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South Leeds Life is written by and for local people. People who live, work and play in the LS10 and LS11 areas of South Leeds. The website and newspaper are produced by South Leeds Life CIC, a social enterprise registered with Companies House, No 9998695. South Leeds Life is a member of the Independent Community News Network.

Our aims

To inform people of events, activities, issues and opportunities taking place in the South Leeds community; To encourage the involvement of the wider community in communicating their experiences; To foster community spirit and involvement; and To provide a platform for local people to contribute and respond to community life more fully. South Leeds Life is pleased to publish views from across the political spectrum, provided they comply with our editorial guidelines. We remain a neutral publication with a diverse readership, as such we do not endorse any particular political party.

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South Leeds Life CIC 224 Cross Flatts Grove, Leeds, LS11 7BW Email: info@southleedslife.com Facebook & Twitter: @SouthLeedsLife Phone: 07894 583966

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South Leeds Life is regulated by IMPRESS and adheres to its standards code. However, if you feel we have breached the code in any way and wish to make a complaint, please submit your complaint, in writing to the editor. A copy of our complaints policy is available via our website at southleedslife.com/complaintsprocedure, or on request.

New footbridge will commemorate poignant legacy of David Oluwale

Work has begun to create a footbridge across the River Aire which will commemorate the lasting legacy of a man who drowned after being racially harassed.

David Oluwale, who had travelled to the UK from Nigeria, was tragically targeted because of his mental health, homelessness and race.

He died in the river in 1969 in an incident of racial injustice which left a lasting social and cultural legacy as well as inspiring a string of moving books and plays.

Working alongside the David Oluwale Memorial Association (DOMA) and local partners, Leeds City Council will name the new bridge crossing the river from Sovereign Street to Water Lane in his memory, both to commemorate his death and demonstrate a lasting commitment to equality and inclusion in Leeds.

Initial building work on the bridge has started, with the finished project forming one of the newest key elements of the ambitious South Bank regeneration programme.

The footbridge is located between Victoria Bridge and Leeds Bridge, near Asda House and links in to the new Aire Park on the site of the former Tetley brewery in Hunslet. Impression of how the new bridge will look at night

It will also help fulfil one of the project’s integral and long-standing priorities to ensure better pedestrian and cycling connection between the city centre, the train station, Aire Park and other green spaces around the city centre.

Councillor Jonathan Pryor, Leeds City Council’s deputy leader and executive member for economy, culture and education, said:

“David Oluwale’s story must never be forgotten and naming this bridge for him will stand as a lasting and poignant memorial to his profoundly tragic death and the legacy which he left behind.

“It will also act as a symbol of the diverse place that Leeds is today and our shared hope that it will always be a better, brighter and more inclusive city which is better connected in every way.”

Dr Emily Zobel Marshall, co-chair of the David Oluwale Memorial Association (DOMA) said:

“This is another positive decision by Leeds City Council, who have been incredibly supportive of DOMA’s work over the past thirteen years.

“David travelled to the UK in 1949 from Lagos, Nigeria, hoping for a brighter future and spent twenty years in Leeds. He was hounded to his death in the River Aire in 1969 by two Leeds police officers.

“At DOMA we keep David’s story alive in our educational and campaigning work against racism, mental ill-health and homelessness today.

“Naming this bridge for David Oluwale gives residents and visitors alike a clear message that Leeds is dedicated to confronting the traumas of the past and becoming a place of welcome and sanctuary for all people.”

The council is also very grateful to local businesses Asda and Leeds Building Society for their help and support to secure the landing rights for the bridge.

New plans for Kays site in Holbeck

by Jeremy Morton

Plans for a mixed use development including 1,200 residential units as well as offices and commercial properties have been discussed with Councillors on the City Plans Panel.

The site, bordered by Nineveh Road, Marshall Street and Sweet Street and adjacent to the Holbeck rail depot, has lain derelict for many years.

The site formerly housed the Kays Catalogue warehouse which was built in 1981 and deolished following closure in 2004.

The site includes the historic Commerial Inn on the corner of Sweet Street and Marshall Street. The rail union ASLEF was founded here and the pub was run by Leeds United legend Peter Lorimer for many years. The plans are to refurbish the Commercial and retain it as a pub.

The plans include 760 market rented apartments and 475 apartments for sale. Two blocks, fronting Marshall Street and Nineveh Road, are designated as offices and there will be ground floor commercial, retail and leisure uses throughout the site.

The apartment blocks will range in height from 10 to 27 storeys, whilst the office blocks range from 4-7 storeys.

Attention has been paid to the open spaces between the blocks to encourage easy pedestrian access through the development. The open area around the Commercial, termed Sweet Street Square, is designed to encourage leisure use by the wider community.

Councillors broadly welcomed the proposals but had concerns about the building heights close to both the Commercial and to the former Holbeck library, which is not part of the development.

There were also concerns about amenities for the residents with Cllr Colin Campbell (Otley & Yeadon) asking “where is that corner shop?”

Cllr Al Garthwaite (Headingley & Hyde Park) suggested that using names such as Greenmount Place and St John’s Green might be confused with streets in Beeston and Little Woodhouse. She suggested tapping into the local history and heritage of Holbeck pointing to local Suffragette leader Mary Gawthorpe and Kays which had been a major employer in the area.

She said using that heritage would help the site tie the older residential area of Holbeck to the so-called Holbeck Urban Village, rather than remaining a barrier.

The developers responded that both Greenmount and St John’s referred to the streets on the site before Kays warehouse was built. They have already been speaking to Holbeck Together and will be holding further community consultations in the coming months.

The plans are at a pre-application stage and will be worked up into a full planning application when it will be open to consultation and comment in the normal way.

The developers Westrock and Platform stressed that they are “in it for the long term” and will manage the rented premises themselves, rather than selling on to other landlords.

Stepping down but not abandoning Belle Isle and Middleton

by Cllr Kim Groves

It has been an absolute privilege to serve as a Councillor for Belle Isle and Middleton for the last 12 years. It was a really difficult decision to take, but I have decided to step down when my current term ends in May.

I have really enjoyed serving the people, despite the difficult circumstances that the role sometimes brings.

I have dealt with thousands of cases and met wonderful people. We have a wealth of groups who work tirelessly in the area and they are part of the fabric of our community, that includes all our health and teaching professionals. We have amazing individuals who have worked tirelessly for the community. We have people who have raised thousands of pounds for charities and for individuals. When the need presents itself the people in our community step up and deliver. I always think that when the New Year’s Honours List is announced these are the people in our community who we should be thankful to.

I thank them all for all their hard work and dedication to the area and the social capital that they deliver to all age groups.

I think growing up in South Leeds and entering local politics late meant that I had a wealth of life skills and a good understanding of the community and its challenges. The work of a Councillor is vast and you can only do your best. You are not going to solve everything, budgets are complicated and since 2010 are diminishing year on year.

The work you deal with ranges from very local issues to high level complex cases or policy work, so you have to keep in mind that everything is Cllr Kim Groves

relevant to individuals or families that contact you for help.

I have really struggled with not being able to find funding for the things that people want to see and unfortunately budgets remain controlled significantly by Westminster.

Local government has to bid and stick to criteria that doesn’t always fit with local neighbourhood needs. But at least I can say that I tried and left no stone unturned!

I personally think that assets like local shops and services run by local people bring a great sense of community. I would also include places like Parkside sports field, South Leeds Hub, Middleton Park, Middleton Railway, Leeds Urban Bike Park, retail centres and Belle Isle Tenant Management Organisation (BITMO) founded by individuals in our community and St George’s Centre that provides services and medical care.

It has been fantastic to work with, or call at events in our ten primary schools and now three secondary schools in Belle Isle and Middleton. We should always help and support our young people and be proud of what they achieve. Once again thanks to all those who deliver activities in the area helping young people to thrive in sporting, cultural, creative environments.

I won’t be stepping away

completely and I have pledged to help the boards of organisations that I sit on in Belle Isle and Middleton. I have lived in Belle Isle and Middleton for 36 years. I married Richard and raised two children in the area, who were the first in our family to go to university. I grew up in inner city South Leeds. I’m the daughter of a builder, whilst my mum was an inspirational local community activist who worked tirelessly. It’s always nice to pass the skate park that her and Cllr Gabriel worked for now on Holbeck Moor and see it full of children. My mum and dad lived with my grandparents at Middleton Park Grove, so I’ve ended back where I started. And with our family’s addresses including, Disraeli Street and Gaitskell Walk perhaps politics was meant to be! I am one of four children and even though there will have been tough times my parents just got on with it and worked incredibly hard for us. We felt loved and cared for and have a lot to thank them for. As a working mum I have adapted my career and built up a great portfolio of skills, something I have been working on in my spare time with a Cllr Kim Groves with members of the Manorfield Hall Committee in 2017 business partner, in helping young people and will be sharing more about that after politics. It’s not only been a privilege to serve Belle Isle and Middleton, I have held strategic roles in the city as Scrutiny Chair and the first women to Chair Transport for West Yorkshire. I will miss my political colleagues (even those in other parties) and hardworking officers at Leeds City Council and West Yorkshire Combined Authority. I must really end by thanking my husband Richard for supporting me on my journey through politics. South Leeds Life understands that the local Labour Party are in the process of selecting a new candidate to Cllr Kim Groves at the launch of the Middleton Park booklet with Friends of stand in the May Council Middleton Park, Middleton Railway, Leeds Urban Bike Park and others elections.

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On the beat

with Insp Lucy Leadbeater

This is my final time writing for South Leeds Life as just before Christmas I received the exciting news that I was successful in my promotion application and I have recently been promoted to Chief Inspector.

I am very fortunate that I have been retained at Leeds and now have responsibility for the Operations portfolio.

Whilst this is exciting news, I am sad to have left my role as South Leeds Neighbourhood Policing Inspector, having loved working in this area with a fantastic group of police officers and staff as well as members of the community and partners.

The passion from the communities and partners to improve people’s lives and make South Leeds the best place to live is like no other area I have ever worked in and I will leave with very fond memories.

There have been some significant challenges, especially over the past couple of years, but I am very proud of what the communities and the partnerships working in this area have achieved together to keep people safe and invest in the communities of South Leeds.

In order to continue the good work in this area, I am pleased to also be able to update you that Insp Tom Perry has taken over my role. Insp Perry is an experienced Inspector who I know is very much looking forward to working with you all and will be a fresh pair of eyes to drive policing forwards in your area.

Finally, I would like to thank you for the support that you have given me as well as the South Leeds NPT in the nearly three years I have been in post.

I wish you all the best for the future.

Engaging with the community at Beeston Festival We can stop this

Continued from page 1

“We’re depressed and scared: is it racially targeted, and will they attack our house? I just live my life, I’ve volunteered to help local young people, I try to be there for people, and I’ve never had trouble with anyone. The Police said they’d come back to me after the incident, but never did. No-one’s interested, they see it as normal here – but if this happened in Shadwell or Adel, they'd be straight on it. It’s not good enough”. Other residents also shared with us their frustrations about the apparent lack of Police attention.

But Leeds South Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT) Inspector Tom Perry insisted that they are engaged. He said: “Officers are aware of a number of incidents of criminal damage by arson to cars within the Beeston area. Enquiries remain ongoing to identify those involved and establish the circumstances of the offences. We treat incidents of this nature seriously and we will continue with our patrols in the area. I would encourage anyone with information who can assist in our investigation to contact 101, particularly if you have any CCTV footage that can assist.”

If you have any information related to these incidents, including any insights about who the perpetrators might be, contact 101, or online via www.westyorkshire.police.uk /101livechat quoting crime reference 13220029002. Or you can share information anonymously via Crimestoppers, on 0800 555111.

Causing criminal damage by fire is a very serious offence and carries a sentences of up to 8 years in prison.

Overall crime levels are falling in West Yorkshire. Figures published by the Office for National Statistics last month showed the number of victims of crime had fallen by by 1,347in the year to September 2021. Robbery was down 17%, house burglary down 26.9% and vehicle crime down 18.9%.

You can find out more about crime in your area using the interactive Crime Map at bit.ly/LdsSthCrimeMap *Names have been changed throughout, to protect the anonymity of victims and witnesses.

Building Blocks Nursery buys its building

Trustees and staff celebrate the purchase at the recent AGM. L-R: Rev Bob Shaw, Cllr Al Garthwaite, Peter Clark, Andrew Best, Sam Withill, Helen King, Rev lindsey Pearson, Ed Carlisle

After 21 successful years of providing childcare to South Leeds under-fives, Faith Together In Leeds 11, the charity which runs Building Blocks Nursery in Maud Avenue, Beeston Hill, has bought the building!

Now their future is secure, they can carry on doing what they do best: offering excellent care to nursery-age children.

Some readers may remember when the old Church Hall was knocked down. It was long past its sellby date, and no longer fit for purpose. Slowly the new building took its place, and children arrived.

Councillor Al Garthwaite, who is also the Director of Vera Media, has been part of the project from the beginning. She now chairs the nursery management committee and said,

“We are thrilled to own our own building at last. We’d like to thank everyone who believed in our vision, supported us and put money in to get us off the ground.

“In particular, we are grateful to the Anglican and Methodist Churches, the Hamara Centre and Leeds City Council. Without them and many others, including of course all the wonderful staff, we’d never be where we are today. Our patron, Hilary Benn MP, has also been most helpful, and we remember, with much gratitude, Helen and Neil Bishop and Hanif Malik. Without their hard work and support we would not exist.”

Now the future is secure, some long-awaited improvements are in the planning. Watch this space for developments.

Building Blocks Nursery, Maud Avenue, Leeds LS11 7DD.

The purchase was marked with a celebratory cake

Your Climate Change Pledges

Last month South Leeds Life called on you, our readers, to pledge to take action on climate change - and the response has been magnificent.

There’s no getting away from the fact that our climate is changing with stronger storms, longer droughts and rising sea levels. Scientists overwhelmingly agree that this is due to human action particularly burning coal and oil for the last 200 years. As a species we have to change the way we live to survive.

This month we profile the first batch of personal, family and organisation-wide pledges. As you can see they cover a wide range of actions from cutting down on eating meat, to reducing use of plastics and even international actions.

Each of these pledges may seem small scale, but we believe that as more people take action in their own lives, we can pressure our leaders to change policies at an international level.

As the old saying goes: “Anyone who thinks that they are too small to make a difference has never tried to fall asleep with a mosquito in the room.”

We hope you will be inspired to look at how you can make changes in your life to reduce your impact on the climate. Please let us know what action you plan to take - send 75 words and a photo to info@southleedslife.com or post to 224 Cross Flatts Grove, LS11 7BW.

“We’ve been trying to act sustainably over many years – but are going to be stepping up this year. We will be working with others to carry out a full review of our organisation's climate impact - then developing an action plan to drive down our emissions and impact. We aim to be carbon neutral within 5 years. We're also exploring how we can inspire our users and partners to join us on this journey.” LS-TEN Skatepark, Hunslet

“Slung Low commit to becoming a vegetarian company. We will ensure that all our catering and hospitality for audiences and visiting artists is the finest vegetarian food we can manage. In doing so, we aim to reduce the impact our work and events have on the environment.” Slung Low, at The Holbeck

“As well as local action, like cycling and recycling, I'm coordinating (remotely, from here in Leeds) the development of a farming project back in Cameroon. We're putting a sustainable ethic throughout that - for example, using chicken poo to create natural gas (for people to cook with), and as manure to help people grow food locally. We’re also organising reforestation of areas that have been stripped bare by logging companies.” Serge Kouob, Beeston Hill resident and community volunteer

“The climate crisis affects all of us, and we must all try our best to work together for positive change. From reducing our waste to saving energy in the building, from raising awareness of global climate issues to investing time in local environmental projects, we – as a church congregation – aim to be more mindful of our decisions and actions, no matter how small or big.” St Luke’s Church, Holbeck “We decided this year as a family to reduce our carbon footprint. We’re changing to a renewable energy supplier – and have turned down our house temperature by 2C, to use less gas. We’re putting extra layers of clothing on to keep warm! We’re a family that want to be responsible, and we know that if we all take small steps we can make a big difference.” Clara de Sousa, Beeston resident and community activist: “My pledge is to reduce plastic in my life, and recycle and reuse as much as possible. I do a lot of arts and craft, so commit to using recycled card and paper, and other items, instead of new. For our Hunslet Moor community events, like Santa’s Grotto and Halloween, we’ll use all recycled items for the decorations and so on.” Brenda Barlow, chair of Friends of Hunslet Moor

There’s still time to apply for solar panels and insulation for your home

by Beth Bingley

People Powered Homes; the housing partner for Climate Action Leeds project held a community event at Beeston Village Community Centre on 19th January in partnership with Our Future Beeston.

It was an opportunity for local people to drop in and talk to Leeds City Council’s Better Homes Yorkshire team and find out more about their free insulation and solar panels scheme, with Solar Specialists Acoole and Insulation specialists on hand to give out advice to the community.

Lucy Meredith from People Powered Homes said “It was also great to meet local residents and be able to introduce them to the city-wide National Lottery Funded Climate Action Leeds initiative and its local community led project ‘Our Future Beeston’

If you missed the event but are interested in the scheme, there is still time to apply!

The Leeds City Council Better Homes Yorkshire Grant scheme is open for applications until 31st March 2022. If you are a homeowner with a household income of under £30,000pa and your house has an Energy Performance (EPC) of D or below you may be eligible for a grant. Don’t worry if you do not know the energy rating of your property, you can still apply, and the Better Homes team can carry out an energy survey for you.

Tenants in private rented properties are also encouraged to apply, although the landlord has to pay a contribution toward the cost of installation it is a great opportunity for landlords to install energy saving measures that will add value to their property and make the running costs more affordable for tenants.

You can apply via the Better Homes Yorkshire Website www.betterhomesyorkshire.co .uk/leeds Or call them free from a UK landline on 0800 597 1500.

Our Future Beeston will be running a series of drop-in information sessions and activities to help residents reduce energy, access grants and make their homes warmer in 2022. Look out for news in the next edition of South Leeds Life.

Thousands of residents across South Leeds can now access fast, reliable full fibre broadband with CityFibre: are you one of them?

Sponsored Content

At CityFibre, we’ve been laying the technology to enable broadband providers like TalkTalk, Vodafone and many others to deliver a new type of next-generation broadband package.

We’re pleased to say this is now available in parts of Leeds, with plans to reach nearly every home and business soon.

What we’re building across the city is known as a full fibre network. Quite simply, it’s the best digital communications technology available. It not only paves the way for significantly faster speeds, but it’s also more reliable than traditional networks, and will serve your broadband needs for decades to come.

No more slowdown at peak times, lag when gaming, dropping off Skype calls, or simply not getting the speeds you were expecting. With full fibre, you get exactly what you paid for.

Think you already have full fibre broadband? Don’t be too sure …

While many of us have ‘fibre broadband’ today, more often than not, this is very different from ‘full fibre’. The chances are there’s copper in the connection slowing things down (top tip - if your router connects to a normal telephone socket, then that’s what you’ve got). Currently, 28% of UK premises have access to the real deal.

A true full fibre connection, on the other hand, takes 100% fibre optic technology all the way from the home to the point of connection and that’s why it’s so fast and reliable. Already, hundreds of homes across South Leeds are making the most of a full fibre connection, with services now live and available in parts of Beeston, Belle Isle, Holbeck, Hunslet, and Morley.

With more new addresses going live day by day as our work to extend the network progresses at pace through the city, here’s what you can expect from a full fibre connection: • Increased efficiency: significantly faster speeds for both upload and download. This means you can access what you want in the blink of an eye waiting for files to download or videos to finish buffering will be a thing of the past. • No more competing priorities: near limitless bandwidth means everyone in your house can work, study, stream or game online simultaneously without a challenge. • Connectivity you can depend on: we’re constantly monitoring our networks, so problems are often detected and fixed before you even notice! • Futureproofed for growing demand: once the fibre is in the ground, it’s there for good and maintenance work is drastically reduced. We plan twice, build once and build right.

The power is in your hands

Sounds good, right? Luckily you may already be able to access full fibre without even knowing it!

Of course, if you don’t ask you don’t get, but, fortunately, getting onto the network is easy.

The first step is to visit cityfibre.com/residential, where you can enter your postcode to: • Find out if you’re already able to access the network

• See which broadband service providers are available locally • Register your interest in a service if you’re postcode isn’t live yet If your address is live, then all you need to do is select your preferred broadband provider and choose the package you’d like (ensuring it’s a full fibreenabled service). To give you a few ideas, packages such as Vodafone’s Gigafast service and TalkTalk’s Future Fibre are delivered over a CityFibre connection. We look forward to welcoming you to our network! Homes with CityFibre connections across South Leeds (Source: https://www.thinkbroadband.com/)

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Donate it to support people with Learning Disabilities

Call us to arrange a free pickup 0113 270 4005 Women urged to take up invite for breast cancer screening

Invitations to attend breast cancer screenings are currently being sent to women living in areas of Middleton and Hunslet.

Anyone who has received an invitation for a breast screening are urged to please book their appointment as soon as possible.

Every three years, women in the city aged between 47 and 73 years-old are routinely invited to undertake a screening, which involves a mammogram X-ray. The aim of the mammogram procedure is to detect any small changes in breast tissue that may indicate cancers that are too small to be seen or felt by the woman herself or a doctor.

A range of work is currently being undertaken to boost screening rates in Leeds, which have been impacted by the varied challenges of coronavirus. Breast screening saves around 1,300 lives each year in the UK.

One such project being delivered in the city seeking to improve participation in the screening programmes for breast cancer and also bowel cancer and cervical cancer is Cancer Wise Leeds. The project is funded by Yorkshire Cancer Research, led by Leeds City Council and delivered in partnership with the Leeds Cancer Programme. Supporting this aim over the three-year programme are six Screening and Awareness coordinators. Working within Primary Care Networks in communities across the city, the coordinators are working with communities to better understand how the screening process could be improved to meet their needs.

Councillor Salma Arif, Leeds City Council’s Executive Member with responsibility for Public Health and Active Lifestyles, said:

“Through different partnership initiatives such as Cancer Wise Leeds we are working extremely hard as a city to not only increase uptake in screenings, but also support various initiatives focusing on the key areas of prevention and awareness.

“Screening plays a hugely vital role in detecting cancer early, and we would urge anyone who has been invited for a breast screening in Leeds to please book their appointment immediately.”

Support for Holbeck households facing ‘Food or Fuel’ dilemma

South Leeds charity Holbeck Together have been awarded £9,969 to extend their support for families and older people in Holbeck.

The funding comes from a Widening Partnership Grant from Leeds City Council who have recognised the ongoing impact of the Pandemic on some of Leeds most vulnerable communities.

The funding will allow Holbeck Together to continue to provide meals, essential food supplies and to extend their affordable social supermarket.

Holbeck Together saw firsthand the difficult choices families and older people were having to make over the festive period. With many people already under significant financial strain, which has increased due to the pandemic and the rapidly rising cost of living, Holbeck Together provided: • 300 free food hampers for families and older people in Holbeck • cooked Christmas Day lunch for 50 people • joined forces with Lloyds Banking Group to make sure no child in Holbeck was without a present to unwrap on Christmas Day to the value of £3,400 of which Lloyds then match funded.

Holbeck is one of the most deprived areas in England experiencing challenges around income, employment, education, health, housing and environment and suffering from high crime rates.

Elissa Newman, Chief Officer of Holbeck Together, said:

“We’ve already seen our community come under significant strain due to the Covid-19 pandemic. With the anticipated ‘Awful April’ looming with increases in utility bills, energy bills and council

tax we know we will have people in our community facing the stark choice of paying for food or fuel. “Thankfully this funding from Leeds City Council provides a stop-gap level of support for the next 12 weeks. “It will allow us to support people in the community on low incomes or struggling financially and endeavour to make sure the most vulnerable people of Holbeck don’t have to choose between food and fuel in the first couple of months of 2022. Here to help: the Holbeck Together offices on Domestic Street “We offer a range of free services and support at Holbeck Together, from helping anyone in crisis right through to free activities to help people feel a little less lonely, such as group trips, craft clubs and coffee mornings. “I would encourage anyone in Holbeck who is need of support to either call into our offices, give us a ring on (0113) 245 5553 or contact us through our social media channels.”

Successful Dewsbury Road cafe up for sale as owners retire

It’s been a fixture on Dewsbury Road for the best part of a decade and owner Garry Hewitt hopes his cafe ‘Only Food and Sauces’ will continue for a long time yet but under new management.

“After seven years of fun and laughter, meeting some great people in such a great cafe, it is with an heavy heart that we have to say it’s time to sell the business as we are retiring” explains Garry.

The new owners of the shop will benefit from having a good landlord, a fair rent and having a great position on one of busiest Roads in South Leeds. With wife Julie and daughter Hayley beavering away behind the counter the cafe has built up a loyal customer base.

In 2019 we reported that the cafe had been voted 2nd best cafe of the year by Yorkshire Evening Post readers.

One customer told us then:

“I love coming here every day because I know I will have a hot, tasty meal and the staff are very friendly. I know everybody by their names and sometimes I just pop in for a second time because it is so homely.”

The idea for an ‘Easterenders’ style cafe came from Julie when she was made redundant. Garry came up with the name whilst watching the family’s favourite TCV show Only Fools and Horses.

Garry is very keen to sell it to someone who will keep it as a traditional English cafe and who is local to South Leeds “to keep it in the community.”

The shop will be sold with all the fixtures and fittings so it can be ready for trade from day one.

If you are interested in buying the business please ring Garry for details on 07526 851855.

Local skatepark is going green

LS-TEN skatepark in Hunslet hosted national Green Party leader Carla Denyer last month - and took the opportunity to announce their ambitious plans to become as planet-friendly as possible in the coming years.

The acclaimed LS-TEN (formerly The Works) is one of the biggest indoor skateparks in the UK. They also deliver alternative education, and a community programme.

For 2022, they are embarking on a new challenge: to fully review their climate impact, take action, and become carbon-neutral within 5 years. Further details are in their South Leeds Climate Pledge (see page 5).

Local Green Party representative and community campaigner Ed Carlisle commented:

“So many of us are becoming more climate aware, and the need for us all to play our part. It’s especially exciting to see diverse bodies like LS-TEN, who aren’t an obvious ‘climate’ organisation, step up and take a lead – and their impact via their community networks could be even more significant.”

Carla Denyer was visiting Leeds as part of a national listening campaign, as the newly-appointed national coleader of the Green Party. She also participated in a community forum in Beeston Hill about women in politics and leadership.

LS-TEN staff with Ed Carlisle (left) and Carla Denyer (seconf right)

FOR SALE

Due to owner’s retirement, successful, award winning, English cafe ‘Only Food and Sauces’ is up for sale busy location established customer base great reputation busy location on Dewsbury Road fixtures and fittings included Ring Garry for details 07526 851855 Genuine enquiries only

Beeston firm appointed to Parliament restoration programme

Rhodar, a specialist asbestos removal, demolition and remediation services company, headquartered at Parkside Industrial Easte in Beeston is amongst 18 firms appointed to carry out crucial scoping works as part of the restoration of the Houses of Parliament in London.

Engineers and construction experts planning the essential work to save the failing Palace of Westminster will soon be unearthing the 150-year-old building’s secrets as part of the next stage of detailed and indepth investigations.

Investigators will carry out dozens of detailed building surveys, looking at historic stonework, digging boreholes to carry out underground examinations, carrying out archaeological digs, and mapping out asbestos in more detail.

Tens of thousands of hours of building surveys have already been carried out as the Houses of Parliament Restoration and Renewal Programme, set up in law to save and restore the building, develops a detailed plan that Checking for asbestos in the Palace of Westminster

will for the first time set out costs and timescales for the essential work.

Parliament will be invited to approve this detailed plan next year.

A spokesperson for Rhodar said:

“Rhodar is delighted to announce that it has been awarded a place on the coveted Houses of Parliament Restoration and Renewal (R&R) Programme.

“This award follows an intensive Government procurement process, resulting in 18 businesses being appointed to the commercial framework, covering disciplines such as civil and structural engineering, geotechnical, archaeology in addition to asbestos removal.

“This key strategic framework will see this collective supplier network, working together to scope and deliver the essential restoration programme for the iconic 150-year-old UK Parliament buildings, with estimates suggesting a repair & maintenance spend in excess of £300m by 2025.

“Rhodar’s inclusion on this prestigious framework reinforces our position as a key strategic UK enabling works provider and demonstrates the vast experience we will bring to this programme.”

BITMO Community Fund launches to benefit Belle Isle

BITMO’s Board has made £70,000 available that individuals and groups can apply for to benefit themselves and the Belle Isle community.

The funds can pay for: • areas of the estate that need a makeover • training courses or qualifications that tenants and their families need help paying for • help with redecorating costs for the over 65s • help to sustain tenancies by buying household goods or furniture • funds to support community groups or activities

BITMO Chief Executive Deborah Kelly stated:

“The fund can be used to support community projects, and to help people financially to achieve their goals. As a community-based, tenant led organisation we want to invest in the things that matter to the people who live here. We are really looking forward to seeing what comes from this and working with tenants to get their ideas off the ground.”

Grant applications will be open 1-28 February. Full details are available from the BITMO website www.belleisletmo.co.uk and BITMO offices and staff from 1 February.

For more information about the grants and application process further, please call BITMO’s Community & Tenant Support Managers Carla Yeomans on 07891 278423 (Monday to Wednesday only) or Peter Sutton on 07891 274237.

The Belle Isle Tenant Management Organisation, BITMO, manages council housing in Belle Isle.

The bells of St Mary’s

by Cllr Elizabeth Nash

It was upsetting to local residents when the Church of England had the bells from the listed St Mary the Virgin spire removed and loaded onto wagons and driven away.

Part of Hunslet’s history had gone and this was done without any warning or notification to residents and your local councillors.

I am pleased to report that the bells have not been taken for scrap but sent to another St Mary the Virgin church - at Combs in Suffolk. Currently, Combs has four bells but three cannot be used because of their very deteriorated condition and the Hunslet bells will make up a good peal. We may not hear them in Hunslet but I think it’s good to know that the lives of the bells will be extended elsewhere.

Some of the Hunslet bells did not sound so good as they had gone out of tune, that is, ever so slightly out of shape. Until relatively recently this could not be corrected but bells can now be tuned and our Hunslet bells will be tuned before installation at Combs.

The ringing of church bells is used primarily to summon people to prayer. But they are also rung on special occasions such as weddings or national celebrations. In the past they have also been rung if there were a threat of hostile invasion or warnings of natural disasters such as the life-taking floods in the East Anglia Fens.

With the advent of the internet and widespread ownership of telephones there are now more effective ways of informing people of the latter, although the Environment Agency has asked some churches in very high-risk flood areas to continue ringing bells as a warning in case there is an electronic failure.

Parish churches, dependent on what space they had in their tower or spire and what they could afford, usually had six bells but Hunslet had eight. A former bell ringer at Hunslet told me that when all the bells were ringing, the spire swayed which was a little disconcerting to them in the spire!

The Combs church is 14th Century and does not have a spire but a square solid tower and it is not as high as Hunslet spire so that swaying may not be so much of a problem there.

My brother-in-law and his wife ring the bells at St Oswald`s Church, Flamborough. I enquired why they do not bellring at their nearer Bridlington Priory and was informed that, as befitting a large priory, the eight bells there are bigger and heavier and harder work! Bell ringing is very good physical exercise and good for mental agility as bells are rung in changes which require a minimum of three bells – not tunes but patterns with the lightest bell, the treble, going first.

The bells are suspended from wheels and when at rest the bells hang safely downwards. On the first pull of the rope the treble goes to the top of the wheel and on the second pull the treble comes down with a ring. Just as the treble starts its descent the ringer calls “Treble gone” so that other team members begin to pull their ropes at the correct time according to the change being rung.

Jayne Saunders, wife of

Kenny, Chair of Hunslet Carr Residents Association, was part of the team which rang the Hunslet bells for 23 years. She told me that sometimes when they were practising on a Friday night, beginners at bell ringing made mistakes which sounded ding-dongish and which annoyed some nearby residents. But when the bells were rung correctly on Sundays they were splendid. What is left in the spire is the carillon of small bells which are the clock chimes and which the Council has insisted stayed there, as we local councillors have set aside money for the restoration of the clock. Strictly speaking, carillons are rung by the playing of them from a keyboard. In Hunslet it is not a keyboard but an ellacombe – a set of ropes in a frame which can be pulled by a The bell ringing chamber with ellacombe against wall. Photo K Saunders single person playing a change or a tune independently of the clock. For many years Kenny Saunders wound up the clock until just before demolition of the modern church which gave access to the spire. What we are all concerned about now is that the spire is made accessible as soon as possible so that the clock may once more be working and its chimes heard.

New restaurant brings Spanish hospitality to Holbeck

New restaurant ‘Bomba’ is bringing some welcome Spanish sunshine to Saw Mill Yard, in the heart of the Round Foundry and Marshall’s Mill complex in Holbeck on Leeds’s South Bank.

The newest venture from Joe McDermott, who set up the original Arts Café in Leeds and Ilkley Moor Vaults in Ilkley, ‘Bomba’ offers an alternative to the existing independent food and drink venues in the area.

‘Bomba’ has grown from a paella at-home delivery service during lockdown to a stall in Leeds’s famous Kirkgate Market to this new fully fledged restaurant which will open from breakfast through to lunch and dinner for eat-in, take away and delivery.

Occupying a 1,574 sq ft space with extensive terrace, the informal venue allows Joe and his team of five including chef Manuel, wife and business partner Elizabeth to develop popular elements from the market menu, from the Spanish breakfasts and churros con chocolate to the popular boccadillo sandwiches and classic tapas dishes. Paella will be made in large pans to serve individual portions at lunch and then made to order in pans for two, four or six people in the evening.

“We’d been looking for a venue that would allow us to move into evening service for a while and when we saw this space, in such a fantastic heritage area, we knew it was perfect for us.” says Joe McDermott

“Holbeck Urban Village and the Leeds South Bank is quickly becoming a bustling community with lots of new places to live and work, it feels like the place to be, atmosphere is incredibly important to us and this area has it in spades.”

McDermott has been a regular in the Yorkshire food and drink scene since setting up and running the popular Arts Café in Leeds from 19941999.

After spending a few years running a crepe venue in London, McDermott returned to his native Yorkshire to run the Ilkley Moor Vaults, building it into a neighbourhood hot spot, before heading back to Leeds city centre to focus on street food opening a crepe stall in the market.

During lockdown, McDermott started cooking and delivering paella locally; proving popular he went on to change the concept of his stall to sell the Spanish staple alongside other Spanish street food dishes.

Building on the initiative created during the pandemic and to cater to the growing residential community around Holbeck Urban Village, ‘Bomba’ will bring back their paella and tapas delivery service allowing Leeds locals to eat their speciality at home in a traditional pan, returning the pan afterwards so cutting out packaging waste.

Paul Taylor, Director at Creative Space Management who oversaw the letting, said:

“Bomba will be a great addition to the area, we already have some of the best independent pubs and cafes in Leeds here and this will complement them by adding something different, in a restaurant space already well known from previous owners including Matt Healy.

“This neighbourhood has attracted creative and successful people and businesses for years and with the significant investment and development around Marshalls Mill, the number of businesses and residents based here is growing all the time.” Bomba is in Saw Mill Yard, off Water Lane in Holbeck

£50,000 upgrade for Beeston’s Brickfield Park

Hunslet and Riverside Ward Councillors have announced the approval of a £50,000 upgrade to Brickfield Park on Lady Pit Lane, Beeston Hill.

The improvements, developed with the feedback from residents, will include: • balance beams • pull up bar station • stepping pods • slide • additional pathway creating a cycle circuit for children to learn to bike on • thermoplastic play markings • woodland trail and information boards for future planting plans • static gym city-bike • static gym arm-bike • swings

Cllr Elizbeth Nash said:

“Brickfield Park is the last of the Beeston Hill Pocket Parks to receive improvement funding – following significant funding to upgrade the play area at Trentham Park a few years ago and amenity improvements to create a sitting park at Rowland Road Park last year.

“Cllr Mohammed Iqbal, Cllr Paul Wray and I know residents have wanted improvements to Brickfield Park for a long time. We are happy we can now commit to delivering these in early 2022.”

The new investment is in addition to the planting of new semi mature trees on the park announced at the end of 2021 as part of local councillors’ commitment to improve biodiversity and tree coverage across the ward.

Brickfield Park on Lady Pit Lane

Miss Leeds has turned her life around

Help the Salvation Army help local people in need

The bustling community project at the Salvation Army centre on Hunslet Hall Road in Beeston is appealing for donations of (nearly!) anything, to help them continue and develop their work supporting local people in need. Non-perishable food, clothing, household goods (except large items and white goods), toys, and unwanted Christmas gifts are amongst the many things they can use. Drop donations off at their charity shop, Monday to Thursday between 9.30am-1pm. Visit the South Leeds Life website for a full write-up on this unique community institution, and all the incredible work they are doing.

by Esmeralda Varley

When I found out that I was going to be representing Leeds in the UK’s National Miss pageant I thought, surely not me.

I grew up in Beeston and never really believed that I would amount to anything.

I have always wanted to help people and through my role working in a children’s home, I believe that I do this but it’s far from the glamorous life of a pageant. 2020 was a struggle, in which I lost my Gran to Covid. Being away from loved ones made grieving even more difficult.

The only place I could go was to work, as a key worker, and my role is already challenging without the added strains of a pandemic.

I did not feel supported in my relationship, which I now realise was toxic. I left, but was heartbroken.

I had health problems and was diagnosed with depression - I felt completely alone and not good enough.

I decided that something needed to change. I threw myself into working out and was approached to do a fitness style photoshoot. I’m an outgoing person, who welcomes new experiences and is confident in front of the camera, so this did not phase me.

This led to more photo shoots and paid opportunities. I was published in international magazines, which felt amazing. Being able to go into Morrisons, in Hunslet, with my son and for him to pick up a magazine from the shelf and see his Mum in there, was a real highlight.

I love the creativity of modelling but my desire to help people has never stopped and I organise female empowerment photoshoots, around body confidence and self-love.

Many people have seen my journey and reached out to me. I wanted to show them that you can overcome anything with a little bit of self-love.

So I am proud to be representing Leeds, I am doing it for myself and anyone else who needs that push to believe in themselves.

My title does not require me to do anything charitable but I believe it my duty to do something positive for my city so I have set up a Crowdfunder to support local children’s charity Zarach. The charity is fighting child poverty by supplying beds to the surprisingly large number of families who currently sleep on the floor. You can donate at bit.ly/Zarach.

Advertise with South Leeds Life and reach 15,000 people in LS10 and LS11

This space is 1/8 page and costs just £75 or £200 for 3 inserts

Ring: 07894 583966 Email: info@southleedslife.com

Retail rodeo

On Saturday 15 January members of the MHA South Leeds Line Dancing Group took part in a demonstration with other line dancers from across Leeds at the White Rose Shopping Centre. The event was organised by Julie A Clarkson of the Original Cowboys line dancing group to raise money for Children in Need. It raised an amazing £714 thanks to the generosity of the public.

Join the Junk Food revolution in Beeston and save money

Crowdfunding to buy a tug boat for rubbish

by Peter Forrest

Canal Connections CIC aim to support community action to reduce the environmental impact of waterborne rubbish, with the purchase of a tugboat.

There are concerns in relation to the increasing water borne rubbish that is visible within but not limited to the Leeds Waterfront Enhancement area. This is a mixture of illegally dumped rubbish (business related), windblown debris (from carelessly discarded detritus or overflowing bins), natural debris and metal work (magnet fishing).

The solution creates a variety of potential responses; from enforcement to supporting the current strong community outpouring of volunteering. Canal Connections CIC will continue to support the current approach to land-based clean ups, but a recurring comment among those involved is the failure to address the water borne rubbish.

A major part of Canal Connections' work is to address the learning and health and wellbeing of our challenged communities by creating meaningful tasks that have a positive impact on both individual and community wellbeing and the environment. We would therefore suggest a more creative approach to clean-ups.

We have an opportunity to purchase a range of assets that would create a very different set of responses addressing these challenges, by using our traditional canal boats as the focus to develop a programme of meaningful activities in order to develop a sustainable solution to the ongoing problem.

An immediate opportunity is the acquisition of a work boat and associated craft; namely “Samson”, currently based on the River Thames, in London, to be paired with our smaller, modern version of a “Tom Pudding” that instead of carrying coal, we will compartmentalise for collecting and recycling water borne rubbish from The Aire & Calder Navigation between Granary Wharf and Thwaite Mills Museum.

We are attempting to raise £5,000 on our Crowdfunder page. If you would like to help us please go to: bit.ly/ CanalConnections

Do you like good food? Hate waste? Do you want to save money?

South Leeds residents are being invited to join a popular scheme to receive a large crate of so-called 'freegan' food (good quality food that would otherwise get binned) for just £13.50 per week.

The family-sized boxes have different contents each week, but feature a mix of staple and luxury products, and fresh and packeted items; each box is worth an estimated £40 per week. They are sourced and delivered by Leeds charity Rethink Food (formerly Food Revival), who are part of the growing international 'junk food' movement aiming to stop the needless waste of surplus food.

They do so by intercepting food that’s heading unnecessarily for landfill, and distributing it through a network of cafes, venues, events, schools, and community box schemes. This project of theirs has been running since 2018, with members collecting their boxes every week from Rowland Road Social Club in Beeston Hill. The scheme was previously oversubscribed, but now has capacity to take on new people. Local community campaigner Ed Carlisle, who helped bring the scheme to south Leeds, commented:

“Loads of us locally struggle to afford good quality food –and in the meantime, tons upon tons of good food is being chucked away everyday across the country: insane. But this scheme breaks the mould, and gives us great food for cheap –whilst reducing waste, and helping to save the planet. This is a good, popular scheme and we'd now love more people to sign up, and to help spread the word."

For more info or to register, visit rethinkfood.co.uk, email boxes@rethinkfood.co.uk, call (0113) 873 0016 - or come to Rowland Road club between 67pm on Tuesday 8 February, to meet and talk with one of the Rethink Food team.

Subscribers pay by Standing Order, and collect the boxes from Rowland Road each Tuesday. Boxes can be tailored to suit any dietary needs. The coordinators are also keen to hear from others locally who might be interested in helping to set up schemes elsewhere in south Leeds.

The Waste Resources Action Programme (WRAP) – a UK charity and campaign body –estimates that 1.9m tons of food is wasted by the UK food industry every year, with about a fifth of that (400,000 tonnes) Canal Connections CIC aim to buy the Samson to help clear rubbish