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Friday, 12 April 2024

A little bit of Pump and Grind for Hounslow’s care leavers

This year, care leavers from Hounslow will participate in the Social Enterprise Academy for the first time alongside schools from the borough, including Grove Road Primary, Heathlands, and Chiswick School.

Social Enterprise Academy delivers the Social Enterprise Schools programme for young people in the area, which is partially funded by Hounslow Council and SAP. The project finale will be a Dragons' Den-style ceremony where social entrepreneurship ideas will be presented to a panel of judges, which will include Leader of the Council Shantanu Rajawat.

Yesterday, the group met Karen Adams from Our Barn who runs the Pump and Grind social café at Brentford’s Museum of Water and Steam. A big thank you to Karen for showing the group around and providing inspiration for this year’s competition. 

Pump and Grind is the Museum's café and community space, as well as an independent coffee shop. Pump and Grind is also a training venue for young people with learning disabilities or autism who are passionate about working in hospitality.

COVID-19 vaccinations available from Monday

From Monday, 15 April the booking system for COVID-19 vaccinations will re-open and residents can book an appointment if they are over 75 or have a weakened immune system. 

Residents can book via the NHS App or on the NHS website, which also lists walk-in sites across the country. 

Parks mobile catering opportunity now open

Interested in running a small food stall or coffee trailer in one of Hounslow’s parks?

The Council is seeking proposals from both new and experienced providers of mobile catering facilities to operate within its parks and open spaces through spring and summer 2024.

The first round of applications received by Monday, 15 April 2024 will be assessed and contracts issued to successful candidates by Wednesday, 1 May 2024.

Applications will be open until Thursday, 15 August 2024, with the final batch of contracts for the year being issued by Sunday, 1 September 2024.

This opportunity is open to businesses within the borough as well as those operating outside Hounslow.

Election deadlines – are you registered to vote?

The deadline to register for the upcoming Mayor of London and London Assembly elections is midnight on Tuesday, 16 April. At this election, voters need to present an accepted form of photo ID at their polling station for the first time. If voters don’t have suitable photo ID, they can apply for a free Voter Authority Certificate. The deadline to apply for the upcoming elections is 5pm on Wednesday, 24 April.  The deadline for the elections office to receive applications to vote by post, or written notifications of changes to existing postal or proxy arrangements, is 5pm on Wednesday, 17 April. Voters can hand deliver up to five postal votes packs with their own (six in total) to the council office or a polling station and will need to allow extra time to fill in a form before handing them in.

Connecting to nature just got easier

Gone are the days of relying on your local park's physical noticeboard or posters on the gates for important updates.

Recently, the Council introduced the online Parks Noticeboard that is available on the all-new Parks Hub platform.

This digital space ensures that residents have a convenient platform to check out ongoing initiatives and events, as well as a space to digest real-time updates from across all of Hounslow's cherished parks.

A helping hand to create a Healthy Home

Please download a copy of the Council's easy-to-follow Healthy Homes guide. There’s lots of advice to help you manage your home, along with information on who to contact for help if needed.

Enjoy a cuppa at the Memory Café

The Council’s sports and leisure provider Lampton Leisure, in partnership with Right at Home, hosts a series of free ‘Memory Cafés’ in the borough.

Residents living with dementia, their families, and anyone who wants to get support can come along and enjoy free hot drinks, friendly chats and dementia-friendly activities.

The next drop-in session will take place in Hanworth Air Park Leisure Centre on Thursday, 25 April, between 12.30pm and 2pm.

To learn more about the drop-ins, which will run until end of July, email Paula.Vincent@lamptongroup.co.uk

Live and Learn with Adult Education

Learn Hounslow offers a wide variety of adult education courses ranging from cooking and nutrition to employment skills, and much more in-between.

Most courses take place in the evening, so they’re perfect for residents who work during the day. While some courses require a small fee, residents may be able to take the classes for free if claiming benefits or are on a low income.

Courses starting next week are:

• Cooking School: Understanding Food labels (from Monday, 15 April)
• Yoga for Well-Being (from Wednesday, 17 April)                

Join Yoga with Hazel this spring

Experience Vinyasa yoga at Brentford's Boston Manor Park this May. Yoga classes with Hazel will start on Wednesday, 1 May at 11am, and then take place weekly on 8,15, and 22 May. The cost is £6 per class, or a payment in advance for all four classes is £20. Contact bostonmanorpark@hounslow.gov.uk to book in advance as places are very limited.