Kingsgate Road NW6

Annual Report 2009/10

Kingsgate Community Association Serving the needs of the local community

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ur strengths

Contents

Chair’s Report .................................................................... page 1

List of Activities & Services ............................................... page 2

Staff & Volunteers ............................................................ page 3

Reports .............................................................................. page 5

Accounts ............................................................................ page 7

A year in Photos ................................................................ page 9

Profile of Kingsgate Users ................................................. page 10

Highlights of 2009 – 2010 .................................................. page 11

Tributes .............................................................................. page 13

Chair’s Report by Kit Wilby Chair since 2008

We have worked to build a strong Board, growing in confidence, competent to stand against the challenges ahead (which will be severe), so I can retire to the “back benches” and concentrate on the issues I am passionate about, like “greening” this interesting historic building we are trying to look after.

So to the personal part: Both Jeannette and Bert, whose obituaries are in this report are personal losses to me (and my family). I know it is right that they are commemorated in this way, and we will find ways to continue to remember them at Kingsgate Community Centre, for their contribution and that of their families.

Our Centre is about continuity in the community. We remember who has gone and that helps the people who are here to welcome and support the new people who arrive, both youngsters growing up, and new people coming in. It has supported me, and I am proud to have supported it back – and we local activists were working well before the official date of incorporation (1982) to see that the Hampstead Health Institute became the Kingsgate Community Association.

I will be standing down as Chair after the Annual General Meeting. In memory of all who have gained here, learned here and worked here we will continue their work into the future.

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Services and Activities

Alcoholics Anonymous Adult Ceramics Adult Tai Chi Animation 8 – 11years Ballet for Children Ballet for Young People Cafè Mangobajito Camden Mental Health Coffee Mornings Camden NHS Health Checks Chantraine Dance Creative Health Labs (Real 2 Reel project) Creative Writing Sure Start Crèche for Under 4s ESOL Classes with Westminster Kingsway College Fun with Clay 5 - 11 years Iyengar Yoga Upcycle Art 5 – 11 years Karate for Kids Kilburn and West Hampstead Pensioners Action Group Kung Fu Self Defence for All Lamplight Market

LBC Camden Kilburn Councillors' surgery Over 50s Art Collective Over 50s Line Dancing Over 50s Keep Fit Overeaters Anonymous Painting & Drawing with Westminster Kingsway College Pascal Children's Theatre Psychodynamic Counselling Sewing Classes with Westminster Kingsway College Silver & Bronze Arts Awards for Young People Smokefree Camden Somali Elders Somali Saturday School Somali Homework Club Somali Welfare Advice Under 5s Drop-in Under 5s Pre-School Weight Watchers Watch Me Now Dance 4 – 8 years Weaving Collective

With 40 services to manage, our timetable is very busy and essential to the daily smooth running of the centre. We are continuously finding the time and space to add new services that will benefit the local community and meet demands, so the services will continue to grow.

Room, Hall and Office Hire

For a children’s birthday parties, AGMs, new activities and classes or as a hub for a starter VCS organisation, we hire out

our spaces at low cost to local users in order for them to access a safe and reliable venue and to local providers to offer a wide range of affordable activities.. Hiring out our

space also acts as self-sustaining income generation for the Centre.

Main Hall, Small Hall, Meeting Rooms 5 & 6, Art Studio and Office Space.

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Officers and Members of the Board, Staff and Volunteers

2009/2010

Honorary Officers Chair: Kit Wilby Vice Chair: Peter Williams Secretary: Donna Liburd Treasurer: Vacant Post Board of Directors Ags Irwin Deqa Khalif June Perrin Justin Stuart-Mills (joined 24/09/2009) Kit Wilby Molly Ormonde Pamela Furness (Joined 24/09/2009) Peter Williams Phil Turner Sola Sangowawa Zani Dingiswayo (Joined 24/09/2009) Main Office Centre Director: Donna Liburd Centre Co-ordinator: Iche Amadi (Joined 05/05/2009) Bookkeeper: Teddy Temu Community Arts Community Arts Development Worker: Laila Brown Children’s Clay Tutor: Claire Bevacqua Adult’s Art Tutor: Alan Stott Children’s Upcycle Tutor: Nina Mankin Support Staff Caretaker/Cleaner: Pauline Lonergan Caretaker: Marco Viveros Cleaner: Sharon Davis

“Kingsgate is non-stop! What I enjoy the most, a part from working in such a vibrant environment, is working with people who are genuinely committed to improving the standard of living in our community- a community I have lived in for 12 years.”

Iche Amadi Centre Co-ordinator

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Kingsgate Pre-School Under 5s Co-ordinator: Lucia Bachew Acting Under 5s Deputy Co-ordinator: Samina Ali (until August 2009)

Sessional Staff: Under 5s, Pre-School, Drop-in and Crèche Pool Dorita Fernandes Immaculate Day Judy Chambers Linda Deppa Pauline Lonergan Rumana Chowdhury Suma Aktar Victoria Tawiah Summer Playscheme Workers Co-ordinator: Linda Deppa Deputy Co-ordinator: Jodie Cullen Staff: Caroline Haston, Jonathan Stone, Meg Jones, Sandra Wilson Volunteers Reception: Abigail Delgado, Bridgette Daniel, Diane Ledesma, Jeannette Perrin, Renato Arday, Yameelah Yagoub, Jake Freedman Arts: Natalie Lomax-Churchill, Andrea Matusz, Sevda Hassan Theatre Tech.: George Allawi, Lorrell Rawlins, Aruna Dutt, David Leverno, Omari Reily, Emmanual Tychus, Melissa Harman, Steven Hue, Jeremy Clayton-Travis Marketing: Dominique Parker Events: Abigail Delgado, Emily Keeble. Auditors: MCT Partnership Partnerships: BASSAC Camden Community Sector Network Kilburn Festival Kingsgate Workshops Trust London Borough of Camden Real Resources (Sidings Community Centre, Abbey Community Centre) Sure Start Kilburn Priory Children’s Centre Westminster Kingsway College Our many service providers Thanks to: AAB Architects White Light Ltd

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Centre Director’s Report

Donna Liburd Joined Kingsgate Community Association in 2003.

A special dedication goes to two members of our team Jeanette Perrin and Bert Brown both of whom unfortunately passed away this year. Jeanette was a very dedicated volunteer who gave so much of herself and was a real asset to the organisation. Bert retired five years ago from his role as caretaker at the age of eighty-one and contributed a great deal to the success of Kingsgate. Both will be very much missed.

Building and maintaining an effective team has been one of the main reasons for the continued success of Kingsgate. As the present custodian I would like to thank the current team including the board, staff and volunteers for their hard work, dedication and support.

This has been a very eventful year and although it has been touched with periods of sadness there has also been a real feeling of moving forward. Many of the tasks we set ourselves for the year have been accomplished.

Planning permission for the roof garden was been granted and, should we get through the next stage of funding, means that the quality of service we provide for the under 5’s will be greatly enhanced and will open up lots more opportunities for the future sustainability of the service.

We were able also to fulfil our plans to recruit new trustees with the skills and expertises needed to enhance and compliment those of the current board of trustees.

The hall re- development was completed adding to our portfolio of provision, and means that we can offer affordable theatre, conferencing and screening facilities to the local community, local groups and partners as well as creating an asset that will increase our capacity to generate greater levels of earned income in the future.

The new cycle for the development of our three-year business plan will commence early next year. We have already started to scope out our plans for further increasing our capacity to generate greater income, work even more collaboratively with funders, partners and the local community to maximise the impact of grant funding, and to ensure that we follow through on our long held commitment of improving our environmental credentials.

Looking to the future we are very much aware that we are entering austere times, but the challenges this brings will have to be met. As a local charity this is our reason for being, serving our community in the best of times and in the worst of times. It will be the strength, dedication and continued effort of our team that will pull us through.

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Finance Sub Committee Report

Peter Williams Vice Chair since 2008 During the year to the end of March 2010 progress was made by the Finance Sub-Committee on the continued improvement of systems to monitor closely the financial management of KCA. The group met regularly prior to each full Board meeting, supported by our Centre Director and book-keeper. We improved our cashflow monitoring and are continuing to work on more accurate forecasting, and we began the process of “scenario” planning for the future in view of the likely future cuts in Local Authority budgets. In addition, the group began to review and update KCA’s Financial Policies to ensure that governance is robust and that we will be in a better position to weather any storms on the horizon. Pamela Furness – a new KCA Trustee –joined the group and received a thorough induction from the staff and other members in KCA’s financial management systems.

Hall Sub Committee Report

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Iche Amadi Secretary to Hall Sub. Committee

Following the launch of the new conference, theatre and screening facility, the Hall Sub Committee was set up in October 2009 to continue working on the development and promotion of the hall. The group identified key areas for initial development: film screenings, amateur performance and training.

The Main Hall is developing slowly, but surely. Brent Friends of the Earth held a public screening of the ‘Age of Stupid’ in December 2009 and Limelight Youth Theatre Group performed their rendition of Chicago, ‘Murder, Liquor, Jazz’, to a full audience in March 2010. From January – February, eight local people completed free training in technical stage management. A big thank you goes to Mr. Nick Weeks at the Kingsgate Workshops Trust who, with 15 years experience of technical theatre in the Shaftebury Avenue Theatre, provided training on how to set up lighting and sound for performance. The volunteers now form part of our Kingsgate Friends of the Hall group and are called upon as and when needed for a range of events.

The Hall Sub Committee will continue to work on making connections with local amateur theatre groups and working with the current busy timetable to offer rehearsal spaces for local groups.

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Kingsgate in pictures: 2009 - 2010

Sewing Class – Pascal Children’s Theatre End of term show – Board & Staff Meeting, February 2010 – Creative Writing class – Music & Movement Drop-In – Chantraine Dance – Karate For Kids – Weaving Collective...

... Watch Me Now Dance for Children – Afterschool Arts Club – Kung Fu Self Defence – Painting & Drawing - Older People’s Keep Fit.

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A profile of Kingsgate

ACCESSIBILITY We aim to make the centre a welcoming and highly accessible space for the community to enjoy. The centre is DDA compliant, with lift access to every floor and two disabled persons toilets. We invested in height adjustable tables for the art room to ensure that everyone can access the courses on offer. Also, we go further than the average working week by keeping our doors open to the public six days a week at an average 61.5 hours per week- making sure that people can access a variety of evening as well as daytime classes. This is reflected in our above average figure of approximately 863 regular users per week visiting the centre through 2009 – 2010.

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1% of Kingsgate Community Centre users consider themselves to be disabled.

35% of Kingsgate Community Centre users consider themselves to be from a Black or Minority Ethnic background.

Board Development September 2009

The Association welcomed three new Board of Directors: Zani Dingiswayo, Pamela Furness and Justin Stuart-Mills. All three live and work locally to the centre and have key transferable skills to further support our strategic development. Pamela works across the road in the Kingsgate Workshops Trust. Her background and skills in Financial Management has proven invaluable to the Finance Sub Committee Group.

Zani has lived on Kingsgate Road since 1989 and would visit the centre as a teenager. Now working as a Barrister, her understanding of the community and its needs help shape our decisions. Justin has lived on Kingsgate Road for five years and works as a Criminal Lawyer. He is keen to be more involved with the community and sees being a Board Member as the perfect opportunity.

Rt. Hon. Nick Clegg MP visits Kingsgate June 2009

Kingsgate Community Centre is often cited as an exemplary centre in the London Borough of Camden. The leader of the liberal democrats, Nick Clegg MP, was directed to visit us at the very start of his campaign trail. Interacting with our regular centre users attending the Under 5s Soft Play Drop-In, parents and carers had the opportunity to voice their opinions over economic concerns and the need for centres, such as Kingsgate, to gain more support as more of the community become reliant on the services we provide. Kingsgate continues to be a platform for voicing local concerns.

Volunteers, Your Community Needs You! August 2009 The Kingsgate Volunteers Programme was launched in August 2009. Since then, 22 wonderful people have volunteered in various roles within the Centre. By March 2010, three volunteers found employment in relation to their roles and eight others completed a basic Technical Stage Management course. As more volunteers have become comfortable within the centre, we plan to develop projects outside of the centre to encourage more people to volunteer for the benefit of their community.

Roof Garden For the Future? January 2010 Planning permission was granted by Camden Council to build a roof garden directly above the Pre-School. This will be an excellent space to enhance the children’s learning whilst in a supervised outdoor space and will give them the opportunity to learn how to look after plants, how to grow their own food and will give them their own piece of country in the city. A big thank-you is owed to Alice Brown at local firm AAB Architects and Matthew Bolton from Sinclair Johnston and Partners who conducted the consultation and drew up the plans pro bono. The next big task is to secure enough funds for the building and maintenance of the garden!

Highlights of 2009 - 2010

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Open Day & Hall Launch Success September 2009 Thursday 22nd September was an extremely busy day for Kingsgate staff and volunteers. The local community were invited to the centre for free taster sessions in arts and physical activities; plus free manicures, Indian head massages, health checks and face painting for the kids. Local organisations, including the Kilburn Metropolitan Police and Kilburn Priory Children’s Centre (Sure Start), kindly opened information stalls for everyone to access. Day soon turned to night. Following the AGM, we were very pleased to receive the Mayor Councillor Omar Faruque Ansari and to have a warming speech from Glenda Jackson MP for the launch of our brand new main hall facilities- now a fully equipped conference, theatre and screening centre! The Over 50s Line Dancers, Gillian Winn’s Ballet Girls and Limelight Youth Theatre gave great performances for the launch, which was enjoyed by all who attended.

Building Community Arts April 2009 – March 2010 By Laila Brown Kingsgate Community Centre has been working in partnership with Kilburn Youth Station and Kingsgate Workshops Trust in delivery of art workshops for young people aged 16 to 20 years old, The program is a weekly two hour evening session in our art room where the young people work on their own art project and gain an accredited qualification (Trinity & Guildhall Arts Award Bronze or Silver) It is supervised by The art coordinator and a senior Youth worker. Recent arts graduates supported by Kingsgate Workshops offer advice on portfolio preparation and professional practice. New Children's arts activities have included two terms of animation workshops, and a full year of making art from recycled material. Children from the summer playscheme in 2009 worked with Local architects on the design of the new adventure playground, which is now open in Grange park.

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A Tribute to Albert (Bertie) Brown

By Ags Irwin

Albert Brown, Bertie to us all, was our caretaker at Kingsgate for 12 years. He stepped down from the role 5 years ago, aged 81. Born in Jamaica, he came to the UK in 1959 with every intention of returning home in six months. But thankfully he stayed. One of the best people you could ever know, funny, clever and full of good advice. He was more than a caretaker at Kingsgate, he fulfilled a vital community role. He understood people, especially troubled young people, and when groups of teenagers came to Kingsgate, he sensed when they were up to no good. He reasoned with them, listened to them and with his gently spoken catchphrase “cool it”, was able to calm them. As his daughter Jasmin said: “he refused to meet fire with fire”. Kingsgate was a very important part of his life, and along with his beloved wife Venetia, daughters Jasmin and Sandra we enjoyed many celebrations and parties there. Here are a couple of stories I told at his Thanksgiving service: When I asked him was it a big birthday coming up for him, and he gave me a look. We all know Bert’s looks. And he didn’t say yes. But he didn’t say no. Now I thought I was a bit of an expert in Bert speak, so I took this to mean yes, it was going to be his 80th birthday. So at Kingsgate we set about planning a birthday party for him. We gave him a wonderful 80th party, only then realising it was his 79th birthday! So of course the next year we had to give him another wonderful 80th birthday and his retirement party. He and I always danced together, at his parties and all the other events at Kingsgate. I think he danced to the fast notes and I danced to the slow ones, it was definitely not Strictly, but we loved it. Bertie had a beautiful allotment near his home in Cricklewood, which he loved. Every year, I would get a little call from him: “Uh Hags, (he never could pronounce my name) I have a little something for you.” I’d go down to the Centre, and he would discretely pull out a large plastic bag full of spinach, or beans, or rhubarb. I felt very special. Then gradually I noticed some of the other girls carrying out plastic bags with green bits sticking out. I had thought I was the only one. But that was his magic, he made us all feel special, if a little jealous of each other. Those who knew him at Kingsgate continued to be friends with him up until his death. His family remain an important part of all our lives.

Albert Josiah Brown September 1924 – May 2010

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A Tribute to Jeannette Perrin By Zani Dingiswayo

In March 2010 the Kingsgate Community Centre (KCC) unexpectedly lost Jeannette Perrin, a valued member, supporter and colleague. Her sudden death at 40 years old came as a profound shock to all who knew and loved her.

Jeannette lived in the Kilburn area all her life with her family and loved the local community. Her roots were here and she would never have lived anywhere else. The KCC played a role in her life from childhood, as a member of the ‘Girls Club’, to adulthood when she became a valued part-time volunteer. Jeannette worked at the KCC for many years as a volunteer, selflessly devoting her time and giving something back to the community that she loved even though she was not always in the best of health. Her extensive computer knowledge, web design background, ability to fix and make things and practical skills proved to be invaluable to the KCC over the years. Her warm personality and capabilities will be sorely missed by the Centre, especially in the new IT room, and by all her colleagues.

More than anything Jeannette will be remembered fondly for her kindness, generosity and willingness to help anyone if she could. Nothing was ever too much trouble and she found it hard to say no to people. Although she is no longer with us, her endearing spirit will live on with many people.

Jeannette leaves behind her loving parents June and Frank, her partner Keith, her sisters, nieces and nephews and many friends and colleagues.

Jeannette Perrin May 1969 – March 2010

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Kingsgate Community Association Kingsgate Community Centre

107 Kingsgate Road, London NW6 2JH Tel: 0207 328 9480

Web: www.kingsgatecommunityassociation.org.uk Registered Charity no.: 1056070

Registered Company Limited by Guarantee no.: 3205579

‘Garden Mural’ painted for the Pre-School, 2010.