June/July 2015 Edition

FREE Isleworth, Brentford, Osterley & Chiswick

JUNE-JULY 2015

A First Class Service with Class1 Personnel

Moving Cities

Dancing on the streets of Chiswick

Business Matters

with Hounslow Chamber of Commerce

Summer Running, Local History, An Afternoon Tea with Hen Corner, Culinary Delights at The Royal Oak, Excellence at Le Vacherin

SEE PAGE 15 FOR YOUR

20% OFF VOUCHER TO ENJOY A MEAL AT THE ROYAL OAK, ISLEWORTH With a beautifully refurbished bar, dining room & riverside terrace, the Royal Oak is a hidden gem in Isleworth & the perfect place to relax over a meal or a leisurely drink.

Delicious Menu using fresh ingredients sourced locally where possible.

Rooms & areas available for Meetings, Parties & Private Dinners.

Great range of Fuller’s & guest ales, craft beers & quality wines.

General Knowledge Quiz every Sunday at 8pm.

A fun way to end the week.

The Royal Oak, 128 Worton Road, Isleworth TW7 6EP | 020 8560 2906 theroyaloakisleworth@btconnect.com

theroyaloakisleworth

royaloakisleworth.co.uk

CONTENTS EDITORIAL & DESIGN Editor Nisia Studzinska editorial@outandaboutmag.co.uk Design Nine8Nine

Regulars

Guest Writer

Sharon F Jones on Change Hen Corner

Strawberries and Afternoon Tea Control by Rachael Dunlop Kingfisher Days by Anne-Marie Fyfe Book of the Month

ADVERTISING SALES

Business Matters

PUBLISHER FHW Events & Marketing Ltd 1 Times Square, Sutton, Surrey SM1 1LF www.fhwem.com Tel: 020 8770 3177 Directors Ross Feeney ross@fhwem.com Isabella Harding isabella@fhwem.com Teresa Whitfield teresa@fhwem.com

HOUNSLOW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE Chief Operating Officer Sally Smith London Borough of Hounslow Chamber of Commerce Ltd Spring Grove House, West Thames College London Road, Isleworth, TW1 4HS sallysmith@hounslowchamber.org.uk Tel: 020 8326 6416 Published by: FHW Events & Marketing Printed by Direct Colour ©2015 FHW & out&about magazine.

While we endeavour to make sure that all published information is accurate, the publishers cannot be held responsible for mistakes or omissions or any loss resulting from non-publication of an advertisement. While all reasonable care is made to ensure accuracy of information, the publisher accepts no responsibility for the views or claims made by any of the contributors, advertising or editorial content included.

All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited. The views expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of ‘out&about’ or the editor. Terms and conditions apply. Please recycle your magazine.

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Words

Print & Production Teresa Whitfield teresa@fhwem.com

Head of Sales Claire Eccleshall claire@fhwem.com

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SJI Holiday on Black Wood Local History

Linda Lingham Taylor on Courtly Frolicking Hounslow Chamber of Commerce

16 17 20 30

Features Local Artists

Discover local art on your doorstep On the Move

With Embassy Executive Cars A First Class Service

Class1 Personnel recruits the very best Get Ready for Summer

Medical Herbalism here to help Local Charity

Wins Commitment to the Community Award Dancing on the Streets of London

With filmmaker Jeevan Chowdhury An Author’s Achievement

Cllr Shaida B Mehrban on writing Hounslow Business Awards

Could It Be You?

6 8 9 10 11 18 24 26

Life’s A Dream

On the water with Aqua Therapy Marine Charters 29

Food A Taste of France in Chiswick

Affordable Fine Dining at Le Vacherin Culinary Delights

At the Royal Oak in Isleworth

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Sport The Ealing Half Marathon

Sandra Courtney gets running

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Class 1 Personnel has built a solid relationship with a wide cross section of the business community from multinational to family-run business. We have become stronger in our industry and are now corporate members of REC, ALP and hold a Gang Master licence and are ISO accredited. www.class1personnel.com Class 1 Industrial

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Head Office 1 High Street, Hounslow, TW3 1RH Tel: 020 8570 1514 Email: info@class1personnel.com

Contact Rob Harris FIH - Sales Director Tel: 020 8569 5055 Mobile: 07513 605048 Email: robh@class1personnel.com

GLA Licensed. REC Audited and Members of the ALP

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LOCAL NEWS

Change Children’s Story writer and blogger Sharon F Jones, shares with out&about A change is as good as a rest goes the old adage, but equally it can be a bit daunting. Last year, I decided to follow my passion and stepped out of my comfort zone by signing up to a year-long children’s writing course at City Lit in central London. I hadn’t studied since I had left university (a VERY long time ago) and wondered how I would manage the homework on top of a day job, a young family and washing the cat. Six months’ later it turns out, it’s been one of the best things I’ve done in a long time. It’s refreshed my brain, motivated me to pursue this ambition and I’ve met some really interesting people along the way. I wish I had done this, years ago! I figured it’s all about taking that leap of faith - something we can all lose sight of as the dreams we harbour are buried under the mountain of washing, or at the bottom of our ‘ To Do’ list.

A great book I’ve recently Jones read, aimed at young Sharon F women, which deals in part with change is ‘True Face’ by Siobhan Curham. It’s all about going out into the world being your ‘true self ’, which is no mean feat where teens are under the cosh with pressure from peers and social media. This practical guide, helps to navigate those tricky waters during those years of immense change and Curham’s positive but honest stance shines like a beacon without being twee. A definite must-have.

www.sharonfjones.com @sharonfjones

Local Art in the Summer Months Sandra Beccarelli invites you to her house When was the last time a complete stranger or neighbour invited you into their home, offered you a drink and talked about art? Well, that is precisely what ARThouse Open studios are about. It is an opportunity to enter the creative and informal environments in which artists’ work, away from the impersonal and sometimes off- putting gallery spaces.

It is a unique experience. ‘Finished pieces’ may hang on the wall alongside works in progress. Sketches, drawings, dirty palettes and brushes can be seen as visible evidence of the artist’s mind at work and play! It is also special and unique to be able to chat with the artist about their ideas, your ideas and the community you both share.

Last year, I opened the doors of my home and studio in Isleworth to the public as part of Richmond Borough’s “ARThouse Open Studios” a yearly event which takes place the last weekend in June and the first weekend in July. It was a rewarding experience. With

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banners and bunting hanging outside, there was a distinctly celebratory feel. My neighbour and painter, Ewa Czarniecka, also took part. Visitors were able to go from house to house, some popping in on their walk to Osterley Park, while others were visiting a variety of artists they had selected from the official ARThouse Open Studio brochure. It’s a great way to spend a summery weekend, somewhere local, supporting all that creativity.

Cover Image Our beautiful cover photo of Chiswick Bridge and the River Thames has been supplied by Alastair Hilton, Chiswick resident © Alastair Hilton

EDITORS LETTER Progress is impossible without change and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.

George Bernard Shaw

There is change in the air, and not just seasonal change.

Nisia If you are reading this issue of out&about then you may have noticed, that it’s a little bigger and looking as great as ever. We are back in full swing and embracing the change that the magazine has undergone. We have a new publisher, FHW who are wonderfully committed to bringing the best of our neighbourhood to our front doors and without whom, out&about would have been unable to continue connecting the community. There are now more pages to read and more opportunities for residents and businesses to get involved. Teresa Whitfield, Director of FHW, is very excited by this new venture and has a message to all our readers, “ out&about is a brilliant publication, and I cannot wait to see it grow along with our readers, who make the magazine what it is today.”

EDITORS TIPS The outstanding vocal quartet LYRA, from St Petersbug will be returning to Isleworth on the 5th June at All Saint’s Church, by the river. If you would like to know more about other concerts, email pippy@onestage.co.uk to be placed on the mailing list.

Don’t miss the Artists at Home 2015 in Chiswick on the 19-21th June and ARThouse Open Studios the last weekend in June and the first weekend in July, local artists from Isleworth will also feature in this Arts event. Contact beccarelli_sandra@hotmail.com Bell Square is a new outdoor arts space in the heart of Hounslow, situated at the end of Hounslow High Street.

Outdoor performances are every other Saturday and featuring anything from circus to dance acrobats. Great family event!

Check out ‘Building Bridges’, a new community coffee morning meeting in the heart of Brentford at ‘The Lounge’ which is just off Brentford High Street in the Market Building, Thursdays 10.30 am-12.00pm

The news does not stop there. out&about is also in collaboration with the Hounslow Chamber of Commerce, which means that our readers will get a chance to engage with the local business community in the borough. Our partnership is a great opportunity for local businesses to receive the exposure and recognition, which they deserve.

Stephen Fry CEO of the Chamber adds, “ The Hounslow Chamber of Commerce is all about supporting the local community and out&about is a brilliant outlet for this.

Exciting times lay ahead as we join visions to represent the voices in our neighbourhoods.”

As I write this letter, the start of summer has began and I have returned from a camping weekend with the family.

There is nothing like the dance of a real camp fire, the feral country air, the shouting of children as they run wild or the gentle rain drops on a tent, which encourages us to look at things differently. Perhaps make small changes within our own lives. Try something new, change something old, seek new beginnings in the little things that matter. I am looking ahead to a fantastic year with FHW and the Hounslow Chamber of Commerce, who have sought the change to take out&about forward, celebrate the area we live in, and inspire the community around us.

Here is to a great new chapter with out&about.

Nisia editorial@outandaboutmag.co.uk

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LOCAL BUSINESS

On the Move Manoj Teji Owner and Director of Embassy Executive Cars talks to out&about How did the idea for ‘Embassy Executive Cars’ develop?

Looking around the Local areas and seeing all the new office developments and there was scope to provide and ensure the passenger gets a seamless, professional, reliable and cost effective mode of transport. So I began Embassy Executive Cars to fulfill my goals.

What do you like about West London?

West London is a great location; it’s both convenient for London’s busy Heathrow Airport and the west end.

Everywhere is accessible within a short time-scale.

What kind of service can we expect?

Embassy Executive Cars provide excellent transport solutions. We specialize in corporate passengers and the local community. We also sponsor local events. In June we are sponsoring the VIP area at C Festival in Chiswick Business Park.

What do you love about your job?

I love knowing that I deliver my passengers safely and that they can trust our service. I enjoy meeting different people and no day is the same!

Most of our work comes from recommendations, this makes the job worth while.

Contact us: 0800 652 0711 www.embassyexecutivecars.com

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LOCAL BUSINESS

A First Class Service with Class1 Personnel If your business needs reliable staff at short notice then Class1 Personnel lends an experienced hand

“All of our experienced tradesman come from a professional background and we strive continuously for 100% customer satisfaction” says Daniel. EasyFix have built a property portfolio of 22 houses and appeared on the BBC Program, “Homes under the Hammer” twice. It is a fantastic achievement for a Hounslow based company.

Class1Personnel was founded in 1999, in Hounslow.

Focusing on recruiting top quality staff for a host of companies across sectors. At the time, few companies were offering a high quality service like Class1. Daniel MacAuliffe, the Managing Director, saw this opportunity and launched his very first company. Class1Personnel now supply temporary labour to over 300 clients across London.

For Daniel, its success is simple, “We have been sourcing quality staff for employers at competitive rates, often at short notice and regardless of scale. We like making things easy for our clients, we offer experience and expertise across various sectors all under one roof.”

Daniel has not stopped there; he has since launched two more companies in staffing solutions, RE Hospitality and We Are Talent. In the construction sector, besides Easy Fix, Daniel is also CEO of Sedum Supplies and Wild About Roofs, winners of two awards at Hounslow Business Awards 2014 and nominated for a further two awards. Adding yet another string to his bow, Daniel has recently been appointed Director of “Project London Production,” a film company that introduces the latest Polish productions to British cinema. This year, Class1Personnel is sponsoring the Hounslow Business Awards and will also be entering the awards for the first time.

Rob Harris, Sales Director for Class1, highlights the variety of businesses that Class1 support, “Both private and public sector companies, local government, NHS, transport and logistics business’s and many of Heathrow Airports major cargo/freight companies. Our Hospitality sector is working with a number of large hotel groups such as Marriot and Hilton. It’s temporary recruitment on an on-going basis where clients have a gap or they utilise temporary labour as a back-fill.” All staff provided by Class1 follow a strict guideline; all candidates are interviewed, fully vetted and receive in-house training that complies with legal obligations surrounding their area of work, “Our consultants are available 24/7 to meet client’s needs efficiently and ensure excellent communication between clients and workers”, says Daniel MacAuliffe, adding proudly, “The loyalty of our clients and workers has enabled amazing company growth over the past 15 years.”

After 10 years of success with Class1, Daniel started Easy Fix – Property Maintenance, now a leading London Property Maintenance & Management service,

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LOCAL BUSINESS

Feeling sluggish?

Medical Herbalist, Judyta Zyrek says it’s time for a Nettle and Dandelion tonic Winter is over and we have finally entered into full summer.

After so many months of darkness and lack of nutrients, you may feel a bit drained, tired and sluggish but do not fear, a simple tonic can rescue us from experiencing those worn-out moments.

The idea of using tonics after the winter blues came from our ancestors. They didn’t have access to fresh food after winter, so to improve their health and obtain essential nutrients; they used young edible plants in their diet such as nettles and dandelions. The health benefits of these spring plants are enormous.

Nettle (Urtica dioica) is a fairly common plant and much undervalued from a culinary and health perspective. Nettle is rich in vitamin A, B6, C, calcium, magnesium, iron and boron which not only helps support your healthy bones, hair and nails but may also help you with anemia and fatigue due to the iron and vitamin C content. Studies have also suggests that nettle may help with arthritic pains due to elimination of uric acid from joints, prostate enlargement (root), anti asthmatic and anti allergenic (reducing histamine release) as well as antilithic (preventing kidney stones).

If you would like to enjoy the full benefits of the nettle plant, you should harvest only the young shoots and when planting wearing suitable gloves as they really do sting! After collecting your nettle, you can make a nettle soup, cordial, pesto, dry it for a tea or make hair tonic; the possibilities are endless. Additionally, you can use nettles to make plant

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fertilizer for your garden.

Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is better known as an obnoxious weed rather than medicinal plant which is much underestimated. The root of Dandelion is used in Herbal medicine to support the liver, increase bile production, stimulate glucose secretion, help with dyspepsia, constipation, to increase stomach acid secretion, aiding in hormone production and clearing up congested skin whereas the leaf is used as safe diuretic in cases of oedema as it naturally contains sodium and potassium. The leaf also contains Vitamin A, C, B-12, B6, calcium and vitamin D. While tender fresh dandelion leaves can be easily added to salads or dried as a tea, the root can make a fantastic substitute for coffee and the flower can be made into dandelion honey. This is the perfect time for cleansing your body in preparation for the summer months. So enjoy drinking or eating these plants and notice the difference and impact they make on you.

LOCAL CHARITY NEWS

A Commitment to the Community

Belinda Canosa, Fundraising Manager for INS explains the importance of this charity Integrated Neurological Services (INS) is a local charity working across Hounslow and Richmond to support people with long- term conditions like Parkinson’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis or those who have suffered a stroke. Our aim is to help people to remain independent, achieve the best possible quality of life and enable them to play an active part in their local community.

INS was started in 1993 by an innovative physiotherapist who saw that NHS and community services were very limited for people coping with these neurological conditions. These people receive excellent initial support from the NHS but then need ongoing professional rehabilitation and support to help them cope with their conditions and live life to the full. INS was established to deliver this support for as long as it is needed, often until the end of life.

We provide ongoing rehabilitation and support for our neurological clients through therapy and education, together with practical self-help techniques and solutions, tailored to their individual needs. Family carers are also offered support, advice and training to help them fulfil their caring role and look after themselves. Our services are delivered by specialist physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists, social workers, community support workers and rehabilitation assistants, supported by over 80 dedicated volunteers.

Working with Hounslow Council and the CCG (Clinical Commissioning Group) we have just established the Hounslow Community Partnership, based at the Treaty Centre, to provide a range of services for people with longterm condition, not just neurological, and for all Carers.

The partnership includes other local charities such as the Alzheimer’s Society, Mencap, Richmond AID and the West London BMER Network. We help people and families to navigate their way through the complex world of statutory and community services and make sure that they can access the health care they need and the services and support that will help them to remain in control of their lives. We also provide training, support and advice for Carers. Together we are now helping around 1,000 Hounslow residents to achieve a better quality of life.

Winning the Hounslow Business Award for best commitment to the community was a wonderful recognition. We very much welcome the chance this award has given us to bring our name to many more local people who might benefit from our support. If we could help you or someone you know, contact us on 0203 693 4003, or email Advice@cp-hounslow.org.uk, website www.cp-hounslow.

As a charity we rely quite heavily on public donations and volunteer support. If you are able to support INS in any way please do get in touch. www.ins.org.uk

Maximising health and wellbeing INS Registered Charity No. 1107273

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LOCAL BUSINESS

Excellence at Le Vacherin Chef Malcolm John welcomes you to Le Vacherin, a traditional French bistro restaurant, in the heart of West London in Chiswick Born in St Vincent, renowned Chef, Malcolm John came to England aged four and settled in Coventry with his family.

After leaving catering college at the age of 18, Malcolm moved straight to London where he trained with the Savoy Group at The Berkeley Hotel Knightsbridge for six years.

Malcolm temporarily moved to Italy to work at the Sirenous Hotel, Positano.

The classic, fine dining French menu showcases the best seasonal produce, which change throughout the year apart from the popular trademark dish the restaurant is named after: a ‘French cheese’ that stays in season between September and March. The cheese is usually served on a big sharing dish, with Bayonne ham, remoulade, brown bread, pickles and is covered by a layer of almonds and black truffle.

Le Vacherin has gone from strength to strength, becoming one of the best-loved neighbourhood French bistro to the residents and workers of Chiswick. It has outlived many other restaurants because it offers traditional French recipes, Malcom John says, “At times, cooking simple traditional recipes requires difficult and dedicated skills. Here at Le Vacherin we select the freshest ingredients, Le Vacherin is a combination of passionate cooking and affordable fine dining.”

On returning to London in early 1990’s Malcolm noticed that there was a gap in the market for an informal, inexpensive French bistro but the time wasn’t right to go out on his own. Between 1995 and 1997 he worked as Executive Sous Chef at the Café Royal alongside Herbert Berger and then as Head Chef at St Quentin, Knightsbridge, before moving to Terrance Conran’s Blue Bird Private Members Club, for two years in the same role.

The front of the house service goes to great lengths at making every customer feel important, “All customers are VIP,” says John Malcolm. “ We want to create an experience for the customer and so you will also find carving Chateaubriand at the tables, filleting fishes in front of the customers, decanting wines on request.”

Malcolm John opened the doors to his first venture in French cooking; Le Vacherin in Chiswick in 2004. In the same year, Le Vacherin was nominated for Best Newcomer awards in the Harpers & Queen and Tattler magazines and was awarded an Egon Ronay star in November 2005. In 2014, Le Vacherin was nominated the 4th best French bistro in London, and currently holds 2 AA rosettes, is Michelin rated with two forks and spoons.

Le Vacherin can hold private parties up to 60 covers, offering tailored menus for all budgets. The best value for money deal in Chiswick by far are the lunch and Sunday roast offer deals: 3 courses for £25, “ No other restaurant at our level can do the same,” explains Chef Malcolm John, “During the week there are offers like the steak and frites for £11.95 or the whole Lobster and frites at £25, that allows occasional diners to experience the fine dining feel.” And if that isn’t enough, Malcolm John invites you to pop in and share some tips on how to cook the perfect steak.

www.levacherin.com T: 020 8742 2121

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LOCAL BUSINESS

Summer Strawberries AND Afternoon Tea Catching up with Sara Ward at Hen Corner Isn’t sunshine wonderful? As it touches our skin it seems to feed our soul, bringing longer days, laughter and a fresh hope for all that’s ahead.

Every year I’m learning more about the seasons, anticipating what’s to come and studying the weather forecasts. We try to produce as much of our own food as possible here at Hen Corner in Brentford; last year was so warm that we saw bumper harvests of honey, delicious peaches and a great crop of almonds from our tree. The downside was that all our apples ripened and dropped early whilst we were on holiday, unable to be saved for cider making, and the pesky squirrels nicked all our nuts whilst we were away in France. This year I’m building a cage around the tree!

We’ve been told that this last winter was the sunniest ever on record, yet the spring flowers and tree blossom seemed a few weeks late this year. Whether this will affect the autumn harvest dates will probably depend on rain fall and temperatures from now on, so far we’ve been told to expect warm and sunny – perfect!

In the kitchen garden, we’ve replaced the rotten wood of the raised beds with recycled plastic planks, I like the thought of growing vegetables in beds made from recycled milk bottles, we’ve planted up a new run of strawberry plants and have created large net cloches to protect the plants from the chickens whilst they are free ranging.

I don’t expect to have enough strawberries for jam this year, so I’m off to a pick your own farm to find fresh strawberries for one of our new courses coming up. As usual, we make our chutneys in September and marmalade in January, but

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for delicious strawberry jam, we have to get busy in June and July. Whilst the strawberry jam is bubbling to the perfect set we will roll up our sleeves to bake hand-made scones together. Our time will finish with afternoon tea and each guest goes home with a goodie bag including recipe sheets, pot of jam and the scones that they have made. If you fancy joining us on the course then put the 9th June and 14th July in your diary.

We’ve developed a whole new series of courses based in either our new kitchen or garden, families can look out for all ages sessions during school holidays, helping us all understand more about where our food comes from and learning how we can start to turn our urban corner green.

www.HenCorner.com

LOCAL BUSINESS

Local Culinary Delights The changes keep on coming says Rob Kemp of The Royal Oak in Isleworth The popular pub beside the Duke of Northumberland’s river, The Royal Oak, has launched its new summer menu and out&about were granted a sneak preview, alongside a lucky select band of regulars. The summer menu changes are the latest in a great number of improvements that have dramatically changed the look and feel of The Royal Oak under new licensees Simon and Adrianne Mead.

The overhaul has given the Royal Oak a brighter, more welcoming feel. The new Duke’s Room dining area Is a fabulous, scenic spot at which to meet and eat, while the themed annexes of The Studio and The Snug, stylishly acknowledge the local traditions of movie-making and rugby, the pub is a just minutes from Twickenham Stadium.

From the response of regulars and online reviews via Trip Advisor the ‘new look’ Royal Oak really appears to have hit the spot. At a time when the pub industry news features too many ‘closing time’ stories, it’s refreshing to see how hard work and innovation have revived the fortunes of this venue.

But Simon and Adrianne and their attentive staff aren’t resting on their laurels. The Royal Oak now features a Daily

Dining Menu with Classic Mains such as homemade burgers and locally sourced pies and fish, all at around £11 or under.

At our sneak preview, the Ploughman’s Plate from the new Sandwiches & Wraps menu was very well received.

These lighter choices are available from 12 noon to 5pm and include a tasty selection of sandwiches made with local bakery bread with hot or cold fillings. But it’s on the Daily Dining Menu that the move to gastro pub is most noticeable. Starters, salads and mains show a leaning to British traditional recipes with a nod to a Mediterranean influence. The baked fillet of cod on crushed new potatoes with mussel and lemon butter sauce proved incredibly popular at the tasting, as did the sundried tomato, spinach and pesto gnocchi which was even a winner amongst the hardened carnivores.

There was high praise too for the marinated lamb rump on sweet potato mash and both the seafood & chorizo risotto and the chocolate desserts received plaudits from the tasters too. The food not only tastes good but it is also beautifully presented, for example the grilled halloumi, aubergine and pomegranate super salad would not look out of place on a Masterchef table. If you do go for a meal, be sure to book in advance, particularly for weekend lunches, it can prove very difficult to get a table at this fantastically located riverside pub.

20% OFF YOUR FOOD BILL WHEN DINING WITH US

Please bring this filled in voucher with you and hand to your server so we can keep you informed of future offers.

NAME

EMAIL

DOB 128 Worton Road Isleworth TW7 6EP 020 8560 2906

T&Cs: 20% off offer applies to meals only, not to any drink purchases. Offer excludes dishes from our Sandwich & Kids Menus. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other meal offer. No photocopies accepted. Only one voucher per transaction. This voucher holds no monetary value. Valid Monday to Saturday for pre-booked tables until 31.08.15

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GUEST WRITER

Control A short story by Rachael Dunlop

Four brooms in a line, hanging from hooks. New brooms, with blue nylon bristles and yellow, metal handles. Not what I had expected to see in my new friend’s kitchen. Perhaps it’s art. A broom in a gallery might be art, but a broom in a kitchen is just a broom.

‘Tea?’ she asks. That’s how we met – sipping scalding tea from polystyrene cups at the playground. Our kids are the same age, but it was a distrust of hot liquids in friable plastic that was our common ground.

She swirls hot water in a china teapot. I haven’t seen tea made properly since Mum died. Mum’s broom was old, bristles worn to a nub, wooden handle smooth and moulded to her vigorous grip over the years. That handle was like an extension of her arm.

My new friend sets a timer for the tea and warms the cups.

Our kids are playing on the spotless floor. If this was my house, they’d be covered in cat hairs and cornflakes, playing an improvised game of billiards with dried-out peas and discarded French-fries.

I need a broom.

Four dish sponges in a line beside the sink. New, pale blue with candyfloss pink scrubbing surfaces. I like this.

She pours the tea and puts a cup in front of me, along with a small plate. She produces some little cakes from a tin, homemade but perfect. She puts four on a serving plate, hesitates and adds one more. I feel a little fizz of panic run through me and quickly take the extra cake, putting it on my plate. She smiles and arranges the remaining cakes on the plate, north, south, east and west.

‘Delicious,’ I say, through mouthfuls of feather-light sponge.

‘You must share your secret.’

Rachael Dunlop is an award-winning short story writer with a novel in the pipeline and a serious Twitter habit (@RachaelDunlop)

unlop Rachael D

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KINGFISHER DAYS A poem by Anne-Marie Fyfe The past beats inside me like a second heart…

John Banville, The Sea They amount — spliced end-to-end — to a flickering of uninterrupted decades of heady shoreline days, late-setting evenings and exams finished, frantic bee stings, the daily island boat, borrowed bikes to the next harbour town: with all the drenching, pervasive, saturate downpours literally obliterated.

Anne-Marie Fyfe (b.

Cushendall, Co. Antrim, Ireland) lives in Chiswick, has published five collections of poetry including House of Small Absences (Seren Books, 2015) and has run CoffeeHouse Poetry’s readings rie Fyfe Anne-Ma and workshops at London’s leading live literature venue, the Troubadour in Earls Court, since the mid-90s… www.annemariefyfe.com

A Walk in the Woods

LOCAL BUSINESS

SJI Holliday talks us through the Black Wood There were a few false starts before it became obvious that Black Wood was the novel I had to write. The story opens with two girls playing in a wood. Sounds innocent enough.

But they don’t realise straight away that two boys are watching them… and that the boys’ intentions are far from pure. Fast forward twenty-three years, and it’s clear that something bad happened in the woods that day – and it has had lasting effects on those two innocent, impressionable girls. Why was this story the one I had to write? Because I was one of the girls in the wood that day…

OK. Nothing actually happened to us. We were threatened.

We escaped. But clearly something from that day stuck in my mind, as I never forgot about it. ‘What if…?’ I always thought. The psychological effects of things that happen in childhood can have far-reaching and long-term effects.

Thankfully, the only consequence of this for me was the added fuel to my already dark and warped imagination – unlike my main character, Jo, who really didn’t recover from the events at all. Although, to be fair, I did give her a lot more to contend with than me.

Black Wood was supposed to be a straightforward thriller. A story about stalking and revenge, by someone who refused to give up until justice was served. However, it became obvious after writing a few chapters that Jo was far too intense to carry the whole story on her own.

I vowed right from the start that there would be no police presence in my book – it was not that kind of crime novel, and besides, adding in police procedure would mean lots of research to get it right – I’ve read enough book reviews to know that readers really don’t like it when authors get the procedural details wrong… so imagine my surprise when I found myself writing a scene featuring two bored smalltown policemen, playing wastepaper-bin basketball in their deserted station – in their town where nothing exciting ever happens. I never believed it when authors said that their characters took on a life of their own.

untrustworthy characters and a tangled tale of dark deeds.

Some of the darkest parts were the most fun to write – which says a lot about me, doesn’t it?

I was wrong: Sergeant Davie Gray was born.

He became a Lambretta-riding Mod with a broken heart.

He needed something to do, so I threw in some menacing attacks on an old railway track. I gave him an unusual relationship with Jo – a moral obligation to look out for her, acting as a father-figure to my mixed-up main character.

The more I wrote, the more secrets and lies seemed to pop up and unravel, until I ended up with a book full of

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LOCAL PROJECT

Moving Cities Agnieszka Studzinska talks to Jevan Chowdhury about dancing on the streets of Chiswick When I meet filmmaker, Jevan Chowdhury at a local café in the leafy streets of Chiswick, it seems like the perfect backdrop for his Moving Cities project he set up in February 2014. Having completed a series of dance film commissions for Westfield and East London Dance in 2013, he decided to pursue the idea that dance can be married to the city.

The project was inspired by and became a response to the vision outlined in the book, Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino, who explores the imagination and the imaginable through the description of magical realist cities, “Making films is a commercial task but first of all it is a tool for human and personal expression,” he explains, “It’s a fairly noisy environment right now, everywhere you go outside, online, in-store, you are bombarded with messages. What drives me to explore dance in this way is its silent and emotional lack of message. No sell, no manipulation just natural primal communication. Can it change how we view the world? Yes. It tells us more about ourselves definitely. Whether we’d like to know it or not is a different story.”

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Chowdhury’s zeal and fervor for this project is as mesmerizing as the choreography of the dance in his films, “I regularly paint and visually practise my mental ideas and scenarios onto my hometown of Chiswick. The combined rural ambience and city feel means it’s a great place to think about cities. I’m lucky to have collaborated with some amazing dancers who also happen to live in Chiswick. So far, I’ve worked on the High Road and by the recent Hounslow Council roadworks on Duke Road.” For Chowdhury, this project is about creating a new dialogue that inhabitants have with the cities they live in, “It’s about us letting go and responding to the city, unearthing a new form of communication. It’s refreshing also for everybody to take the idea of ‘dance’ off stage and on to the street. Dance can be inaccessible for lots of us and in a way I hope the project inspires us to look at the art form in a different light.”

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LOCAL HISTORY

Right Royal Goings On Linda Lingham Taylor takes us on a trail of courtly frolicking

“If (I) had thought the King would have given them to such whores and strumpets and bastards, he never should have had them.” So said Mrs Anne Oliver, the widow of the famous miniaturist painter, Peter Oliver, who lived in a house close to modern Silverhall Park in North Street, Isleworth. For she had discovered that Charles II, to whom she had sold her collection of paintings by her husband and his father, Isaac, for an annuity of £300 per year, had parcelled them out to his many mistresses and illegitimate children. Unfortunately for her, the king heard of her remarks and took back his money. But nonetheless, her comments do mark a long-standing connection between royal mistresses and the local area.

One of these maligned ‘whores and strumpets’ was Barbara Palmer, Charles II’s chief mistress in the1660s, the ‘uncrowned queen’ of his court. His mistress in exile, upon his restoration in 1660 she was appointed Lady of the Bedchamber, a convenient post for someone who had caught the king’s eye. A tall voluptuous beauty with auburn hair and violet eyes, she bore the king five illegitimate children, all acknowledged and given the name Fitzroy (‘offspring of the king’). Highly influential, she meddled in politics and took bribes, leading the diarist John Evelyn to call her the ‘curse of the nation’. However, although famous for her extravagance and foul temper, she was also of generous heart and great fun and that other seventeenth century diarist, Samuel Pepys, was an enthusiastic admirer.

Marble Henrietta Howard

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Melusina Ehrengard Melusina von der Schulemburg But the king had many mistresses and by 1673 Barbara’s day was done although Charles made her Duchess of Cleveland and they remained friends until he died in 1685. From 1700 she lived on Chiswick Mall in what was later called Walpole House. She died there in 1709 from heart failure brought on by an oedema (then called dropsy), which caused her to swell to massive size, and was buried in St Nicholas’s churchyard.

But on stormy nights, so it is said, her spirit haunts the house still, bitterly bemoaning the loss of her famous beauty.

By the eighteenth century the Stuarts had been supplanted by the Hanoverians, but the ‘German Georges’ also had a hankering for a mistress or two. George I brought his mistress, Ehrengard Melusina von der Schulemburg to England on his accession in 1714 and set her up in a country villa on the Twickenham Road (between St John’s Road and Isleworth Town School) and made her Duchess of Kendal in 1719. Accordingly, her house became known as Kendal House and Kendall (sic) Road and the nearby road bridge recalls it.

In stark contrast to the Duchess of Cleveland, this duchess was infamous for her ‘lank bony hideousness’. Very tall and skeletal, she was known as ‘the Scarecrow’ and was despised for her greed, corruption and snobbery. However, she dominated the king to such an extent that the prime minister, Robert Walpole, declared she was ‘as much the queen of England as anyone,’ perhaps referring to a rumoured secret marriage. Both the king and his mistress

LOCAL HISTORY were fascinated by spiritulism and he promised he would return to her if she outlived him. (He died in 1727 and she in 1743). The novelist W M Thackerey reported that: “After his demise a great raven [flew] in at the Duchess of Kendal’s window… [and] she imagined the King’s spirit inhabited her sable visitor…” and she kept it with her always. He added: “How pathetic is the idea of the Duchess weeping over it!”

After her death the house became a place of public entertainment, ‘in the genteelest taste’. The Duke of Northumberland’s River ran through the grounds, as it does through Silverhall Park and thus, had Anne Oliver and Ehrengard lived in the same century they would have been near neighbours – no doubt to Mrs Oliver’s horror. And how apt it was that the duchess lived close to water as her second name, Melusina, refers to a Germanic water spirit, generally depicted as half-woman, half-fish. By the end of the nineteenth century, Mill Plat Avenue had been built on the estate and St John’s Gardens is a remnant of the grounds.

George’s son, who became George II in 1727, also took a mistress whilst he was Prince of Wales: the witty Henrietta Howard. Her husband, the Earl of Suffolk, was a wife beater and compulsive gambler and so she fled to Hanover to become lady-in-waiting to the elderly Electress and it was there that she met her prince. In 1723 he gave her financial independence by way of a trust to prevent her husband spending it. She accordingly bought land by the Twickenham riverside and employed the architect Roger Morris, in collaboration with the Earl of Pembroke, to build the Palladian villa, Marble Hill House, which was completed in 1729.

Duchess of Cleveland By 1734, her relationship with George over and her husband dead, she retired on a pension of £2,000 per annum and married a second time, most happily. From 1746 she lived permanently at Marble Hill and established a literary salon for such notable intellectuals as the poet, Alexander Pope, Jonathan Swift, the author of Gulliver’s Travels, John Gay, the composer of The Beggar’s Opera and Horace Walpole of Strawberry Hill. Unfortunately she lost her pension when the king died in 1760 and, struck by deafness and ill-health, died herself in 1767.

Another royal mistress, Mrs Maria Fitzherbert, also lived at Marble Hill for a short time (1795-96). George IV had secretly married her in 1785 whilst he was Prince of Wales but the marriage was illegal as it was without the king (George III)’s consent. The prince was forced to marry Caroline of Brunswick but on the eve of his wedding was observed riding restlessly to and fro in front of Marble Hill.

Nonetheless, in 1796 his last will and testament left all his property to Mrs Fitzherbert and by 1798 he lived with her in Brighton. However, on becoming king in 1820 he denied the marriage although Maria secured an annuity by threatening to publish proof. But in the end, when he died in 1830, he was buried with her ‘eye miniature’ around his neck.

So, in the main our local strumpets did very well, ending their days ennobled and living ‘royally’ in their fine villas, their income as much a ‘golden handshake’ for their many services as an inducement to keep their royal secrets close to their ample chests.

Maria Fitzherbert

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LOCAL BUSINESS

Put your Running Shoes On with Sandra Courtney event co-coordinator for the Ealing Half Marathon

What are The Running Awards?

What do you like about the borough of Hounslow?

I’ve lived in the borough for over 30 years in various areas, Isleworth, Hounslow, Chiswick and Brentford. Brentford has been home for the longest, I love it, ‘Brilliant Brentford’ sums it all up. It has everything I need, a great location, fantastic public transport connections, an involved community, the river and a great football team!

How does running make you feel?

I never could have imagined just how great running could be; it’s addictive. I went from doing zero exercise to running marathons and meeting an amazing bunch of people. I lost weight, quit smoking, got a new lease of life and a huge number of new friends. When I first started running, I trained by myself then completed the London Marathon in 2011 and then joined a local running club called, the Ealing Eagles.

How did you get involved in the Ealing half marathon?

The race first started in 2012 as an Olympic Legacy, I was lucky enough to run it. As my running club was heavily involved in the start up process, I helped with various things in my spare time. The race is the only road closed half marathon in West London. This takes a huge amount of organising. The race director realized, it needed a full time person working on it. The Ealing Half is a formal not for profit community interest company. Our aim is to get people of all ages more active, our flagship event is the Ealing Half Marathon, which also includes a mini mile for children. We also run free beginner fitness groups in Southall, host the Osterley Park 10k and the Pitshanger junior parkrun as well as talk and assist at schools in order to promote the benefits of running.

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They are the Oscars of the running world!! The Running Awards are the only independent annual awards ceremony celebrating the best of running and its culture as voted by runners. Ealing Half Marathon has just won Gold for the second year running!

What’s the best part of organising a half marathon?

The fundraising. We’re delighted to have Alzheimer’s Society as our headline charity again, Ealing Half has helped raise over £500,000 for various charities in just 3 years.

Also getting to know the community. We have amazing support from them, all of whom we affect a great deal on race day as we close 13.1 miles of roads in a residential area but they have embraced it. We have an estimated 30,000 people out on the streets cheering on over 7,000 runners and we need 500 volunteers. Sign up via our website www. ealinghalfmarathon.com to run or volunteer or contact me personally sandra@ealinghalfmarathon.com.

www.ealinghalfmarathon.com

A vibrant variety of visual art including painting, print making, photography, jewellery, glass, collage and sculpture sold directly to you from the artists and makers.

MIDSUMMER ART FAIR

SATURDAY 20TH JUNE SUNDAY 21ST JUNE 10AM - 5PM ADMISSION £ 4 CONCESSIONS £ 3 UNDER 16’S & LAC MEMBERS FREE FERRY ROAD, TEDDINGTON, TW11 9NN 020 8977 7558 WWW.LANDMARKARTSCENTRE.ORG LANDMARKARTS Registered charity no: 1047080

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01/05/2015 19:21

LOCAL BUSINESS

An Author’s Achievement Shaida B. Mehrban was born in Azad Kashmir in Pakistan and came to the UK at the age of six, now living in Hounslow for over 35 years. Her motherland was full of childhood memories of firewood burning to keep the family warm, the stars in the night, hot days, and the mango, guava and orange trees which she would climb, “Everyone knew each other, it was a safe place to live, there was no care in the world,” Mehrban recalls. Raised within a female dominated household, shaped Mehrban’s experience of womanhood and gender and led her in later years to explore these issues in her stories of ordinary women, living in culturally enriched environments. Her first book, ‘Tears of Silence’ in 2006 was followed by ‘Tears Behind a Veil’ in 2008. ‘Blossom and I’ (tears behind closed doors) were published with Athena Press two years later. In 2013, ‘Remembering the Night Train’ was followed by ‘Mother’s Veil’ in 2014 and Eyes of Osama in 2015 by New Generation publishing. Mehrban is indeed a prolific and dedicated writer.

She has taken part on Radio 4’s Women’s Hour talking about her mother tongue and is often involved in topical Asian issues as well as projects in local secondary schools.

For Mehrban, being a writer is, “A part of what I am, it’s about education.” She has recently been recognised for her contribution in Asian literature and awarded the half silver award by Nawaijang newspaper, in West Drayton in which she now writes a regular author’s column.

Contact Shaida Mehrban on tibby32000@yahoo.co.uk Books available on Amazon, and local book shops and libraries.

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HOUNSLOW BUSINESS AWARDS

Could you be the next winner?

Businesses across the London Borough of Hounslow are being invited to put themselves forward for the third annual Hounslow Business Awards in association with Hounslow Highways. difference when it comes to securing new customers and winning new business.”

2015 Recognising Excellence In association with

Speaking on behalf of title sponsors Hounslow Highways, service director Rob Gillespie said, “Hounslow Highways is very pleased to be the headline sponsor for the Hounslow Business Awards for the second year running.”

The London Borough of Hounslow and Invest Hounslow are also proud sponsors of the 2015 awards and speaking on behalf of Hounslow Council, Councillor Sue Sampson, cabinet member for communities and economic development said,

Organised by Hounslow Chamber of Commerce the awards are designed to recognise and reward the achievements of Hounslow’s business community.

Speaking ahead of the awards, Stephen Fry, chief executive of Hounslow Chamber of Commerce said, “We are delighted to be organising these awards for the third consecutive year.

Since we launched the awards in 2013 we have been hugely impressed not only with the quality of businesses who have put themselves forward, but also by the enthusiasm and passion for these awards. Business owners and managers have had to work very hard over the past few years to keep ahead of their competition, and the peer to peer endorsement that comes from winning one of our awards really can make the

Title Sponsor:

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Media Sponsor:

“The wealth of business we have in Hounslow is second to none. From the big corporate giants on the Golden Mile to the small, independent businesses which make our borough unique, I am very excited about this year’s awards and pleased that the council is backing them again this year.

Proud Sponsors:

HOUNSLOW BUSINESS AWARDS

The awards complement our Invest Hounslow aims which support and grow businesses in the borough as well as attract new enterprises to our shores. The awards have become a much-anticipated annual event and are growing from strength to strength. I’m really looking forward to this year’s event and discovering the wealth of talent and enterprise we have on our doorstep.”

With a wide range of categories, there is an award to suit every business: • • • • • • • • • • • •

Best SME Business Best Business for Customer Service Entrepreneur of the Year Commitment to the Community Best New Business Best Business for Training & Development Best Green Business Independent Retailer of the Year Best Hospitality & Leisure Business Best Business for Marketing & Social Media Logistics Business of the Year International Business of the Year

organised by:

The awards are free to enter and businesses can enter online: www.hounslowawards.com; closinf date 19th June. The awards will culminate with a gala dinner and awards ceremony at the Hilton Syon Park on 9th October 2015.

www.hounslowawards.com

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Aqua 154x109.5mm.wide_Aqua 08/05/2015 13:22 Page 1

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Life’s a Dream

SPOTLIGHT

Alan Smith from Aqua Therapy Marine Charters welcomes you on board the Luxurious Motor Yatch with a champagne reception before sailing off for the day Having worked for an Airline for 12 years, my wife and I started a transport company in West London (Mixed Freight Services Ltd) which became successful after a few years. We then started a Commercial Vehicle Hire company (Heathrow Rent a Truck Ltd), specialising in large vehicles for self-drive hire. Both companies grew quickly and now well established, employing 70 people in the Heathrow Area. However, I have always loved the sea, the fresh air, the freedom the water instills in me, the power and energy of a boat. I think my love of boating must have come from my Grandfather, Dr B A Smith, who, in his small cruiser, The Constant Nymph, rescued over 900 soldiers from the beaches of Dunkirk. Living in Wraysbury, we had a small boat on the river but decided to look for a larger one, which took us down to the south coast. When we were looking for this vessel, I met the owner of a Motorboat Training school, who told me about having your boat coded for charters and what was involved in that process, from that day on we have worked very closely with them.

There is something very relaxing and therapeutic being on the water and I wanted to turn a hobby and a love of boating into a fun business. The best aspects of this job for me, is that it gives me an opportunity to meet people and watch the fun and enjoyment they are experiencing. We offer both luxury champagne charters with lunch on the Isle of Wight as well as the adrenaline rush of thrilling RIB rides. A charter can be tailored to meet all occasions for corporate or private clients, and can go to many different ports of call for lunch or have lunch on board. We offer two different boats, such as the ‘Life’s a Dream,’ a ‘Sealine SC47 14.3 m’ Luxury

Sports Cruiser and the ‘Shockwave,’ a fast 8 metre Cobra RIB. Moored on the River Hamble, with close proximity to Southampton water and the Isle of Wight, we are easily accessible from the M27, and our 47-foot powerboat provides groups of up to 10 guests the opportunity to enjoy memorable excursions on the sheltered waters of The Solent and surrounding areas. It really is a fantastic experience for anyone who wants to do something a little different. I love what I do and this is at the core of Aqua Therapy Marine Charters. I never want to take my eye off the ball because I believe that if you work hard enough at the very thing you love then it becomes more than just a business, people can see that when they come here and experience the uniqueness of what we do.

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HOUNSLOW CHAMBER

MEMBER NEWS Hounslow Chamber of Commerce Connects Businesses with the Community Sally Smith, Chief Operating Officer shares the latest news

Watermans brought light and fire to Brentford Lock in a fiery garden like no other on Friday 28 November for one evening only, audiences were invited to see Brentford Lock transformed into a flame-tipped landscape with internationally-renowned outdoor artists, ‘Walk the Plank’ coming to Brentford with their much-loved Fire Garden. The event celebrated the completion of the recent improvement works to the Market Place and canal towpath.

The improvement works were funded by the Mayor of London’s Outer London Fund and LB Hounslow as was the Fire Garden event.

Visitors were invited to bring family and friends along to explore the specially created Fire Garden landscape – a world where trees crackled and blazed, flame tipped bulrushes swayed in the evening breeze and colossal lilies belched plumes of fire when you least expected it. The Fire Garden offered an unforgettable family friendly adventure.

Liz Pugh, Producer of ‘Walk the Plank’ said, “The Fire Garden was a really spectacular experience– and one that

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appealed to audiences and communities of all ages and backgrounds. There’s something about heat and light that brings people together and it’s that opportunity to share in something really unusual and unexpected that makes outdoor arts activities so special.”

The event engaged and involved local young people from Brentford who were brought onto the project by Watermans to create lanterns for the garden. This was a fantastic opportunity for them to see their work as part of a nationally acclaimed installation that has previously toured to award-winning festivals and events. Jan Lennox, Director of Watermans said, “A visit to the Fire Garden was a memorable experience. Watermans was delighted to have been able to bring this beautiful installation to Brentford Lock, and to have worked with so many local children to create lanterns, which will now be part of the decorations around the canal. The waterways of Brentford are so much part of the area’s identity and the Fire Garden brought that extra touch of magic to them for one special evening.”

www.hounslowchamber.org.uk

HOUNSLOW CHAMBER Hounslow Chamber brings home four major Chinese trade opportunities A delegation from the Hounslow Chamber of Commerce secured four major business opportunities in the course of its trade mission to Chongchuan in Nantong on the East coast of China at the end of March. The delegation toured a number of cultural establishments and visited Tongzhou Bay, an entirely new city being built to the north of Nantong. The focus was on potential trading collaboration and cultural exchange.

After discussions, the delegation reached agreements on four action points covering: • Continued dialogue about collaboration between creative industries with proposed trade missions from west London to Nantong • Destination awareness for Hounslow and Nantong, through tourism sector exchanges • Events to showcase Hounslow artists, sculpture, music, theatre and dance to Chinese agencies, with reciprocal arrangements for Chinese artists • Assistance with the Masterplan for Tongzhou Bay with opportunities for manufacturers, house builders and commercial land agents and developers.

Stephen Fry, Chief Executive of the Hounslow Chamber of Commerce, explained, “Nantong - Chongchuan is enormously rich in terms of its geographical location, natural resources and environment, as well as in history and culture. It has an incredibly vibrant business culture with major corporations and hundreds of start-up businesses, and they are especially interested in the creative and high-tech industries, which Hounslow is renowned for. I am delighted to say that we were not only able to open up some important communication channels but also laid the foundations for very specific business-tobusiness cooperation which I believe will prove beneficial to Hounslow and Nantong.” Over the next few months, the Chamber of Commerce will be working with their Chinese partners to draft Heads of Terms and a formal Memorandum of Understanding in order to legally formalise the agreements.

Kids Cookery School The Giving Extra Awards is a programme through which Halifax helps the Group deliver its Helping Britain Prosper Plan and its commitment to the banking Group that brings communities together to help them thrive. Fiona HamiltonFairley, Chief Executive of The Kids’ Cookery School who was selected for the national prize from 67 local winners, said: “I was shocked to win a local Halifax Giving Extra Award, so I am thrilled to have won the national prize.

David Nicholson, director of Halifax Community Bank, said,”Through our Helping Britain Prosper Plan, we are committed to bringing communities closer together to help them thrive, and we are able to further deliver upon this commitment through people like Fiona. She plays a pivotal role within her community making such a positive impact on the lives of so many young people in her area. It was aweinspiring to hear how all of the local Halifax Giving Extra

Award winners across the country give extra to help others in their community but Fiona, and the work she does at the Kids’ Cookery School, was truly inspirational and really impressed the judges.”

www.hounslowchamber.org.uk

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HOUNSLOW CHAMBER

MEMBER NEWS Results Revealed from the ‘Spark!’ Partnership Awards 2014 The 28th annual awards were presented on Thursday 20 November 2014 at the Holiday Inn, Brentford. The partnership projects: Primary (Malcolm Gibbins Cup) – Recognising primary schools’ and community partners’ excellence in work related learning projects, sponsored by Thames Water and Hounslow Chamber of Commerce.

Winner

Heathrow’s Primary School Challenge – Presented to Sally Payne of Heathrow by Liz Banks and Paul Hampton of Thames Water and Sally Smith of Hounslow Chamber.

Heathrow’s Primary School Challenge has been established to inspire the next generation to consider a career at the airport. The challenge provides an enjoyable way for young people to explore their enterprise skills, develop social and personal skills and encourages team working and communications skills.

The judges were particularly impressed by the scale and reach of this initiative. The format is a half- day session for Year 6 delivered at 51 primary schools in 2014. Students receive a presentation about Heathrow’s Terminal 2 highlighting the shapes used to construct the new terminal and then they are invited to build their own terminal.

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Working in groups of six, students use a STIXX machine; an environmentally friendly system, turning old newspapers into building rods that can be linked together and shaped to form models and structures. The project is successful when all six members of the groups can fit within the structure!

Highly Commended Green Dragon school, nominated by GSK. With a long-standing volunteering partnership, around 10 GSK staff support children in literacy & numeracy and visit weekly to support a full lesson. The GSK nomination said that the school is full of energy & never complacent, they are adventurous and open-minded when making changes, demonstrating positivity and enthusiasm.

Beavers Community Primary School and Winvic Build Ltd. With school expansion works underway, Beavers school considered there was lots to teach the pupils about Health & Safety.

Winvic invited a core group of pupils and staff on to their site in Green Lane to experience first-hand the methods employed to ensure that everyone who works on or visits a site is kept safe.

www.hounslowchamber.org.uk

HOUNSLOW CHAMBER

Secondary (Jubilee Cup) – Recognising secondary schools’ and community partners’ excellence in work-related learning projects, sponsored by GSK and Hounslow Chamber of Commerce.

Winner

Mosaic Enterprise Challenge – Presented to Julieta Pesce from the Mosaic Enterprise Challenge and Mary Wade of St Mark’s Catholic School, by Stephanie Dean of GSK and Sally Smith of Hounslow Chamber (with Will Berryman of Rivers Academy, Nidhi Chhibba of Heston School and Jason Hermon of Lampton School).

The Mosaic Enterprise Challenge encourages young people to work as a team, develop their understanding of business ethics and enterprise skills. Working with mentors, teams of 5 students play an online business simulation game. The winners are those who make the most profit! 25 mentors from companies including GSK, Sky, Allianz, BA, Kuehne + Nagel and numerous local SMEs worked in 5 local schools.

Supported by volunteers they log in to play the online simulation game several times to try and improve their own profit figures. The game was applied to real situations,

which made it accessible for students and gaining advice from business people was paramount to their enjoyment.

We were particularly pleased in this first year of running the challenge in Hounslow that a team from Heston Community School made it into the regional finals.

Highly commended Dell’s ‘IT is not just for Geeks’ programme is designed to help raise awareness about Careers in Technology. It is aimed at Year 9 students who are making critical curriculum choices at this time. The programme was launched in 2011 and during 2013/14, Dell visited 20+ schools, reaching 500+ students. In recent months, the company has collaborated with Spark! to deliver the programme at their Careers Day at Feltham Community College.

Eton Summer School. The aim of the Eton College Universities Summer School is to help prepare students for entry into a top university, often Oxbridge but not exclusively so. Year 12 Boys and girls board for 10 days of intensive coaching and support from Eton’s teaching staff.

Through a longstanding partnership 8 places are reserved for LB Hounslow participating schools. In 2014, 16 LB Hounslow students won a place on the course.

www.hounslowchamber.org.uk

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HOUNSLOW CHAMBER

MEMBER NEWS Uxbridge College Announces Apprenticeship Graduation Event As the first of its kind in Hillingdon Borough, the ceremony raises the profile of apprenticeships, rewards those graduates who have succeeded and recognises the support they have received from their employers. It is hoped their success will inspire other employers who will be attending to recruit apprentices for their future workforce. Lorraine Collins, Executive Director /at Uxbridge College said: “We are delighted to be hosting the first Hillingdon Apprenticeship Graduation Ceremony, as it is a wonderful opportunity for Apprentices to be given the same recognition as learners who have gained formal qualifications through more traditional academic routes.”

Uxbridge College has announced it will be hosting the first ever Hillingdon Apprenticeship Graduation Ceremony on 1 July 2015, recognising the achievements of Hillingdon based Level 3 and 4 Apprentices. The graduates will wear gowns and mortarboards to receive their certificates on stage at the ceremony to be held at Brunel University and both Brunel University and Heathrow are generously sponsoring the event.

Around 180 apprentices will be honoured for their achievements in a wide range of professional areas including Accounting, Beauty, Business Administration, Engineering, Hairdressing, Health and Social Care, Retail and Sport & Leisure.

Apprentices are great for business, so if you are thinking of employing an apprentice now is the best time, as the government is continuing to offer the Apprenticeship grant of £1500 to employers with less than 50 employees.

The good news is that if you are a London-based employer employing up to 249 staff, you can claim up to £3,000 to hire an apprentice. Grants are available on a first come, first served basis and you can recruit up to 5 apprentices. All grants are subject to eligibility and availability.

These grants have already helped thousands of employers to grow their business by employing an apprentice. Could it help you too? Please call 01895 853780 to find out more.

Hounslow News Update £1 million to be spent improving transport links in Hounslow town centre A million pounds is to be spent improving transport links to Hounslow town centre, it was announced today. Hounslow Council was awarded £1 million by Transport for London (TfL) to enhance links between Hounslow High Street and its nearest tube and train stations. The money will be spent during 2015/16 improving connections from the town centre to Hounslow East and Hounslow Central tube stations and to Hounslow train station. The council was also promised £50,000 to make bus stops more accessible and £150,000 to promote sustainable travel.

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www.hounslowchamber.org.uk

HOUNSLOW CHAMBER

EVENT SCHEDULE 10th June

12.45 pm

Hounslow Business Lunch The Sun PH, 148 Hanworth Road, Hounslow TW3 1UG Free Lunch

16th June

9.00 am - 10.30am

Hounslow Business Breakfast The Moon under Water, 84-86 Staines Road, Hounslow TW3 3LF £5 for a full breakfast including tea/coffee

18th June

9.00 am -10.30 am

Business Breakfast at the Bulldog 556 London Road, Ashford TW15 3AF (large car park!) £5.00 for a full breakfast including tea and coffee Joint event with Spelthorne Business Forum & Surrey Chambers

24th June

12.45 pm

Chiswick Business Lunch Chiswick Moran Hotel, 626 Chiswick High Road W4 5RY Free Lunch

8th July

12.45 pm

Hounslow Business Lunch The Sun PH, 148 Hanworth Road, Hounslow TW3 1UG Free Lunch

16th July

9.00 am -10.30 am

Business Breakfast at the Bulldog 556 London Road, Ashford TW15 3AF (large car park!) £5.00 for a full breakfast including tea and coffee Joint event with Spelthorne Business Forum & Surrey Chambers

21st July

9.00 am -10.30 am

Hounslow Business Breakfast The Moon under Water, 84-86 Staines Road, Hounslow TW3 3LF £5 for a full breakfast including tea/coffee

22nd July

12.45 pm

Chiswick Business Lunch Chiswick Moran Hotel, 626 Chiswick High Road W4 5RY Free Lunch

18th Aug

9.00 am -10.30 am

Hounslow Business Breakfast The Moon under Water, 84-86 Staines Road, Hounslow TW3 3LF £5 for a full breakfast including tea/coffee

20th Aug

9.00 am -10.30 am

Business Breakfast at the Bulldog 556 London Road, Ashford TW15 3AF (large car park!) £5.00 for a full breakfast including tea and coffee Joint event with Spelthorne Business Forum and Surrey Chambers

9th Sep

12.45 pm

Hounslow Business Lunch The Sun PH, 148 Hanworth Road, Hounslow TW3 1UG Free Lunch

10th Sep

5.30 pm - 7.30 pm

Heathrow Business Summit – procurement workshop to engage with the Heathrow supply chain West Thames College, London Road, Isleworth TW7 4HS Please contact 01823 326800 or www.Heathrow.com/businesssummit

17th Sep

9.00 am - 10.30 pm

Business Breakfast at the Bulldog 556 London Road, Ashford TW15 3AF (large car park!) £5.00 for a full breakfast including tea and coffee Joint event with Spelthorne Business Forum & Surrey Chambers

23rd Sep

12.45 pm

Chiswick Business Lunch Chiswick Moran Hotel, 626 Chiswick High Road W4 5RY Free Lunch

If you would like to attend any event please contact Sally Smith on 020 8326 6416 or sallysmith@hounslowchamber.org.uk or visit www.hounslowchamber.org.uk www.hounslowchamber.org.uk

35

A.C.Curd Ltd

PhArmACy for everything you should expect from your local independent chemist.

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tel. 020 8560 1770 also at: 570 London road, Isleworth tel. 020 8560 1444

CATERERS Friendly, professional service • Private parties • Weddings • Corporate events • Business lunch buffets TAKE AWAY DELI (Monday – Friday) Delicious fresh lunch food • Salad bar • Main meals • And much, much more

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Tailor made events with a personal touch

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MICHAEL _ _ _ _ _ _ _STERN _ _ _ _ _&_ CO __ Chartered Certified Accountants 92 Worton Way, Isleworth, Middlesex, TW7 4AU Phone 0208 560 6083 Fax 0208 568 0276 Mobile 07906 435 759 Email m28phillips@btinternet.com Maurice Phillips FCCA CTA MAAT

Michael Stern FCA (Consultant)

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ADVERTISE IN To advertise in the next issue of out&about due out in August please contact our sales team

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perience a pleasurable one.

e are confident in the quality and value of our products, and we stand behind em with our guarantee of satisfaction.

Join in the warehouse or online: JOIN TODAY AND SAY YES TO JOIN TODAY AND SAY YES TO www.costco.co.uk/membership

SAVINGS! SAVINGS!

The annual membership fee for Standard Trade Membership is £20 (plus VAT).

Executive Trade Membership is an additional £30 (plus VAT) upgrade fee a year. Each membership includes a complimentary card for your spouse or domestic partner.

Costco WholesaleThe is aannual membership dedicated toisbringing our membership warehouse fee for Standardclub, Individual Membership £25 (plus VAT). members quality goods and services at the lowest possible Executive Individual Membership is an additional £30prices. (plus VAT) upgrade fee

As an Airport Employee you qualify for Individual Membership* a year. Each membership includes a complimentary card for your AsaWholesale an Employee qualify Individual Membership* Costco is a membership warehouse club, plus dedicated bringing quality goods and services at the lowest possible prices. spouseour ormembers domestic partner.for We provide wide Airport selection of merchandise, thetoyou convenience of speciality departments and exclusive member services, all designed to make yourquality shopping Costco Wholesale is a membership warehouse club, dedicated to bringing members Membership Criteria applies.our Membership must begoods and services at the lowest possible prices.

Individual Membership experience a pleasurable one. obtainedTo before purchases made.please provide your employee ID card or current pay slip to prove your As an Airport Employee you qualify for Individual Membership. join Costco andcan startbesaving Individual Membership employment, PLUS a current utility bill (gas, telephone, electricity) or a bank statement addressed to your home. The annual membership fee for Standard Individual We areAs confident in the quality and value of our products, and we stand behind them an Airport Employee you qualify for Individual Membership.

To join Costco and start saving provide your employee ID card or current pay slip to prove your Costco accepts debit card, chequeplease Membership is £25 (plus VAT), which includes a complimentary card for cash, your spouse or domestic partner.

PLUS current utility bill (gas, telephone, electricity) or a bank statementExpress addressed to your home. The annual membership fee for Standard Individual or American with ouremployment, guarantee ofasatisfaction.

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Marketing Representatives from Costco Hayes will be at the British Airways Event taking place at Waterside on MondayRepresentatives 2nd March and from Monday 16thHayes Marchwill 2015, from 3:30pm Event each day.

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0208 501 9302 marketing113@costco.co.uk www.costco.co.uk For further information about Costco, please contact T:the MembershipE:E:Team at your nearest warehouse: marketing121@costco.co.uk www.costco.co.uk

The annual membership fee for Standard Trade Membership is £20 (plus VAT). Executive Trade Membership is an additional £30 (plus VAT) upgrade fee a year.

Costco Croydon, Imperialcard Way, Croydon, T: 0208 253 4105 Each membership includes a complimentary for your spouse orLondon, domestic CR0 partner.4RR

Chingford, 1 Shadbolt Avenue,Park, Chingford, London, E4 8GP Costco Hayes, Western International Hayes Road, Hayes, London, UB2 5XX

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Costco Hayes, Western International Park, Hayes Road, Hayes, London, UB2 5XX T: 020 8571 8675 E: marketing126@costco.co.uk www.costco.co.uk Costco Hayes *Membership Criteria applies. Accepted methods of payment: cash, debit card, cheque or American Express. Membership must be obtained before purchases can be made.

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ASHTON HOUSE SCHOOL

ASHTON HOUSE SCHOOL

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50/52 Eversley Crescent Isleworth Middlesex TW7 4LW

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