3 July, 2008 at 8:33 am
· Filed under Health ·Tagged Imperial College, justice, Majid Ahmad, medicine, university
I’ve always admired Imperial College. I worked intensively with Imperial’s dedicated library team when they were new customers of our firm (memories of lugging my laptop through the South Ken tunnel). My Dad went there in the 1950s; a scholarship boy, he lived at home and cycled in each day. My parents went back to Imperial recently for a lunch event where they were entertained by performances from Imperial’s small but pefectly formed music team.
So I was dismayed to hear the news that Majid Ahmed, a young man gifted enough to be accepted to read medicine at Imperial, had his offer of a place withdrawn when they found out about a spent criminal conviction.
Majid Ahmad’s conviction was not for drugs, a sexual offence, violence or fraud, any of which could potentially be a threat to patients, but for burglary. As a victim my self (we’ve been burgled twice in the last four years) I’m not belittling burglary; like most crime, it’s extremely selfish. But selfishness is something most teenagers grow out of. And it shouldn’t determine the rest of your life.
He’d served his time, got on with study, pursued his dream. Too many young criminals get stuck in a cycle of re-offending because they believe there are few other options. By turning his life around and achieving so highly, Majid Ahmad could have been a role model, proof that giving up crime pays.
Do we want our doctors to be saints? Or do we value medical skill and care above all? Dr Foreman in House may be fictional; but I wouldn’t care if my doctor had been a wild teenager as long as they are doing a good job now.
And is this Imperial’s judgement to make? Taking the first part of a medical degree doesn’t make you a doctor, any more than studying law makes you a lawyer, or theology a priest. There are staging posts later on to call a halt if a student turns out to be unsuitable for the job.
Maybe there’s more to the story than we’ve heard. But I feel Imperial have made the wrong decision.
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2 July, 2008 at 10:10 pm
· Filed under Campaigns, Movies, media, music ·Tagged Ben Kinsella, biofuels, Guardian, Waitrose
My weekly Guardian political blog is now online: covering the Waitrose/Woolworths row, reaction to the death of Ben Kinsella, and the vexed question of biofuels targets.
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2 July, 2008 at 9:56 pm
· Filed under Neighbourhood ·Tagged Islington, Ofsted, school governors, St Andrew's
I’ve just been reading the new Ofsted report for St Andrew’s School where I’m a governor. It’s really good news: St Andrew’s has been graded as outstanding. The inspector says, “The school provides an outstanding education for pupils, where they meet the challenge of high expectations and thrive in a positive learning environment.”
It’s all the more encouraging because, contrary to the stereotype image of church schools, St Andrew’s does not have a selective intake nor serve a particularly privileged community. The millionaire’s row of Richmond Crescent (home to MPs Emily Thornberry and Margaret Hodge and former home of the Blairs) may only be a stone’s throw away. But they don’t go to St Andrew’s. As the Ofsted report says, “Children enter Reception with levels of attainment well below national expectations…. By the time pupils leave the school, they are reaching average standards. This represents outstanding achievement for most pupils.”
There’s more praise for our wonderful Head teacher, Michelle Thomas: “The inspirational headteacher has a clear vision for improvement and high expectations for raising pupils’ standards and achievement“. All the staff, pupils, families and governors have worked together to create a great school.
It wasn’t always like this. St Andrew’s has been climbing, not coasting. Four years ago, the Ofsted rated the school satisfactory, but already improving rapidly. At the Ofsted before that, we were rated as a failing school. It was a really tough time: the head left, so did many of the staff. There was a high turnover of newly qualified teachers - although some excellent senior ones, Mr Ned and Ms Bush, stayed the course. Two excellent chairs of governors, Beverley Briggs and Rev Michael Learmouth, have worked with Michelle to steer the school to its outstanding rating.
Islington schools always need good governors. Many are staff or parents, but you can also be appointed by the Council or directly as a community governor. To find out more about becoming a governor, click here.
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2 July, 2008 at 9:21 pm
· Filed under Consumer, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Islington, shops, Waitrose, Woolworths
Surprise, surprise: Waitrose didn’t put my comment on their MD’s blog.
From moderation@waitrose.com
Your comment on Waitrose.com was not approved
Dear Bridget Fox
Thank you for visiting Mark Price’s blog on Waitrose.com. Unfortunately we were unable to publish your comment on the site as we felt it is best placed with our Customer Services team.
We will be happy to hear from you so please get in touch at customer_service@waitrose.co.uk or alternatively call our freephone number on 0800 188884 so that we can discuss your individual requirements.
Waitrose Customer Service is open 8am-10pm Monday -Friday, 8am-9pm Saturday and 9am-7pm Sunday.
Hope to hear from you soon,
Doreen Ann
Customer Service
As the comments they choose to publish are like this “Your announcement of expansion in London is just further proof of the public’s agreement in your ethos” I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised....
Meanwhile, I have also written to the MD care of Customer Service.
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1 July, 2008 at 1:34 pm
· Filed under Consumer, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Islington, Waitrose, Woolworths
There’s been a lot of interest in the news that Waitrose is seeking to replace Woolworths at the Angel.
The Gazette and the Tribune have covered the story, so has the Londonist website and there’s even a Facebook group. (One of Ben Kinsella’s last acts was to join it.) I’ve had lots of emails supporting my view that while Waitrose is great, we don’t want to lose our Woolworths.
For a lot of Islington residents, closing Woolworths feels like yet another blow to popular local services for our community, like the closures of post offices and neighbourhood GPs.
Woolworths has something for everyone. Snobs who don’t shop there are missing out. On Sunday I went to the Farmers’ Market after church and bought some prime strawberries. That afternoon, I ate them from a pretty china bowl (from Woolworths). Yesterday I did my washing, carrying it around in my very handy folding laundry basket (also from Woolworths). And I can’t imagine Christmas shopping without it.
I don’t know if we can get them to think again, but I’ve now written to Mark Price, the managing director of Waitrose:
Woolworths & Waitrose in Islington
I am writing to you about your plans to replace our much-loved Woolworths store with a Waitrose and to ask you to think again.
This is not an anti-Waitrose letter. Waitrose is a brand with a high reputation and your existing Islington stores at Nags Head N7 and Whitecross Street EC1 are deservedly popular.
But we do not want to lose our Woolworths. And we don’t think this is the right place for another Waitrose, with Sainsburys and Marks & Spencer so close by.
Since I expressed my views on this, I have been overwhelmed with messages of support from people who think the same way. If you don’t believe me, take a look at the Facebook group that’s been set up.
The press release announcing the plans, says that you are expanding into ‘prime locations’ – Islington, Marylebone, Chiswick and Clapham.
Well, Islington is a lot more mixed that those other areas, the reality is very different from the media image. We are one of the most deprived boroughs in London and a lot of families here depend on stores like Woolworths.
Woolworths is always busy because it provides a lot of goods that Islington families appreciate: popular toys, kids’ clothes, home ware, music and DVDs, all at affordable prices.
With a recession looming, is it really the right time for you to be expanding to a third store here, and for us to lose our Woolworths?
There other shops at Nags Head who benefit from shoppers being attracted from N1 by the Waitrose there. If they shop at the Angel instead, you may still get their business, but other local shops will lose out. Waitrose is a socially-minded organisation, please consider the impact this will have.
Please think again. Continue to invest in your excellent stores at Nags Head and Whitecross Street ; but let us keep our Woolworths at the Angel!
Yours sincerely,
Bridget Fox
I’ve also posted something similar on Mr Price’s blog on the company website: it’ll be interesting to see if it appears and if so, what response we get.
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1 July, 2008 at 12:13 pm
· Filed under Neighbourhood ·Tagged Ben Kinsella, crime, Islington, knives, youth
The tragic and violent death at just 16 of Ben Kinsella has shocked people all over Islington. My heart goes out to Ben’s family and many friends, it’s so awful.
It was late on Sunday night, after the football, that I heard that the latest victim was Ben. The death of a young person is equally tragic whoever they are; when it is someone you know, it is all the more shocking.
Last night I was out in Finsbury, collecting signatures for our post office petition, but the talk soon turned to Ben, whose family is well-known and well-loved across the area – not because of TV fame but because they are such a strong part of the community.
So many people are touched by this. Just the other day, Ben & I were chatting on the same Facebook group about our local Woolworths closing down. My friends’ teenage children are devastated at the loss of one of their own.
We all pray that good comes out of tragedy. Islington has lost other dearly-loved boys. Martin Dinnegan’s death inspired the Islington Commission on youth crime. Nassirudeen Osawe’s death, in broad daylight, reminded us that knives are everywhere. Just last week, I joined Greg Foxsmith, chair of the Commission, at a local Lib Dem discussion on the issue. On Friday, I had lunch with a local Somali youth worker; knife crime was on the agenda then. I never dreamed then we would all be mourning Ben now.
Now Ben’s death has shocked and touched so many people, perhaps the knives will be laid down. Brooke is a local heroine, I remember her being mobbed by delighted kids when she came to open the summer fete at a local housing association. Brooke’s fame may be a mixed blessing for her and the family at a time when they want to grieve in private. But if the Kinsellas’ star quality brings an end to kids carrying knives, then I can’t think of a better tribute to Ben.
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28 June, 2008 at 9:27 am
· Filed under Campaigns, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Angel, crossing, safety, TfL
A week is a long time in politics, a year is a short time in bureaucracy. Make that 4 years, in the case of Transport for London. I’ve blogged before about the pelican crossing outside Angel tube station. It’s a nightmare: southbound traffic from two roads (Upper Street and Liverpool Road) feeds into it and hapless pedestrians who wait for the ‘green man’ find that traffic is still passing, because the signal timings are so bad.It’s usually safer to ignore the signals, keep your eyes open, cross your fingers, and make a run for it. Not the best place to practice the highway code.
Back in 2004, I launched a campaign to improve the crossing. We got the Council on board; it seemed everyone agreed that something should be done. In particular, we argued that moving the crossing, or adding a second crossing, north of the junction with Liverpool Road (so pedestrians would compete with less traffic), would be best. With some 46,000 people a day coming out of the station, you’d think the case for change would be urgent.
Well, finally we hear that TfL may consider moving the crossing, as part of a consultation on changes to the 38 bus route. The problem is that it may be bundled with other changes that are less acceptable to people in Islington. So we need to ensure that residents know this is their chance to get action on the crossing. And that TfL are left in no doubt that whatever happens to the rest of their plans, we still want the crossing moved.
So earlier this week, I was out with a couple of my team first thing, trying to get the perfect photo to illustrate the problem. We had a 15 minute ‘window’ on our way to work, surely enough time for one snap? Easier said than done, as Keith & I lurk in the middle island, with lorries, buses and the Islington rush hour all around us.
‘Stand outside the railing’, yelled Adam, my man with the camera. Visions of this blog coming to you from A&E, featuring ambulance response times… But in the end we got the ‘money shot’ – cars vs people while the green man shows – and hurried off to our various day jobs. The results are up on the campaign site and Facebook. As for TfL, it’s their job to sort out this crossing, now.
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28 June, 2008 at 8:55 am
· Filed under Consumer ·Tagged broadband, BT, Orange
A few months ago, I had a rant about BT Broadband’s customer service. So for the sake of balance, I share with you this gem about Orange broadband. Not so bright….
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26 June, 2008 at 5:13 pm
· Filed under Campaigns, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Bunhill, Clerkenwell, Emily Thornberry, Finsbury, Goswell Road, Labour, post offices
It’s almost incredible, but the Post Office have announced the closure of another Islington post office. This time it’s the popular branch on Goswell Road, EC1. Not only is it in a regeneration area, on the borders of Bunhill and Clerkenwell, but it’s surrounded by large estates, small shops, and City University: all communities that need their local post office.
The post offices at Old Street and Mount Pleasant are each half a mile away and none of them is on a direct bus route from Goswell Road. Or are Finsbury residents expected to join the hour-long queue at Upper Street?
As the Post Office statement makes clear, this is entirely driven by the Labour Government’s cuts plan, “part of the implementation of the Government decision to reduce the UK wide network of Post Office branches by up to 2,500″.
One post office in Walthamstow has been saved; so it seems another in Islington must close - even though none of their previous reviews suggested closing Goswell Road. With 12 Islington post offices already closed under Labour, Goswell Road is a very unlucky 13.
Labour Ministers are frank that it’s a cost-driven agenda; earlier this month, Pat McMadden MP told the BBC, “three out of four post offices in the country are actually running at a loss and that’s part of the reason why some are having to close.”
For Labour MP Emily Thornberry to claim she supports our post offices is the worst hypocrisy.
She described branches like Goswell Road as ‘just a counter in a shop’. When other Labour MPs, including Jeremy Corbyn, voted with the Lib Dems to try and stop the closure programme, Emily Thornberry voted with the Government, to carrying on closing. Then she tries to blame the Council… If buck-passing was an Olympic event, she’d be in the national team. Well Islington residents aren’t stupid, we can see how she votes, and it’s clearly not in favour of our post offices.
Liberal Democrats have consistently opposed Post Office closures. We’ve already launched our petition to save Goswell Road, and we’ve had a fantastic response from residents, businesses and the University.
You can join the campaign here.
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25 June, 2008 at 11:15 pm
· Filed under Campaigns ·Tagged Clerkenwell, crime, Henley, Islington, post offices
One of my friends says that she managed to keep a diary during the times of her life when she had nothing much going on (holidays, maternity leave, quiet times at work) but not at the very times when people might have been remotely interested in what she had to report.
I feel a bit like that now. On Monday, I was blogging about nothing more exciting than my journey to work. Since then, no blog, but lots going on.
In no particular order, in the last 48 hours
- We’ve learned that ANOTHER Islington post office is set to close, and launched our campaign to save it
- I’ve taken local campaigners to Angel crossing to observe the problems there first-hand
- I did a ward walkabout in Clerkenwell with one of the councillors
- Islington had a local party meeting on youth crime, causes & solutions
- And I’ve done another Guardian blog.
I will post pieces on some of these in due course. For now, fingers crossed for Stephen Kearney and the team in Henley tomorrow.
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