News in Brief June 2009
Gang guilty of teenager’s murder
A gang of six youths have been found guilty of murdering teenager Shaquille Smith on 31 August last year.
Shaquille, 14, was with his sister, 16, and an 18-year-old friend in the park at St Thomas’s Place, E9, when the group struck shortly before 11.45pm. Shaquille was punched and kicked, and then stabbed. He was taken to the Royal London Hospital but died on 31 August from a single stab wound to the abdomen.
George Amponsah, 18, Godiowe Dufeal, 20, Amisi Khama, 18, a 16-year-old boy, and two 17-year-old boys, all from Hackney, were convicted of murder. All six will be sentenced at the Old Bailey on 10 July.
Senior Investigating Officer Detective Chief Inspector Carl Mehta, of the Homicide and Serious Crime Command said:
“Shaquille was a totally innocent young boy with no connection to any gang. Those who knew him describe him as a kind, caring and considerate boy and an excellent sportsman who had a great future ahead of him.”
Cracking down on drugs
Offficers from Hackney Police’s drugs squad have charged 15 people following an operation targeting drug dealers in the borough.
During Operation Dominix, the squad, which receives funding from the Council, spent 32 days over three months in various locations in Hackney. Test purchases saw them able to buy class A drugs on 115 occasions.
During the arrest phase, which took place during National Tackling Drugs Week from 8-12 June, 12 warrants were executed and 16 targets were arrested, along with a further two people who were not connected with the initial operation.
15 people were charged with over 60 offences connected to the supply of class A drugs. DS Jodie Tuff, of the squad, said:
“This operation has been a success and has resulted in a large number of arrests which will have a positive and real impact for residents, businesses and visitors.”
All those charged appeared at Thames Magistrates Court or Thames Youth Court on June 9 and 10, and have been remanded in custody.
Fined for underage tobacco sale
The owners of a Shoreditch bar have been prosecuted for selling cigarettes to a 15-year-old, after an investigation by the Council’s Trading Standards department.
Barworks (Hoxton) Ltd, owners of the Hoxton Bar and Kitchen in Hoxton Square, N1, pleaded guilty at Thames Magistrates Court on 2 June. The company was fined £800, with costs of £1,069.
The bar was caught through a test purchase, when a boy was able to buy a packet of cigarettes.The Council encourages bars and shops to use Challenge 21 – automatically asking customers appearing 21 or younger to show photographic identification proving their age.
Businesses selling restricted products can get an advice pack from the Council by calling: 020 8356 4929.
Be quick and vote for local film
Pople have until 30 June to vote for local director Alex Taylor, whose short film Kids Might Fly represent Hackney in the Best of the Boroughs (BOBs) film awards.
Alex took part in the New Pathways Film Fund partnership between Hackney, Tower Hamlets and Newham councils, which is part of the London Borough Film Fund Challenge.
Kids Might Fly, along with Tower Hamlets’ Mrs Birk’s Sunday Roast by Kyoko Miyake, Newham’s Milk Watch by Michael Taylor are on the Film London website.
The winner will receive £2,000 and be in with a chance of securing an additional £2,000 as a separate prize. Winners will also be invited to a ceremony at BAFTA in July.
To vote for Alex’s short film, visit: www.filmlondon.org.uk
The New Pathways Film Fund is financed by money raised from location filming in all three boroughs, and Film London. For info visit the Film page.
Top ethnic employer
Hackney holds pole position as the country’s top council for employing senior management staff from ethnic minorities for the second year running.
More than a quarter of the Council’s top five per cent earners are from ethnic minorities, the highest in England, according to a new survey from GMB union, using Government information available from 149 councils.
The Council runs a programme called Phoenix, to help existing staff from black and minority ethnic backgrounds, and staff with disabilities, supporting them to gain management skills. More than 300 employees have taken part so far since it was set up in 2000.
Cllr Karen Alcock, Deputy Mayor of Hackney, said: “As a borough with such a diverse population, our workforce should reflect the communities it serves, and we want this diversity to be present at all levels of the Council.”
Learn about the new Line
An exhibition exploring the past, present and future of the East London Line is on display at Hackney Museum.
During the construction of the East London Line extension, Transport for London (TfL) has worked with archaeologists from the Museum of London, who excavated parts of the route. Visitors to the exhibition will be able to see artefacts, which include a Mesolithic flint, a Medieval tomb brass, and a Victorian comb. The line will provide Hackney’s first proper link to the Tube, with new stations at Dalston, Haggerston, Hoxton and Shoreditch by 2010, and a link to Highbury & Islington due in 2011.
Cllr Nargis Khan, the Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Services said: “Work on the line is one of the most visible activities in the borough taking place in readiness for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Better transport links will benefit all Hackney residents and visitors by providing improved access to the rest of the city, so why not learn more about how the borough’s transport infrastructure will look in 2011.”
The exhibition is at the museum until 4 July, when it will move to other venues across London. Hackney Museum is at 1 Reading Lane, E8; call: 020 8356 3500; or visit the Museum page.
Dive in for some music
Wet Sounds returns to London Fields Lido on 4 July ahead of its second national tour this summer.
Part sound art gallery, part underwater festival, Wet Sounds promises an alternative audio experience for no additional cost above the pool’s entrance fee.
Last year saw a host of eccentric couture, from crocodiles to brightly coloured kagools.
Wet Sounds is supported by the Council’s cultural development team, Arts Council England and the PRS Foundation. A closing event takes place at Clissold Leisure Centre, N16, on 22 July.
For tickets visit: www.seetickets.com; or for more info visit: www.wetsounds.co.uk
Festival in the park
Clissold Park will host Day Mer Culture and Arts Festival’s closing event as the gala reaches its 20th anniversary.
The free festival – which celebrates the Turkish and Kurdish community – will feature a panel discussion on the democratisation of Turkey, hosted by Hayat TV chief editor Aydin Cubukcu; guest speakers, including MPs, councillors and performers from Turkey; and traditional food and folk dancing. A launch event took place in the assembly rooms at the Town Hall on 12 June.
This year’s festival focuses on events for children, including a drama workshop on 20 June with writer and actor Fahri Bozbas at Holmleigh Primary School, N16. The closing event begins at 2pm on 6 July. For info visit: www.daymer.org
Fined for after -hours sales
A pub landlord who sold alcohol more than two hours after the time allowed by his license has been prosecuted by the Council. Umit Moroglu, licensee of the Marquis of Lansdowne in Stoke Newington Road, N16, pleaded guilty at Thames Magistrates Court on 27 May to selling alcohol beyond the hours permitted by his premise’s license. He was fined £2015, with costs of £973.
Moroglu had previously been warned by the Council, but when the licensing enforcement team visited the pub at 1.15am, they found alcohol was being served. The licence allows it to be sold until 11pm.
Cllr Alan Laing, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, said:
“The landlord knew the law and chose to ignore it. This sort of behaviour is totally unacceptable, and those who choose to flout the law will be prosecuted. We will not turn a blind eye to this sort of negligent conduct and we demand the highest standards from our pubs. Landlords have to act responsibly and run their businesses in a legal manner.”
Anybody wishing to vary the hours or conditions of their current premises licence – or apply for a new one – can obtain an application form by calling: 020 8356 2431.
Carers’ ticket to ride
Carers are being invited to jump aboard for an illuminating Routemaster bus trip around the borough.
In celebration of National Carers Week from 8-14 June, they will be taken on a magical mystery bus tour to explore Hackney and find out more about services available to them.
Carers provide unpaid assistance by looking after an ill, frail or disabled family member, partner or friend. This year’s National Carers Week highlights their role as the country’s ‘secret service’ in providing help that is vital but often overlooked.
Mayor of Hackney Jules Pipe, and Cllr Nargis Khan, Cabinet Member for Community Services, will meet the tour at 11am on 11 June before the bus departs at 11:30am.
The Council provides a range of support services for carers, including a free two-day retreat; free training courses; support accessing work and education opportunities; an emergency home respite service; and the Carers Card that offers concessionary rates of up to 50 per cent at Council leisure centres and discounts at shops.
For info on Carers Week events, and to apply for the Carers Card, call: 020 8356 5054, email: carers@hackney.gov.uk or visit the Carers page.
Improving service for children
A new online national directory that will allow people working with children to deliver a more co-ordinated service is due to be launched in Hackney in August.
ContactPoint, which councils must implement under the Children Act, aims to allow users to find out who else is working with a child or young person, share information, avoid duplication and work as a team to improve services for young people.
The directory will contain the child’s name, and contact details of the parents and carers, schools, GPs and any other services working with the child. However, information on some children will be hidden or shielded if certain criteria are met, such as if the child or families may be subject to increased harm. Requests for a record to be shielded can be made by practitioners, parents and carers.
For more info call 020 8356 4776; email: contactpoint@hackney.gov.uk; or visit the Contactpoint page.
Work with older people praised
An initiative set up to uphold the dignity of older people in care across the borough has won a won a Success in Partnership gong at the London Regional Health and Social Care Awards.
The Older People’s Dignity Code was developed by the Older People’s Reference Group, and is supported by the Council. City & Hackney PCT, Homerton Hospital, East London NHS Foundation Trust have all signed up.
NHS City and Hackney also scooped the Innovative Health and Social Care Technology Award on the night, for the sexual health ‘SHO-me’ campaign, which provided free condoms, contraceptive advice and pregnancy tests, as well as screening for chlamydia, gonorrhoea and HIV for 7,500 residents.
Page updated: 15 Jun 2010
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