Read all about the history of Celebrate: with programmes dating back all the way to 1998!
Category: Whalley Range Community Forum
The Whalley Range Community Forum (WRCF) is a voluntary representative residents group formed in 1995 to facilitate and improve communication between members of the community and those who serve/represent Whalley Range.
The Forum act as an umbrella organisation, bringing residents and local services together to address local issues, to promote consultation and community cohesion – and to encourage participation.
The Forum produces a bimonthly newsletter and residents meetings to address local concerns with Police, Councillors, local council and planning officials, sends out a regular email bulletins featuring opportunities, events and news to around 400 residents from Whalley Range – and co-facilitates an annual local community festival.
The Forum worker supports new and emerging groups to access funding to set up their own community groups, holds funds for unconstituted groups and addresses resident priorities by facilitating relevant classes at the JNR8 centre during school term times.
Classes and initiatives for the diverse local community include mixed and women-only ESOL classes, women fitness, Tai Chi, confidence building sessions, basic computer and work club support and art and wellbeing classes and afternoon tea for older residents. JNR8 is also registered as a Third Party Hate Crime Reporting Centre.
The community website features local news and events, consultation links, age-friendly news and current vacancies and opportunities.
Follow @WhalleyRangeorg and @AgeFriendlyWR on Twitter
JNR8 Youth & Community Centre, 82 Cromwell Avenue, Whalley Range, M16 0BG
Tel: 0161 881 3744 | Email: communityforumwhalleyrange@gmail.com agefriendlywhalleyrange@gmail.com
About Celebrate 2021
We would like to invite you to our 24th Celebrate festival for 2021 – with a difference!
Our theme is Celebrate Connections – and because we haven’t been able to get together for so long, we want to do something positive, all get involved, reconnect and look forward to when we can meet up again.
Of course we couldn’t hold a Festival last year because of the pandemic – and we still can’t hold our usual face-to-face event in the park this year, but we are planning lots of smaller events, activities and workshops between Saturday 12th June – Saturday 19th June – when the weather will be warmer and restrictions may be a little more relaxed…and of course we will be following government guidelines to keep our community safe.
We want to work together to make an Art Trail throughout Whalley Range – so that when people go for their daily walks they will see some inspiring and beautiful colours and will feel more connected to neighbours, friends and family. (maybe send us a photo or two for our gallery in the JNR8 windows!)
Celebrate week 12th – 19th June. We plan to put together Celebrate Connections packs for people who would like to get involved – with a selection of arty-crafty goodies/instructions to decorate your windows and outside your doors. The packs will contain template stencils for you to make beautiful Peace Mandalas, Rangoli patterns or Islamic designs to colour in or using chunky chalks on your doorstep – so people of all ages and abilities can join in! We will also be working with some residents to decorate the front of their houses.
We are planning to have small events and pop-up music and performance at different places during the week – celebrating local talent. There are some amazing musicians, performers and artists in Whalley Range.
And if we are able – a procession or some smaller processions throughout Whalley Range to finish off the week of Celebrate Connections – bringing our community back together again!
We will be working with our groups and facilitators – who can’t run their usual face-to-face workshops – in a number of ways. We have some funding to run small scale workshops and performances to be delivered to small/closed groups leading up to the events – in schools and community centres, housing schemes etc. and will be planning and discussing our offer over the coming weeks.
We have a small budget which we will offer to some of our local community groups who can apply for up to £100 for materials and expenses to run activities that fit in with our theme Celebrate Connections!
On our website during the Celebrate week we will promote (free) interactive, participatory local arts and crafts activities, music performances etc – tell us what you’re planning for that week and we’ll add it to the ‘virtual programme’ Or why not run one of your sessions specifically for the event?
Get in touch if you would like help to run an activity online.
We will also feature and promote health and wellbeing support groups and related activities: are you part of an online meditation group/Tai Chi/Yoga/ etc happening during that week? Why not get more people involved by running a free introduction session or sending us details to include in the ‘programme’?
We would really like to hear your ideas too: what can we do to feel more connected?
We want to work together across Whalley Range: we have a fantastic and diverse range of groups, musicians, community organisations, Faith groups, schools and more. Our mutual aid/street groups have been a lifeline to some of us and have brought people together to share ideas, improve our spaces and support each other.
And at the end of the week – depending on the rules – we are hoping we can have a Community Connections procession or several smaller processions to dress up, play some hand made instruments and wrap up the Festival!
Interested? Contact Chris or Lotte on 0161 881 3744, or communityforumwhalleyrange@gmail.com
Celebrate Festival 2021: Celebrate Connections
We are doing something different this year!
Click on the headings to find out what this years’ festival is all about – and keep checking this site and our Facebook page for the latest news!
Download the Celebrate Connections Festival Programme here!
Celebrate programme-2021-final
1. About Celebrate 2021
2. Call Out to Artists
3. Celebrate (Musical) Connections
4. The History of Celebrate…
5. Festival Zoom Sessions: getting ready for Celebrate and learn something new!
6. Meet the Artists and contributors
7. Music line-up and Buskers
8. Celebrate Connections on the art trail…
Ways to get involved in the Festival…
Festival Packs
Our free Celebrate Connections festival packs are ready for people to collect from JNR8! (or receive via our volunteers) Art packs, seeding growing packs and wellbeing packs – and decorate your window packs too!
COLLECT ON THURSDAY JUNE 10th – between 10-12 noon
Keep checking this page and Celebrate on Facebook for festival updates!
Whalley Range Community Forum Annual Report 2020
Local Mutual Aid and WhatsApp groups
Have you joined your Covid-19 Local Mutual Aid and/or WhatsApp street Group?
The Local Mutual Aid Groups are for residents that want to support each other and their neighbours with shopping, support and sharing information during the Covid-19/coronavirus pandemic.
We now have over 40 WhatsApp groups in Whalley Range – small, local and informal networks with the people living on their street, so that we can all support and help each other.
Follow the links below to find and join local Covid-19 Mutual Aid groups.
Chorlton Coronavirus Community Response
Whalley Range Covid-19 Mutual Support Group
What is Covid-19 Mutual Aid UK?
Local organising to support the most vulnerable in our communities
Covid-19 Mutual Aid UK is a group of volunteers supporting local community groups organising mutual aid throughout the Covid-19 outbreak in the UK. We focus on providing resources and connecting people to their nearest local groups, willing volunteers and those in need.
We recognise that injustice doesn’t affect everyone equally and whilst we’re all at risk of Covid-19, there are some people who are more vulnerable and need greater support from the community.
The basic idea is to coordinate care efforts for people who are self-isolating, especially if they are part of a more at risk demographic including the elderly, disabled and people with other pre-existing health issues.
We’re also trying to offer support to those people who are feeling most isolated/anxious throughout the pandemic. For people with mental health conditions this scale of panic can be overwhelming and so community support is vital.
Find a local group: https://covidmutualaid.org/local-groups/
What is WhatsApp?
Getting started with WhatsApp
Introduction: WhatsApp is a free to use app using an internet connection between phones, a replacement for SMS text messages, with over 900 million active users worldwide.
It is available on iPhones, Android smartphones, Windows Phone and Mac laptops and Windows PC. Allowing you to send messages, pictures, videos and even voice recordings, as well as make voice and video calls over the internet for free, rather than using your mobile network which costs you money.
The messages you send on WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted making your communications secure. This means that only your device, and that of the recipient, can decode them.
Some of the advantages of using WhatsApp are:
- WhatsApp is completely free for use.
- Instantly send a message to anywhere in the world.
- Easy to use
- Send to anyone; Document files upto 100Mb such as PDF, Slideshows, etc.
- It has also the features to delete the message that you have sent
- It imports the contacts from your phone and tells you that how many of your friends are using WhatsApp.
- You can share your location, photos, status, images, documents, videos with your friends.
- It shows whether your message is sent or not and whether or not the receiver has received or read the message. (single tick for sent and double tick for delivered, grey is for delivered and blue is to show that the message has been read by the person).
- WhatsApp started providing end-to-end encryption feature, which makes your WhatsApp communication highly secure.
- It saves your money by reducing normal Text and Multimedia messages cost.
- It can be linked to both Mac and Windows computers.
Read the full guide here: Getting Started (2)
What is Skype?
Getting started with Skype
Introduction: Skype is a worldwide and free to use online webchat service, owned by Microsoft it is integrated into the Microsoft “brand” and would normally come pre-installed on a Windows 10 computer or laptop (Windows 7 is no longer supported but it may be possible to download a version that should work) on a smart phone it will need to be downloaded from the app store unless of course it is a “Windows” phone.
Skype is a person to person connection over the internet and the following check list needs to be considered if you want to start Skyping with family, friends and colleagues.
Questions; Laptop, computer, tablet and smart phone.
- Does your laptop have a camera, microphone and speakers? (A camera is usually identified as a small plastic lens at the centre top of the screen) most computers and some older laptops may require you to buy all or some of the following; USB video camera, combined headset or microphone and speakers.
(A tablet or smart phone will not usually require any of this extra hardware).
- Does your laptop, computer, tablet or smart phone already have Skype installed? (Look for the icon either in the desktop menu, desktop, taskbar applications etc.) Otherwise it will need to be downloaded from the Windows or App. Store.
Read the full guide here: Getting Started (1)
10 Big Ideas for Making Our Community a Better Place for People Living with Dementia
#10BigIdeas
The Chorlton and Whalley Range Dementia Action Group has the ambition of making where we live a great place to be for people living with dementia, and their carers and families. Although Dementia is mostly associated with older age, there are also 40,000 people with young-onset dementia in the UK. If 1 in every 14 of the population aged 65 years and over is living with dementia the chances are that you know someone or live close to someone who has dementia.
Chorlton and Whalley Range Dementia Action Group was started in 2016 by two local people who have some personal experience of dementia. Four years later we are a small but enthusiastic group of local residents and professionals that meet monthly and our recent work has focussed on creating a booklet entitled ’10 Big Ideas for Making Our Community a Better Place for People Living with Dementia’. Research shows that well-resourced neighbourhoods allow people living with dementia to get out and about; maintain connections with people outside of their family; and play an active role in the social life of local places (Dr Sarah Campbell, Dementia and Ageing Research Team, the University of Manchester). The #10BigIdeas booklet is designed to spark community interest and really encourage people to think about how they can play their part in helping to shape neighbourhoods, ensuring that physical spaces, groups and activities are accessible to all; including people living with dementia.
The Dementia Action Group really hope that #10BigIdeas will start conversations in your local community groups, streets and neighbourhoods about how we can all make a difference, and open up opportunities for people living with dementia. What ideas can you try?
Click on the picture to read the booklet…
10 Big Ideas – Chorlton and Whalley Range Dementia Action Group
Connecting Chorlton, Fallowfield & Whalley Range Report
The report of the participatory neighbourhood event held in November 2018,
Connecting Chorlton, Fallowfield & Whalley Range
Promoting Cross Sector Neighbourhood Working.
It is intended that this can be used as a resource for people who might want to run similar events and gives details of how the event was initiated and run, and what came out of it on the day and from the action points .
e.g. the development of ward based cross sector groups, new health and wellbeing activities, the continuation of networking lunches, and the establishment of a Self Care and Social Prescribing forum.
The resource includes contact details and links to useful websites.
Click below to read the Report:
Connecting Chorlton Fallowfield Whalley Range Report February 2019 – reduced
PRESS RELEASE: Whalley Range recognised as age-friendly by Mayor of Greater Manchester
Whalley Range has been officially recognised as an age-friendly neighbourhood by the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham.
The Mayor announced the winners of his Age-Friendly Challenge during Greater Manchester “Doing Ageing Differently†conference.
Held, in February 2019, the event brought together over 300 key figures in ageing from across the country.
Whalley Range was one of 32 areas from across Greater Manchester to be recognised by the award scheme designed to showcase the best places to grow older in the city-region.
Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester said:
“I launched this challenge last year to unearth the positive work I know is going on in Greater Manchester, to find practical examples of what age-friendly really means, and to share best practice across the city-region.
The response to this challenge has been fantastic. The variety of age-friendly work displayed from all our winners clearly shows the commitment from our local communities to make sure that people in Greater Manchester are living not just longer, but happier and healthier too.â€
Chris Ricard from Age-friendly Whalley Range/Whalley Range Community Forum who applied on behalf of the area said:
“We are thrilled to hear the news that Whalley Range has been recognised as an age-friendly neighbourhood for 2019!
We will be celebrating this award with groups and residents of all ages as a neighbourhood committed to working towards making Whalley Range a great place to grow older.â€
The award recognises the hard work that organisations and older people in Whalley Range have carried out to make their area a great place to grow older.
An age-friendly neighbourhood is a place where: residents are committed to looking out for each other, older people feel they can have a say in what going on in their local area, and there are spaces where people can get together.
The award also showed that Whalley Range is committed to helping older people feel: independent, safe and secure, and informed about what is going on in their local area.
Submissions to Mayor Age-Friendly Challenge were reviewed by an expert panel chaired by Prof. Chris Phillipson from MICRA at The University of Manchester. Other panellists included representatives from Greater Manchester Older People Network, Ambition for Ageing, and the Centre for Ageing Better.
Notes to editors
Greater Manchester is the UK first age-friendly city region, as recognised by the World Health Organization.
The Mayor Age-Friendly Challenge represents a commitment to shape a city-region that recognises the contribution older people make and the value in keeping all residents socially, physically and economically active for longer.
The challenge was launched by Andy Burnham during Greater Manchester Festival of Ageing in July 2018, where he called for the voluntary and community sector, public services, and older people groups to submit their best age-friendly schemes and help deliver more age-friendly neighbourhoods across Greater Manchester.
The Mayor Age-Friendly Challenge was delivered by Ambition for Ageing on behalf of Greater Manchester Combined Authority Ageing Hub which works to improve older people quality of life in Greater Manchester, addressing the challenges and embracing the opportunities the UK is facing in response to a rapidly growing older population.
www.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/agefriendlygm
Age-friendly neighbourhood information from Ambition for Ageing report Building
Age-Friendly Neighbourhoods in Greater Manchester.
https://ambitionforageing.org.uk/neighbourhoods
Whalley Range Climate Action Group
We are a group of local residents who are starting a local climate change action group. Climate change is a huge threat to us and the planet. Although it is easy to despair, we can make a difference by working with others for change and we want to do this in our area.
This new group will work to support each other to make positive changes to our lives and community and to act for change. Members will decide what we do and can get involved in as much or as little as you like – ideas so far include learning sessions, supporting each other, climate campaigning, and linking with other groups in and beyond the area.
We are hoping to build a supportive group that meets locally to share ideas and strategies and organise activities and campaigns. Everybody is very welcome to join no matter what your current level of knowledge. You are invited to contribute your skills and energy to build a self sustaining, learning, active group.
Come to our meetings from 11-1pm at the JNR8 Youth and Community Centre 82 Cromwell Avenue Whalley Range M16 0BG.
There is the option to eat lunch together afterwards, please bring your own veggie food. For more info see the Whalley Rangers Facebook Group, Twitter @RangeAction or contact climateaction@whalleyrangers.org