Out and about

Out and about in Brislington West with Jos and Andrew

Supporting Ukraine:

There are several ways you can help Ukraine. Bristol City Council is asking organisations and individual who can offer practical support – particularly those with Ukrainian language skills – to get in touch to help coordinate, support, and welcome people to Bristol: bristolrefugeeteam@bristol.gov.uk The offer of support will be logged and a member of the team will be in touch.

To offer donations, contact AidBox Community or see the AidBoxCommunity Facebook page. They can tell you which items they need: www.aidboxcommunity. co.uk/

To volunteer to accommodate refugees who have come to the UK, please register here: Individuals wanting to offer assistance can donate to the Disasters Emergency Committee Ukraine appeal. The DEC has combined 15 top UK aid charities to launch this appeal and every pound donated will be matched by the government up to £25 million. Donations will be used to provide food, water, and medication: https://www.dec.org.uk

Latest community newsletter:

Thank you very much to everyone who joined us on Saturday to help deliver our latest community newsletter, Focus on Brislington West. If anyone would like to spend an hour or so every couple of months helping us to deliver future newsletters, please get in touch.

Great Bristol Spring Clean:

Last year, brilliant Bristolians held 98 litter picking events - 12 more than the previous Spring Clean back in 2019! Thank you for contributing your time and hard work to make last year’s Spring Clean blooming marvellous. Let's top those numbers again this year! Why not borrow a litter picking kit between 25 March and 25 April to join hundreds of others who will be making their neighbourhoods spotless this spring? Click Here

Fly tipping on Wick Road:

We recently reported some fly-tipping on private land on Wick Road. The council have promised to write to the landowner to clear the waste. Fly-tipping a problem where you live? Let us know or contact the council directly here

Holiday Hub returns:

Your Holiday Hub returns to offer families free, fun activities over the Easter break. YHH is a free, school holiday programme for school-age children and young people who receive benefits-related free school meals (FSM). Sessions include a variety of fun activities, including sports, music, arts and crafts, and other great opportunities to learn and develop skills like making friends and trying new activities. In Bristol, 49 organisations and providers have received funding to host over 400 fourhour inclusive sessions across the city, from the 11–22 April. This is double the number of free school holiday clubs that were available to children and young people over the Christmas holiday.

Every activity includes a healthy and nutritious meal. Encouraging children and young people to learn more about healthy eating is also part of the programme. Eligible children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or an education, health and care plan are welcome at YHH, please contact the organisation or session you would like to attend to discuss your child’s individual needs. Children and young people who are observing Ramadan, which coincides with the Easter school holiday this year, can join in with less strenuous activities if desired, and can take home food to enjoy later.

Eligible families will be given FSM vouchers for the Easter break and these will be distributed by education settings. Families of children or young people who do not get benefits-related FSM can find holiday activities by area here: Find out more about the Your Holiday Programme, including the YHH nearest you at the Bristol City Council website here Bristol City Council is working with local schools, voluntary and community organisations, including Feeding Bristol, Playful Bristol, the Children’s Kitchen and Bristol’s Association for Neighbourhood Daycare to deliver the government’s Holiday Activities and Food programme (Your Holiday Hub). The free places are funded by the Department for Education

Arnos Vale Memory Trail:

We are delighted to announce that the Insane Root Grief Encounter Memory Trail has now opened. The trail is free to access through QR codes, and there is a fantastic colour-in map illustrated by the talented Andy Council. It is designed to be a supportive, interactive resource for local children, young people and their families affected by bereavement in any form. “Even in the darkness, you can always find some light.” See more by clicking here

Get yourself vaccinated!

Covid-19 is very active in our area at the moment and infection levels are high. Covid-19 vaccinations help protect you and your family from Covid-19 and reduce the chances of needing hospital treatment if you catch the virus.

Clinics are open for those needing first, second or booster doses and they have also recently opened for spring boosters for the following groups:

1. Those aged 75 and over 2. Residents in older adult care homes 3. Those aged 12 and over who are severely immunosuppressed

Visit www.grabajab.net for details of walk-in clinics and how to book your 1st, 2nd, Booster or Spring Booster vaccination. Also for Spring Boosters, GPs have already started getting in touch with people – so watch out for texts or letters inviting them to make an appointment. It’s never too late to get vaccinated and protect yourself and your loved ones!

Register to vote and scrap the Mayor! Polling cards have started arriving for the referendum on the future of the directly elected mayoral system in Bristol on 5 May. If you haven’t yet registered to vote, you have until Thursday 14 April: https://www.bristol.gov.uk/voting-elections/ register-to-vote Both your Brislington West councillors spoke in support of the motion to hold a referendum on the Bristol mayoral experiment at Full Council, which went on to win by 41 votes to 24. Only Labour councillors voted against giving the people of Bristol a voice. More details here

If you would like to get involved in the campaign to #ScrapTheMayor, please sign up here: https://www.bristollibdems.org/getinvolved

Hundreds of Brislington West residents have signed up to receive our monthly newsletter via email. You can register using this link: http://www.bristollibdems.org/efocus. By Jos Clark, Liberal Democrat Councillor (Brislington West) Email: cllr.jos.clark@ bristol.gov.uk Mobile: 07584 370429 & Andrew Varney, Liberal Democrat Councillor (Brislington West) Email: cllr. andrew.varney@bristol.gov.uk Mobile: 07584 183381