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Thames View Activation Group

A NEW APPROACH TO HEALTH SERVICES

Who are they?

An innovative approach to health services is being led by the Thames View Activation Group (TVAG) in the Thames Ward area. Initially convened by local partners LBBD, and the NHS – this new group started with a lot of health officers in the virtual room but has increasingly involved agenda items led by local residents and is chaired by Lai Ogunsola, local Thames View resident and TWCP trustee.  

What do they hope to achieve?

The TVAG aims to establish an approach to health services led and shaped by local people and groups  – this ‘new model of care’ evolved from the Healthy New Towns Agenda, which BRL led on in its final year and one of the aims is to ensure Thames View has as much profile as possible, given much recent focus has been on the Riverside development.  

What's on now?

Recently, a discussion about the vision for the area and the principles that need to drive work has been started and a series of ever larger plans and activities are in the works.  If you are interested please fill in the form below.

How To Get Involved

If you would like more information about the Thames View Activation Group, please complete the form below.

Job Vacancy: Thames Ward Health Outreach Worker

To support the development of the Thames Ward resident-led health outreach project. The purpose of the project is to connect both local people and the local groups who are interested in improving the health of their community by working through the Thames Ward Locality Board to jointly create health programmes with LBBD Public Health, social care and lifestyle teams; NHS clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), primary care networks (PCNs) and local provider trusts (including BHRUT and NELFT); and the community and voluntary sector (including local groups and regional / national organisations). 

The post holder will support and enable the mobilisation, development and implementation of the project. They will play a catalysing role, helping to deepen and embed the emerging model of care, working alongside residents, community groups, commissioners and health professionals.

Reports to: Director for Community Engagement

Salary: £33,240 (35 hrs per week, plus 17.2% pension contribution)

Location: Thames Ward, London Borough of Barking and Dagenham

Closing date for applications: 03 March 2021

To apply: In the first instance, please submit a CV which must be accompanied by a covering letter, clearly demonstrating how you meet the requirements of the role description.

Relevant candidates may be asked to complete an Application Form at a later stage .

Please note this is a re-advertisment, previous applicants need not apply.

Click here to apply

L&Q Awards £5525 Grant For 12-week ESOL Programme

Following on from last months’ story, resident Steering Group Member, Pierre Epoh Moudio has made a successful bid for funding, being awarded £5525 from the L&Q Foundation‘s Place Makers Fund for the upcoming 12-week ESOL programme.

The programme will equip the participants with the language and skills that they need to change their lives, and their communities for the better!

The Upcoming Programme

Start date:          27 February  2021      End date: 15 May 2021

Class and time:   ESOL Beg/ESOL E1:   09:00am – 11.00am      

                               ESOL E2/ESOL E3:     11:00am -1:00pm

Day:  Saturday

Delivery mode:  Online via Zoom

How many places are available:

20

Places are reserved on a first come basis.

I'm really happy I’m learning English with Pierre, he is an amazing teacher, is very good at explaining, and I have learned a lot from him. I hope to go back to his classes. 10/10!

Hurishe, Albania

How To Get Involved

If you would like more information about the free ESOL programme, employability programme, and mentoring scheme, please complete the form below.

Barking Reach Residents Association Awarded £10K for New Barking Food Forest

TWCP Steering group member and resident Nikhil Rathore (on behalf of the Barking Reach Residents Association) with support from TWCP successfully bid for £10,000 Neighbourhood Community Infrastructure Levy (NCIL) funding in front of a panel of LBBD residents to create “Barking Food Forest” (BFF) a community designed, food producing, garden for all to enjoy!

The Vision

After a successful campaign by the YCAG (Young Citizen Action Group), the barren post-industrial site located on a strip of land in front of Riverside Campus, in Barking Riverside, was secured for the creation of a community garden. Students at Riverside School had already put forward many creative and inspiring design ideas for the project. The vision for the Barking Food Forest is for the community to design, create and enjoy a Food Forest; a multi layered, food producing garden that supports both humans and wildlife. Students as well as local residents will be able to co-create a garden of beauty, tranquility and abundance. 

The project aims to create a space for learning, growing food, understanding the relationship between food and health, and to provide a venue for community events in a natural and safe space.

The Food Forest project is a really exciting opportunity for the whole area. It's a chance to connect with nature and the community in a safe way. We can be co-creators of a local gem: an urban garden that will provide enjoyment for decades to come. The fact that we can help support the local wildlife as well makes it even more rewarding.

Nikhil Rathore, TWCP Member of Environment & Green/Blue Spaces Citizen Action Group
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What's planned for BFF?

It is planned to host a variety of weekly and monthly sessions. These will include learning to design regenerative garden systems with locals and exciting sessions hosted by gardening experts. There will be fun and safe activities for all ages and abilities, such as tree planting, creating veggie beds and much more! 

Due to the current lockdown, activities will have to remain online for the time-being but we are hoping for support from local partners to get some of the more challenging infrastructure steps underway while we are awaiting clearance for residents to be able to get involved.

How to get involved?

Complete the form below to register your interest in the BFF!

New Communications and Outreach Officer for TWCP – Zainab Jalloh

BARKING RIVERSIDE RESIDENT SINCE 2019

I want to share with you all why 2020 was a year of positive change for me.

Understandably, myself, as I am sure many of us, were grateful to just finally put the last year behind us. It is true, the pandemic and its effect on the world have been devastating. Lives have been lost, livelihoods destroyed, and lockdowns have intensified the cries of the lonely. It has been heartbreaking, but there have also been moments of undeniable goodness.

Last year, I welcomed my son into the world. There is nothing more profound than watching human life persevere against what at that moment is the greatest adversity; grounding your legs with enough strength into the floor and finally being able to stand. 2020, with all its uncertainty, challenged people out of their comfort zone to live more fulfilling lives. Against the darkest backdrop, we learned gratitude, had meaningful conversations, took walks, shared meals, fell in love with learning again, and took a risk on a new start. That’s what happened to me.

Why TWCP?

Prior to this role, I was working in the legal sector. I hold a Law degree from Greenwich University and have always sought a career that would allow me to advocate for the rights of others. I am skilled in community engagement, communications, and motivating people! I wanted this role as I am incredibly passionate about working alongside local people to create a sustainable community that is accessible to all. As part of TWCP, I would like to ensure that our community has a strong voice and an image that commands attention, creates dialogue, and produces tangible change.

As your Communications and Outreach Officer I will…

  • Help create a strong and cohesive communications framework that best presents our vibrant community.
  • Promote the community voice through high-quality communications, both digital and print, which will be informed by regular community outreach.
  • Ensure that we are all inspired to be proactive and enterprising citizens of our community!

Another successful ESOL Programme completed in December 2020

The Programme

The 13-week programme was funded by Barking & Dagenham Renew and was run by resident steering group member Pierre Epoh Moudio. It covered English language and employability skills and was delivered online (via Zoom) due to the pandemic.  

In total eight students joined the programme, with over 50% having been recommended to the programme by satisfied students. The programme receives students from a variety of backgrounds, including Romania, Albania, France, Bangladesh, Georgia Bulgaria and Italy. Most of them are residents in the Thames Ward area and a few are from Dagenham.

The programme was well attended every Saturday and the achievement by the students was also excellent. By the end of the programme, all the students completed key daily tasks that they could not do at the beginning such as filling in an application form for work, registering with a doctor, talking about their skills and qualities, and having a short phone conversation. The feedback received from the students has been incredibly positive!

I like this class. I learned English in this class with a great teacher and good classmates. I recommend this course for everyone because if you do not know English you WILL learn it by the end of the course!

Elena, Romania

The Impact

Initially a 10-week programme, it was expanded into a 13-week programme due to increased demand, and has been curated to the students’ needs. Despite the lockdown, the programme has played an important and positive part in their lives, enabling them to learn new skills in the comfort of their homes, make new friends, and meet people on a weekly basis especially for those who live alone.

I thought It was vital to continue the programme during lockdown because I know from my personal experience what affect isolation and loneliness can have on our health.

Pierre Moudio, ESOL Lecturer and TWCP Resident Steering Group Member

However, it was not without its challenges. Most of the students found it difficult to use the online video conferencing app Zoom at the start of the course, so a session was dedicated to instructing students on how to use it. Pierre further assisted some students by helping them install the app on their devices (while socially distanced), showing the varied types of support Pierre has needed to provide.

Pierre’s passion for supporting students has translated into tangible change for many of them. Recently, a student Pierre was supporting through his mentoring scheme was offered a job as a care assistant volunteer in a local hospital. He notes that her self-esteem and confidence have grown immensely and she is now able to set even bigger goals than she first considered.

I'm really happy I’m learning English with Pierre, he is an amazing teacher, is very good at explaining, and I have learned a lot from him. I hope to go back to his classes. 10/10!

Hurishe, Albania

The Future

The vision for the future is to continue the ESOL and employability programmes and also start a mentoring programme that supports students to achieve their full potential and improve the quality of their lives.

Additionally, there are plans for the ESOL class to be divided into two classes to cater for different levels: one for elementary students and another one for intermediate students.

Pierre hopes to provide further sessions to meet the demands of his students once additional funding has been secured.

I would like you to continue to teach us in the same way and to pay attention to us in the same way. Thank you for everything and I hope you will continue to teach us with the same energy and desire. Thank you very much.

Eleonora, Bulgaria

How To Get Involved

If you would like more information about the free ESOL programme, employability programme, and mentoring scheme, please complete the form below.

Local artist brings Christmas to life with BRL

After submitting a illustration for the virtual run, TWCP Steering Group member and Barking Riverside resident Emmanuel strikes again with Barking Riverside London to create a illustration that shows the festive cheer of residents in Thames Ward, uniting the community in the lockdown.

On the 17th October, 2020, Emmanuel shot his shot with Barking Riverside London asking them if they wanted an illustration for their virtual run. With speedy delivery as usual, Emmanuel drew an illustration of people running with their masks on, socially distanced. On 23rd November, 2020, BRL contacted him again in collaboration that gave him the opportunity to create a landscape Christmas illustration that was needed ASAP, as always, Emmanuel mustered his festive creativity and painted a moonlight scene with houses on the opposite side of land, the Thames in the middle and families on the shore, looking to the stars with a glimpse of Santa on his slay whizzing past the moon. Not only did he paint the landscape he also filmed a time-lapse of the piece with breath-taking visuals of himself creating the piece, all using his phone!

“I am blessed to have the opportunity to work with BRL, as a young resident it is music to my ears when the youth of Thames Ward who have talent are being represented in the Borough by the same people who decide what goes on in Thames Ward. With this piece I hope to unite the community in truth, solidarity and prayer at Christmas and all year round most and especially help one another in this climate”.

Emmanuel Oreyeni, 18, TWCP Steering Group member and Barking Riverside resident

TWCP 2020 Project Report

As we come to the end of 2020, a year like no other, TWCP would like to take this opportunity to look back on our journey so far.

Since its inception in 2017 TWCP has been working hard to improve outcomes for the people of Barking Riverside, Scratton’s Farm and Thames View via our interventions around Arts & Culture, Environment & Blue-Green Spaces, Health & Wellbeing, Housing & Growth, Skills & Enterprise and our work empowering young people via our Young Citizens Action Group. This has involved some major milestone achievements for us and the residents we work with, not least the creation of our new Community Development Trust, led by resident trustees and the first of its kind of the people of Thames Ward!

Please see below a link to our report on the first 3 years of TWCP where we detail our key achievements from 2017-2020:

https://www.thames-life.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/TWCP-Evaluation-Report-web.pdf

Local artist brings virtual Christmas to life for the borough!

Barking and Dagenham Council have asked local artist and TWCP Steering Group member Emmanuel Oreyeni (@Oreyeni_Arts) to produce 16 Christmas-themed landscape drawings for their virtual Christmas event taking place on the 5th December.

This is one of many new opportunities that have come Emmanuel’s way recently to share his talents with the borough following on from his work with TWCP. On Sunday 20th September 2020 Emmanuel created a stunning piece of artwork for the Summer of Festivals ‘One Borough, One Love’ Festival, drawing all of the acts that performed from ‘Beans on Toast’ to Andy Day from CBeebies, he still has people talking about his contribution to this day!

The council just got the go ahead for a virtual Christmas event for children on 5th December from 1.30pm to 5.30pm and wanted to get Emmanuel’s help to create some virtual backgrounds for part of the event that will interact with kids as they put on their detective hats with Mrs Clause and find out “who ate all the cookies?”

“It will be tough to get all of these pieces done in time, but I know that I can do it! I’m really happy to have been asked by the council to do this work because it’s more valuable experience and it means a lot to me that my art will make children happy during a difficult Christmas”  

Emmanuel Oreyeni, Local artist and TWCP Steering Group Member

Will Emmanuel rise to the challenge of getting all of the pieces done in time? To find out more and follow along with his progress follow him on Instagram @Oreyeni_Arts and also check out Summer of Festivals for more info about the event.

Good luck Emmanuel!

Job Vacancy: Thames Ward Health Outreach Worker

The post will connect both local people and the local groups who are interested in improving the health of their community by working through the Thames Ward Locality Board to jointly create health programmes with LBBD Public Health, social care and lifestyle teams; NHS clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), primary care networks (PCNs) and local provider trusts (including BHRUT and NELFT); and the community and voluntary sector (including local groups and regional / national organisations).

The post-holder will support and enable the mobilisation, development and implementation of the project. They will play a catalysing role, helping to deepen and embed the emerging model of care, working alongside residents, community groups, commissioners and health professionals.

Reports to: Director for Community Engagement
Salary: £33,240 (35 hrs per week, plus 17.2% pension contribution)
Location: Thames Ward, London Borough of Barking and Dagenham
Contract: 12 month contract from start of post in early 2021 (with plans for renewal)
Start date: As soon as possible.

Closing date for applications: 12:00 midday, 14th December 2020
Interviews: 21st December 2020

For further details please see links below:

Job Description and Person Specification

Application Form

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