‘Every child should have a book this Christmas’ – libraries and food banks will get donations
People are being encouraged to buy books for children in families who may not be able to afford presents this Christmas.
Sheffield Libraries and local bookshop La Biblioteka launched the Lord Mayor’s Big Read this week.
Lord Mayor Sioned-Mair Richards, 64, said more and more referrals are coming in for food banks across Sheffield as the cost of living crisis continues to bite.
Mayor Richards said: “It’s a worrying time for all so if we can do one small thing by gifting a book then there will be children who will have something to wake up to Christmas morning.”
Owner of La Biblioteka, Alex Maxwell, 36, said this was the first year the shop was working with the Lord Mayor and Sheffield Libraries.
Mr Maxwell said: “Books are still of great value, we want to encourage the joy of reading for young children.”
The books can be purchased in-person and online after which they are distributed by the store to local libraries and food banks. For every book bought, the store will also donate another one.
The launch is part of Lord Mayor Richards aim to encourage children to read more, as she also hosts reading sessions for school pupils at the Mayor’s Parlour.
Mayor Richards said: “Every child should have a book this Christmas, once you can read it opens up the whole world for you.”
As part of the initiative each child is given a card which they can fill in once they’ve read three books over the Christmas period.
These cards can be given to a local library where the child will enter into a prize draw and have the chance of winning £50 worth of book tokens.
Books for this initiative can be purchased from La Biblioteka until 12 December.
South Yorkshire care home deaths dropped by a third after 2020, study shows
A significant drop in Covid-19 fatalities have contributed to care home deaths in South Yorkshire decreasing in 2021.
A report released by the Office for National Statistics this week showed 1,375 fewer people died in homes last year.
Across England as a whole, 14,066 people died from the illness in care homes in 2021. That's 10,000 fewer than in 2020.
Care home employee Anita Bland described the difficulties of working in a home during the pandemic, as part of Sheffield's Stories from the Pandemic project.
"To start with I was very frightened of it," she said. "I actually catch two buses to come to work and two buses go home, so I was very paranoid when I got on buses.
"Sterilising, mask, everything. And then getting off, coming in, sanitising, PPE.
"Yeah, it was hard."
Deaths from dementia and Alzheimer's disease also dropped notably, from 48,346 in 2020 to 39,623 in 2021.
Barnsley saw the biggest drop in deaths in South Yorkshire, with a decrease of 36.5% between the two years. Doncaster saw the smallest, with 25.7% fewer people dying in homes in 2021.
Sheffield United’s Iliman Ndiaye on bench for Senegal in World Cup against Qatar
There had been speculation that forward Iliman Ndiaye would start today's game, but Senegal have opted to use the same frontline that played against the Netherlands in their opening match.
The 22-year old was playing Sunday League for Rising Ballers only four years ago, after deciding to leave Boreham Wood for the grassroots team that boasts three million followers across different social media platforms.
He signed for the Blades in August 2019, and following a brief loan spell at Hyde United made his Premier League debut as a substitute in March 2021.
Ndiaye has impressed in the last two seasons in the championship, and boasts 11 goal contributions in 22 games this season.
He now faces a rather different test today however, by potentially making his World Cup debut in what will be his third cap for Senegal.
A good performance by the young attacker will only add to speculation around his contract at Sheffield United, which is set to expire in 2024.
The Climbing Hangar Sheffield hosts free postnatal workshop to help new mothers climb safely
A Sheffield bouldering centre has set up a free postnatal workshop to help new mothers return to climbing safely.
The Climbing Hangar Sheffield has worked alongside WomanKind Health to host two workshops focused on core strength and pelvic floor training.
The workshops, which will take place on 25 November, aim to give post-natal climbers knowledge to help them both climb and fall off the wall safely.
Emily Elgar, a Clinical Specialist for WomanKind Health, said: “There’s some really good guidelines out there in terms of returning to running and other sports.
“There isn’t really the same amount of support for climbers and climbing is a really dynamic sport.”
A main focus of the workshops is providing support, education and face-to-face contact for post-natal women to benefit their mental health.
Ms Elgar said that the isolation of new mothers was made worse by the pandemic as many maternity services turned to telephone and video appointments.
A 2021 study led by UCL researchers found that, in the first COVID-19 lockdown, 47.5% of new mothers met the threshold for post-natal depression, almost double the average European rate before the pandemic.
The UCL report found the more contact new mothers had with other people, the fewer depressive symptoms they reported.
The Climbing Hangar Sheffield hosts regular parents mornings to help build a support network for new mothers and fathers of all abilities.
Nell Gow, founder of the Mum’s Gone Climbing podcast, said: “The importance of community for new mum climbers cannot be overstated.
“It's a period of life when support and encouragement is like life blood, and I truly believe the climbing community is a beautiful vehicle for this.”
University of Sheffield students leave Hicks Building after overnight occupation
Students at the University of Sheffield occupied the Hicks Building in solidarity of the University College Union (UCU) strikes and alleged arms company links.
This comes a month after the Sheffield Action Group occupied the Diamond for a week to call out the University's ties to arms companies.
Last night, a group of student protestors named Sheffield Action Group entered the Hicks building on the city centre campus and declared an occupation to "kick arms companies off campus", alongside supporting striking staff.
Protestors chose to leave the building hours after entering, believing they achieved their aim with the closure.
One of the student occupiers, who asked not to be named, said: "We are here to demand dignity and better conditions for their staff, a struggle which has been fought for by the whole University community for years."
Sheffield Action Group demand that the University cuts ties with the arms companies and call for the requirements of the UCU strike, asking for better pay, conditions, job security and pension security to be met.
Shortly after entry, University of Sheffield security services allegedly locked the double doors at either end of the corridor the students were occupying, even though these are the only exits available to the students and are also clearly marked as fire exits.
Although security from the University claim the doors could have been unlocked in an event of a fire, the protesters argue the law clearly states the exits must not be locked in the first place, and the people requiring evacuation should be able to open them.
Addressing the criticism students should not be disrupted, another one of the occupiers said: "We feel that the disruption caused everyday to staff by poor pay, conditions and job security, and to students of inadequate mental health support, a marketised education system and the cost of living crisis, is far more disruptive to student education than an occasional occupation."
After leaving, the group went onto disrupt the university careers fair.
A University of Sheffield spokesperson, said: “Our priority is to minimise disruption for students as much as possible, so our security team worked to contain the occupiers in one area of the building. There were members of security at the doors at all times and the occupiers were free to leave the building at any time."
Sheffield to have England representation again as Gareth Southgate set to go unchanged vs USA
Former Blades Harry Maguire, Kyle Walker and Aaron Ramsdale will all be present against the USA with England likely to field an unchanged line-up later today.
Both Walker and Ramsdale were unused substitutes in the victory against Iran, and will start in the same role against the USA unless there are any sudden injuries or selection issues.
Harry Maguire, who made 166 appearances for Sheffield United, will make his 50th appearance for England should he start as expected.
There had been doubts about the 29-year old after he was substituted in the victory against Iran as a precaution, after seemingly suffering the effects of a head clash.
Gareth Southgate explained however that the issue was actually dehydration in a pre-match press conference on Thursday, where he confirmed that both Maguire and captain Harry Kane are fit to play.
On Maguire, Southgate said: “It is great for Harry to get his 50th cap and it is well deserved.
“He is a major part of us getting two big major tournament performances and we want this to be the third.”
Sheffield United boast more of a presence in the current England squad than rivals Sheffield Wednesday - but more players have featured for England while playing for the Owls than the Blades.
Players featuring for Wednesday have earned 258 England caps while at the club, compared to 101 caps for United.
England will be hoping to beat the USA to progress into the Round of 16 of the World Cup, where they will play the second placed team in Group A if they manage to win their group.
The game will kick-off at 7pm and can be watched live on ITV1.
Sheffield’s Migration Matters Festival celebrates migrants in the face of anti-immigration bills
An international arts festival celebrating the diversity of the UK and the contributions of migrants and refugees in Sheffield, will be held around the city next month. The Migration Matters festival aims to be a celebration of different cultures during a time when anti-immigration bills and high visa renewal costs have left many feeling ‘hopeless’. Migrant Voice released a report on 28 April which found that 95 out of 100 migrants surveyed said they had extremely negative feelings about their experience of the visa process: some describing it as 'mental torture'. The festival is running from June 17 to 25 and launched its lineup this week. It's an annual festival in its seventh year that runs every June within National Refugee Week. The festival attracts people from all over the country and internationally. It's the biggest festival in the UK that celebrates migrants and refugees. They are expecting 10,000 attendees through 9 days and 50 events. The festival has music, theatre, dance, photograph exhibitions, performances and food. Sam Holland, the director of the festival said: “The festival shows you who is in the city. It shows you who your neighbours are and it is a lovely, eye-opening way of getting to know the richness of Sheffield." This years festival has a guest programmer, Taiwanese artist Howl Yuan who has put together talks, films and theatre productions. One of the contributors, the Phosphoros Theatre Company, will showcase their latest play, All The Beds I Have Slept In, performed by a cast of refugee performers. Nigerian musician Seun Kuti will be performing with Egypt 80 at the Foundry and all-female music group Les Amazones d’Afrique will be playing a gig at the Leadmill.
Livia Barreira, the audience development manager of the festival, is a Brazilian journalist living in Sheffield who speaks openly about her experiences as a migrant in Sheffield. She has authored a book, 'Living in Sheffield: Our Journeys as Migrant Women', and is currently raising funds to get it published. Ms Barreira said: "I am quite excited because I think it is very important for us to have events promoting migrant communities, refugees and all the positive impact these people are making in the UK and in Sheffield, the first city of sanctuary in the country."Missed this...? We cannot wait to unveil the phenomenal lineup for this year's festival - with an epic 50 events planned - very soon. Watch this space! #MigMatFest22 #sheffield #sheffevents #fridayfeeling pic.twitter.com/U2iERFBOPP
— Migration Matters Festival (@MigMatFest) May 6, 2022
Another shameful day for these broken isles.
The Anti-Refugee bill has passed - a bill that plays into far right xenophobia, that rips apart the Refugee Convention and further drags this country's reputation through the mud. https://t.co/yC2VZjVsks — Migration Matters Festival (@MigMatFest) April 28, 2022
Sheffield Mind reopens its wellbeing centre for the first time following the Coronavirus pandemic
A Sheffield mental health charity reopened the doors of its wellbeing centre today for the first time since the Coronavirus pandemic to help get people ‘back out there’. Sheffield Mind, located on Sharrow Lane, hosted a grand reopening today with a pop up charity shop, performance from an acapella choir and free tea and cake for all visitors. Mental health in the UK was severely impacted during the pandemic with Samaritans reporting a higher number of people seeking support for feelings of loneliness. The charity is still getting some calls from people who are now frightened to go out due to how long they have been at home. Margaret Lewis, CEO at Sheffield Mind, said: “For a lot of people coming back out again has not been a natural progression, they're still finding it very difficult. So to come somewhere that they know, trust, and feel they will be supported and accepted, is really important. “The grand opening day is to say, we are here, and we will do our best to support you and help you get back out there, at a pace that you can manage.”
CEO of Sheffield Mind Margaret Lewis
Paul Adams
Jules Roberts, from the group, said: “We got in contact with mind, because we felt we could share the proven benefits of singing to mental health." "Singing is a way to turn off," fellow member Jason Leonard added. "We sing acapella which takes a lot of focus, so you can't think about other things because you are so focused on singing." The charity plans to run more new classes in the coming weeks. They are starting a ‘Kaleidoscope Cafe’ this Wednesday which will run fortnightly targeted at people from the LGBTQ plus community who are lonely or who have mental health needs. They are also launching a programme called 'gaps' to help people who are at risk from gambling related harm. https://youtu.be/vn-lyznm-NsToday we are at the Grand Reopening of @SheffieldMind Wellbeing Centre in Sharrow. Local choir @hofharmony are currently treating visitors to a live performance. pic.twitter.com/Tx1jRvyz4r
— Sheffield Wire (@Sheffield_Wire) May 9, 2022
Police still looking for man who threatened Sheffield polling station staff
South Yorkshire Police have confirmed they are still searching for a man who allegedly threatened polling booth staff in Sheffield on Thursday night. Staff at the Community Room on Westminster Crescent, Fulwood, reported the man had made threats to them before leaving the scene. The police confirmed they attended the polling station to provide reassurance and that an investigation has been launched. They said enquiries are ongoing to trace the suspect. A statement released on Thursday night by Sheffield City Council said the police were called to the polling station at 10:25pm. They said the incident delayed the arrival of a box of votes to the counting venue at the English Institute of Sport, Sheffield. It meant that four hours after voting ended, no ballots had been counted. Police are urging anyone with information to call police on 101, citing incident number 1121 of 5 May.
Sheffield University welcomes highest number of peregrine chicks in eight years
A global audience of online birdwatchers are celebrating after the highest number of peregrine chicks in eight years were born in Sheffield. Last week's successful hatching of four eggs came as an unexpected surprise after adverse conditions left many pessimistic. While the eggs were laid earlier this year, a younger peregrine displaced the long-standing male and father of the new chicks, leaving the eggs exposed to the cold for several hours and at risk of failing. Chris Greenwood, trustee of Sheffield Bird Study Group, said he wasn’t sure the eggs were going to hatch in the nest which is located on the roof of St George’s Church. This is part of the university campus and has been home to peregrines since 2012. The birds were initially attracted to the building due to the ledges and decorations on the roof, which emulate the shapes of their native cliffs and crags. Mr Greenwood said: “Whether you’re a person or an animal, if your partner gets chucked out and someone else takes their place, that would be traumatic to some degree. “When nature declines so much, I think it’s a really good thing to have. It educates people, it gives them a bit of comfort and it engages them with nature.” People from across the world will be able to track the birds’ growth online on a stream which has attracted viewers from as far as Canada, America and parts of Africa. It is operated on a volunteer basis by members of university staff. The nest is tracked by a webcam for 24 hours each day. After the first egg hatched last Tuesday, the fourth was spotted on the livestream on Friday. A Twitter user was the first to notice the latest addition. She wrote: “It seemed really lucky that even one hatched after all the shenanigans!” Within a number of days the chicks are expected to double in size before developing their fluffy white weathers and they will take their first flights in mid-June before leaving the nest for good in September. The peregrine falcon is the fastest animal on the planet and, after steep declines in the 1950s and 60s, it took 30 years for the species to reach its pre-decline figures in Britain. For updates, visit: https://sheffieldperegrines.wordpress.com Featured image by Chris Greenwood.
Sheffield Wednesday fans voice their support ahead of ‘season-defining’ play-off tie
Owls fans have sent their messages of support to Sheffield Wire and promised to create a 'rocking' atmosphere at Hillsborough ahead of Wednesday’s second-leg fixture against Sunderland tonight. Wednesday are bidding to win a place in the play-off final at Wembley against Wycombe Wanderers on 21 May. “It’s a massive game for the club today, season-defining,” said super-fan Al Maplo. “It’s been a long slog to get here with many highs and lows but we’ve been on a great run since the turn of the year so now it’s time to get out there and show us what you can do. “We believe in you! Come on Wednesday!” Steven Smith, who will be supporting Wednesday at Hillsborough tonight, said: “Play like your life depends on it and we will make the noise. If we see you doing everything you can, then win, lose or draw you'll be supported. It’s up to you lads. C'mon Wednesday.” The Owls lost the first leg of the knock-out stage 1-0 at the Stadium of Light on Friday after Sam Hutchinson was able to take advantage of a mistake at a Wednesday corner and score the only goal of the match. Darren Moore’s side will be hoping to pull back the deficit in front of a sold-out home crowd at Hillsborough tonight.
“Leave it all out there. We have your backs,” said Peter A. Lohmann, host of the Owls About Stat podcast. The SWFC Armed Forces Supporters Club said: “Best of luck to the lads tonight, dig deep and we'll shout as loud as we can to help you across the line! We know what we can do at home, we have a proven record of great results. All we want to see is 90+ minutes of 100% effort out there and I'm sure you'll get the job done! Up the Owls!” The match tonight will have Sheffield Wednesday fans all over the world glued to their screens. The Owls Americas supporters club which unites Wednesday fans across the Americas said: “We are all behind them, across the Americas we'll be shouting at our TV's in bars from Atlanta to New York City.” Claire Patterson, who travelled to support Wednesday at Sunderland on Friday, said: ‘We’re all behind you tonight, Hillsborough will be rocking, the place will be packed and the noise will be unbelievable. “Forget Friday’s error, it’s done and dusted, we can’t change it so go out and give it your all, get that early equaliser and push on. We’re All Wednesday Aren’t We, come on you blues!” Fans will descend on Hillsborough for a 7.45pm kick-off tonight in what promises to be an electric atmosphere."You’ve been absolutely tremendous all season. Get there Monday night and sing your hearts out for the boys, be that 12th man and drive them on..."#SHWSUN
— Sheffield Wednesday (@swfc) May 9, 2022
Rosa Festival puts North of England “back on the map” for underground dance music
A new festival created by a young Sheffield-based music collective is seeking to champion up and coming artists in the underground dance scene. Rosa Festival, born out of Rosa Audio – promises to be a “uniquely intimate and community-minded” experience, showcasing a variety of genres including drum and bass, reggae, bassline and garage. Taking place near the scenic village of Bakewell in the Peak District, Rosa will host a score of talented DJs and producers; including Amplify, Bare Up and Jaw-D.
"Rosa became an inspiring network of talented people that I just had to get involved in"
A spokesperson for Rosa Audio told the Sheffield Wire how the grassroots bass music crew - formed by a group of university students during lockdown - wanted to create something closer to the close-knit rave communities of the past.
“We took the pandemic as an opportunity to reassess how we could contribute to the industry. Looking at the state of UK festivals – we saw how commercialised and far from the original spirit of raving they had become, this where the idea of Rosa Festival was born.
"If you're looking for a festival that will let you get closer to the spirit that drew you to underground music in the first place, Rosa Festival is the only place to be this summer."
Rosa Festival will take place 15 – 18 July. Tickets can be found here.