Kent Equality Cohesion Council

Tag: kent County Council

  • Health and Wellbeing Black History Month

    Health and Wellbeing Black History Month

    Health and Wellbeing Black History Month

    Continuing our programme of activity for Black History Month, KECC were delighted to work in partnership with The Dartford Health Living Centre and Dartford Borough Council to deliver a fun and informative health and well-being event with a particular focus on sickle cell, diabetes and adult social care.

    There was a variety of Jamaican and Nigerian food, along with performances by the Phase 5 Steel Band and some interactive arts and crafts workshops.

    A number of key partners were in attendance including Darent Valley Hospital, Dartford Borough Council, Kent County Council and community partners including Rethink Sahayak.

    The event was attended by Kent Equality Cohesion Council CO Gurvinder Sandher MBE DL, Sharon Philips Chief Officer Healthy Living Center Dartford and the Mayor of Dartford Councillor Rosanna Currans.

  • Windrush Celebrations take place across Gravesend, Dartford and Maidstone

    Windrush Celebrations take place across Gravesend, Dartford and Maidstone

    A week of activity took place across Gravesend, Dartford and Maidstone to celebrate Windrush Day and the 75th Anniversary of the arrival of the SSE Windrush. Organised and delivered by the North Kent Caribbean Network and supported by Cohesion Plus, Kent Equality Cohesion Council, Dartford Borough Council, Gravesham Dartford Borough Council and Kent County Council.

    The programme of events were launched by a flag raising and networking event in Dartford which was attended by Deputy Lieutenant Kelvin Holford and Leader of the Council Cllr Jeremy Kite as well as staff members from Dartford Borough Council and community members.

    This was followed by a community luncheon in Gravesham which saw community guests and senior staff from Gravesham Borough Council. The event was also an opportunity to showcase exhibition produced by the NKCN called ‘The Front Room’ which serves as a time capsule for what would have been a typical household for those who arrived from the Caribbean to the UK.

    Furthermore, a special Windrush event and flag raising ceremony took place on Thursday 22nd June at County Hall in Maidstone to mark 75 years since the arrival of the SSE Windrush to the UK in 1948. The event began the flag raising outside of Sessions House which was attended by partners, community and NKCN group members as well as KCC and Kent Police colleagues. The flag which was designed by a volunteer from NKCN, flew centre stage at the top of Sessions House and was flown for the remainder of the week to mark the national celebrations for Windrush 75.

    The flag raising was followed by a luncheon serving traditional Caribbean cuisine that was attended by civic guests including High Sheriff of Kent Nadra Ahmed and Chairman of Kent County Council Cllr Gary Cooke. Also in attendance were the Leader of KCC Cllr Roger Gough and Chief Superintendent Shaun White from Kent Police.

    The exhibition was presented in its entirety at County Hall and gave those in attendance the opportunity to interact to view it as well as talk with the Windrush generation from North Kent who were also on hand to talk about their experiences and challenges working, studying and living in the UK.

  • Mental Health event brings Young People together

    Mental Health event brings Young People together

    Kent Equality Cohesion Council working in partnership with North Kent Caribbean Network and Rethink Sahayak delivered a mental health awareness event on Thursday 24th March designed to engage young people from diverse backgrounds.

    The event was delivered as part of an ongoing project commissioned by Porchlight and Kent County Council which aims to identify how mental health in young people has been impacted since the onset of the pandemic.

    The event was held at No 84 Eatery and over 25 young people had the opportunity to hear from speakers including Carol Gosal from Rethink, Tamsyn Phillips and Adam Littlefield from EK360 and Jennifer Kelly from North Kent MIND around shaping services to cater to young people from underrepresented communities as well as the importance of discussing mental health overall. The young people also heard from spoken word artist Nathanial Ogun who presented two poems around mental health.

    Also presented at the event by Gurvinder Sandher from KECC (Kent Equality Cohesion Council) was a report researched and published by KECC which features data captured from over 300 young people around their thoughts and reflections of mental health over the many lockdowns caused by the pandemic. The report looked at the themes that emerged as a result of the findings and some key issues that presented themselves were around social anxiety caused by prolonged lockdowns and the subsequent lack of social interaction. Also prevalent was the concern around the impact on education during the pandemic as well as lack of awareness of which services could be accessed for mental health support.

    The aim of the event was not only engage diverse young people but to encourage open dialogue around the challenges facing minority youth when it comes to mental health as well identifying perceived barriers when attempting to access health and support services.

    Gurvinder Sandher, CEO of KECC commented, “We are incredibly proud that we were able to deliver this important event working partners North Kent Caribbean Network and Rethink Sahayak. Mental health is something that has in some way shape or form, touched us or someone that we know. However, its not something that we know a great deal about in terms of where to go when we need help. This is particular prevalent in young people who openly acknowledging their struggles with mental health but don’t necessarily know where to go in terms of accessing tangible, dependable support. The aim of this event was to demystify this process and it was important that colleagues from MIND, Rethink and EK360 through their partnership with the NHS could contribute to the discussions around this. Special thanks go to all the young people that have generously given their time to contribute towards our report and overall project as well as No 84 who continue to do great community work by offering their premises for such important events.”

  • Communities Come Together For Black History Month

    Communities Come Together For Black History Month

    Wednesday 20th October saw the diverse communities of North Kent come out to celebrate Black History Month by attending a free screening of community led and made films at the Woodville Hall Theatre in Gravesham. Kent Equality Cohesion Council working in partnership with Cohesion Plus, North Kent Caribbean and People Dem Collective delivered the in person Black History Month event since 2019.

    Supported by Kent County Council and Gravesham Borough Council, the event saw dignitaries and community members alike come together to view films around the themes of race, diversity and identity.

    Chief Constable of Kent Police Alan Pughsley QPM delivered the keynote speech of the evening and spoke at length about the extensive work that Kent Police were doing around Equality, Diversity and Inclusion within the force as well the continued work around the recruitment scheme. He also spoke about the steps that the force were taking to instil confidence around the issue of violence against women and girls.

    The Chief went on to address the audience of over 150 attendees about his commitment to the diverse communities of Kent. He stated that he hoped the gesture he made when he took the knee during a peaceful memorial to mark the death of George Floyd at the hands of American police in 2019, showed his solidarity and commitment to equality within policing. Mr Pughsley was then presented with an award for outstanding support and service to diverse communities in Kent by event organisers Gurvinder Sandher, CEO of KECC and Michelle Bramble, Chair of the North Kent Caribbean Network.

    Local residents were also recognised for their outstanding work in their respective communities as they received awards presented by the Deputy Lord Lieutenant Bhargawa Vasudaven and Mayor of Gravesham Cllr Lyn Milner.

    The event was part of a series of taking place across Kent as part of Black History Month. Further activity will also be taking place in Margate and Canterbury over the coming week culminating in a screening of cult classic ‘Babylon’ at the Gulbenkian on Friday 29th October with a coach making its way from Gravesend.

    Gurvinder Sandher, CEO of KECC commented, “It was an absolute pleasure to be able to deliver the first in person Black History Month celebrations here in North Kent for the first time since 2019. It is important that we use events like Black History Month to understand our shared history and heritage. It is vital to stress that Black History isn’t confined to just one month rather it is a yearlong recognition that Black history is in fact British history. We are incredibly grateful to our valued partner the North Kent Caribbean Network and I am immensely proud of what we have been able achieve during this time.”

  • Inter Faith Weeks brings faith groups together

    Inter Faith Weeks brings faith groups together

    Kent Equality Cohesion Council and Kent County Council worked in partnership to bring faith groups and partners together to mark National Inter Faith Week. 20 representatives from partner agencies including Kent Police, Kent Fire and Rescue Service, Victim Support, NHS and the Heart of Kent Hospice attended both the Gravesham Guru Nanak Darbar Gurdwara and the Gravesend Hindu Mandir (Temple) to learn more about the Sikh and Hindu faiths and practices. This was part of the Diverse Open Doors week where places of worship around Kent opened their doors to visitors from different faiths.

    This was followed by an Inter Faith event hosted at County Hall in Maidstone which was attended by around 60 people. The event was addressed by Gurvinder Sandher from Kent Equality Cohesion Council, Cllr Michael Hill from Kent County Council and Jatinder Birdi the Co-Chair of the Inter Faith Network for the UK. Their then followed a round table exercise where representatives from the Christian, Sikh, Hindu, Muslim, Baha’i and Jewish faiths talked about the tenets of their religion and delegates went from table to table to learn more and ask questions.

    Gurvinder Sandher, the CEO of Kent Equality Cohesion Council commented “I am delighted that we were able to work with Kent County Council to arrange some events for National Inter Faith Week. It is important that events like this are marked and are used as an opportunity to bring different faith and community groups together to celebrate our shared values. The feedback has been very positive and gives us something to build upon for next year.”

  • Gravesham celebrates HM Queen 90th Birthday

    Gravesham celebrates HM Queen 90th Birthday

    Birthday cake and bright skies was the order of the day as Gravesham celebrated the 90th Birthday of Her Majesty the Queen. Cohesion Plus, working with Gravesham Borough Council and Kent Equality Cohesion Council organised a special street party on the Community Square on Friday June 10 which was attended by over 400 people. They were entertained by Elton John and One Direction tribute acts while enjoying specially prepared packed lunches sitting in the sun.

    This was followed on Saturday June 11 by the fourth Gravesham Fusion Festival at the Fort Gardens. The theme was Britain and the Commonwealth and was headlined by leading Queen Tribute act Real Magic. They were supported by local Kent based acts including Four by Four Bhangra, Phase 5 Steel Band, Uzambezi, Gemma Moore, Confident Queen Genny Jones, Chuckle Singh’s and Shadow of Doubt.

    In addition to the stage programme Same Sky Arts delivered creative arts workshops for young people who made union flags and crowns.

    Gurvinder Sandher the CEO of Kent Equality Cohesion Council commented “I was really pleased that the weather held out and we were able to be involved in 2 great community celebrations to mark Her Majesty the Queen’s 90th birthday. She has been a beacon for this nation since her coronation in 1953 and we can all learn from her commitment to public service. I have had some real positive feedback and hope that we created some great memories for the young people who were able to take part in the celebrations.” 

  • Gravesham Fusion Festival 2015

    Gravesham Fusion Festival 2015

    BBB 3Kent Equality Cohesion Council working in partnership with Cohesion Plus with the support of Gravesham Borough Council and Kent County Council Arts Development Unit has arranged the Gravesham Fusion Festival. The event will take place on July 4 at the Gravesend Promenade, Riverside Leisure Area between 12pm and 6pm. The aim of the free festival is to showcase new and emerging culturally diverse artists and to celebrate music and dance from around the world.

    There will be a range of culturally diverse artists performing on and off stage and the event is being headlined by bhangra star Jassi Sidhu who will perform alongside the Bollywood Brass Band, leading African ensemble Uzambezi, Bulgarian dance troupe Kitka as well local band What and Sam Smith tribute Joe Scripps. In a change to the published programme Slovakian band Gejza will be performing rather than Rebel.

    The festival will also feature the premier of “Samba Bhangra Beats” a new performance put together by Cohesion Plus working with Bollywood Brass Band, Four by Four Bhangra Group and Bloco Fogo Samba.

    There will be drama also for the first time on the Fusion stage with Cohesion Plus working with 2Bscene Theatre Company on a new production working with young people from the borough.

    Fusion Festival poster 2015The event is being hosted by popular comedy duo Payne and Pearce. There will also a food zone which is being delivered by the Cheese and Chilli Festival.

    In addition to the Fusion Festival the Promenade will also play host to the Gravesend Town Regatta, a fun fair and the climax of the Northfleet Carnival.

    Gurvinder Sandher the CEO of the Kent Equality Cohesion Council commented “We are pleased that our months have hard work have paid off with a fantastic day planned for the Fusion Festival. This event underlines what we are trying to do, namely to bring communities together and celebrate all that binds us. We hope that this event will build upon our recent very successful Saint George’s Day celebrations in the borough. With all the other activities taking place at the Prom at the same time this promises to be a great day out for the communities of Gravesham with the Regatta, Summer Queen and climax of the Northfleet Carnival.” 

    Fusion Festival Poster 2015
  • Wrotham Festival of Fusion and Light (2014)

    Wrotham Festival of Fusion and Light (2014)

    Kent Equality Cohesion Council working in partnership with Cohesion Plus and the Four Schools in the Pilgrims Way Partnership; Saint George’s Primary School, Platt Primary School, Trottiscliffe CE Primary School and Stansted CE Primary School have organised the Wrotham Festival of Fusion and Light which takes place on October 17th in the village of Wrotham.

    The Festival will take place in 2 distinct phases. In the first part between 6.15pm and 6.45pm there will be a lantern parade through the village involving around 250 young people which will be led by the Mayor of Tonbridge and Malling Cllr. Sasha Luck and the Chairman of Kent County Council Cllr Peter Homewood. The lanterns will be created by the young people in special workshops in schools which are being delivered by the leading arts company Same Sky. The parade will also feature stilt walkers, Four by Four Dhol Drummers and Under1Sun Samba Group. 

    Once the Parade reaches its conclusion at Wrotham Cricket Ground there will be a fusion Stage Show between 7pm and 8.30pm featuring performances by leading culturally diverse artists and emerging local artists including comedy duo Danny and Dan, Four by Four Bhangra Dancers, Reel Eire Irish Dancers and vocalist Ryan Bennett. In addition there will be locally produced refreshments available.  

    According to Gurvinder Sandher the CEO of Kent Equality Cohesion Council “We are looking forward to this community celebration in Wrotham. A lot of hard work has gone into this and we are grateful to all our partners for their help and support. We believe that events like this are an excellent way for communities to come together and to celebrate all that unites out regardless of age, faith, ethnicity or social background.”  

    Click on poster for larger view

    Poster 2014