Welcome to the Spring edition of the Inclusive Communities E-newsletter
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ARCH Sunderland now has an exciting new-look website! The site features a much wider range of information and provides easy ways to give feedback.

You can click on a map which highlights all the locations across the city where hate incidents can be reported and you can also follow ARCH on Twitter - @sunderlandarchs.

Have a look at the website now at www.sunderland-arch.org.uk

The Gender Agenda are pleased to host a training session on trans awareness issues and extending an invitation to IAG, cohesion group members and partners to attend.

The session will be delivered by Rikki Arundel from GenderShift herself a trans woman and masters graduate in gender research. This session will give participants the opportunity to look behind the confusing labels, jargon and myths about differing trans experiences. It is recommended that service providers attend the session to understand their legal obligations when dealing with trans people. No preparation is required for this session and no prior knowledge of trans issues is necessary. http://www.gendernetwork.com/

Gendershift
Trans Awareness Training Session

James Herriott Suite,
Stadium of Light, Sunderland,
9.30am – 3.00pm 2nd March 2011

To book a free place at this event please contact Lisa Webb on 0191 561 1313 or email equality@sunderland.gov.uk  Please note that places are limited and must be confirmed by 18th February 2011.

Groundwork North East – renewable energy
Groundwork are carrying out a short survey for organisations who may be interested in support for renewable energy projects.

Click here for more details.

A radio station that has been on the air for just over a year has been named the best in the North East by the Radio Academy.
107 Spark FM is the North East's only radio station aimed at young people. The station is based at the University of Sunderland and run by student DJs and local volunteers, some as young as 16. 107 Spark FM won the Radio Academy Nations and Regions Awards 2010, which recognises outstanding stations with a potential audience under 300,000.

Judges at the awards said: "107 Spark FM is a diverse radio station run by volunteers with lots of specialist music programmes. For a community station the standards were high, with lots of passion for local debate and music. It is ambitious, creative and local."

This is the second major award for Spark in less than a year, in only the station's second year of broadcast. In May 2010 the station won the national Community Spirit Award, awarded by the Student Radio Association, in recognition of their efforts to engage with the local community. 107 Spark FM launched in September 2009. It is the only radio station in the North East focusing specifically on issues affecting young people. The station broadcast 24 hours a day, 365 days a year from the university's campus on the banks of the River Wear.

The International Community Organisation of Sunderland (ICOS) is the successor of the Sunderland Polish Community Association. The organisation was born of the primary aim to initiate and encourage integration and social cohesion amongst international communities living in Sunderland and its surrounding areas. 

ICOS is in the continuous process of working together with local communities, authorities and similar voluntary groups to provide a number of services intended to benefit international communities in several ways, including education, culture, leisure and recreation, occupation and general social welfare. Despite being relatively new to the voluntary and community sector, members of ICOS are currently taking numerous measures in order to raise the group’s profile and engage with the public which will allow us to provide better services to the community. 

Various services are run on a weekly basis to provide help and guidance to those who need it. There are ESOL classes for BME people on Wednesdays and Fridays at 6pm and a Drop in Centre for welfare and employment guidance on Fridays from 4pm. As well as the above services, they have organised and/or co organised a range of events to facilitate social cohesion including:

• Business Start – Up meeting in July 2009, aimed at informing people from disadvantaged communities in Sunderland how to start up a company.  
• In August 2009, ICOS joined forces with Unison and the TUC in a community event, with workshops on anti – racism, alcoholism, information on cycling in the local area and arts and crafts.
• ICOS together with NEPCO (North East Polish Community Organisation) took part in a paintballing event tournament, an event generously discounted by Topgun Paintball in Blaydon. The film from that event can be seen at www.topgunpaintball.co.uk.
• In October 2009 ICOS collaborated with Gateshead Council, The Polish Consulate in Manchester, the TUC, UNISON and NESMP in a public exhibition called Solidarity, commemorating 20 years since the fall of communism in Poland and Eastern Europe.
• Earlier this year ICOS was involved with the Made in Poland Festival and organised an exhibition of art at The Gospoda restaurant in Newcastle upon Tyne, showing the work of Tymoteusz Sulek, an artist who is studying at Sunderland University.
• The latest project is “Meet your Neighbour”, which has been organised with Tyne and Wear Museums to show the culture of Polish people living in the North East of England to local people in this area. The exhibition will be at Sunderland Museum & Winter Gardens in The Open Space Gallery, 18th January - 25th February 2011. For more information, call Terri Oliver on 0191 567 4620

Click here (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=230616030453) to view the ICOS facebook

Your Community … Your Say - Sunderland City Council are collating feedback on the 'Your community...your say' booklet in order to improve future editions. Please click here to view more on this to view the booklet before completing the survey.

Gender IAG - The Gender IAG are planning events throughout the City for International Women's Day on 8th March. This kicks off on Wednesday 23rd February at the City Library for a "Sit and Knit a Bit" session - we are opening the doors for tea and cakes for anyone wanting to be involved in knitting 6x6" squares which will then be forwarded to the campaign headquarters, sewn together to make a massive work of art, and then sold to raise money for women's charities.

On the 8th March, Graham Lay from the NHS will be hosting stands in the City Library and Civic Centre providing free Mini MOT's for women. This follows on from the same successful event during Men's Health Week where the men of Sunderland were given free health checks at the Civic Centre. The stand will also be in place the following day within the Civic Centre to raise awareness of "National No Smoking Day".

We are also in the process of application to host a video diary booth within The Bridges Shopping Centre where members of the public can record their views on International Women's Day, as well as telling us which women inspires and influences them. This footage would then be used on the soon-to-be-launched Gender Agenda website! If anyone would like to be involved with any of the events, please contact lisa.webb@sunderland.gov.uk for more information.

LGB IAG - The LGB IAG website will start production within the next couple of weeks and we are looking for content ideas/designs to be included. I will be in touch with the members of the IAG shortly to discuss a planning meeting, and once the website is up and running the re-launch can begin! Watch this space!!

Planning for Sunderland's first ever gay pride march is well under way, with the event date scheduled for 25th September 2011. A planning sub-group consisting of Sunderland Pride, Northumbria Police, Sunderland PCT, Gentoo, Tyne and Wear Fire Service and Sunderland Council meets monthly to discuss plans and progress towards this event. If anyone has any suggestions or questions they would like taking forward, please email lisa.webb@sunderland.gov.uk.

BME IAG - The BME IAG have decided to have a re-launch. At their last meeting it was agreed that the group would come up with a new name, new logo and some new promotional materials to encourage more members of the community to become involved. The suggested name was Sunderland Multicultural Forum but we welcome your comments and suggestions for an appropriate new name for the group! 

The group are also planning to host a Census Completion Event at the Bangladeshi Centre (and also possibly a local school) to help members of the BME community with completion of these forms. We hope to have food and refreshments available, with translators and Census staff on hand to help with any queries. Promotional material will be produced once a set date has been agreed. We will keep everyone informed, and if you, or your organisation, would like to be involved please let us know.

OPPAG (Age UK Sunderland) - Age UK have events planned for this month. Bobble Day is the finale of Age UK’s Spread the Warmth Campaign. Help us to continue offering advice and assistance on keeping warm and staying healthy this winter. Buy a Bobble for a donation of £1.00 and wear it with pride!

Join us in the Information Café at No. 26 Stockton Road on the morning of 11th February for information and advice on keeping warm during the cold months. There is also an event to help freeze rising funeral costs at today’s prices. Pop into your local event and find out how you could get £30 discount!! Friday 25th February 2011, 9:30am – 12 noon Bradbury Centre, Stockton Road, Sunderland (near Park Lane Interchange). For more information you can contact Carly on 0191 514 8324

FEEDBACK & ARTICLES - Any feedback you have on this newsletter would be most appreciated. If you have articles for any future newsletters please email equality@sunderland.gov.uk or phone Linder Pott – 0191 5611285.