Metropolitan film project with the London Transport Museum and The Beacon

Did you know that in 2013 London Underground will be 150 years old? And that the Metropolitan Line was the first Underground line to open back in 1863? Here at London Transport Museum we think this is pretty amazing, so in the run up to this anniversary year we’ve been delivering a range of projects across the city, finding out what people think of the Underground at 150 years old. 

One of these projects is called ‘My Line’ and has involved working with 5 different community groups. These are located near 5 different Underground lines, to make 5 short films about their local tube line. 

In October half term, London Transport Museum and film maker Jackson Ducasse arrived at the Beacon, to interview people who live in the area and what they think of the Metropolitan Line. ‘Bumpy’, ‘fast’, ‘useful’ all came up as descriptions, as well as ‘old fashioned’. There were 7 young people involved who all did some research on the Transport for London website to find out more about the history of the line. Jackson gave them a lesson in how to make a great short film.

The group then hit the streets to find out what others think, and to capture some images of the trains passing by The Beacon. Lots of hard work and creativity has resulted in a brilliant film, which is to be added to the Museum’s collection and may be on display in the galleries in the future. The group attended a celebration event held at the Cubic Theatre at London Transport Museum in January.

Thank you to all those who contributed to the project.
Jen Kavanagh
Community Curator at London Transport Museum

Funding available for West London sports clubs as part of Give It a Go 2012

Pro-Active West London are looking for clubs to be part of Give It a Go 2012, a legacy programme designed to encourage residents of London in to regular participation in your club/organisation. The original deadline to be part of the programme has just been extended due to additional funds becoming available.

All participating clubs will be featured on the Give It a Go website, provided with electronic and printed marketing materials to promote your sessions locally, and be featured in aLondonwide promotional campaign through various media channels and local facilities.

To be part of this first ever London-wide sports participation campaign all your club/organisation has to do is:

• Offer at least 6 hours of coaching sessions between 13th February and 31st March.
• Allow any new participants to attend for free.
• Ensure any new participants fill out a short monitoring and evaluation form.

This can be done in 3 ways:

1)      Open your existing coaching sessions to new participants for free – all clubs entered in to a prize draw to win a £500 funding grant

2)     Expand your existing sessions to allow a new group of participants to attend – eligible to apply for up to £250 to cover costs

3)      Set up new sessions to offer as part of Give It a Go 2012 – eligible to apply for up to £250 to cover costs

For further information and to apply to be part of Give It a Go 2012 please visit www.pro-activewestlondon.org/giveitago

Funding will be allocated as eligible applications are submitted, and the sooner you apply the more promotion time your club/organisation gets, so make sure to apply as soon as possible!

 

Hate crime awareness training at Harrow Council: Free course

The sessions will be held on the following dates:
Monday 23 Jnauary @ 18:15
Wednesday 25 January @ 09:00

Confirm your attendance by email on: community.development@harrow.gov.uk

Inner city community centres can be the urban village hall.

The Beacon Community Centre

On the whole urban community centres are rarely the focal point of a community, but they still have a valuable part to play within social inclusion and wellbeing.

The reduction in governmental and private industry funding have made it tougher than ever for a community centre to survive, let alone thrive, and many centres have closed due to this reduction in funds.

A modern community centre has to balance their operations between commercial interests, such as room hire, and outreach services, such as play schemes or adult learning courses.

The Beacon Centre in South Harrow is no exception. About to celebrate its fifth birthday, the staff are extremely happy with the progress that has been made to date. They are however not resting on their laurels, and have many ideas in the planning stage for community inclusion projects and operational revenue.

The area around the Beacon Centre, namely the Rayners Lane estate, has undergone significant regeneration. The last phase of this regeneration is about to take place with the demolition of the few remaining estate blocks. Once the new build is complete, the Beacon will be at the centre of a vibrant, and modern, community development.

Moving forward the Beacon seeks to become a community hub for wellbeing, sports participation, learning and development. They want to bring together commercial interests, with the community, and foster employment opportunities.

Community feedback and ideas are valued and actively sought. The new Beacon Centre blog thebeaconlondon.wordpress.com and Facebook page are a move towards using social media more effectively to communicate and engage with the community.

Please contact The Beacon Centre with any ideas or suggestions you have, to help make the next five years, even more successful than the previous.

Corporate and Business Events at the Beacon Harrow

The Beacon Centre in Harrow offers several great opportunities for corporate and business events. We have a wide range of facilities available for many different types of use.

With a range of external equipment including wireless microphones, stage, and 4m projector screen, the Beacon is fully equipped to host major events.

Please contact the Beacon Centre in Harrow for further details.

Discounted Room and Conference Hire – North London

The Beacon in Harrow North London has a range of customisable spaces available to hire. From a 200 person seated conference hall to a small meeting room from only £8 per hour, we have the spaces to host events, seminars and meetings.

Please see our pricing schedule for a breakdown of costs. Our standing as a community centre enables us to offer unique discounts based on events and their association to the community.

Please contact Tracie at The Beacon for a breakdown of the savings you gain by booking your event at The Beacon.

Contact: tracie.ffoulkes@homegroup.org.uk or 0208 966 6501.

Click this link for a Virtual Tour.

The Beacon is a purpose built building.

Community Cohesion Through Dancing

As well as being great for cardiovascular fitness and improving coordination, dancing is also a great way to build and encourage community cohesion.

The Beacon Centre in Harrow North London has a large sports hall equipped with a performance stage, disco lights, big screen projector and surround sound system.

Perfect for training, coaching and performances, our dance venue is available for hourly and full day hire. Please contact the Beacon for further details.

The stage in action.

Welcome to the Beacon

The Beacon is designed to be a multi-purpose facility, and caters for almost every need. The sports hall, for example, can be transformed from a sports area into a fully functioning carpeted venue for social gatherings and conferences. In addition, food and refreshments are provided on request.

The Beacon has regular sports activities in conjunction with a range of partners for young people between the ages of 8 – 19 years.

Kickz, run by Watford Community Sports and Education Trust, run regular weekly activities including Football, Street Dance and Table Tennis.

Sports Unlimited provide seasonal sport taster sessions such as Basketball and Futsal.

A youth club takes place every Thursday, run by Harrow Youth Service which is very popular. This is for young people aged 11 – 19 years.

Ignite (our detached youth workers) have set up a Multi sports programme taking place on Tuesday evenings. This is for young people aged 13 – 19 years.

There are also some independent sports sessions for both adults and young people:

• Badminton
• Taekwon-do
• Yoga
• Indian Dance
• Zumba

If you would like more information on how you can get involved, then please contact the beacon team on 0208 566 6501 or on e-mail via our contact form.