Kemptown & Peacehaven
Simon Kirby MP for Brighton Kemptown & Peacehaven

Mr Kirby pledged his support to the Royal Life Saving Society UK on Tuesday, June 16 and the crucial work it does in reducing drowning, providing water safety education and lifesaving awards across the UK and Ireland.

The Royal Life Saving Society UK sent representatives to Westminster Palace ahead of its annual national campaign, Drowning Prevention Week which this year runs from June 20 to June 28. They hoped to gain the support of MPs, so they in turn can support their constituents with drowning prevention messages.

Throughout the afternoon, CPR workshops and water safety advice sessions were held, where the RLSS UK invited Simon to find out more about the charity and how best he support his constituents.

Simon then signed the RLSS UK’s pledge “to support RLSS UK in their aim to reduce the rate of drownings in the UK”.

RLSS UK Chief Executive, Di Steer, said: “The number of accidental drowning incidences has, over the last few years, reached a plateau of around 400. There is no quick fix to get this number down further. There are many at-risk groups for many different reasons. Education to instil a change in behaviour is considered the only method that will reach the final 400, as well as future generations, and help prevent these tragic deaths and accidents.”

“We can’t do it alone. We need everyone’s help to raise awareness about the reality of accidental drowning, and to get water safety at the forefront of people’s minds.”

Simon added: “The RLSS do a fantastic job and I fully support them in their efforts to raise awareness of accidental drowning and get water safety education taught in all schools.”

Big Gay Quiz: The Queen of all quizzes!

Pit your wits against The Peter Tatchell Foundation team and win the big gay trophy!

Your host for the evening: Timberlina
Your host for the evening: Timberlina

THE Peter Tatchell Foundation will be hosting a very special fundraiser next week. The Big Gay Quiz is the Queen of all gay quizzes and will be hosted by Timberlina with special guests Eve Ferret and the Lipsinkers.

The questions have been especially composed for what promises to be an hilarious, raucous, fun night by some amazing celebrities including: Stephen Fry, Jonathan Harvey, Edmund White, Angela Eagle MP, Neil Bartlett, James Gardiner, Clare Summerskill, Mzz Kimberley, Paul Burston, Stella Duffy, Sadie Lee and many, many more!

The evening will be raising money for the Peter Tatchell Foundation, so be sure to hurry and book your tickets. Big Gay Quiz


Event: The First Ever Peter Tatchell Foundation Big Gay Quiz

Where: Bankside Space, 32 Southwark Bridge Rd, London SE1 9EU

When: Tuesday, June 23 2015

Time: 8pm

Tickets: £10 per person

To book tickets online, click here:

 

 

 

Seafront scrutiny receives national recognition

Brighton & Hove’s scrutiny into the seafront has been highly commended by the Centre for Public Scrutiny (CPS).

Brighton & Hove CouncilTHE CPS is the national charity responsible for improving the practice of scrutiny and accountability in public services.

The wide-ranging seafront scrutiny, was carried out last year by a cross-party panel of councillors and one independent member and looked at how best to maintain Brighton & Hove’s seafront infrastructure.

It was highly commended in two areas: ‘economic resilience’ and ‘involvement.’

The Seafront Scrutiny was approved in October and led to the establishment of a Seafront Investment Programme which will co-ordinate all activity and investment on the seafront and draw up a new investment plan to maintain and develop seafront infrastructure. The Plan is due in September.

Cllr Dee Simpson
Cllr Dee Simpson

Councillor Dee Simson, chair of the city’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee, said: “We are thrilled to be highlighted nationally for best practice in our scrutiny work.  What was special about the seafront scrutiny is that it secured acceptance of a far-reaching set of recommendations, which is rare. It set out practical steps to provide for and protect the seafront and effectively brought people together to make constructive suggestions on the way forward. This is what we do with all our scrutinies and we’ll be building on this good work in the coming year.”

The cross-party panel looked at maintenance of the arches and other structures supporting the A259 and heritage structures such as Madeira Terraces, many of which date back to the Victorian era. It identified the highest priority areas for work and sought views on how it could be funded and delivered.

Public meetings, drop-ins and on-site visits brought together businesses, community groups and other interested parties with council officers and politicians.

Labour Councillor Gill Mitchell chaired the seafront scrutiny.

Cllr Gill Mitchell
Cllr Gill Mitchell

She said: “We went out and met people involved in all aspects of the seafront – our drop-in event was attended by more than 80 traders. We also set up a dedicated website to gather views from residents.

“It is absolutely vital to maintain and improve our seafront which plays a central role in the success of Brighton and Hove. Many of our seafront structures are in urgent need of repair or replacement. What the Panel found was that there was a piecemeal approach to seafront planning, so we recommended bringing it all together, with all services involved with the seafront working together to unlock potential development and identify funding opportunities.”

The seafront is the city’s most popular attraction with visitors and residents alike, contributing significantly to the city’s tourism economy which is valued at £800 million a year.

The seafront is the city’s most popular attraction with visitors and residents alike, contributing significantly to the city’s tourism economy which is valued at £800 million a year.

Greens call for lower ‘living rents’ for new council houses

Green Group of councillors on Brighton & Hove City Council call on Labour administration to action a pledge to provide affordable new council homes.

Cllr David Gibson
Cllr David Gibson

GREEN spokesperson on housing, Cllr David Gibson, will present a motion to the Housing and New Homes Committee today, Wednesday, June 17 which argues that the new council housing development at Findon Road in Whitehawk provides an opportunity to do things differently.

He will propose that council rents at the new flats should be set at an affordable level for people on low incomes and that all council rents on new builds should be pegged to general inflation or less, rather than local property market rates.

Cllr. Gibson said: “In January, thanks to fresh information, the previous chair of Housing pledged to see how rents could be reduced on the new homes that the council is building. I’m therefore concerned that the housing committee is considering setting rents on such homes of up to £1000 a month, more than twice as much as the regular council rent. The government calls these ‘affordable’, yet more than half of those in need 20,000 can only afford half this rent.”

“I’m proposing that at the Findon Rd development, we should charge a ‘living rent’, or a regular council ‘social rent’, to ensure that it is within the means of most people on the housing waiting list. We are also calling on rents for new build properties to be linked to the cost of living and NOT to private sector “market” rents, which are continuing to soar in this city.”

He added: “Thanks to the previous administration we now have 250 new council homes in the pipeline. If councillors agree with my proposal to work on developing lower rent options for the 58 properties before the committee we will be able to offer homes that are truly affordable. Other councils have built new council homes at social rents. It would be a real shame if we don’t also find a way here. Otherwise tenants in low paid work are barely better off working. No one else is currently providing new homes at lower rents so the council is the only hope.”

 

Freemen show their Pride in Newcastle

One of the oldest organisations in the North East is showing its pride and will be backing one of the region’s largest events this summer.

Newcastle Pride 2014
Newcastle Pride 2014

THE Freemen of Newcastle upon Tyne, which can be traced back to Anglo-Saxon times, is supporting Newcastle Pride 2015.

The three-day festival, now one of the largest LGBT events in the UK, returns from Friday July 17 with a host of live music and entertainment celebrating 45 years of world Pride.

For the second consecutive year the Freemen, who are responsible for protecting the city’s green spaces, are allowing event organisers, Northern Pride, to host the event at the Town Moor.

Superintendent of the Moor, Kevin Batey, said: “Newcastle Pride is an amazing event for the city and wider North East, attracting tens of thousands of visitors every year. 

“By providing the Town Moor as a location we hope that many more people will have the opportunity to enjoy the activities in 2015 and are proud that the land is being used in such a positive way.”

Newcastle Pride initially moved to the Town Moor in 2014, after expanding beyond the capacity of its previous home in Exhibition Park. Headline performers this year include,, Belinda Carlisle and B*Witched.

Mark Nichols
Mark Nichols

Mark Nichols, Chair of Northern Pride, who organise the annual event, said: “As a charity we rely heavily on the support of businesses and organisations across the North East to run events like Newcastle Pride.

“The Freemen allowing us to use the Town Moor will help to ensure a fantastic experience for attendees in 2015.”

For more information about Newcastle Pride, click here:

 

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