Aug 02
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Mid Ulster boy’s lockdown nature film receives UK-wide plaudits

By | Charities, Creative Industries, Film, General

A ten-year-old Mid Ulster boy’s heart-warming nature film has been named as a runner-up in a prestigious UK-wide filmmaking competition that took place over lockdown.

Joe, who has autism, was recognised for his short documentary entered into the Nature in My Neighbourhood competition run by film education charity Into Film.

The competition aimed to capture a very unique moment in time as shown by the hundreds of short film entries by 5-19 year olds. Entries flooded in at an unprecedented level forming a true ‘time capsule’ of young people’s experience celebrating their connections with nature as a metaphor for hope during lockdown.

St Malachy’s Primary School Drummullan pupil Joe decided to film at Mid-Ulster Sports Arena in Cookstown where his favourite rabbits live in a burrow that he visits every day.

“I feel excited I won! I thought the competition was cool because I love animals. I wanted to film the rabbits because they are cute and they have nice cosy homes,” he said.

Into Film launched the filmmaking competition at the beginning of May as a response to the Covid 19 school closures and as part of an extensive home learning campaign supporting young people, educators, parents and carers teaching from home. Hundreds of short films from children as young as 7, made on their smart phones, tablets and cameras were sent in and showed a heart-warmingly positive response to their connection with nature during lockdown.

Joe’s mum Colleen said: “Joe had a fantastic time talking about all the animals. He has autism so he doesn’t always branch out to do certain things but immensely enjoyed this.”

Into Film is an education charity that puts film at the centre of children and young people’s learning and is supported by the BFI through National Lottery funding.

Sean Kelly, who is based in the Belfast office of Into Film, said: “This competition was a really positive way for young people to creatively use film to document this period in their lives. Joe’s film shows all the things he loves along his daily walk and his enthusiasm for nature shines through.”

For further information about Into Film go to www.intofilm.org or to see Joe’s film go to https://vimeo.com/429749393

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Aug 02
0

Emergency action needed as women bear the brunt of Covid-19

By | News, Newsroom

The Northern Ireland Executive must take emergency action to address the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 on women.

The Women’s Policy Group (WPG), which represents the interests of women in Northern Ireland, today (July 29 at 2pm) launched its recovery plan detailing how the pandemic has affected women and setting out recommendations to address gender inequality in Northern Ireland.

The Covid-19 Feminist Recovery Plan looks at the economic, health, social and cultural impact of Covid-19 and calls on the Executive to implement policies on key issues such as childcare and low paid work.

Rachel Powell, Women’s Sector lobbyist, said that the voices of women must be heard as the Northern Ireland Executive plans for recovery from the Covid-19 crisis.

She said: “Women are bearing the brunt of the crisis economically and socially. Statistics show that 79% of health and social care staff are women, 85% of part time workers are women, while 70% of workers ineligible for statutory sick pay are women and face losing their income if they stay at home.”

The detailed report calls for emergency economic and social measures across a wide range of issues. One example of the support needed is to provide universal and free childcare as essential for economic recovery, post pandemic. It argues that it will not be possible to transition out of full lockdown without tackling this issue.

Ms Powell added: “Inequalities facing women have been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, and childcare is no exception. Many women face stark choices between their work and childcare commitments, as school closures and limited access to childcare settings creates significant challenges for families.

“We are calling on the Northern Ireland Executive and all Ministerial Departments to work with the women’s sector and childcare sector to develop an effective strategy that will address these inequalities.”

The 126 page report argues that despite vast evidence highlighting the effect of Covid-19 on women, the Northern Ireland Executive has largely ignored the gender implications of the crisis. If this continues to be the case, women will suffer disproportionately for many years beyond the pandemic and decades of progress on equality will be lost.

It sums up: “If the Northern Ireland Executive truly wants to end gender inequality in Northern Ireland, we need to see a commitment to substantive acknowledgement of the gendered harms of Covid-19 and meaningful steps to address these.

“We want to work with the government, and all departments, to ensure that all policymakers are aware of the negative impact certain policy decisions are having on women. We have the expertise to inform Covid-19 recovery planning and we have the evidence needed to inform relevant strategies, legislation and the Programme for Government.”

The plan has been supported by the All-Party Group on Women, Peace and Security with many MLA’s and civil servants attending the online launch of the document and pledging support to bring forward the recommended actions.

To access the summary of recommendations go to: https://wrda.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/WPG-Feminist-Recovery-Plan-Summary-of-Recommendations.pdf

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Aug 02
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Education Minister to face youth panel to address post lockdown concerns

By | General, News, Newsroom

Education Minister Peter Weir will face questions from a panel of young people about their future as Northern Ireland emerges from lockdown.

The Minister is holding a Zoom meeting on Monday morning with members of the Northern Ireland Youth Forum (NIYF) to address a range of issues including his department’s preparation for the return to school and the plight of university students facing uncertainty as a result of the pandemic.

The questions are based on the concerns expressed by hundreds of young people in two surveys carried out by the NIYF at the beginning and height of the pandemic. Respondents felt that their views have not been considered, with 88% stating the importance of young people being part of the decision-making process.

Questions include how schools will operate effectively once young people return in September; what extra help will be available to support children who have fallen behind with schoolwork and what support the Department of Education will put in place for students preparing to go to university.

The panel of young people will challenge the Minister on whether his department has any plans to introduce support for university graduates facing a decrease in job prospects as a result of Covid-19.

And they will call on the Minister to introduce additional resources for schools and youth services plus support to enable disadvantaged families access to laptops, tablets and internet for home schooling.

One of those taking part in the meeting, NIYF Vice Chair, Oisín-Tomás ó Raghallaigh, said:

 “’NIYF’s Covid-19 surveys highlighted the diverse range of issues that young people, youth organisations, educational Institutions and parents/carers have faced and will continue to face during the pandemic and beyond. We look forward to highlighting these issues with Peter Weir and discussing positive and practical actions which can be taken.”

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Aug 02
0

Belfast couple launch local food delivery service during lockdown

By | Business, Food for thought, General, News, Newsroom

When Belfast couple Lydia Hodgins and Justin Thompson dreamt of starting their own food delivery business, they never imagined it would be in the middle of a worldwide pandemic.

The pair had been planning the launch of LocalBoxNI for months when the lockdown hit, creating a surge in demand for food delivery services.

“Here we were living together, working together and trying to start a business together in the midst of this huge crisis. It was such a scary time but we felt that people really wanted and needed good, healthy food and it was increasingly difficult to get out to buy it. So we made the leap and our first deliveries went out on April 25th,” Lydia said.

LocalBoxNI is a home delivery food service bringing the best locally made products to homes in Belfast. The idea started when the foodie pair found they were spending increasing amounts of time going from farm shop to market buying fresh, local products.

“Northern Ireland has such amazing food and we felt it was really important to support local businesses but we didn’t have the time to get around all these wonderful places to get the food we cared about. We wished there was a service that would just deliver it all to our door so we didn’t have to spend all day Saturday going out to buy it. So we decided to start the business bringing the food we love to other people,” she said.

Justin, a full-time software engineer at a tech start up, was able to build the website and the pair personally sourced suppliers across Northern Ireland. Customers can order products like homemade sourdough bread, Abernethy butter, Belfast Coffee Roasters coffee, Fermanagh free range eggs, charcuterie and chorizo from Limavady, bacon from Omagh, locally produced cheeses and Rathlin kelp pesto to name just some of the products.

“Our aim was to reduce the environmental impact of our purchases and to support the local economy. At the moment we take orders all week then deliver across Belfast on a Saturday as soon as the fresh bread arrives with us. Because we only order what we need from our suppliers, there’s no food waste,” Lydia explained.

All the delivery boxes are collected, cleaned and sanitised and reused adding to the company’s sustainable ethos. Their unique take on local food and sustainability helped them to become finalists in the Belfast Business Ideas Awards run by Belfast City Council.

The couple pack and pesonally deliver all the boxes themselves on a Saturday morning to homes in Belfast. “We’ve been overwhelmed by the positive reaction when we arrive with a delivery and we’re just so thankful that we can share our love of local food with others,” she said.

For more information go to localboxni.com.

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