Sections

Teachers’ strikes continue over pay dispute

Pupils and parents faced another day of disruption this week as teachers in England went on strike again over their ongoing pay dispute with government. Members of the National Education Union (NEU) in England were out of their classrooms on Tuesday for the fifth day of national strike action this year. On previous strike days, dozens of schools in South Yorkshire were either fully or partially closed. Sheffield Live! reporter Baillor Jalloh spoke to Toby Malinson, joint branch secretary for the NEU Sheffield branch.

Report highlights racial disparities in maternal care

A report by MPs on the Women and Equalities Committee has called on the government to speed up the process to tackle what it described as “appalling” higher death rates in childbirth for black women and those from deprived areas. Hora Soltani, professor of maternal and infant health at Sheffield Hallam University said the report is timely and it is important the disparities are addressed. Baillor Jalloh reports for Sheffield Live!

Junior doctors four-day strike action

Junior doctors across South Yorkshire joined others from across England in a four day walkout over pay and conditions. The British Medical Association (BMA) is calling for junior doctors to be given a 35 per cent pay rise to make up for years of below-inflation increases. However, the government has argued the union’s pay demands are unaffordable. Sheffield Live! reporter Baillor Jalloh spoke to BMA representative Peter Jackson.

Local charity to distribute healthy meal packs

Sheffield charity Element Society has completed a successful crowdfunding to teach cost-of-living kitchen skills and provide ingredients for 1800 meal parcels. The project, started during lockdown, was originally funded to give young people the kitchen skills to cook from scratch, so they were able to help support their families with healthier food options. Sheffield Live! reporter Baillor Jalloh spoke to Element Society project advisor Shaun Davies.

Burst water mains hits Burngreave businesses

A Burngreave-based business owner has called on the local authority and Yorkshire Water to investigate the cause of a burst water main in Spital Hill which he says is affecting his business. Yousif Karda, owner of Sudan Tech on Spital Hill, told Sheffield Live! burst water pipes in the area were becoming frequent, with road closures affecting footfall for local businesses. Baillor Jalloh reports.

Public park opens on former fire station site

A new play area and public space, Pounds’s Park, has opened on the site of the former fire station between Rockingham Street and Carver Street. Named after the city’s first chief fire officer, Superintendent John Charles Pound, the park includes two pyramid towers, slides, a climbing boulder and other play equipment. Baillor Jalloh reports for Sheffield Live!

Ceramic festival returns to Kelham Island

The annual Sheffield Ceramic Festival returned to the city at the weekend with more than 50 ceramic artists, potters and sculptors exhibiting their work at Kelham Island Museum. The festival is into its eighth year and most of the profits are set to be donated to charities including De Paul, an organisation which works with homeless young people. The two day festival attracted hundreds of people from across the city. Baillor Jalloh reports for Sheffield Live!

Dirty air contributing to hundreds of deaths, says health boss

Sheffield’s director of public health, Greg Fell, has told Sheffield Live! dirty air is contributing to hundreds of deaths and an increase in cancer and asthma patients in the city. Fell said the introduction of the Clean Air Zone (CAZ) in Sheffield is mainly to address these health related issues. Dozens of people joined a protest rally at the weekend calling on the local authority to stop charging vehicles that do not meet the legal standard. CAZ came into force in February, meaning drivers of the most polluting vehicles such as taxis, vans and lorries will have to pay a charge to drive into the city centre and the inner ring road. Taxis will pay £10 while buses and HGVs will pay £50 per day. Baillor Jalloh reports.

Climate campaigners protest outside Barclays Bank

Members of Extinction Rebellion and Palestine Action held a demonstration outside Barclays Bank on Pinstone Street to protest against what they describe as climate crimes and injustices of greedy businesses. The two groups accuse the banking giant of investing heavily in fossil fuel and providing investment and loans to arms companies selling weapons and military technology to Israel that are used against unarmed Palestinians. Sheffield Live! Baillor Jalloh spoke to Steph Howlett and Randeep Samra.

Street tree campaigners deserve apology says former councillor

Alison Teal, former Green Party councillor for Nether Edge and Sharrow who was thrown out of a full council meeting in 2017 over the street trees dispute, has called for a public apology from senior councillors who had defended the felling of street trees. Speaking to Sheffield Live! Teal said “people were really brutalised, people were physically hurt”. Teal was one of six campaigners who were arrested by police and detained for several hours for protesting against the felling of street trees across the city. The independent review into the trees dispute recommended the local authority apologise for “developing and adopting a flawed plan” to remove and replace street trees in the city. Baillor Jalloh reports.