Lady Mayoress Crashes Flying Boat!

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Yes it’s true – well, sort of! We recently visited Limerick County at the invitation of the Chairman of the Council. We’d already got to know each other well and of course Birmingham has a thriving Irish community from several counties, amongst which Limerick is well represented. I addressed a meeting of the Limerick County Council and met most of the members to discuss current issues – especially economic ones.
Our hosts were most attentive, and one of the visits we made was to the superb Flying Boat Museum at Foynes, County Limerick. It is unique and exhibits include a full scale replica of a Boeing 314 Clipper.

If you could afford it, this way to travel in the flying boat heyday in the late 1930’s was the way to go in style and comfort.
While at the museum the Lady Mayoress took a turn on the simulator (just visible in my dark mobile phone photo). While she made a good take-off the landing was abrupt and unintentional! Still, it was her first attempt and I used the excuse that I would have been a snug fit in the simulator!
The Museum is great and there is much besides by way of castles and historic cottage villages for tourists to see in Limerick. Highly recommended.

Special Guests in the Parlour

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We invite supporters and volunteers of the Lord Mayor’s Charity Appeal to the Lord Mayor’s Suite in the Council House to thank them for their support and commitment to our charitable causes.
Among our recent guests were Perry Beeches School who held a Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Week raising £1000 for the charity. A competition was held to design a logo.

The winner was Liyah Robinson-Ash with her key design. Head Teacher Liam Nolan, Deputy Head Jackie Powell, the winner and the two runners ups; Mohammed Rahman and Amadou Sarr, attended on behalf of the school.
Another Birmingham school took part in the Lord Mayor’s logo competition; Aaron Young from Castle Vale School impressed the judges with his Engineering Scholarships logo design. Head Teacher Barry Williams, his colleague Garry Flatres and Aaron represented the school.
Birmingham City Council team, Forward for Work hosted an auction at their awards evening which raised £450 for the charity. Team Manager Kathryn Davis, colleague Yvonne Keates, trainees Shreen Griffith and Ian Moore presented the cheque to the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress.
Throughout the year we hold several charity events in aid of the Charity Appeal. We rely on the continued support from the volunteers who make these events possible. Irene Jones and Thelma Sharpe are two of our stalwart volunteers who support the Lord Mayor’s Charities every year and we are delighted to recognise their contribution.
To date the Lord Mayor’s Charity Appeal has raised over £40,000 for the chosen charities; St Basil’s, WAITS, Birmingham’s Pancreatic Cancer Research and Engineering Scholarships.

Birmingham Royal Ballet 20th Anniversary

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The Birmingham Royal Ballet first opened in 1990 after moving from London, a move the press at the time described as 'the arts coup of the decade'.
2010 marks Birmingham Royal Ballet 20th anniversary, to celebrate this special occasion a Gala event was held on Wednesday 10 March at Birmingham Hippodrome.
The event consisted of selections from the Ballet's memorable repertoire such as The Nutcracker, Romeo and Juliet, Carmina Burana. There were multimedia presentations celebrating and highlighting the company's local, national and international achievements over the last two decades.
This exceptional event was attended by HRH the Prince of Wales, who is President of Birmingham Royal Ballet. The Lady Mayoress and I attended as special guests to commemorate their achievements of the past twenty years, and taking a look towards the future.
Birmingham Royal Ballet brings delight to all who watch and take part in it, and brings exquisite performance art to Birmingham.

The College and the Cottage Industry

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We recently had an excellent visit to University College Birmingham (UCB - which was formerly known as the College of Food, Tourism and Creative Studies) which does outstanding work in both Higher and Further Education. The quality of the courses is very high and the UCB is well found in material respects and has an exciting vision for the future.
During our visit, the Lady Mayoress and I were very interested today to learn of the revival of the Birmingham Close Notched Cottage Loaf!
The loaf, which was very popular in the late 19th and the first half of the 20th Century has been re-launched by UCB. This is a great service to the people of the city! We can vouch for this personally as we took a loaf back to the Lord Mayor’s Parlour and the staff greatly enjoyed the fresh baked Brummie bread!
The recipe was re-discovered by one of the College’s Bakery lecturers when they were looking to expand the range of breads the students make. There are other regional loves (for example the Evesham ‘Bomber’) but our focus here is the Birmingham loaf. It has more ‘notches’ which give a far nicer crust and a nicer shape as it is more stable in the oven. The inside is light and delicious.
Cottage loaves originated with farming families and were made from two lumps of dough to save space in small ovens. The dough would be made using locally sourced flour, perhaps from Sarehole Mill in Hall Green or Berkswell Windmill or even Avoncroft near Bromsgrove. Birmingham flour was renowned for its taste and flavour.
You can buy the loaves in the shop at UCB in the city centre and we are hoping to have a stall at the Lord Mayor’s Show at the end of May. I can send you the recipe if you would like to have a go at making one. Just email me as Lord.Mayor@birmingham.gov.uk

Recent News on the Staffordshire Hoard

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A display of the Anglo Saxon warrior gold returns to Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery on Saturday March 13th. Included in the display in Gallery 20 will be items not previously seen. The items on display will be there for at least five weeks but in all probability for the foreseeable future.
The fundraising is going well with £1.2m raised as of a few days ago of which some £500,000 is from public donations with the remainder from the Arts Fund, the two city councils and a couple of trusts. A substantial further sum is pending and the deadline is April 17th although an extension is probable should this be needed.
The latest intention is to establish a Mercian Trail including Birmingham, Stoke, Lichfield and Tamworth as well as the discovery site off Watling Street (the A5) near Brownhills. The intention is that the principal displays will be in Birmingham and Stoke with loaned displays at Tamworth Castle and Lichfield.
A number of TV programmes are in preparation including one on Channel Four over the Easter Weekend. National Geographic are producing three programmes: a one hour documentary on the finding of the Hoard (this is the one to be shown on Channel 4), a two hour programme on the study of the Hoard (this will not be seen for two years) and a one hour programme in three years time bringing it all together. A substantial, well illustrated book by Kevin Leahy is due out in October.
Tentative agreement on the division of the items between Birmingham and Stoke appears to have been reached and Stoke will retain agreed elements so not all the items previously on display in Birmingham will return on March 13th. However there will be new ones and it is intended to show a partially reconstructed helmet (displayed flat at this stage). Experts take the view that the 1800 pieces contain two helmets, the assembly of which will be an exciting prospect in the months and years ahead.

Staffordshire Hoard Update

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Part of the Hoard has recently been on display in Stoke on Trent (until March 7th) and, as earlier in Birmingham, has attracted tens of thousands of visitors and a substantial contribution to the appeal including an anonymous donation of £50,000.
The total raised by the appeal so far has just passed the one million pound mark and there is every likelihood of a major donation in the near future.
Another exhibition from the Hoard will come to Birmingham later in March and will contain items that were not on show at the first exhibition in the city. Latest plans are that Lichfield and Tamworth will have loaned components of the Hoard and there will be a touring exhibition visiting several museums in the region.
As to the Hoard itself, conservation will get into real detail when the ownership is settled. The gold (which is a fairly inert substance) is in good condition though some of the silver may need restoration work. It is now thought that some garnets may have come to Mercia from as far away as Sri Lanka. So rich is the material that full research into the Hoard is expected to take about ten years.
There is at least one helmet and probably two in the Hoard. These are in many pieces - a not uncommon situation as components were fixed on to an iron underlay and would have been broken off. The reconstruction of the helmets will take some time but it is expected that computer 3D modelling will greatly assist the reconstruction. It is also hoped to make this aspect of progress available on the internet as work proceeds - which will be very exciting to follow.

Lord Mayor’s Charities 2009/10

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The good causes for 2009/10 that are supported by my Charity Appeal combine new initiatives and existing charities. If you would like to make a donation online - thank you. Donations can be made quickly and securely through my justgiving page at: http://www.justgiving.com/Lord-Mayor

The Birmingham Fund for Pancreatic Cancer Research
While there has been steady progress with the treatment of several forms of cancer, for pancreatic cancer the five-year survival rate following diagnosis forty years ago stood at 3%. Today that rate is still little more than 3%. But there are promising research possibilities and the disease can be treatable on occasions where cancer of the pancreas, which typically shows symptoms only at a late stage, is detected early enough. The primary focus of the fund will be on research, conducted at the School of Cancer Sciences at the University of Birmingham, into improved diagnostic methods. The objective is to establish a fund that outlasts the current Mayoralty.
The Lord Mayor’s Engineering Scholarships
A fund to encourage young people to take up the study of engineering and the practice of manufacturing in Birmingham at various levels and in a range of forms. Manufacturing and engineering have made unmatched contributions to the city, and it is vital that Birmingham remains prominent in these important fields. So alongside other initiatives, the fund will be used to encourage and enable young people from Birmingham to take up engineering as a course of study and as a fulfilling future career. Encouragement will also be offered to progress apprenticeships and developments in newer areas such as Clinical Engineering.
WAITS
WAITS (Women Acting In Today’s Society) is a very important charity in a diverse city such as Birmingham, and WAITS is doing outstanding work tackling domestic violence and enabling women to address issues, overcome barriers and combat isolation. WAITS provides help to increase the involvement of women in the professional, business and public life of the city - from which all will benefit. There is a continuing need for the wide range of activities carried out by WAITS and there are many who are yet to benefit and a great deal more work still to be done.
St Basil’s
St Basil’s works with young people aged 16 to 25 providing support services, advice, mediation and guidance and tackling and preventing homelessness and its consequences. This charity has helped to transform many young lives in Birmingham and beyond. St Basil’s has nationally recognised expertise and not only provides accommodation but sets young people on secure tracks in life through education and employment. In today’s economic circumstances there is likely to be even greater need for the wide range of services provided by St Basil’s.