Sheffield News

Major Boost For Sheffield’s New Retail Quarter

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By Samuel Newton

A long-awaited city centre regeneration scheme looks set to finally come into fruition after Sheffield City Council announced that it is committed to moving plans forward.

The New Retail Quarter scheme, previously marketed as Sevenstones, was shelved last year after a partnership between the project’s contractors Hammerson and Sheffield City Council fell through.

The project has now re-surfaced and will see the property between the Devonshire Quarter and The Moor developed into high-class retail spaces.

The options for structuring the property deal are being finalised and will be presented to Cabinet for approval. The Council will then consider whether to find a forward sale with interim funding or fund the scheme directly themselves.

Talks are currently being held with affected property owners in the area, who are hoping to be able to continue trading in their properties, until building developments are due to commence.

The Council’s Cabinet Member for Business, Skills and Development, Leigh Bramall said: “We are fully committed to moving the development of the New Retail Quarter forward urgently now and this decision to secure the ownership of the properties needed for the development is key to making things happen”.

Drawing on the necessity to keep the area attractive to shoppers until the development gets underway, Mr. Bramall continued: “We are also conscious that the existing businesses should be able to continue their trade in their current premises whenever possible to ensure the area remains attractive to shoppers during this crucial period of transition”.

The Quarter is set to be a crucial element for the regeneration of the city centre as it sits alongside other developments including new improvements to The Moor which have already seen success as the Heart of the City scheme looks to shift up a gear. It is expected that the scheme will provide around 2,500 new jobs.

Councillor Ben Curran, the Council’s Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources said: “Once completed, the New Retail Quarter will help to improve the status of the City and will help to stimulate further office, commercial and leisure opportunities in Sheffield City centre. This development will bring significant external investment into the city as well as giving a massive boost to the city centre’s retail offer”

Spot the local stars in Sheffield Community Media film

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A new short film shows how excited Sheffielders are about the plans to allow people who live, work, or have interests in Sheffield to own their very own television channel.

Figures from notable Sheffield businesses, and from the worlds of music (including one of Sheffield’s home grown music stars – watch the film to find out who), media and education, have joined Sheffielders in welcoming the channel:

As excitement grows (you can read more comments here), so does investment into Sheffield Community Media Ltd, an organisation set up for community benefit which has been established to support community media development in Sheffield, including the new local digital TV channel.

Readers can become a part owner and can invest from £100 to £20,000, payable by instalments if preferred. Sheffield Community Media aims to pay a modest rate of interest after 3 years. Details here.

Community Shares are a form of social investment to raise funds for projects of community benefit. Sheffield Community Media Ltd want Sheffielders to support this groundbreaking project. The “Pioneer and Community Share Offer” is available at www.sheffieldlive.org/shares

Sheffield Community Media Ltd is a society for the benefit of the community incorporated under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1965. Registered with the Financial Conduct Authority. Registration No: 31727R. Registered address: 15 Paternoster Row, Sheffield, S1 2BX

We’d like to thank Matthew Neale of The Sheffield College and Norton Creative for editing and directing this film, and College students for capturing footage; Daren Eagles and Sheffield Hallam University students for the introductory ident; Rob Speranza and Sangita Basudev for supplying additional footage; and the featured Sheffield Live show producers, as well as all of the interviewees, for taking part.

Poetry Open Mic night – Monday 23 June

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Gorilla Poetry invite Sheffield Live listeners and website readers to an open mic night, on Monday 23 June, at the Bell Jar on London road.

Sheffield Live asked Gorilla Events’ Liz Searle what it’s all about.

“Gorillas is a lovely, lively night for all poets, new and veteran, shy and brazen, to come and meet other writers and speakers in a welcoming Sheffield pub (the Bell Jar on London Road). Our Monday night sessions alternate between slams (competition with friendly, supportive judging and lots of applause!) and open mics, which are a good place to try out new stuff.

“As a fairly new poet, for me Gorillas is fun, exciting, creative and above all inclusive. Nobody feels like they can’t have a go, and everybody feels happy (except when there is a sad poem of course). Every session has a different vibe according to the people who come along, and I always leave feeling inspired and tickled by words.”

What next?

  • Take a look at the Gorilla Poetry facebook page
  • Get down there on Monday 23rd June from 7.30pm at the Bell Jar – appreciative listeners are also welcomed!

From New York to Nether Edge: Avenue Q

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The Avenue Q cast with Sheffield Live presenter Vicky Oag

The Avenue Q cast with Sheffield Live presenter Vicky Oag

What do you get when you cross a meaning of life story, with sesame street, the muppet show and some distinctly adult humour? No, its not the start of a really bad joke but it does sum up the plot line of musical comedy Avenue Q about to hit the stage of The Lantern Theatre in Sheffield by new amateur theatre company, Cutting Edge.

And Sheffield Live 93.2FM has an interview with the cast – on today’s Communities Live show at noon.

Set on a Avenue Q in New York’s southernmost neighbourhood, the show follows new graduate, Princeton as he works out exactly what is his purpose in life.  Supported by a small cast of humans, monsters and puppets, Princeton and his new neighbours take a comedic journey through “the real issues in modern life – employment, love, politics and exactly why the internet was invented.”

Avenue Q is the first performance project of Sal Foster-Major and Gavin Usher, the people behind Cutting Edge.

Director of the show Sal says: “We set up Cutting Edge to focus on new, innovative and unusual dramatic and musical theatre productions.  Often, amateur musical performers miss out on shows that only require a small cast and we wanted to create somewhere they would give them the opportunity to perform some of the smaller but just as interesting and exciting shows.”

Musical Director Gavin adds: “We wanted to make an impact with our first show so we chose Avenue Q for the visual spectacle of the puppets, the great music and the sheer comedy of the script.  Although it is most definitely aimed at adults, it is a real feel good show with a modern twist.  Whether you love or hate musicals, you cant help but enjoy this show.”

Cast member and puppeteer Chris Hanlon is in charge of one of the colourful cast of puppets that makes this particular show so unique. “There are only 11 of us in the cast and none of us have ever done anything like this before.  Singing, dancing, acting and operating a ‘muppet’ puppet has been quite a challenge but as a cast we have laughed all though the rehearsals, the show is just so funny! We cant wait to get on stage and share it with an audience.”

As well as being the first show produced by the team at Cutting Edge, the small cast also have the kudos of claiming to be the first full scale musical  to be staged at the 84 seater Lantern Theatre.  The 120 year old venue located in Nether Edge has been home to a wide variety of performances including Tony and Olivier award nominated acts but has yet to host anything like this singing and dancing line up of 2 humans, 6 puppets, 2 monsters and 2 very cute but slightly misguided teddy bears.

What next?

  • Avenue Q, presented by Cutting Edge Theatre Company is on at The Lantern Theatre in Sheffield from the Monday 16th June to Saturday 21st June.  Tickets are available from www.lanterntheatre.org.uk or on 07788 594 133.
  • Listen to an interview with the cast  on today’s Communities Live programme, on Sheffield Live from noon-1pm (or download the podcast afterwards)

Sheffield Doc/Fest: Audience Award for Orgreave doc & roundup of Festival awards

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DocFest3Orgreave anniversary documentary wins Audience Award at Sheffield Doc/Fest

Doc/Fest’s Audience Awards were announced this week. Now in it’s eighth year, the Sheffield Doc/Fest Audience Award gives Sheffield’s public audience and delegates the chance to honour their favourite film of the festival.

The Audience Award winner for the 21st edition of Sheffield Doc/Fest is STILL THE ENEMY WITHIN directed by Owen Gower and produced by Sinead Kirwan and Mark Lacey. This archive-rich film looks back to Margaret Thatcher’s battle with the unions and specifically the 1984 miners strike. Told primarily from the retrospective of the mining communities the Doc/Fest screenings received a standing-ovation from Sheffield audiences and delegates. This World Premiere screening at Doc/Fest was one of a number of films at the festival that marked the 30th anniversary on 18th June of the “Battle of Orgreave.”

The Short Film audience award goes to OUR CURSE directed by Tomasz Sliwinski, produced by Maciej Slesicki, an intimate and moving self-portrait about a young couple whose newborn child has been diagnosed with Ondine’s curse meaning he must be attached to a ventilator when he sleeps. Our Curse also won the Student Doc Award.

The Interactive audience award goes ASSENTdirected and produced by Oscar Raby which enables the user to witness the execution of a group of prisoners by the military regime in Chile in 1973, as witnessed by the filmmaker’s father.

This year’s first ever In The Dark Sheffield Audio Award, which recognises a new golden age of radio and audio documentary storytelling both in podcasting and traditional radio, was awarded to Pejk Malinovski’s EVERYTHING, NOTHING, HARVEY KEITEL about a man who struggles to meditate when he realises he’s sitting next to the actor Harvey Keitel.

The Sheffield Doc/Fest 2014 awards, presented by Jeremy Hardy, were announced last Thursday (12 June) at The Crucible Theatre, Sheffield.

The awards for 2014 announced today were: Special Jury Award, Sheffield Innovation Award, Sheffield Green Award, Sheffield Youth Jury Award, Sheffield Student Doc Award, Sheffield Short Doc Award, The Tim Hetherington Award and the first ever Peter Wintonick Award which celebrates activist filmmaking,in honour of the late Canadian documentary filmmaker and friend of the festival Peter Wintonick.

This year the Inspiration Award was awarded to Laura Poitras. Poitras sent a message dedicating her award to Edward Snowden, Glenn Greenwald, Jacob Appelbaum, William Binney, Julian Assange and Sarah Harrison.

The Sheffield Doc/Fest 2014 award for Lifetime Achievement was presented to Roger Graef. Accepting the award Roger said “it’s true that when we take people’s pictures, we capture their souls and that is a great responsibility” and paid tribute to “those souls who have been brave enough to let us capture them.”

Roger also praised Sheffield Doc/Fest and the community spirit of the documentary festival, commenting that the loneliness that can come with documentary filmmaking is “mitigated by the chance to come to together at a festival like this.” He dedicated his award to CEO and Festival Director Heather Croall.

Sheffield Doc/Fest’s Special Jury prize was awarded to Attacking The Devil: Harold Evans and the Last Nazi War Crime (directors Jacqui Morris & David Morris, United Kingdon/Canada, 2014, 99mins).

The Sheffield Innovation Award was awarded to A Short History of the Highrise (Dir. Katerina Cizek, Canada/United States, 2013, 17mins).

The Sheffield Youth Jury Award was awarded to The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (Dir. Brian Knappenberger, United States, 2014, 105mins).

The Sheffield Green Award was awarded to Unearthed (Dir. Jolynn Minnaar, South Africa, 2014, 90mins).

The Sheffield Student Doc Award was awarded to Our Curse (Dir. Tomasz Sliwinski, Poland, 2013, 28mins).

The Sheffield Short Doc Award, sponsored by the London Short Film Festival, was awarded to Amanda F***ing Palmer on the Rocks(Dir. Ondi Timoner, United States, 2014, 18mins).

The first ever Peter Wintonick Award, celebrating activist filmmaking, was awarded to Vessel (Dir. Diana Whitten, United States, 2014, 88mins).

What next?

 

Sheffield GP Surgery’s threatened

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sign of devonshire green GP Surgery

GP surgery’s in Sheffield have said that they may have to close if funding cuts continue to be phased in over the next few years.

Cuts to the Minimum Income Practice Guarantee (MPIG) pose a real threat to the survival of up to five surgery’s in Sheffield.

Sheffield could see up to 13,000 patients being directly affected because of the withdrawal of MPIG funding.

The additional funding supports GP surgeries which serve populations with more complex and demanding health needs. The Government began withdrawing MPIG funding in April 2014 and plans to phase it out totally over the next seven years.

NHS England says 100 GP surgeries across the country are threatened by closure as a result, whilst the British Medical Association has warned that the number of surgeries seriously affected will be far higher.

Some practices under threat could lose more than £100 per patient per year, while others will lose £20 or £30 per patient.

Devonshire Green Medical Centre and the Hanover Medical Centre are two of the affected surgery’s in Sheffield. MPIG funding cuts could be in the region of £140,000 between them.

Staff are concerned that they may have to close. Dr Graham Pettinger, who works at both practices said: “At the moment, NHS England have a poor understanding in my view on the impact this is going to have on practices and the patients in Sheffield and across the country on a whole.” Dr. Pettinger continues “This is an extremely serious threat to our survival – if we are unable to find replacement money then the practice may have to close its door to the patients and the community.”

Paul Blomfield, MP for Sheffield Central, challenged Health Minister’s on this issue. He said: “Local GPs have expressed serious concerns to me about the consequences of this vital funding being withdrawn. The Health Minister’s answer to my question was shockingly complacent. He’s putting patients at risk and I’ll now be seeking a meeting with Ministers to press this issue further.”

Mr Blomfield added “Our local GP surgeries are the first port of call for most people who are unwell or have health difficulties. No-one wants to see service cutbacks having to be made which is why I’m raising this issue now before the situation gets critical. The Government should be talking to GP surgeries now and rethinking this decision.”

A spokesperson for the South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw area team of NHS England, said: “We are committed to making sure patients have access to high quality GP services. The minimum practice income guarantee (MPIG) payment is being phased out to make funding for GP services more fair for everyone.” They continued “This is a national plan. Future funding for GP services will be based on the numbers of patients that a GP practice serves and the health needs of those patients. These changes started in April this year and will happen over a seven year period.”

Dr Graham Pettinger speaks to Sheffield Live! George Torr

Academic Tour de France

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By Sam Newton

With just under a month remaining until the Tour de France proudly rattles through Yorkshire, academics from the University of Sheffield have created an innovative website designed to offer a fresh perspective on the world’s most prestigious cycling event.

This will be the first time the Tour has come to Yorkshire and the University of Sheffield are eager to celebrate it. Their new interactive website – Deconstructing the Tour – gives an academic viewpoint of the Tour de France. It drawing on the event’s diverse history and evolution through video clips, sound files and blog posts.

Perhaps owing his career to the Tour, the first set of videos on the site comes from Emeritus Professor of French David Walker. A cycling enthusiast from a young age, Walker became interested in the Tour and began learning the vocabulary of the event, alongside taking a serious interest in France’s language and culture.

Noting the importance of the event in France, Professor Walker said “The Tour de France is significant as a cultural event in France and dates back before the invention of modern bikes. “ Walker continues, “It can initially be traced back to young apprentice artisans travelling around France to work with skilled masters in their field to learn their craft. This was a process known as the ‘Tour De France”.

Running between Saturday 5 July and Sunday 27 July 2014, the 101st Tour de France will cover 3,656 kilometres split into 21 stages, with the 2nd stage culminating at Sheffield’s Motorpoint Arena on July 6th after a 201 kilometre flat race from York.

The Deconstructing the Tour website will be regularly updated with new content between now and the start of the race, and can be found at www.deconstructingthetour.group.shef.ac.uk/

Bents Green Pub Puts goes distance

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By Andrew Tildesley

The staff and regulars at The Hammer and Pincers of Bents Green have hit on an innovative exercising method of raising money for charity. This Saturday they will be cycling the full length of the Yorkshire leg of the Tour de France – on a static bike!

Manager Anthony Crawford will be cycling in between shifts he will be joined by both pub regulars and 9 members of his staff, all with the aim of raising over £1000 for Cancer Research. Taking turns on the static bike to cycle at a steady speed of 20km per hour, and beginning at 4am, they aim to tackle the 390kn route of the first two stages of the Tour de France in just 20 hours, with the aim of being finished by midnight.

Local Bents Green businesses, including Cannisters Butchers, Le Crunch and Bents Home and Garden, have been happy to jump on board with sponsorship and the fundraiser is intended to be a community event, with a barbecue and bouncy castle laid on (British summer weather permitting!).

Hammer and Pincers’ manager Crawford said, “We’re a small part of a larger company, Mitchells and butler, which has raised over £34,000 for cancer Research already, we hope to do our own small part.”

JB Gill launches new Show Business School

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JB Gill, former member of the band JLS today helped launch Sheffield Colleges new Show Business School. Speaking to Sheffield Live!, JB Gill shared his thoughts on who the course might appeal to.

“The course is obviously going to help people who want to be artists, dancers or singers, but it’s also going to be an opportunity for people who don’t want to do that; those who want to manage the artists or want to work on stage in a theatre. There’s so much here for people to tap into”.

Today also marks National NVQ day, an annual celebration of vocational qualifications. Earmarking such qualifications as the one gained through the show business school, Julie Byrne, Principal of Sheffield City College spoke of their importance and where they can lead.

Courses, like this one are absolutely vital to employment growth and lead onto careers or university, and we know that employers value vocational qualifications as much as academic ones”

Gill’s enthusiasm for the course was something which resonated with students as they gathered after the session for a photo call. Queen Uwacu, 22, said “I was really impressed by the fact that JB is giving something back. That’s really important when you’re a celebrity who a lot of young people look up to”.

Aimed at assisting young people interested in breaking into the entertainment industry, the show business school offers a two year course working towards a vocational Extended Diploma equivalent to 3 A-Levels. Modules including event management, music production and public relations will be primarily taught by college business lecturers, but will also feature a number of guest lectures including at least two master classes a year from Gill himself.

JB Gill was on site this afternoon to host an hour-long Q&A session to share his knowledge and insider expertise on what to expect from the entertainment industry,telling themhis own experiences which have led to him claiming Brit and MOBO awards along the way.

Full details regarding course content and entry requirements can be found on the Sheffield College website http://www.sheffcol.ac.uk/

JB Gill speaks to Sheffield Live! Sam Newton

Doc/Fest: preview and interviews

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DocFest4One of the world’s largest documentary festivals returns to Sheffield this week.

With a programme jam-packed full of variety and a live event line-up littered with exclusives and hidden gems, Sheffield Doc/Fest is set to provide a diverse feast for all, once more.

We’ve previewed the festival on Sheffield Live! with great insights from the organisers, in a number of interviews:

  • Chris Arnold stepped in to chat with Heather Croall (festival director) and Hussain Currimbhoy (festival programmer) in a Doc/Fest preview special – podcast here;
  • Hussain Currimbhoy discussed this year’s festival programme – and the Devil’s Arse (a cave in Castleton, which provides a great location for screenings of Happiness, Cave of Forgotten Dreams, and Visitors) – with Van Connor on Saturday 31st May’s Slam Dunk Cinema – podcast here (31st May show);
  • And Hussain joined Dale Le Fevre on yesterday’s Communities Live show – podcast here (3 June show).

Some of the documentaries discussed in the interviews include Nowhere Is Home, Happiness, Beyond Clueless, Adam Buxton’s David Bowie BUG special, Finding Fela, All Is Mayhem, Still The Enemy Within, Love Is All (screening at Chatsworth), Miners Shot Down, A Beautiful Noise and Pulp: A Film About Life, Death & Supermarkets. Interviews also covered the extraordinary diversity and variety of this year’s film festival and conference programme; the Doc/Fest app; and the special Interactive at Doc/Fest pass

Now in its 21st Year, Sheffield Doc/Fest is one of the top three documentary festivals and markets in the world.

The interviews also provide a fascinating insight into the massive planning that goes into a festival of this stature.