Cafe Culture

At the centre of the Hemmingwell estate is a square where the new art-work, when it's finished, will go. The Oakway school-children said they wanted to improve this central area when they completed their original police questionnaires - which led, in part, to the creation of our artist-in-residence project.

Around the centre sit a general shop, fish and chip place, brand new community centre and a community cafe - the latter two are both run by the Hope Project. The Hope Project appears to be a real force for regeneration in the area.

The cafe is called 'The Well Cafe' and used to be a derlict old pub, 'The Swallow.' It's now a lovely airy space, which doubles as a one-stop shop for community info and help.

Wellingborough Council, describing the work on the cafe, say:

'The HOPE Project bought out the lease of a run down public house situated in the heart of the community. They have raised funds and converted it into a magnificent community facility. It employs 11 people with an additional pool of 12 volunteers drawn from the local community. Importantly the renovation project ensured that the majority (60%) of the work was contracted locally. All members of the local neighbourhood, but in particular young people, were encouraged to help with the renovation.'

Here's what I found when I peeked through the cafe doors recently...

In one corner of the cafe is a community noticeboard and leaflet space. In another is a play space for babies and toddlers (Mums find it a great place to gather and gossip). There are about 14 square tables and chairs. I visit on a day when the tv on the wall is playing a DVD of a recent community event. There's even an internet point.

It's clear this is more than just a cafe. The Credit Union (micro finance) visits on a Tuesday. There're job-advice workers and health-trainers who come to the cafe, too. Plus a cancer awareness lady has agreed to drop in regularly.

The cafe promotes local services, including the police, fire services, Surestart, nurseries and other specialist, community-focussed services, such as to women experiencing domestic abuse. Family Support workers are upstairs and anyone can make a free appointment to see them. There's also a fully trained counsellor, should anyone need one.

Of course, none of that takes away from the fact that this is a cafe. An affordable cafe, it might be added, where the friendly volunteer, who has learning difficulties, serves me a great, piping-hot cup of tea for just 50p.

Next time, I only half-joke, I'm coming for lunch, too - with toasted sandwiches at just £1 and a great atmosphere, it sure beats my local Costa.

Read my interview with cafe manager, Kay Rogers, in my next blog post!

Meet the community: Extended Schools Manager - part 2

Part 2 of our interview with Vanessa Forbes from Sir Christopher Hatton school, working with the artist-in-residence.

'The Hemmingwell estate has really improved over the last five or six years,' Vanessa, whose own children went to Hatton school, continues. 'Things are improving. The artist-in-residence is part of that ongoing improvement. We all feel it is necessary to have something of real quality at the centre of the estate. We hope this is it.'

As part of the work with Kay, our artist, Sir Christopher Hatton school organised an 'Art Morning' (see Creative Kids parts 1 & 2 blog posts). The children talked about designs, made drawings and played around with scale.

'The kids that were chosen to participate all came from the Hemmingwell,' remembers Vanessa. 'At first, they couldn't understand why they'd been chosen - they didn't see themselves as the 'best' artists, but they soon got into it. Many hadn't realised the streets were named after birds. It was fun for them to see pictures of the birds their streets are named after. The children had a great time.'

'We're all looking forward to the installation of the artwork,' continues Vanessa. 'I hope the artwork will be a centre-piece for the estate to be proud of. It will be good for the children to remember they were a part of making that and involved with the project, as they grow up.'

Extended Schools co-ordinators are part of a government initiative, linked to the Every Child Matters agenda. All schools are due to have one in place and to be part of a Community Cohesion Plan. Vanessa was part of a pilot scheme at Sir Christopher Hatton. She was so successful, Vanessa was invited to stay on and is now a permanent member of staff.

Upcoming events at Sir Christopher Hatton school include a free computer training course for parents and members of the community. Runs on various dates after school and on Saturday mornings throughout the school year 2009/10. School and home partnerships are particularly important and the school runs a Parents Forum.

For more info on any of these, contact Vanessa Forbes, Extended Schools Manager, Sir Christopher Hatton school - forbesv@hattonschool.org.uk or 01933 226077. More info on Sir Christopher Hatton can be found on their website.

For further information on Children's Services in Northamptonshire, go to Northamptonshire Children's and Young People's Partnership.

Meet the community: Extended Schools Manager - part 1

Today I interviewed Vanessa Forbes, the Extended Schools Manager for the secondary school that's been working with our artist-in-residence. Vanessa works at Sir Christopher Hatton school in Wellingborough. She's been Extended Schools Manager for three years.

Her job involves bringing the local community, school and families together to ensure access to activities for all. Vanessa is keen to help disadvantaged children, in particular, get access to what's going on.

'That may be through something simple like providing money for subs for Brownies or equipment to take part in cricket. We want to give every child the opportunity to be involved with community activities,' says Vanessa, who has a background in community development.

Vanessa works in partnership with other organisations and encourages new initiatives at her school, too.

As part of her job, Vanessa is involved with the Hemmingwell Action Group. With them, she discussed the artist-in-residence scheme on the Hemmingwell estate. 33% of Sir Chrisopher Hatton children come from the estate. (You can see the school itself from the Hemmingwell estate.)

'We're an extended school keen to work with the community. I'm part of the action group, because we all feel it's important we're 'singing from the same hymn sheet', as far as partnerships on the estate go,' explains Vanessa. 'We all want the Hemmingwell to knit together and become a strong community. The action group is great, because we want to take action, rather than just being a talking shop.'

More from Vanessa, Extended Schools Manager, in part 2 tomorrow!

Hope Week and the latest news

Hemmingwellartist is back! For the latest news, we caught up with Paula Armstrong, arts development officer at Wellingborough council. 

Paula says: 

'The designs are chosen and the mosaics are now being created! The designs were chosen from outlines created by schoolchildren at Oakway Infant and Junior schools. Some are one design and others combine two or more designs.'

'Each bird forms a large mosaic panel. Once completed, the six birds will be installed on the wall above the subway entrance for residents and visitors to admire.'

'Kay Aplin, our artist, was in residence at the Castle's studio for a few days from 17-19th August. She was there to welcome any visitors and explain the process she is using to make the mosaics.'

'On the afternoon of the 19th August, Kay visited Hope Week, a week of activities run by the Hope Project on the Hemmingwell Estate. Participants were able to make some of the mosaic birds. The attached pictures give you an idea of the scale of the birds!'

'The panels are now being finsihed. With luck, Kay will return at the end of September to install all six of the birds. However, this does depend on having good weather, so it may stretch into October.'

'Once the birds are settled into their new home, there will be a special launch event, to which everyone is invited, especially all those who have contributed to the design and development of the project.'

So, that's the latest. As promised, we'll keep you up-to-date with progress on the mosaics and introduce you to a few more key people on the Hemmingwell on this blog over the next few weeks.

**Watch this space for the date of the installation. An invitation for you will appear here!**

IMPORTANT: We are still looking for a tiler, who would be willing to install the mosaic on the subway wall. If you are a tiler or know of someone who can help, please contact Paula on parmstrong@wellingborough.gov.uk or leave a message on the blog. Thanks.

Were you at the workshop during Hope Week? What was it like? Feel free to leave your comments.