Minutes of General Meeting – Wednesday 7^th March 2012

Present: Eileen Evans, Deborah Madden, Melanie Bray, Michele D’Acosta, Alfred Thorpe,  Yvonne Johnson, Joe Palmer, Tunde Rahman, Nola McSweeney, Roger Mitchell, Edwin Rew, Richard Homewood,   Cllr Eve Martin, Diane Reed, Lynn White, Christine Boulton-Lane, John Geater, Ray Keene, Derek Tomblin (chair), Mike Ryan,  Robin Gray (minutes).

1. 1.              Apologies: Michael Foster, Ian Stuart, Cllr Peter Pragnell, Nigel Sinden, Paul Cabban, Derek Greenup, Ernie Grice, Stella Underhill, Gabrielle Born, Yvette John, Bill Evans.

1. 2.              Minutes of 11^th January & matters arising:  [Secretary’s apologies for misspelling Edwin Rew ].
2. §3(a): It was confirmed that the £150 raised by John’s neighbours by carol singing had indeed been handed over in SL and a receipt obtained.
3. §3(b) Ray and Derek had not yet arranged with Richard to look at the redundant HBC furniture. Richard to suggest a time.
4. §6: Robin to ask Mat McDonnell if he will have some footage ready for the AGM, if not for use at presentations before then.
5. §8(v)(b) We do not know if Peter has asked Cllr Matthew Lock if he could press our case for support from Asda.
6. §8(v)(c) Robin asked for photos from the February trip, so that a decision could be reached about printing another set of notelets. Richard supplied discs containing some 800. (But any others should be emailed to me, please –Robin)
7. §8(v)(e)  Robin had not yet looked further into the Vodaphone “Just Text Giving” scheme.

3.              Link-up with University of Brighton.  Dr Deborah Madden introduced herself. Deborah teaches arts & humanities students on a joint honours course, and organises placements for 2^nd year students. She thinks there is scope for UCH students to get involved with the Link’s work. They are already involved with Respond Academy and some of the schools. Perhaps they could raise funds, even possibly go to Sierra Leone. Roger observed that it would be invaluable experience for them, to see education in a developing country, and Christine mentioned the possibility of support from the Hastings Youth Trust to which she is Clerk. Deborah explained that organising their own funding, putting in grant applications etc would be good experience for her students.

The Link could well be a beneficiary of a student Rag Day. To raise awareness, Derek could talk to students, as a guest lecturer. (Derek and Deborah to discuss).                                                                                                                                Deborah agreed with John that the students might well be able to carry out academic research on the Link’s activities. Robin would welcome such evaluation, since he needs facts and figures when putting in applications for funding with bodies like Comic Relief.  Melanie thought that the students could well be interested in the midwifery/ nursing side of the Link’s work.

 4.              Finance: Ray presented his report on our finances since the last meeting.  There is still some funding to come in with regard to the February trip. Ray noted that the quiz night and quiz sheet together raised very nearly £2000. The calendar actually raised over £1600 (plus £1 retained by the schools for every calendar they sold –RG) once we take the £900 grant from HBC into account.

5.            Reports back from February trip.                                                                                                           

(a) Schools. Roger presented his written report (Appendix A).  It was felt that the official programme meant the teachers had less contact with children than they had hoped, though they appreciated that things are done with a certain formality in SL. Roger wants to push the college link hard, as the GTI (Government Technical Institute) in Kissy is the only one in SL, so of huge importance. Gabrielle spent all week at GTI – see her list of bullet points (Appendix B).  Diane agreed that more time in schools would have been desirable, although being involved in what Derek and Richard were doing gave very useful insights into the environmental and health issues that do, after all, involve the schools. She reported that the equipment and material supplied is being put to good use at REC Hastings, with copies of the posters in every room, and Mr Campbell implementing lots of ideas he had come across on his visit here.    Derek took pictures of the self-build school at Kankaylay (built with funding from our Mosque and Christ Church School). It will open in April, with a formal ‘grand opening’ in February 2013.                                                                                                                                                                        

(b) Waste management.  Richard presented a report in the form of the ‘@bit’ article he wrote for HBC. (See Appendix C). He thanked the schools and teachers for taking waste & environmental issues seriously. HBC has provided materials that are being used in both Hastings. There is a really positive mindset as regards recycling.  Richard, Kevin and the local working party worked on 4 digesters, and 6 more compost bins – one per school.  More domestic compost bins are planned. There has been a regular and reassuring exchange of emails since our group returned. There will be a trip out to evaluate the project in Sept-Oct, which may lead to further funding. (We have since heard that one digester is now producing enough methane to cook by.)                                                                        

(c) Health issues. Melanie gave an account of her survey of the health situation, based on visits to 4 institutions. Melanie’s detailed notes are given below as Appendix D.  For the first time, we were able to get an overview of the scope and responsibilities of the health professionals on the ground (everything from ante- & post-natal care, family planning, health education and running a general clinic to inspecting abattoirs and testing & counselling for HIV).  Melanie has come up with a prioritised list  from the long ‘wish list’ the health centre manager originally gave us:

Summary of priority items:

(a) Microscopes and reagents.***                                  (f) computer etc**
(b) Manual vacuum remover & aspirator set***      (g) seed money for drugs
(c) Text books/reference books***                             (h) building repair**, extension***

(d) delivery bed ***
(e) basic surgical instruments.**

Effie Gooding recommends using local carpenters to make basic equipment such as drip stands. John suggested costing the various items and asking our supporters to sponsor named items. Melanie reported that the hospice was very grateful for John’s group’s donation of £150, which will be spent on TB drugs. She described the grim conditions in which the hospice works. There are no beds, so patients must be nursed at home. They have food for only 40 out of their case-load of 130 patients (80 HIV, 30 TB, 20 other: malaria, cancer).

Melanie visited the mental health facility at Kissy.  There is an excellent nurse in charge, Abdul Richard Conteh, educating himself further at his own expense. Michele said that her group was taking two computers out to SL next month, so could allocate one to Hastings.

6            Health Working Party.  Christine reported that the working party is an enthusiastic group composed mainly of professionals with medical expertise. On the basis of Derek’s report on the Health Centre (see Appendix E), the working party recommends that

(a) We use the money ring-fenced in the Gold Account, to extend the Health Centre. This would entail letting the major donors know of this. Robin to write to Michael Foster and to Helenswood, explaining that in fact we now know it is not medical staff that is lacking, but rather premises and equipment. Drs Kamara & Gooding will help define what is needed.

(b) We ask LOAF to release the money from the Bruce Eaton bequest, to pay for a much needed delivery bed. We should go on collecting surplus medical equipment.

(c) We encourage St Michael’s Hospice to twin with the Shepherd’s Hospice. Melanie and John to talk to Dick Board.  (A link with Kissy Psychiatric Hospital might be desirable, but it would be spreading ourselves rather thin. The Guy’s Hospital group with which John is involved might pick this up.)

The meeting thanked Melanie and Derek for the huge amount of work they managed to do in a week. Derek stressed that it is infrastructure rather than personnel that is lacking. He outlined things that would need doing at the Health Centre. Mr Koroma would manage the project, involving the community in it as a self-help initiative. Yvonne said we should not offer pump-priming money too soon: she will let us know when funds are needed. It is hoped that surplus materials may be available from other WRDC projects… We are asking Ann Sapolyo how much the Kankaylay self-build project cost, to use as a benchmark.  In a rare vote, the meeting unanimously accepted a motion (proposed by Edwin and variously seconded) to accept the working party’s recommendations and to proceed with the improvements to the Health Centre as quickly as possible.

7.              Michèle D’Acosta on Operation Rise and the Peace Project. Michele introduced herself. She is a film-maker, and local, but very much involved in work with Africa and the USA. Operation Rise distributed 10,000 crutches in SL in 2011. She is going back in April with crutches and wheelchairs, and will be distributing some in the Hastings area. (Yvette has since emailed Michele with a detailed list of the wheelchairs and crutches needed in the Hastings area for amputees, polio victims etc.). The charity Michele is involved with sponsors 30 children. It would be possible for us to nominate a child who we knew urgently needed support. The new Hilton Hotel in Freetown will be providing internships for disabled youngsters. John asked if wheelchairs (using a simple cart design) & crutches could not be manufactured in SL. Perhaps, at an employment centre in the Twin Town Centre?

8.             SL Olympics team training in Hastings. Robin read a message from Michael: “I have not heard any more about the Olympics bid save that they were hopeful that they would get some qualifiers and if they do they would like to take up the offer. I have now written to ask when they think they will know for certain as we of course need some certainty as to whether or not it’s on.” Derek was given the impression that there might be 3 athletes and 7 officials. Paul Cabban thinks that Hastings Runners are able to sponsor 1 athlete. We do not know if Pestalozzi is still either willing or able to house the SL team.

9.             Events, fundraising etc.

(i) Quiz night. No specific suggestions were made for improving the running of the quiz night, other than the observation that £4 per head was quite cheap – perhaps it should be £5 next time.  The meeting thanked Nola warmly for all the work she put into the organization. It was agreed that much of the success of the evening was due to our being able to use the Phœnix Arts Centre (by kind permission of John Court at William Parker, and thanks to the good offices of Derek Greenup). Nola has written to thank John Court, Robin to thank the young staff at the Phœnix. Nola reminded us that Nigel Jones, who rates our quizzes very highly, has kindly offered to provide the questions for a future quiz. Time was running short, so no decision was reached on whether that might be a second quiz night in the year – say, in September – or whether that would be the traditional annual event next February, with someone else responsible for the major business of arranging the venue, getting raffle prizes and selling tables, leaving Robin and Nola to concentrate on the orange quiz sheet. Nola will ask around to see if our usual quiz supporters would welcome two quizzes in the year.

 (ii) Valentine’s Day. Robin reported that the event went off very well. He made two contacts who would like to be of help to the Link and whose names he has passed on: Jesse Lebby (NHS management) and Hassan Conteh (a headteacher).   Thanksgiving.  Robin reported that Paul was concerned that once again all the catering was being taken care of by Yvonne. It was agreed that we should certainly be able to organise the drinks and provide whatever other help is needed.

10. The Chairmanship.  Peter will be standing down after a 2 year stint. Nominations are urgently invited.

11. AOB. (a) Yvonne kindly donated a box of her SL cookery recipes for the Link to sell to raise funds.

(b) Ray  reported that the congregation at St Helen’s Church is being urged to support the Link as a beneficiary of the LOAF Walk in May. John encouraged us all to apply to take part, or to offer to help. Application forms are in Grapevine, or from John (john.geater@sky.com). Details on the LOAF website: www.loafproject.co.uk/loaf walk.html

(c) John urged us to support the annual musical evening at the Parchment Trust on 20^th June.

(d) Robin reported that Ian Stuart will be in Hastingues (SW France) shortly. The people there seem keen to support Hastings SL, but need ideas. Ian will be teaching English while he’s there, and would like Link-related material. Robin will provide him with reports. John gave multiple copies of Grapevine with articles on Hastings SL. If anyone wants to pen a few lines on their experiences/ ideas, please send them to Ian at  crossborder.email@gmail.com  in the next few days.

12. Date of Next Meeting. The next general meeting will be on Wed 9^th May at 6.05 in the Town Hall. (to be confirmed).  AGM: We are negotiating with one or two of the schools to find a date, probably in June.

Robin Gray

12.03.2012

Appendix A

Sierra Leone Visit February 2012  – Education Team Report to Committee

The Education Team of 11 people was as follows:

From Blacklands CP School, working at REC Hastings Primary and Infant School:

Toni Dyas, Janet Jarvis, Diane Reed.

From St Leonard’s CE School, working with REC Rokel Primary School:

Lynne Barr, Stephanie Lewis, Hannah Paines.

From St Paul’s CE School, working with REC Kossoh Town Primary School:

Kath Baird, Ellen White, Richard White.

From Sussex Coast College, working with Government Technical Institute, Kissy:

Gabrielle Bourn.

I spent my time working with Huntingdon Secondary School, REC Jui Lower Primary School, Kankalay Islamic School and Regmel Preparatory School in the absence of partners from the UK.

Lynne Barr and Kath Baird were the only members of the team who were grant-funded by the British Council.

We were very disappointed that the programme allowed us so little time working with children in the classroom this year.

On the Monday most of the morning was taken up at a meeting with elected members and officials of the Waterloo District Council.

Most of Tuesday morning was taken up with the celebrations at the Twin Town Centre for the 5^th Anniversary of the Twinning.

All of Thursday was taken up with a conference at the British Council Offices in Freetown on issues of waste management and the possibilities of ‘greening’ the curriculum.

All three ‘distractions’ from the classroom were interesting and valuable in their way but we who had come to interact directly with children wished these had been organised outside of school time (school finishes at 1:30 so this would have been possible in most cases) because the classroom work proved so rewarding and the contact with children so heart-warming.

We found great enthusiasm among staff and children for a continuation of the links and I am urging schools to fund-raise to maintain exchanges on an annual basis as the most effective way to continue to offer the benefits of these partnerships to our children in the absence of any expectation of further grants.

There are several schools in the Hastings area that are eager to come into partnerships and we were able to visit two particularly – St Mulumba’s Catholic Primary School (Headteacher: Elizabeth Lamin) in Hastings and the Edest Nursery and Preparatory School in Jui headed by the Rev. Esther Tommy and Mrs Lydia Thompson.

Richard White is to address the next meeting of our Primary School Heads to raise awareness and enthusiasm and I will visit any school that evinces interest as a result.

The Government Technical Institute at Kissy. Gabrielle spent most of the week there and received a warm welcome and an obvious desire to partner with SCCH. She has produced a short report as well. With the changes of leadership at SCCH it has been difficult to get any decisions about the future possibilities but now that the new Principal has been appointed she will be exploring opportunities for her and me to meet with the leadership with the hope that we can stimulate interest in a partnership. The GTI has a range of departments similar to the more technical departments at SCCH so we are hopeful. The GTI is well organised and, as the only such institute in Sierra Leone, is of huge importance in the future development of the country.

Scouts.   Peter Koroma, a member of staff at Huntingdon School, organises the Scout Troop there. I have met him on previous visits and he remains extremely keen to foster a link with a suitable Troop here. Roger Plumb, who runs the 24^th Hastings at William Parker Sports College, has begun to show interest in a link and I have delivered a letter from Peter to him and hope that developments will follow. Such a link is particularly relevant as both troops are secondary school-based.

Moving now to activities in the UK:

Our International Pupil Council’s third meeting will be immediately prior to our meeting so I will give a verbal report on this.

On Wednesday 14 March the visit parties of both 2011 and 2012 will meet to plan the return visit here of our African partners from May 19 – 27.There will be four in the party: Mr Samuel Williams, Headteacher of REC Rokel Primary School and Mrs Jeitta Kanneh, Headteacher of REC Kossoh Town Primary School are grant-funded by the British Council. Mrs Mary Carew, Deputy Head of Rokel, is coming as the guest of St Leonards CE School and of Mrs Lynne Barr. Mr Francis Mason has been given a donation of £100 from Blacklands School towards his air fare but otherwise will be self-funding, staying with me. Events so far fixed are a Thanksgiving Service for the 5-yr Twinning Anniversary at Blacklands Church organised by the London Association on the afternoon of Sunday 20^th May and the annual 7-a-side Soccer Tournament organised by Teresa Bennett at St Leonards Academy on Wednesday 23 May. I hope that you will wish to make suggestions for events arranged by HSLFL and HBC.

Gabrielle has been pursuing contacts with Pestalozzi International Village about how we can work together on links with Sierra Leone and will be arranging a meeting for us to explore possibilities with the Village staff.

Roger Mitchell   5 March 2012

Appendix B

Notes from Gabrielle Bourn (SCCH – Ore Campus) on her further education contacts in Hastings SL (GTI Kissy)

• GTI Kissy lovely teachers & same courses as us at Ore
  Got fed a lot & offered a crocodile to bring home. I said  ” no ” reluctantly.
• We have follow up meeting with construction tutors, build & eng in April at start of the new term at work.
• My hope would be to have a tutor & maybe 2 students to visit next yr
  to see the college there & do some build/ refurb at a school or the health centre if that fits. Have to see if that seems a popular idea at college. Lower down the ranks seems people can be keen but the management bit iffy.
• Also question of finance of course. hope that Hastings Youth Trust could help with students costs.
• Personally I am also trying to link with teachers I met @ Hastings village to look at possible school  libraries: easy to get books here but need schools in S/L where they have room & culture to set up a library.
  Think it’s workable
• I have a meeting with the student council this Wed
  Also meet with Construction & Eng in April
  & our student council have the emails of the student council at GTI KIssy to link up
• Also our link tutor at GTI Kissy Mohammed Kamara, great guy who was with us for much of the week, is mid way into an MA on renewable energy  ( British Council & Uni East London with Machynlleth. Wales ) so makes a good bridge with Richard & Kev & the HBC guys
  They talked solar cookers & biodigesters & solar panels, very happily together.
  In fact he was at Hastings S/L last week checking on the biodigesters
• Also possibility of students from GTI becoming involved with any build that HSLFL does ie extension to the health centre etc as they are keen for students to get more work & practical experience,
  possibly we could link them to some of the twinned schools too for mutual help & experience!
• I also did singing & story telling at Conforti, ( Francis & Christian Mason ‘s primary school in Calaba Town )
  something that ties in with my interest in books/ libraries for schools that we will be working on at SCC. Guess that means a container sometime but I think that St Pauls & other schools also have stuff they’d like to send & yes this time we would be prepared & have money raised for postage.
• Also talked to secondary art teacher from Huntingdon, Peter Koroma, about possibility of a story book written between Sierra Leone & Hastings here.
  Just an idea in progress but could be possible especially as he is an illustrator.
  He is also writing his memoirs of the war that he is sending to me.
  Raises another possibility of something else that could developed,
• Looking at photos from our trip I am hoping to get a small exhibition of them, at Station Plaza, college campus, sometime later in the year & possibly for Coastal Currents arts festival in Sept

Appendix C

Helping Hastings to Help Itself

‘It’s an incredible privilege to be doing this and by far and away the most fulfilling piece of work I’ve ever been involved in.  When you travel from a developed to a developing country, you lose many of your preconceptions about everyday life and the things that matter. But after a difficult first few hours, we soon adapted to the unique climate and culture of Sierra Leone – thanks, in no small part, to the generosity and kindness of our hosts. It truly has been a life changing experience.

Richard Homewood, our Director of Environmental Services has just returned from our twin town in Sierra Leone where he has been working on a project with the community and the local council to try to improve their management of waste. Read about the background to the visit and the work that has been going on to help our Twin Town tackle what are becoming increasingly serious environmental issues.

Indiscriminate waste disposal is having a serious detrimental effect on the local environment and the health of the local community in Hastings, Sierra Leone, with waste contaminating watercourses used for drinking water, washing and laundering, contaminating land used for growing food and being washed up on local beaches harming wildlife and tourism. Widespread burning of waste coupled with the traffic pollution from nearby Freetown City is also causing serious air quality problems not unlike those suffered in major cities in developing countries with a haze or smog hanging over the area on a regular basis.

The project in Hastings and the Western Area is one of three waste management studies underway in Sierra Leone funded by the Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF) under their Good Practice Scheme Phase 3, and has been running since early 2010. Following previous fact finding visits in February and August 2010, a waste management strategy and implementation plan was developed to try to address the impact of waste on the environment. Funding for the implementation plan was approved by the CLGF and this visit was the start of the process.

Previous visits had confirmed that most of the waste produced was organic waste which could be composted and reused locally reducing dumping and the need to transport it over long distances to ‘dump sites’. A small proportion could be recycled leaving only 10 – 15% of the waste needing to be dumped or disposed of in other ways. The plan therefore focussed on composting and recycling waste in other ways.

It was also clear that if the plan was to be sustainable then there needed to be a cultural change in attitudes to waste so communication and education were seen as critical elements of the plan. The value of schools and ‘pester power’ in delivering this cultural change was recognised and the visit was therefore made alongside the School Twinning visits arranged with local schools here in Hastings, UK and in Hastings, SL.

A group of teachers from three local schools (Blacklands CP School, St Paul’s CP School and St Leonards CoE School) led by Roger Mitchell visited their twinned schools in Hastings, SL and the Environment, Waste and Recycling were used as key elements of the teaching whilst they were there.   Richard had visited the Hastings Uk  schools in advance and talked to the children about the environment, waste and recycling and the issues in Sierra Leone and had engaged them in projects around poster competitions, song and dance to raise awareness of the issues. There was real enthusiasm amongst the children (and their teachers!) and the posters and materials produced were then taken to the twinned schools in Hastings, SL along with art materials, where they were met with similar enthusiasm.

Meetings were also held with the local Council (Western Area Rural District Council) and the local community to spread the word about environmental issues, waste and recycling and were met with similar enthusiasm from those involved.

A Seminar was also held at the British Council for UK and SL teachers, waste professionals and officials to highlight the issues and emphasise the critical role communication and education had in taking this work forward.

Richard and his colleague Kevin Monson (an Environmental Consultant from WYG Environmental), ably assisted by Derek Tomblin and Yvonne Johnson from the Friendship Link, spent most of their time working in the village with the local community, building anaerobic digestion units, composting bins and recycling facilities, and talking to community groups and leaders.

Anaerobic Digestion units can generate methane gas from animal and food waste which can then be used for cooking, water heating and lighting instead of using wood and charcoal. This can have real environmental and health benefits by reducing deforestation and soil erosion; and reducing pollution of the air with wood smoke.

Four experimental units were constructed in the homes of local residents and in a local school and by the end of the visit three of these were producing gas. Though it was not in sufficient concentration to stay alight unaided it was extremely encouraging. Since our return we have kept in touch with our colleagues in Hastings SL and they have continued to work on the units. It was a real boost to here on 9 March that they had successfully lit the gas burner supplied by one of the units and cooked a meal of Macaroni and Eggs on it for the team. There is now real enthusiasm and commitment to getting all four units working.

If these are successful then we will begin to develop a proposal for refining the equipment and widening the scheme to other households in Hastings SL and then into other towns in the Western Area.

With up to 75% of the waste being compostable and most families growing their own food to some extent, home composting is seen as a key element of the strategy to minimise waste. Local carpenters were engaged in constructing compost bins of various sizes for use in local homes and local schools to serve as demonstration units. We have since been informed that six of the twinned schools now have composting units installed and in use and further units are being constructed for individual houses wishing to participate in the trials.

These will show the community that their ‘waste’ can produce a resource which can improve their soil and crop yields rather than pollute the land or air through dumping or burning it.

Unofficial recycling is already established as people salvage plastics, cans and metals from waste dumps and the roadsides but it is very random and inconsistent.  To try to encourage more recycling in a more organised way, recycling bins were being constructed and placed at strategic points in the village. Perhaps surprisingly this included battery bins as batteries were found scattered throughout the village with all of the associated health risks from their heavy metal content migrating into the food chain.

By the end of the week many of these facilities were in place and a plan for introducing more in the coming weeks had been agreed.

There was a little time for rest and relaxation and as the visit coincided with the 5^th anniversary of the Twinning, a service of celebration was held one lunchtime and the group even managed a late afternoon visit to the beach.

Richard was keen to emphasise that this work is only a small contribution to the work that the local community in Hastings UK has been doing to support Hastings, SL …

‘I should pay tribute to the longstanding efforts of the Hastings Sierra Leone Friendship Link who’ve done so much excellent work in our twin town of Hastings, Sierra Leone and very much laid the foundations for everything we’re doing with this project. But this is just the beginning. Our work is not so much about helping Hastings, Sierra Leone but helping it to help itself. We’ve met some truly exceptional people out there and I’m confident that, in years to come, they will be coming back to us on ways in which we can improve our own waste and recycling systems! ‘

Only time will tell if these waste initiatives can work and be sustainable but there is a real commitment to try to make it work from the local community leaders in Hastings, SL , local council officers in the Western Area and enthusiasm from teachers and children in the local schools. Regular contact is being maintained with them to support their efforts and a further brief visit is planned later this year to evaluate the success of the scheme and whether it can be extended further.

Appendix D

Notes on Hastings SL Health Centre, Allen Town Hospice, Kissy Psychiatric Hospital and Makeni Mental Health Centre (Melanie Bray).

 Hastings Health Centre:

 A large darkish room leads off from the street with an elongated desk for staff and  chairs scattered around on which patients wait. The Community Health Officer (CHO), Sallu Lansana’s office is off it, to the left, and behind is the delivery room, and 2 observation rooms, with ordinary divan type beds, and the largish toilet (flushed using a bucket of water from the tap). In a lobby space is the broken delivery bed with its rotational sections.  Medication room is on the right.

The centre is a Basic Emergency Maternity and Obstetric Care (BEMOC). Dr Effie Gooding (see below) explained that there are four levels of Primary Care Health Centres:

Levels 1 and 2- maternal and child health aids with 1 State Enrolled Community Health Nurse (SECHN), 2+ SEN’s in the level 2

Level 3- Hastings H/C: CHO- qualified community health nurse-Sallu and at least 1 midwife,  2 if BEMOC, Elizabeth and Pamela.

Level 4- GP and the health care staff- the nearest one, which is also a BEMOC, is in Waterloo

Secondary Care- hospitals general/district nearest is Rokupa, Connaught-central  Freetown.  Also several faith based hospitals

Tertiary Care- specialist services-“the new Kossoh hospital, to be run by the Chinese,

“agreement pending, likely to be a certainty, and for teaching” (EG)

There is a District Medical Officer, Dr Kainde(?), with whom Derek met.

I had three meetings with Sallu, the last one, at Effie’s suggestion, including Dr Bundu Kamara, the Chairman of the Health Services Commission, who advises the Ministry of Health on policies, planning recruitment etc. I also met with Dr Effie Gooding (GP, private practice, at 59/60 Wellington Street, Freetown), who gave the above overview of medical services, and commented on Sallu’s list of requirements.

As regards staffing, the centre now has a second midwife, another priority Effie felt was the need for a school nurse or else ensuring that health checks of each child were made regularly. Sallu commented that these are done on an annual basis to children in the 22 schools in his area, although ideally this would be 6 monthly.

Sallu’s list of wants (e-mailed to the group in January) with his revisions and comments by Effie Gooding:

Sheet 1 – not available in SL

1)   Basic Laboratory Equipment-1/2 microscopes electrical/manual;
range of reagents for bloods, sputum, urine, stools etc. Priority items.

This is a complicated item. Sallu rated it as top priority along with 2 much simpler items- books and the manual vacuum remover and aspirator.

He is aware he would need a technician and suitable space. He has applied for a technician, and this is being considered. Derek is looking into the issue of an extension. I am unclear as to how much equipment the Ministry of Health would provide, if they agree the technician.
(a) microscopes should be included under the Malaria Prevention Program; (b)

some tests, e.g. sputum, should only be done at a level 4 centre.

Action: awaiting clarification from Sallu.

2)   Sonicade or 7) Scanning Machine/ obst & gynae (these are alternatives)

These are currently accessed in 2 hospitals (but transport is problematic)

Kossoh Hospital will provide in the future.     Action: NFA

     3) Incinerator   b  Action: Richard Homewood to comment

4) Autoclave or Steriliser

A boiling steriliser would be best as less sensitive to voltage problems but continue as at present with a large boiling pan.   nAction: NFA

5) Mother and Neonate scale- electronic- Richard Homewood advised that it was not repairable.. Sallu will continue to use bathroom scales and subtract.

6) Infant scale- crossed out by Sallu   Action: NFA these 2 items

7) see above-alternative to (2)

Manual vacuum remover & aspirator set-Priority item

Would like 2 stainless steel or 6 plastic with different diameter tubes.

Action: Melanie Southwood still able to supply? Could be taken out by next visitor to SL.

9) Books-Priority items (prices from Amazon)

Oxford Concise Medical Dictionary (2010) £7.43

Current Medical Diagnosis and Treatment (2012) £50.29 (or £34.80 2nd hand)

Quick Look Drug Book (2007) £18.28 (£5.80 2nd hand)

(BNF-already delivered 15/2)

Oxford Handbook of Tropical Medicine (2008) £22.39

Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine (2004) £23.15

Oxford Handbook of Obs & Gyn (2008) £22

Action: Melanie S may be able to source some of these. Fund any others?

Could be taken out by next visitor to SL (but are heavy 800-1900pp).

10) and 13) Tabs Misoprostol and Mifepristone-

Used to dilate the cervix: should only be used in hospital as they can cause internal bleeding.—crossed out   Action: NFA

11)Spermicidal spp especially for teenagers. Already use the coil and depo provera- ( being phased out)—crossed out

12)Emergency contraceptives-levonorgestrel
10x ovranette or microgynon within 12 hrs ( bnf pg 489)are available locally – crossed out

Action: NFA these 2 items

13) see above

Sheet 2- available in SL, cost in £s given.

1)Delivery bed –top priority- cost  £215-

Present one in very poor condition. Should be a minimum of 2 as BEMOC but start with one. Sallu will check again with the government medical stores (at district and central level)

Action – Recommend use of our funds if no bed forthcoming from stores

2) Delivery kit x3 £29- some usable items from John G. delivered.—crossed out

3) Adult sphygmomanometer x4 £21  crossed out

4) Stethoscope x4       £7                          “         ”

Action: NFA these 3 items

5) Basic surgical instruments(scissors, forceps, drums tray x 2 sets- £71  priority item
Action:

6) and 7) Examination couch £57 x3 and Observation bed/mattress £71 x4

Could use local carpenter.  Both crossed out    Action: NFA these 2 items

8)Diesel Generator 2kva(honda) £75 or Second cell (solar)-

Action- Melanie arranged for Mohammed Kamara- renewable energy expert- to contact Sallu and visit the site- appt scheduled for w/c 20th Feb. Awaiting Sallu’s feedback.

9) and 10) drip stand x4 £14 and baby cot x2 £29- use local carpenter. Crossed out

11)Standing scale x2  £29  alternative to scales on sheet 1.  Crossed out  Action: NFA these 3 items

12) Computer, laptop and modem (not printer)  Priority Item                                    Sallu estimated £1400 (with printer) but, from other local info a new pc in SL is £500,  second hand £300. Could be obtained a lot cheaper in UK.

Sallu wants to use for email, internet and client records. Would need memory sticks or small external hard disc for backing-up data.   Action: to be discussed. Sources?

13) Examination Screens x 4 £22. Use local carpenter and curtaining. Crossed out.

14) Glucometer for diabetes testing. £79 x2 Strips expensive.

Cheaper chemist Wissam Pharmacy, Bathurst St, Freetown.  Crossed out

15) childrens’ sphygnomanometer -£72×2. Use adult one round child’s leg.                                                                                                                                         Crossed out. Action: NFA these 3 items.

16) Drugs and consumables  £286 eg analgesics, diazepam, ergometrin, other intravenous fluids. Disinfectants.     Dr Kamara advised that, if seed money is available, there was a cost recovery scheme for such drugs to treat simple infections, malaria, respiratory infections, diarrhoea, worms. 

Action: consider supplying seed money (awaiting Sallu’s figures)

17) Repair and maintenance and extension of building. Priority Items- See Derek’s notes.

Action- Meeting to discuss especially the aspect of funding.

Summary of priority items:

(a) Microscopes and reagents.***                         (f) computer etc**
(b) Manual vacuum remover & aspirator set***  (g) seed money for drugs
(c) Text books/reference books***                       (h) building repair**, extension***

(d) delivery bed ***
(e) basic surgical instruments.**

Appendix E     Derek’s report on the Health Centre -  Maternity & Neonatal Healthcare in Hastings, Sierra Leone

 Background

Sierra Leone has had the highest child mortality rate in the world, for under 5 year olds. In 2007 it was reported as 282 per 1,000 live births (compared with around 4 or 5 in Western Europe). For this reason HSLFL decided to raise funds to improve the situation in our twin town of Hastings, Sierra Leone. Funds to date have mostly been raised by the schools of our town, led by Helenswood School, from the profits of their annual variety performance of The Show at the White Rock Theatre. There is currently around £10k in our Gold Account ring fenced for this purpose.

We have established that this would be sufficient to pay the salaries of two maternity nurses (to give 24/7 cover) for an initial period of at least 5 years, employed and accommodated by the HSLFL. It was important to establish if this would be the best use of these funds to achieve the improvements desired and, if so, where they would work, their pay and conditions and how they would relate to the existing nursing staff in the Hastings Community Medical Centre. I aimed to obtain the best advice on this during my visit to Sierra Leone from 11 to 19 February 2012.

Sierra Leone Visit February 2012

During my visit I discussed these matters with the following relevant professionals. I took with me the ‘Current Status of Hastings Community Health Centre’ document previously obtained from the Officer in Charge there, Sallu Lansana. I consulted:

Dr Joseph N Kandeh, District Medical Officer, Western Area based in Clive Town together with Mohamed Koroma, Director of Waste Management at Western Area Rural District Council, Waterloo (WARDC). (15.02.12)

Dr Effie C Gooding, currently a GP in Wellington Street, Freetown but previously Head of Community Health at COMAHS, Kossoh Town. (16.02.12)

Mr Sallu Lansana, Community Health Officer officer in charge of the Hasting Community Health Centre (17.03.12) and together with Dr Bundu Kamara, a GP who is Chairman of the Health Services Commission, advising the Ministry of Health and stays in Hastings at weekends. (18.02.12)

Dr Kandeh considered that the ‘wish list’ prepared by Mr Lansana was too extensive and that the Health Centre was over staffed for its size. He will discuss this with Mr Lansana (Melanie Bray is preparing a separate report on the equipment needs of the Health Centre and whether they are best provided locally or from the UK). Dr Kandeh said that Maternity and Neonatal health care is a top Government priority. Therefore the training and employment of maternity/ child care professionals is well funded (presumably due to the international publicity for the situation in Sierra Leone). What is now needed is the infrastructure to cope with the staff available and the patients needing care, in particular the size and number of Health Centres available. There are Government proposals to extend the facilities at Waterloo, Grafty and Hastings but no detailed plans are currently available and he could not give any commitment as to when they would be and to what extent. He said that, although the Hastings Health Centre has plenty of land to allow extension, this must be identified and delineated as a priority, as, in his experience, illegal encroachment takes place preventing the legitimate extension of facilities. This could be done with a post and rail fence on the boundary with an appropriate notice. He does not have plans of the facilities that should be provided at a particular location as it is considered that this should be provided ‘from the bottom up’. However, all the necessary planning and building approvals would be processed by his department with the appropriate WARDC officials. Local self help would be encouraged and Mr Koroma considered that he may be able to arrange unofficial support by way of materials and resources surplus on other WARDC projects.

Dr Gooding was in general agreement with what Dr Kandeh had said about the current situation. She would certainly be prepared to help and advise Mr Lansana on the facilities required, with their priorities, for an extension to the Hastings Health Centre. She agreed that, at this time, the most effective way to improve the child mortality rate in Hastings would be to extend the existing facilities with the important proviso that regular health checks are carried out in all the schools. It is considered by Mr Lansana that this can be achieved annually with the existing permanent and training staff allocation.

Mr Lansana had previously paid an Architect to prepare plans for a Staff Quarters building (copy attached) and an extension to the Health Centre. He agreed that the plans for the Health Centre extension were not now appropriate and we discussed more appropriate facilities with the guidance of Dr Kamara. Mr Lansana’s initial thoughts are to provide the following: a larger waiting area, HIV Room, Environmental Heath Room, new Drug Store and Laboratory, and a second Observation Room. It would be necessary to move some existing walls and carry out some general repairs, including the repair of the well pump. My attached diagrammatic layout shows how the main building might be extended. It would first be necessary to relocate and fill in the existing cesspool. Dr Kamara would be happy to liaise with Dr Gooding and contribute to the development of suitable plans taking account of current Government priorities. It is considered important that the construction extends far enough to block off a pathway, that has been established, in order to ensure that it does not become a permanent right of way over the Health Centre land. Whilst the foundations could cover the full extent of the extension proposed, the work above ground level could be phased to suit the self help and outside funding available.

Mr Lansana explained that the Health Centre was originally funded by a charity (not Government) based on a population of 10,000  but that it now has to deal with a population of 20,000 and increasing. He had established that there were currently no Government funds available for an extension and considered that the current staff could only work more effectively if they had the necessary accommodation and equipment. He explained that he had to cover 6 Health Centres and uses student nurses (allocated for 3 months each year) together with community health officers to cover the school health checks once per year. There was agreement about marking the boundary clearly as soon as possible.

Mr Lansana put the causes of infant mortality in the following order (very approx percentages): Malaria (50%); HIV (30%); Malnutrition (15%); Acute Respiratory Tract Infection and Diarrhoea (Dehydration) (5%).

Conclusions, Recommendations (See Diagrammatic Plan)

From the discussions with the relevant officials and professionals on my visit to Sierra Leone, it would appear that the best way to improve the infant mortality rate of the children in Hastings, SL at this time, would be to expand the facilities available at the existing Community Health Centre rather than employing additional Maternity Nurses, as previously envisaged (I understand there are currently 22 schools providing 4,000 students).

If it is decided to proceed with an extension to the existing Health Centre it will first be necessary for the Community Health Officer (currently Mr Lansana) to identify the exact requirements and priorities in consultation with the appropriate professionals. Those I spoke to were prepared to give this assistance. I would then try to determine the costs of the proposals. It is likely that the funds in the HSLFL Gold Account (raised specifically for maternity health care) will be insufficient but further funds from the main account could be used instead of providing additional facilities at the Twin Town Centre at this stage. In addition if the Village agree to ‘self help’ by way of labour, materials and donations from those who are able this will reduce the funds needed from our sources. The first action should be to clearly define the site boundary and relocate the cesspool.

Drs Gooding and Kamara are willing to advise and guide Mr Lansana on appropriate facilities and priorities. Mr Koroma has offered to manage the works and divert and surplus labour and materials from other WARDC works and I understand that Mr Fredrick Coker (who supervised our bridge construction for me) would be prepared to give any necessary construction advice. Dr Kandeh would ensure that all WARDC planning and building procedures are satisfied.

It may be that HSLFL should advise the major healthcare fundraisers of this change of emphasis proposed to achieve the stated objective of improving the infant mortality rate of the children in Hastings, SL, if adopted.

Derek Tomblin, CEng, MICE, MIStructE

2 March 2012

Here are the questions for this year’s Quiz. You’ll have to scroll down to find the answers! (Just a couple of questions are difficult to answer if you weren’t there on the night!)

You’re welcome to use these questions for a quiz night of your own – it’ll save you hours of work -  but please consider sending the Link the odd fiver!

Round 1: Pot luck

1. In support of which charity are people encouraged to wear red today?
2. What was the name of the inglorious captain of the cruise-ship Concordia that foundered in January?
3. Which element derives its name from the Greek words for ‘light bearing’?
4. Which of the original 5 Cinque Ports lies furthest to the East?
5. In which year did Maradona score his infamous ‘Hand of God’ goal?
6. Which British city is served by an airport with the code CWL ?
7. Who rowed for Cambridge in the 1980 boat race and was the highest- paid actor on US TV in 2010?
8. In Enid Blyton’s ‘Famous 5’ books, what was the Christian name of George’s father?
9. Which well-known leader once described himself as ‘a hairy Lefty in the spirit of William Morris rather than Karl Marx’?

10. Which word that we might see in any High Street is the Urdu for ‘bucket’?

Round 2: Fruit & Vegetables

All the answers range from one to several words, but they all contain the name of a fruit or vegetable somewhere.  You have to give the complete answer, not just the name of the fruit or veg.

1. Which polish has been keeping shoes shiny since 1906?
2. Who produced Chitty Chitty Bang Bang?
3. Which word is muttered repeatedly to give the impression of background speech, in the theatre or in film?
4. Which house led the Dutch revolt against Spanish rule in the 16^th century?
5. What were the Romans discussing when they talked about the Ides and the Nones?
6. Which sport uses balls that can range from orange (super slow) to blue (very fast)?
7. Which Brummie stand-up comic made a rare appearance on TV recently?
8. What was the title of the eighth studio album recorded by the Beatles?
9. Which multinational company was founded in 1976 and has its headquarters at 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino?

10. What’s the name of the 25-dollar computer that has just been invented, about the size of a credit card?

Round 3: Numbers

1. How many are there in one-and-a-half gross?
2. How many Popes have there been called Benedict?
3. How many minutes does it take light to get from the Sun to the Earth (to the nearest whole number)?
4. How many children did Queen Victoria have?
5. How many traditional English counties or shires are there beginning with the letter H?
6. What are people who suffer from triskaidekaphobia afraid of?
7. How many bottles of champagne are the equivalent of one nebuchadnezzar?
8. How many lines are there in a sonnet?
9. How many players are on court at any one time during a volleyball match?
10. In the Christmas carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas”, how many geese-a-laying did my true love give to me?

Round 4: Heroes, heroines and villains

1. According to the poem, how many men took part in the Charge of the Light Brigade?
2. Which Scottish hero defeated the English at Bannockburn in 1314?
3. Who is the Shakespearian villain who engineers the death of Desdemona?
4. What is the surname of the computer-hacking heroine of Stieg Larsson’s “Millennium” series of thrillers that starts with ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”?
5. In which of Dickens’s novels is Uriah Heep the writhing, scheming, ever so ‘umble villain?
6. Who was born in Jamaica and gained a reputation in her own lifetime for her devoted nursing of soldiers in the Crimean War?
7. Who is the bully in Tom Brown’s Schooldays, who later became the hero of a series of amusing historical novels by George MacDonald Fraser?
8. Which fictional hero or heroine lived in St Mary Mead?
   1. Who was the Nepalese (or possibly Tibetan) guide who helped Edmund      Hilary to conquer Mount Everest? (Two words)
   2. In Downton Abbey, what is the name of the Irish chauffeur who        wins the heart of Lady Sybil?

Round 5: Words , spellings & meanings

For each word, choose the correct spelling of the 3 given. Just write A, B or C on the dotted lines.

1. A.   ukelayle                             B. ukelele                   C. yukelele                                    …………..
2. A.   undoubtably                   B. indubitally     C. undoubtedly                        …………..
3. A.   anenome                        B. anemony               C.  anemone                            …………..
4. A.   picalilli                    B. piccalilli          C.  piccallilli                                    …………..

5.      A. dierrheia            B. diorrheia          C. diarrhoea                            …………..

For each word, choose one of the definitions. Again, just write A, B or C on the dotted lines.

6. bara brith      A. natural childbirth using a birthing pool

B.  a type of loaf baked by the Welsh                                                       …………

C.  the number 22 in the Cornish system of counting

7. phylactery     A. stamp-collecting

B. the family that includes all wood-eating insects                           ………….

C. a slip of parchment bearing certain religious texts

8. anacoluthon   A. a grammatical change of direction in a sentence

B.  a prayer used in services of the Greek Orthodox Church          ………….

C.  a gigantic South American snake

9.  shieling                 A. what Sean Connery may bump his head on

B.  a rough hut used by Scottish shepherds                                         …………..

C.  a term used in dressmaking

10. pymp                A.  5 in the Cornish system of counting

B.  an Afghan bride’s headdress                                                                  ………….

C.  a now obsolete computer programming language

Round 6: THE OLYMPIC GAMES  

1  What is the title of the music which  was playing before the quiz started?
2   When competing in the 1924 games, why did Eric Liddell refuse to run a heat for the men’s  100m?
3  What are the 5 colours on the  Olympic flag?    List them in order from left to  right.

4  In the opening  ceremony of the games, which country always leads the procession?
5  In how many different events did Jesse Owens win a gold medal in the 1936 Olympics?
6  The Olympic torch will visit  Hastings en route to the Olympic stadium. Which town will it visit next?
7  The Olympic motto is  CITIUS – ALTIUS –  FORTIUS. The first two words mean SWIFTER and HIGHER .  What does the last word mean?
8  At which weight did Muhammed  Ali, as Cassius Clay, win gold in 1960?

9. At the 1972 Munich Olympics, which terrorist group was responsible for the taking of 11 Israeli hostages, who were all killed in the unsuccessful rescue attempt?

10. In which year did the Olympic Games see the first drugs testing, Black Power salutes on the podium, and the Fosbury Flop.

Round 7: XYZ – all the answers begin with the letters X, Y or Z.

1. What did the German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen discover?
2. What’s another name for fear of foreigners?
3. Give the name for a piece of furniture that conveniently folds away and is useful when putting up an unexpected overnight guest.
4. Of which country is Kinshasa the capital?
5. Who fought the British at Rorke’s Drift?
6. What’s the name of the portable, lightweight structure that nomads live in on the steppes of Central Asia?
7. Which local organization received £300,000 from the Big Lottery Fund in November 2011, to run residential courses for young people ‘not in employment, education or training’?
8. What is the name of the skullcap worn by Jewish males at prayer or on some ceremonial occasions?
9. Who led the Persians to victory against the Spartans at the Battle of Thermopylae?

10. What’s the common English name of the wild flower achillea millefolium, a plant used already in antiquity to staunch bleeding?

Round 8:  Trades and professions

All the answers contain the name of a job, trade or profession. You just need to write down the name of the trade or profession.

1. A pub in Pett
2. A well-known character who suffered a heart attack on screen on New Year’s Day 2012
3. A thick crust that goes on some stews and fruit pies.
4. The stage name adopted – not surprisingly – by Rita Maria Crudgington
5. A popular brand of whisky
6. A golf club
7. To dismiss from the armed forces
8. The owner of a bar & eatery in Hastings Old Town.
9. An American industrialist who patented, though he didn’t invent, a very useful domestic appliance in 1851.

10. Leader of the Opposition from July 1992 to May 1994.

Round 9:  How much do you know about France?

1. Is the town of Caen famous for (a) tripe (b) cheese (c) wine?
2. Is Hastings’ twin-town, Béthune, in (a) Picardy  (b) Nord-Pas de Calais  (c) Upper Normandy
3. Which of these statements about the Eiffel Tower is true? (a) It was put up without planning permission  (b) It was designed as a radio mast  (c) It was meant to be demolished after 25 years.
4. Snails are (a) served  in a white cheesy sauce  (b) traditionally eaten at Easter  (c) served in a special dimpled dish so that they can’t roll over
5. PSG:  Are these the initials of (a) a disgraced French politician  (b) a football team  (c) the French equivalent of sat-nav?
6. Why did Marcel Marceau have so little to say?  (a) He was a mime artist  (b) He was a star of the early silent movies  (c) He founded the order of Trappist monks.
7. Which was the last King Louis with a number after his name?  (a) Louis XVI  (b) Louis XVIII   (c) Louis XIX   ?
8. If you go on a tourist trip to Lascaux in Dordogne, will you be looking at cave paintings painted (a) over 28,000 years ago   (b) 2,800 years ago?   (c) 28 years ago?
9. How did the French get 6,000 infantry reservists to the Battle of the Marne in September 1914? (a) by bicycle  (b) by taxi  (c) by forced march undercover of darkness

10. What do the French do with a ‘galette des Rois”?  (a) sing it at weddings (b) dance it  at a child’s First Communion  (c) eat it in January

Round 10: Medicine & the body

1   In which organ of  the body are ammonia and nitrogenous waste converted into UREA?

2  If you suffer from  arthritis or tonsilitis for example, what does the ending  ‘-itis’ mean?
3  Which famous British surgeon pioneered the use of antiseptics?
4  What part of your body might you entrust to a trichologist?
5  If a nurse says your blood pressure is 120 over 80, which of those two figures is your DIASTOLIC pressure?

6  How many deciduous or ‘milk’ teeth does a young child normally develop?

7   Which sportsmen typically develop MEDIAL EPICONDYLITIS?

8  What does GI stand for, as far as a dietician or nutritionist is concerned?
9  What are you suffering from if you have HERPES  ZOSTER?

10 What do obstetricians call a pregnancy where the foetus develops outside the womb?

ANSWERS

Round 1

1. British Heart Foundation
2. Schettino
3. phosphorus
4. Deal
5. 1986
6. Cardiff
7. Hugh Laurie
8. Quentin  (He’s always referred to as ‘Uncle Quentin’)
9. The Archbishop of Canterbury / Rowan Williams

10. Balti

Round 2

1. Cherry Blossom
2. (Albert/ Cubby) Broccoli
3. rhubarb
4. Orange / The House of Orange/ The House of Orange-Nassau
5. (the) date, dates
6. squash
7. Jasper Carrott
8. Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
9. Apple

10. Raspberry Pi

Round 3

1. 216  (144 + 72)
2. 16
3. 8  (8.33, in fact)
4. 9  (5 girls & 4 boys)
5. 4 (Hampshire, Herefordshire, Hertfordshire & Huntingdonshire)
6. The number 13
7. 20
8. 14
9. 12  (Two teams of 6)
10. 10.  6

Round 4

1. 600
2. Robert the Bruce
3. Iago
4. (Lisbeth) Salander
5. David Copperfield
6. Mary Seacole
7. Flashman
8. Miss Marple  / Jane Marple
9. Sherpa Tenzing  or Tenzing Norgay

10. Branson

Round 5 -Words

1B

2C

3C

4B

5C

6B

7C

8A

9B

10A

Round 6

1. Chariots of Fire
2. It was a Sunday / he wouldn’t run on a Sunday/ for religious reasons
3. blue, yellow, black, green, red
4. Greece
5. Four (100m, 200m, long jump and 4 x 100m relay)
6. Dover
7. stronger
8. light-heavyweight
9. Black September

10. 1968  (Mexico)

Round 7

1. x-rays
2. xenophobia
3. z-bed
4. Zaïre
5. Zulus
6. Yurt
7. X-trax
8. Yamulka or  yarmulka
9. Xerxes

10. yarrow

Round 8

1. (Two) Sawyer(s)
2. (Pat) Butcher
3. cobbler
4. (Cheryl) Baker
5. Teachers
6. driver
7. cashier
8. (Ian)Porter
9. Singer

10. (John) Smith

Round 9

1. (a) tripe
2. (b) Nord-Pas de Calais
3. (c) It was meant to be demolished after 25 years
4. (c) served in a dimpled dish so that they can’t roll over
5. (b) a football team: Paris Saint Germain
6. (a) He was a mime artist
7. (c) Louis XVIII  (Louis XVI was executed during the Revolution – but the monarchy was restored after the defeat of Napoleon)
8. 8.     (c) 28 years ago – nowadays, you are only allowed to visit a modern replica of the original caves
9. (b) by taxi – the French government commandeered them

10. (c) eat it in January – it’s a flat cake made of flaky pastry

Round 10

1.  the liver
2. inflammation / an inflammatory disease
3. (Joseph) Lister
4. your hair
5. 80  /the lower figure
6. 20
7. golfers – it’s golfer’s elbow
8. glycaemic index
9. shingles
10. ectopic

Picture Round:Picture Round

Picture Round answers:

1. 1.    Blade Runner
2. 2.    Forrest Gump
3. 3.    Groundhog Day
4. 4.    Dumb & Dumber
5. 5.    E.T.   (That’s ETA – estimated time of arrival – minus the A)
6. 6.    Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets
7. 7.    One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest
8. 8.    Jaws
9. 9.    Notting Hill

10. North by North-West

11. East of Eden

12. The Bridge on the River Kwai

13. The King’s Speech

14. Oliver Twist

15. Pulp Fiction

16. Bend It Like Beckham

17. Citizen Kane

18. Rear Window

19. Back to the Future

20. Carry on Constable

PART B: Points mean prizes? You must work out the theme of this section for yourself. They all contain a point of the compass
1. Mr Prunella Scales (7,4) Timothy West
2. Parker & Stone’s satirical animated sitcom (5,4) South Park
3. Useful for keeping your head dry (9 + an apostrophe) sou’wester
4. Jane put fury at the heart of this novel (10, 5) Northanger Abbey
5. Resort on the Blyth (9) Southwold
6. Dendrologists’s delight in Gloucestershire (10,9) Westonbirt Arboretum
7. In which Cary Grant was strafed by a crop duster (5,2,5-4) North by North-West
8. Tom Brown’s best friend (5,4) Harry East
9. The only British place-name that boasts an exclamation mark (8,2) Westward Ho!
10. Where Erich said all was quiet (2,3,7,5) On the Western Front
11. Where Polly, Rob, Kaddy et al keep us informed (5,4,5) South East Today
12. Gateshead’s guardian (3,5,2,3,5) The Angel of the North
13. Crux, to a star-struck Australian (8,5) Southern Cross
14. America’s answer to Sandhurst (4,5) West Point
15. Where it’s said there’s nothing like a dame (5,7) South Pacific

PART C: HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW OUR TOWN?
1. How many town councillors are there altogether? 32
2. Which church was founded by the poet Coventry Patmore? St Mary Star-of-the-Sea
3. Which mathematician links St Leonards with Enigma? Alan Turing
4. Which fraud (related to Carrie and Ada ) appeared to packed houses at the White Rock Theatre? Grey Owl / Archie Belaney
5. Which fisherman’s death sparked a riot in the Old Town that lasted for days?
Joseph Swain
6. In which room is there a roll of the names of local figures, starting in 1588?
The Council Chamber
7. What’s the connection between the Dawn & Dorset Laundry and the Albert Memorial?
They were both destroyed by fire.
8. Who came to the Hastings Workhouse as Head Laundress in 1930?
Catherine Cookson
9. Who was the first Etonian to gain a master’s certificate which he put to good use on the “Sunbeam”? Lord Brassey / Thomas Brassey
10. What must you be wearing, to win Peter Trickett’s walking stick? Seaboots

PART D: FOOTBALL TEAMS. Which teams are these?
1. You wouldn’t want these nomads at your door, in short (6) Wolves
2. Where witches attempt to score (8) Coventry
3. They used to play at Gay Meadow (10) Shrewsbury
4. A Scottish club that was named after an English rugby team (7) Rangers
5. What do they use in the way of toiletry? None! (anagram) (6,6) Leyton Orient
6. They should play explosive football! (7) Arsenal
7. Its players might rue mouthiness (anagram) (13) Stenhousemuir
8. Do they only play mid-week? (9,9) Sheffield Wednesday
9. They should have good parenting skills (10) Motherwell
10. Their nickname recalls Del and Rodney (6,9) Bolton Wanderers (aka The Trotters)

PART E: A RIDDLE. Why did a mother (who loved puns, the more the better) advise her 3 lads to name their new beef ranch “Focus”? ‘focus’ is where the sun’s rays meet (the sons raise meat)

In the four years that this contest has been staged there has never been a climax to compare with the boys’ final this year. After the preliminary Group matches Little Ridge A and St Paul’s battled it out for top place. The football was of an outstandingly high quality – no kick and rush here. Sensible man-to-man marking and skilful running and passing, coupled with brilliant goal-keeping, provided an attractive and hard-fought game and a 0-0 scoreline. Extra time produced no deciding goal and with the score still at 0-0 it was five penalties each. Several minutes of nail-biting for supporters found the score at 3-3. So a sudden death finale it had to be. Little Ridge emerged triumphant and the crowd felt huge sympathy for St Paul’s who had fought so valiantly and lost by little more than chance.

In the girl’s tournament Blacklands overcame all their opponents to claim the crown for the second year running. The girls from St Mary Star of the Sea were runners-up.

Other schools taking part were St Leonards, Christ Church and Elphinstone.

As in previous years the tournament was organised with enthusiasm and skill by Teresa Bennett and colleagues from Filsham Valley School, assisted by members of the East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service Community Sports team and Active Hastings. Students from the School’s Sports Leaders cadre provided all the officials. The added bonus this year was the presence, not only of our Sierra Leonean friends living in London, but of the party of teachers from our Twin Town of Hastings in Sierra Leone who were here for an exchange visit funded by the British Council.

In his introduction to the competition Roger Mitchell, who organises the schools links, welcomed all the visitors and thanked the Headteacher of Filsham Valley School and all those who made it possible – not least those in Filsham Valley and our visitors from London who provided ample refreshment for the large number of spectators. In introducing the Mayor he thanked her for attending and for presenting the trophies and medals.

Results. Boys 1st Little Ridge A; 2nd St Paul’s; 3rd St Leonards; 4th Blacklands; 5th equal Christ Church and St Mary’s; 7th Little Ridge B; 8th Elphinstone.
Girls 1st Blacklands; 2nd St Mary’s; 3rd St Paul’s; 4th Little Ridge; 5th St Leonards.

The formal business of the AGM was preceded by:
(1) A meeting attended by Cllr Jeremy Birch as Leader of the Council, senior HBC officers (Roy Mawford, Richard Homewood & Kevin Boorman), and Derek Tomblin and Sierra Leonean members of the Link. The parties are entering the final few months of the Government-funded project to improve waste management in Sierra Leone, and looked at practical ways of achieving this in Hastings SL.
(2) A delightful Sierra Leonean-style buffet lunch provided by Yvonne and Yvette. Thanks to our Sierra Leonean friends’ generosity, this realised a further £56 for Link funds.
(3) The highlight of the afternoon: a presentation by teachers who had been to Hastings on the first leg of the round of reciprocal visits.

Minutes of the formal AGM

Present: Yvonne Johnson, Yvette John, Tunde Rahman, Emmanuel Nylander, Jo Palmer, Cllrs Eve Martin, Jeremy Birch and Peter Pragnell (Chairman), Ray Keene, Stella Underhill, Carole & Paul Cabban, Eileen & Bill Evans, Nigel Sinden, Gabrielle Bourn, Derek Tomblin, John Geater, Roger Mitchell, Tom Collins, Ian Stewart, Lynne White and Katie Tomei (Blacklands), Mandy Hinxman (Little Ridge), Sue Furness (St Mary Star-of-the-Sea), Dawn Paines (Christ Church), Robin Gray (minutes).

1. Apologies: Rev. Ronnie Williams, Ernie Grice, Cej Burgess (FVS), Cllrs Kim Forward & Phil Scott, Ann Whiting, Athina Pavlou, John Court (WPS), Edwin Rew, Nola McSweeney, Laura Cecil, Amber Rudd, Stefan Anderson & Misha Crouch (Sussex Coast College), Paul Smith.

2. Minutes of the 2010 AGM. The minutes were accepted as a true record of that meeting. There were no matters arising.

3. Chairman’s Report. Cllr Peter Pragnell briefly presented his written report covering 2010 (see below) and went on to outline the various activities that have taken place in the first half of 2011.
• A number of presentations have been made by Derek and the Sierra Leoneans themselves at our linked schools.
• The Show was put on in February by Helenswood and other local schools, with the money raised to be divided between the Link, Demelza and the Hastings Pier Preservation Trust.
• A Link working party on the projected newsletter is still active, though it awaits more input to ensure an attractive final product.
• The Hastings-Dordrecht Twinning Association organised a very successful concert involving a Dutch male voice choir and an English jazz group. It raised £1290, to be split between ourselves and Macmillan Cancer Support.
• A ’Hastings & 1066 Country’ calendar for 2012 will be ready soon. Proceeds will go entirely to the Link (or, in the case of sales in schools, shared between the Link and the school -RG).
• We are getting closer to appointing two nurse-midwives. Yvonne is in contact with Dr Patrick Coker and is pushing for action on this front.
• The SL teachers will be in the schools in the week of Monday 20th June, on the second leg of the first round of reciprocal visits. Roger Mitchell outlined the social programme, which includes a barbecue at Lynne White’s on the 18th, a picnic at Battle Abbey on the 19th; morris dancing at Mad Jack’s Morris on the Monday; a civic reception at the Town Hall at 6pm on Thursday 23rd followed by an evening meal to be organised by the Link; crazy golf on the Friday; and a guided tour of the Old Town on the Saturday afternoon. The meeting agreed to fund the hire of a minibus to enable the HVA to transport the guests to and from Heathrow.

Peter thanked Tom Collins, Headteacher at Little Ridge Primary School, for kindly inviting us to hold the AGM there; and Yvonne and her helpers for yet another excellent buffet.

4. Treasurer’s Report. Ray Keene presented his report on income & expenditure in 2010 though he himself had not been our treasurer for much of the time covered. Ray explained that we draw up our accounts on a calendar year basis, since that is how we report our figures to the Charity Commission, if asked. The accounts have been independently checked and verified.

5. Report on activities in support of the Link, at Sussex Coast College Hastings. Gabrielle Bourn, who works in the library at the Ore site, gave a résumé of initiatives at SCCH.
• The College has collected textbooks and sent them to the HVA in London, from where they will be sent on and eventually reach… the old Hastings College shelves we saved from the Archery Road site. Gabrielle will continue to collect books on technical subjects.
• After the inter-schools football tournament at FVS on Wednesday 22nd, the International Baccalaureate students are showing ‘Africa United’ at about 6pm in the lecture theatre at the Station Plaza site.
• Students are continuing to collect together unwanted football strips. The idea is to get plenty together, so that lots of the teams in Hastings SL can have sets.
• Mohan Chana at the Construction Department is interested in setting up a display on construction techniques in a developing country, as exemplified in Hastings SL. Gabrielle will liaise with Derek over suitable information, photos etc.
• The students have raised £150 so far through a ‘book swap’.
• The International Baccalaureate students are thinking of planning an event to raise funds for the nurse-midwife project.
• The College will be running a film week during Black History Month (October).
• The new Principal of the College is interested in the Link’s work. Robin and Derek to ask for a meeting with Mr Janak Patel, to explore the possibilities.
Paul asked if there are significant storage facilities at the College, but Gabrielle replied that regrettably there are not – the College is already short of space.
John asked what sort of books we should be collecting. Books of general interest to encourage the residents of Hastings Village to use the library? Roger thought that at this early stage the need was still for technical books, business studies etc, though not pitched at too high a level – GCSE would be fine. Derek agreed that for the moment we need to prioritise, as shipping books is so expensive.

6. Election of the Executive Committee. Peter Pragnell was re-elected as Chairman, Derek Tomblin as Vice-chairman, Robin Gray as Secretary and Roger Mitchell as Schools Liaison Officer, nem con, there being no other nominations for these posts.
Ray Keene, who took over as Treasurer some months ago, was confirmed in the post by the AGM, as was Bill Evans, who has just taken over as Membership Secretary.

It was observed that our Constitution states:
§16 para (2b) The Chair shall hold office for two years. When the Chair steps down, the Vice-chair shall become Chair for two years. The retiring Chair shall become Vice-chair for one year, after which a new Vice-chair shall be appointed.
Although this was designed to ensure a constant supply of fresh ideas at the top, in practice this provision is unnecessarily restrictive. It was proposed “That this meeting agrees to drop Section 16 paragraph 2(b)” (proposed by Cllr Jeremy Birch, seconded by Nigel Sinden), and the motion was carried unanimously. Robin to let the Charity Commission know of this minor change to our Constitution.

At an earlier ordinary general meeting, it had been agreed that the membership fee should be £5 per year or £50 for life membership. This was unanimously confirmed at the AGM.

7. Any Other Business. As usual, the Link will have a stand at the St Leonards Festival on 16th July. Derek reminded us that we need volunteers to help staff the stand during the day. Please keep that date free, and let Derek or Robin know if you can help.

8. Date of next meeting. It was agreed to hold the next ordinary general meeting on Wednesday 13th July.

Robin Gray

Chairman’s Report on Link’s activities in 2010

The most significant event of the year was the official opening of the resource centre building, which we have been funding, on 11th March 2010. The ceremony, chaired by Dr Patrick Coker (Pres. West African College of Physicians), was attended by the British High Commissioner and several past High Commissioners, the Director of the British Council, officials from Western Area Rural District Council (WARDC), other local dignitaries and delegates from Hastings Borough Council (HBC). Sir Peter Penfold officially opened the building (photo left) and I unveiled the name plaque (photo right). The name, Hastings Twin Town Centre, was chosen by the villagers from several suggestions and the plaque was manufactured in Hastings, UK. Further funding is still needed to complete the facilities, including some internal finishes, external works and the generator building, generator and air conditioning. Plaques, made by Filsham Valley School, were provided to some rooms, identifying major sponsors.

The HBC delegation was funded by the Commonwealth Local Government Forum to examine how they might assist the recently formed WARDC to perform local authority duties. It was agreed that Waste Management advice would be most beneficial and an officer group, with the required expertise, visited in August. A reciprocal visit, by a group from WARDC, took place in October and a Workshop was held by HBC to discuss appropriate waste management in Sierra Leone with the visitors from other Sierra Leone twinned UK local authorities, involved in similar projects, and representatives from Hull City Council, Warwick Council and Warwickshire County Council.

Upon the closure of Hastings College at Archery Road, surplus office furniture, including library shelving, was collected and is now installed in the Hastings Twin Town Centre. The domestic area of the building has also been furnished so that it can be used to provide an income to maintain the building. The Techsult loan, provided to get the building ready for the opening, has been repaid.

Boxes of donated books, knitted garments and tools have been sent out and various fundraising and publicity events have taken place. Events have included the ever-popular Quiz Night (which raised more funds than last year), the Singathon (with a more African flavour, part compered by King Masco), St Leonards Festival, Hastings Fair, Day in the Park, Sussex Brass Concert, Sainsbury’s door collection, LOAF Sponsored Walk, various presentations and the Linked Schools 7-a-side Football Tournament. Members also attended the Sierra Leone Hastings Association Valentine’s Party and their Thanksgiving Service. Donations were received from Churches, Freemasons and local schools via Helenswood School, with shared proceeds from The Show at the White Rock Theatre. Various unsuccessful bids for grants were made. A new publicity leaflet was produced and new T-shirts were purchased in green and white with the latest logo. We still have plenty for sale!

Significant progress has been made with the schools links. After a lot of hard work and frustrations, British Council funding was obtained for exchange teacher visits. A group of teachers from schools here in Hastings visited Sierra Leone earlier in 2011.

Contact has been made with a VSO nurse who has been training Sierra Leone nurses to become midwives at a hospital in Makeni. She has been most helpful, with guidance on our proposed employment of two maternity nurses and we have made a donation to assist her work there.

In the coming year, we need to continue raising funds in order to complete the Twin Town Centre and to employ two maternity nurses and, of course, to further develop our schools and other links.

Cllr Peter Pragnell (Chairman)

Short report on the schools links

Since the last AGM our efforts have been almost entirely focussed on establishing Reciprocal Visits with our partner schools in Hastings Sierra Leone.
We were delighted to hear in June that Blacklands, Christ Church, Filsham Valley and St Mary Star of the Sea had all been successful in their applications for grants from the British Council Global Partnerships scheme. Little Ridge was also successful after being invited to submit a slightly modified bid. Our party of six teachers and I travelled to Sierra Leone in the February break accompanied by Yvonne Johnson and were royally received. Yvonne’s local knowledge was an invaluable support and encouragement and Francis Mason had thoroughly prepared the ground for all our visits and programme of activities. We are looking forward to the return visit of our partners from 18th to 26th June.
These five established partnerships are now looking to the next stage of development, which would be the achievement of Global Curriculum Grants from the British Council. If successful this could lead, over the next 3 – 4 years, to as many as 6 more teachers from each school exchanging with partners and, in the case of Filsham Valley, a possible exchange of students as well.
Meanwhile, two more schools, St Leonards and St Pauls, have submitted applications for Reciprocal Visit Grants, leading hopefully to exchanges of teachers in 2012.
Our annual Soccer Tournament for schools involved in the Link took place once more in July, being hosted and organised by the Community Sports Team at Filsham Valley led by Teresa Bennett. This year’s tournament is to be held during the visit of our partners on Wednesday 22nd June at Filsham Valley from 1:30pm. All are welcome to join the crowd of onlookers.

Roger Mitchell

Quizzers under the 'parachute'

This year’s quiz night was a great success for Nola and her team, with Jeremy brilliantly MC-ing the evening as Quiz Master again. The winners were the ‘Grinling Gibbons’ team, with 109, with the redoubtable ‘Runners/Non-runners’ coming second with 107.

Mike Yardy had donated a signed England XI cricket shirt, and Gareth Barry a signed Manchester City squad shirt (his number 18). Michael Foster auctioned them both with terrific verve, raising £100 on the cricket shirt and an amazing £180 on the football shirt. We are thinking of auctioning a pair of Derek’s socks next year.

The evening raised about £1200, on entries, the raffle and the auction – together with the infamous orange quiz sheet, we’ve raised over £1800 in the last 2 months. We must thank everyone who came to help, all those who stumped up to take part, and all those who sponsored us with cash and prizes, especially Dain Jensen at Kiley’s Karpets, who once again paid for the hire of the hall and gave two bottles of champers.

Jeremy & Jim wrestle with the maths