Hi there! Thanks for visiting my blog which I hope will give you all the information you need about Old Swan and its surrounding areas.
Being a resident in Broadgreen myself, I know this area has a very active community and a lively high street full of pubs, restaurants and shops. But what I really love about this area is the people who live here and all our diverse backgrounds and nationalities living and working together.
I will definitely be keeping a close eye on all the latest up and coming events whether it be local groups, schools, churches or leisure facilities.
I should also mention that I am currently a postgraduate student in radio and on line journalism and so I will be using my investigative skills to take a closer look at issues which affect us all living in this area.
Sometimes my investigations may be based on wider stories but I will always try and get a local perspective of this. If you have any suggestions about issues or events I should cover please write them in the comments box below. Thank You Charlene x
Bullying in schools remains to be a problem in Britain as recent research undertaken by the Anti-Bullying Alliance found that 1 in 4 children are verbally bullied with the majority of these children being bullied in school.
I think that most people including myself have had some sort of experience of bullying whether they have been bullied, have bullied themselves or as a bystander. Some people go so far to say that it is merely part of human nature and will never go away. Nevertheless victims describe feelings of isolation and intimidation and research published by the DFE (Department for Education) shows that many children suffer long term psychological damage from bullying. Its findings also suggest that bullying can be associated with lower achievement in schools and 15% of children who said they had been bullied had self harmed.
Research carried out by a leading anti bullying charity Beat Bullying suggests that 44% of suicides of children between the ages of 10 – 14 living in the UK are linked to bullying.
These figures show just how much of a problem bullying is in the UK which is why councils, schools and various organisations work together to continually strive to combat bullying. They endeavour to make it easier for victims to seek help, educate bystanders to offer help effectively and by raising awareness to pupils that bullying is unacceptable.
Unfortunately this is not always the case and there are many cases where schools have been accused of being in denial that any bullying goes on in their school. Because of this complaints from victims and parents are often ignored.
"Over the past 20 years some schools have adopted a 'No Blame' approach, in which the teacher who intervenes in the bullying avoids blaming anyone for the problem, based on the assumption the bullies themselves actually want the bullying to stop, rather than getting them to face up to - and accept - the consequences of their wrongdoings to other children." Quote taken from a Kidscape Charitypress release.
As research suggests that most bullying with children occurs in school, it is also important that all schools adopt anti bullying policies and make sure that teachers identify problems and react effectively.
Here is a package I produced about the effects of bullying and what Liverpool city council, schools and organisations are doing to tackle the problem.
Cyber Bullying
With young people becoming accustomed to the everyday use of modern technology and social media growing there has been an inevitable rise in cyber bullying.
Cyber bullying describes a type of bullying which occurs via the internet or mobile phone
Recent research conducted by the Anglia Ruskin University found that nearly one in five youngsters in the UK have been subjected to cyber bullying.
Unlike bullying in schools it is hard to get away from cyber bullying as a young person could be getting messages sent to their phone or computer at home. Therefore victims can be extremely isolated and unable to turn to anybody for help.
Last year a teenage boy from Birmingham Tom Mullaney commited suicide after he endured a barrage of insults and threats via social networking site Facebook. Since his death Tom's parents have campaigned to bring in laws in order to make cyber bullying illegal.
Toms father said "We need a starting block. A piece of legislation saying cyber bullying is an illegal act. Kids don't understand what they do on Facebook has consequences. In our case I lost my son."
As cyber bullying is not covered in my package I have included extended versions of three interviews in which interviewees talk about cyber bullying. Here the interviewees talk about the problems of cyber bullying.
Kayte Eaton is the co - ordinator of Liverpool charity Bullybusters. She talks about the increase of cyber bullying and its effects.
Peter Banks runs Broadgreen International Schools anti bullying strategies. He talks about how the school is trying to combat cyber bullying
MarkFitzsimons is the lead councillor for Liverpool City Council's anti bullying scheme. He talks about what the council are doing to tackle bullying and gives advice for victims and parents.
Here are some contacts for help and advice about bullying:-
Bullybusters Free Helpline - 0800 169 6928
Kidscape Parents Anti Bullying Helpline - 08451205 204
A few months ago I went to 'The Breakfast Lounge', a new cafe which has opened on Broadgreen Road near to Old Swan. I visited the cafe a few days after its opening and at the time it was thriving with schools children, work friends and other local residents.
Last week I revisited the cafe lounge and it seems to have gone from strength to strength. The beautifully decorated establishment with its four tables seating sixteen people is heaving with people of all ages and backgrounds sitting at tables or ordering food to take out.
The food served is made on sight and also offers freshly ground coffee. It also has an array of deals which can make it cost effective for any customer.
Its is evident that the cafe lounge is the hub of local activity catering for the constant flow of people. These people include parents and children from the three local schools off Broadgreen road, workers and residents from the old peoples home opposite and not to mention people who may be on route to the M62 which begins at the bottom of Broadgreen Road or in the opposite direction to Old Swan shopping district.
The lively cafe has changed the face of Broadgreen Road which since the closure of its local pub and butty bar was quiet and subdued. I think that this could only be a good thing as it is known that communities can diminish after losing local establishment were residents can meet and socialise.
Now this is a place where people in the area can go for a ‘cuppa’ or ‘breckie’ without having to go to Old Swan shopping district. Here you will always see a familiar face and have a quick catch up with friends and neighbours.
The owner of the cafe Matty is also a local himself and the owner of the convenience store next door. He now also works full time in the cafe and is always very welcoming. He is well known in the community and a very familiar face as he will often take the time to stop and chat to his customers. Lately he does not have as much time since the arrival of his baby girl three months ago and of course juggling the shop and cafe.
Unfortunate Matty was not available to talk to me (which is understandable) but I did have a good chat with the girls working in the cafe. They are also local residents and are delighted to work in The Urban Lounge. They told me about the locals who use the cafe as a meeting place mid afternoon when the cafe is quiet this includes a mothers anti natal group who get together with their babies once a week.
I spoke to Jackie one of the girls who works in the cafe. She talks about what the Urban Lounge offers to offer.
Me at Hope University's Radio Station 'Radio Hope'
As I have mentioned before I am a student at Liverpool Hope University studying for a postgraduate degree in Radio and On Line Journalism. The course is part time and I attend one day a week.
In December I finished the first year of my course and I am now starting my second year. At the end of December from the 12th – 15th I underwent a week long assessment on which I had to produce and present four half hour current affairs radio shows along with my work partner Paul. The shows were broadcast live on the University’s radio station ‘Radio Hope’ (1350 Medium Wave/am)
During our shows we alternated between the roles of presenting the programme and operating the recording desk. As the programmes were speech based, presenting was quite a significant task as it was my role to engage with the listener, build rapport with interviewees and keep upbeat throughout. As presenter I also had to write the programme menu and links.
In order to meet the assessment guidelines we needed to have various items in each show. These included conducting two way interviews with presenter and a news correspondent, usually based on a story from that day and a five minute interview conducted with a newsworthy interviewee and sourced by either myself or my work partnerl. We also had to include a radio package about our own chosen subject which we had begun a few weeks earlier. Although we could choose the subject the story had to be up to date and relevant during news week. The package had to be five minutes long and include at least three interviews
As well as organising and planning or own shows we had to take on various roles for other students programmes. These roles included acting as a news correspondent being interviewed about a story from that day, a phone correspondent covering any given news story and lasting four minutes and presenting a four minute news bulletin containing news sport and weather.
It can’t be done! I hear you say....well as you can imagine this was a very hectic week with a jam packed schedule and I must hasten to add that it went right up to the week before Christmas so no one got any cards this year! But luckily me and my partner jelled really well and planning the shows was not difficult as we first though. We were successful in that each of our shows included all of the various items required and I stepped up to the mark when taking on the my roles with other groups. With a lot of hard work and planning I think I just about pulled it off.
I’ll let you be the judge of this as here I have added a pod cast of what I believe are the best bits from the assessment week. I hope you enjoy it!
Nazene Danielle Dance Dynamix is a dance school and college in Liverpool Old Swan. It was set up by choreographer and dancer Nazene Langfield and last year celebrated its 10th Anniversary.
I spoke to Nazene about her dance school and the success it has had over the years. She revealed to me that one of the schools lyrical dance acts comprised of two dancers Taylor and Elliot are currently through to the semi finals of Sky1's Got to Dance.
Nazene’s dance school is no stranger to the reality TV dance competition which judges include ‘Pussy Cat Dolls’ Kimberly Wyatt and Dance group ‘Diversity’s’ lead choreographer Ashley Banjo, as one of the schools acts Dance Dynamix has appeared on the show before.
Dance Dinamix, is a group of 12 dancers including Nazene who have been entered into the television series for the last two years on the run. In the first year they made it to the semi finals and last year they came back even better making it down to the last eight groups to reach the finals. They beat thousands of hopefuls who auditioned but in the end Dance Dynamix were beaten by hip-hop duo Chris & Wes.
Dance Dynamix at 'Got to Dance Studios'
Watch Dance Dynamix in the semi finals of Sky1's 'Got to Dance'
During the run up to the competition the whole of Liverpool got behind the dance troupe. I myself can remember getting caught up in the excitement and watching intently as the group performed on television. To help drum up more support (as if they needed it) they performed in Liverpool City Centre, appeared in the Liverpool Echo Newspaper and gave interviews for BBC Radio Merseyside. Since being involved in the programme the dance school have been inundated with requests to perform. Speaking to Nazene she is very down to earth and despite not winning the competition Nazene is up beat about making it to the finals which were held in London's Olympia venue. She is delighted with the exposure her dance group has received as a result.
I asked Nazene what the secret of her success was. She told me that as she had been dancing from a very early age it was all she knew. Her pure determination and passion for dance meant that at the age of seventeen, Nazene went from starting her own group with friends and family in her local hall to teaching up to a hundred and fifty students, having three dance studios and a gym. Her dance school offers classes in various styles of dance and for students from the age of two onwards
Students of the dance school and college are trained following the ISTD (The Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing) syllabus and are regularly entered for examinations. The ISTD is one of the world’s leading dance examinations boards.
Nazene Danielle Dance Dynamix has many other dance acts which are regularly entered into competitions and events. Just recently one of Nazene’s dance acts performed in a film due to be released next year and another act performed in an advert for Kinect XBOX.
Amongst other events and competitions Nazene is now looking forward to seeing Taylor and Elliot perform in the next series of Got to Dance on Sky1. Their first performance is on the 29th Jan and Nazene urges the people to tune into the show and vote for the duo.
Here is the full interview I had with Nazene.
If you would like to find out more about Nazene Danielle Dance Dynamix please contact:-
