A residents’ group want the space at Wensum View Park to serve the whole community, and are getting help from a successful project on Grapes Hill.

Norwich City Council has agreed to fund a consultation on the future use of Wensum View Park off Turner Road. If approved, then work will begin designing and creating a community garden.

The newly-formed Wensum View Park Community Garden Group want the park is to serve as many of its community as possible, keeping space for dog walking, a play area for children and developing a community garden for residents to enjoy, where they can grow and share food and plants together.

Residents who helped create Grapes Hill Community Garden, which will celebrate turning one with a public event on Sunday 8th July, are offering help and advice to the new group. They successfully transformed a derelict piece of land just off Grapes Hill into a garden for the whole community.

Staff at the Vauxhall Centre are inviting people to contribute their photos or stories to mark the occasion.

The Vauxhall Centre in Johnson Place opened in April 1972. Owned by Norfolk County Council, the centre provides specialist day care for people with physical disabilities. Memories and photos spanning its 40-year history will be used in a special exhibition, telling the story of how and why it was built.

To contribute photos or stories, people can write to Vauxhall Centre, Johnson Place, Norwich, NR2 2SA, email keith.roads@norfolk.gov.uk or telephone 01603 729802. The exhibition will run from 23rd – 27th April 2012.

It’s the result of a campaign, petitioning the council to make use of derelict land nearby.

Since 2007, pupils at Henderson Green Primary School, just off Bowthorpe Road, have only had a small playing field to play on. The school grew larger when Norfolk County Council reorganised schools from the middle school system.

Last year, a petition with 800 signatures was handed into Norfolk County Council, asking for use of an area of derelict land as playing fields. Norfolk County Council has now agreed to allocate £225,000 to create the play area.

Green Party County Councillor for Wensum ward, Marcus Hemsley, who helped with the campaign, said: ”I’m really glad the administration at County Hall listened to local people on this issue. It shows that even in these difficult economic times, if enough people come together we can make big things happen. This will make such a difference to the children at the school.”

It’s hoped the land will be suitable for use by September 2012.

A week later, 8 BAFTA nominated films will be screened at The Forum.

Opening on Friday 30th March, Norwich Film Festival starts by showing 38 short films over two nights at the Hollywood Cinema.

On the following weekend (6th/7th March), the festival will be screening eight films that were nominated for this year’s BAFTA Short Film and Short Animation awards, including the winning films. They are also lining up a screening of 2010 nominated film Matter Fisher by former NUCA student Dav Prosser. Schedules permitting, they hope to present the audience with a Q&A with the filmmakers afterwards.

The winners of the 4 awards (Best Short, Animation, Student, Documentary) were chosen by our festival organisers and our celebrity judges – Bernard Hill, Tim McInnerny, Steve Furst and Jim Field Smith.

Tickets for each night cost £6, or you can get a weekend pass for £10. For more information, go to the festival website.

The free discovery day for families includes how to make slime, fake wounds and astronomy.

There are also a variety of talks, exploring topics such as the maths behind magic.

Science shows will be shown in The Curve Theatre, suitable for children aged 5 upwards. Demonstrations and activities will be run by scientists such as bubbles, science busking, robots and engineering.

Free Talks Timetable:

10:00 – 16:00

Shows in The Curve Auditorium
No Need to book. Just turn up. Suitable for all ages

Music to your ears 10:00 & 13:00

How do we make sounds, record sounds and see sounds? This exciting presentation reveals the secrets from the basics of sound to the latest in music technology. Witness the ultimate ‘hands-free’ instrument and find out how to make musical straws! Uncover the maths in music and see how numbers tell us what sounds nice.
by James Piercy, Science Made Simple

Mathamagic Show 11:00 & 14:00

Pick a card any card, How does that work? Is it really magic? Or does it come down to dexterity in mathematics? Amazing tricks ….Revealing maths. Card counting, Rubik’s cube, juggling patterns, shape shifting numbers and other stunts.
by Dr Ken, Inspirational Science Company

Things that make you go eeuww!! 12:00 & 15:00
by Shell, Camouflaged Learning

Set up 2 years ago, The Making Space project has successfully secured space in pubs, cafes and studios across the city, featuring many up and coming local artists.

Norwich art group Making Space will be exhibiting at St. Gregory’s Centre for the Arts next month. “Our aim is to put art wherever we can, increase footfall for the venues we work in and raise the profile of our artists,”  says Robin Spencer, Chair of Making Space.

The group is being sponsored by Aviva Pride: “In these times it can be hard enough for some artists to find the money to produce work in the first place, let alone pay for venues and promotional costs for their exhibitions. Sponsorship can be a great help to art groups and individual artists so we are overjoyed that Aviva has offered to help in this way.”

The exhibition opens on April 16th for a preview night from 6pm to 10:30pm. It will be open until April 21st from 12pm to 6pm. Entrance is free.

25 year old Tafadzwa Khan, known as Taffy, died after being stabbed at a party on Sunday night.

The mother of a 25-year-old man fatally stabbed at a party on the outskirts of Norwich at the weekend has paid tribute to her son, a committed Christian who loved poetry. Taffy Khan died following an incident which happened shortly after midnight on Sunday 18th March at a private party at an address in Bawburgh.

Shereen Sinclair said: “I’m deeply saddened by the loss of my son and I’m touched by the many flowers and lovely tributes left outside the YMCA. “I’ve been encouraged by the number of people coming forward with information, especially those from the black community, and I would urge anyone else who knows what happened or has any information to contact the police.”

Chief Executive of the christian organisation, Tim Sweeting, paid the following tribute: “YMCA Norfolk extends its deepest sympathies to the family of Taffy Khan. We are shocked and deeply saddened by these tragic events. Taffy, who has been a resident of YMCA Norfolk since November 2011, was popular and very well thought of, as is demonstrated by the many touching tributes left for him outside Norwich St Giles YMCA and online.”

He added the YMCA were liaising closely with police and would continue to provide any assistance required. Help and support is being offered to his friends at YMCA Norfolk.

Two men aged 18 and 20 arrested in connection with the incident remain in police custody while a third suspect, a 16-year-old male, has been released on bail pending further enquiries.

The suspension will last until the start of the 2013/14 academic year. The step came after a large number of complaints were recieved by the Union.In an open letter to the Rugby Club committee, the Union states: “Complaints against the club included offences of both sexist and racist natures. Management is absolutely clear that no provision of the Union should result in these kinds of complaints, and has acted to prevent these issues from occurring again with a Union service, club or society.”

Steps will be taken to allow rugby to still be played at the university, but for the 2012/13 year there will no representative rugby at the University, and no student run club.

The Union of UEA Students is pushing for the offenders to be named: “Members of the club who were at the events about which there have been recent complaints, namely Derby Day 2012 and the Mens’ 2nd XV game on the 14th of March, will be banned from the Sports Association and from playing Sport at UEA, unless those members of the club who are responsible are named in writing to the Union by the 23rd of March at 5pm.”

The club can appeal the decision by Friday 23rd March if they wish to.

Two local people have been chosen to carry the torch – an 84 year old fencing medal winner and an 18 year old community volunteer.

At 5.50pm on Wednesday 4th July the Olympic Flame reaches north Norwich arriving in Chapelfield Gardens an hour later.

84-year-old Connie Adam and 18-year-old Catton Grove community volunteer Daniel Browne join 8000 people picked to carry the flame through Britain. Council leader, Councillor Brenda Arthur said; “The Olympic Torch Relay is a wonderful opportunity for residents and businesses across Norwich to come together and celebrate in this once in a lifetime special occasion.”

Connie Adam, who’s competed in fencing around the world said: “I’m absolutely over the moon to be nominated as a Torchbearer. At my age you don’t expect anything like that.” Daniel Browne added: “This is certainly not something that happens every day. It feels like an honour to have even been nominated let alone chosen.”

The streets along the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay can be viewed in full which gives street-by-street details of the torch route. Estimates of 20,000 people could converge at Chapelfield for a show that evening, according to the organisers.

Figures showing which high schools local pupils and parents are opting for, have just been released.

Judged “outstanding” by Ofsted last year, Notre Dame finds itself oversubscribed.

And with a brand new building due to open next term, City Academy Norwich is almost full for the first time since being rated among the worst schools in the country.

In a recent article in The Independent, journalist Richard Garner charted the rise of City Academy Norwich. In the space of 4 years, it’s gone from the fourth worst performing school in the country to one judged “good with outstanding features” in its most recent Ofsted inspection. This year, City Academy has 2 spaces left of its 180 place intake in Year 7.

Keys to the new building at City Academy are due to be handed over in mid-May, marking the completion of the £21 million project. With Specialist Status in English and Digital Technology, the brand building will be fitted out with the latest digital equipment, having been awarded an additional IT grant of £1.8M.

Principal, David Brunton, said: ”The Academy has been recognised officially by Ofsted as making ‘rapid progress’, thus has given the local community great confidence in what is happening here. It is also being recognised by our current students and further afield, that although our expectations for personal standards are traditional, learning at the Academy is different, exciting and utilises the new technologies.  This is a very attractive package for young people and their parents.”

Meanwhile, 42 children didn’t get a place at Notre Dame, a school which Ofsted inspectors praised for its excellent care, guidance and support in October 2011. Investing millions of pounds into City Academy has had a knock-on effect on two other south Norwich high schools, seen in this year’s statistics of high school applications. City of Norwich (CNS), which has Specialist Status in Technology, continues to be oversubscribed, but while 50 children were turned away last year, just 2 failed to get in this year.

And The Hewett, which has Specialist Status in the Arts, had 78 vacancies out of 180 places at the time of allocation. Senior Associate Headteacher, Rob Anthony flagged up that there are far fewer Year 6 students in Norwich this year than in previous years: “We were expecting our numbers to be lower this year however we only have 20 fewer than last year.  Our intake has held up well despite the large fall in the numbers of Year 6s. Certainly there is a great deal of competition in secondary places in Norwich and it is a good thing that parents have such a wide choice and are able to select the school they would like for their child.”