Premier League ‘not inclusive’ for disabled fans, says Lord Holmes

_91970119_disabledfansThe Premier League lacks a “culture of inclusivity” for disabled fans, says a leading equality campaigner.

Some top-flight clubs have not yet met guidelines on disability access.

Lord Holmes, a member of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission and a nine-time Paralympic swimming champion, told MPs that legal action against clubs and the Premier League remains an option.

Premier League executive Bill Bush said that suggesting clubs were “reluctant” to improve access was “not fair”.

Last year Premier League clubs agreed to make their stadiums compliant with official accessibility guidance by August 2017.  More

 

 

 

Black and Minority Ethnic ‘challenges’ explored at Greenwich event

Tracey Reynolds
Tracey Reynolds

The challenges facing Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) academics and students in higher education will be explored in an event at the University of Greenwich on Thursday 27 October.

Among the themes of the one-day symposium are the potential impact of Brexit on BME graduates and professionals, their perceptions of the student experience, and a discussion of good practice for raising employability rates at local and national level.

The event will highlight experiences through personal stories and creative arts, as well as reflections on policy and common practice. A roundtable discussion will also take place, titled Making action beat intention.

Speakers from the University of Greenwich include Adelola Solanke, a prize-winning playwright and performer; Noel Anne Bradshaw, Faculty Director, Employability; and Richard Mendez, Head of Employability and Careers Service.  More

Comic strips offer children with dyslexia and autism an alternative way to learning subjects at school

_91895331_newdekkotwoComic strips offer children with dyslexia and autism an alternative way to learning subjects at school, a Scottish entrepreneur has suggested.

Rossie Stone has set up Dekko Comics to create educational comic strips after drawing his own while at secondary school to help him revise.

A comic book he drew as revision notes for a Higher Modern Studies exam earned him an “A”.

Pupils at five Scottish schools have tried Dekko Comics’ strips so far.  More

Wonder Woman to become UN Women’s Champion

_91910568_wonder_woman_getty_ap_warneComic book heroine Wonder Woman is to be named as a new honorary ambassador for the United Nations (UN).

The character will be used to promote messages about women’s empowerment and gender-based violence, the UN said.

DC Entertainment president Diane Nelson will accept the role for her company’s comic book, TV and film character at a ceremony on 21 October.

The DC comics site hinted that actresses who have played Wonder Women will also attend the event.

The campaign is being sponsored by Warner Bros and DC Entertainment who are supporting the UN and Unicef’s year-long campaign for gender equality and women’s empowerment.  More

NHS not transgender-friendly enough, says nurse

_91753192_kirstycassThe NHS is failing to meet the needs of transgender adults and children, says a nurse who has first-hand experience both working in a hospital and as a transgender patient.

Kirsty Cass, 53, works at a private hospital in southern England. But in 2012, she was an NHS patient having gender reassignment surgery.

When she woke up from her operation, she remembers a member of staff on the ward referring to her as “he”.

 

Woman’s Hour at 70: ‘Hooray for being a housewife’

_91624061_housewifeOn 7 October 1946 a male presenter introduced the very first episode of Woman’s Hour.

Created as a time-filler for housewives, its early broadcasts were criticised for being “patronising” and obsessed with the routine of domestic chores.

Three months after the programme’s launch, the first female presenter was at the helm and the show went on to become a Radio 4 staple – the longest-running radio magazine programme in British broadcasting.

From how to cook with whale meat to contraception and “the perfect affair”, the shifting nature of its subjects shines a light on the changing nature of the issues affecting women.  More

 

Chasing the Sun: The woman forgotten by science

annie-maunderOn the far side of the Moon lies the Maunder crater, named after two British astronomers – Annie and Walter Maunder.

Annie worked alongside her husband at the turn of the 19th Century, recording the dark spots that pepper the Sun.

The name Maunder is still known in scientific circles, yet Annie has somehow slipped from history.

“I think the name Maunder is there and we have all rather forgotten that that’s two people,” says Dr Sue Bowler, editor of the Royal Astronomical Society magazine, Astronomy and Geophysics.

“She was acknowledged on papers, she published in her own name as well as with her husband, she wrote books, she was clearly doing a lot of work but she also clearly kept to the conventions of the day, I think.”  More

Inspirational Diversity Champion of the Month – October 2016

karen-taylor-1World Mental Health Day takes place on 10 October 2016.  With this in mind we have chosen Karen Taylor as our Inspirational Diversity Champion of the Month.

Karen is a former employee of the University, originally employed as our Equality and Diversity Champion, and it was she who put the idea of the ‘Inspirational Diversity Champion of the Month’ in place.

Karen currently works for Bromley and Lewisham MIND and is the Project Co-ordinator for ‘Mindful Mums’.

The project, run by Karen and her volunteers, is all about learning how to stay resilient and emotionally well, develop confidence and social connections during pregnancy and in the first year of birth.

The courses have proved very beneficial to the 43 women who have attended the groups so far and courses will continue well into the new year.

Karen is a graduate of Queen Mary, University of London gaining a language degree, and recently attained a PG Cert in Special and Additional Needs.  Outside of work she is busy looking after her young son, she loves to exercise and is a professional standard baker of cakes.

To find out more about Mindful Mums see here https://www.blmind.org.uk/bromley-services-2/support-mothers/mindful-mums/

To find out more about World Mental Health Day see here http://wfmh.com/index.php/world-mental-health-day