2010 Chipping Campden Music Festival

The programme for the 2010 Chipping Campden Music Festival is now online - http://www.campdenmusicfestival.co.uk .

We've just signed up for Adult Learners Week 2010

Closing date for nominations is 29 January 2010 ....!

Nominations for the 2010 Adult Learners’ Week Awards are now open!
Nominate Now >

If you know an inspiring individual, group, family or project whose remarkable learning achievements have transformed people’s lives, nominate them for an Adult Learners’ Week Award.

There are four main award categories:

Individuals whose remarkable learning achievements have made a difference to their lives and can inspire others;
Groups of three or more people who have come together for a common purpose and transformed their and/or other people’s lives through learning;
Families whose members have seen the benefits of learning together; and
Opening Doors to Adult Learners which recognises creative and innovative projects or organisations that had a positive impact on the lives of their learners.
Additional Adult Learners’ Week Awards will also be presented in 2010:
the Digital Participation Award (sponsored by BBC) will recognise learning where the use of new technology has been central;
the Intergenerational Award (sponsored by MLA) will award intergenerational learning in the Museums, Libraries and Archives sector;
the Foundation Degree Award (sponsored by fdf) will recognise and celebrate an outstanding adult learner on a foundation degree programme;
the Power of Reading Award (sponsored by Booktrust) will recognise how the pleasure of reading or writing has inspired or resulted in an outstanding learning journey;
the Transformation Fund Award will award learners who have received funding from the Government initiative; and
the Outstanding Achievement Award (sponsored by the National Open College Network) will recognise outstanding learning on a NOCN programme.

Find out more about previous winners here

Everyone nominated will receive a Certificate of Achievement. The winners will receive a learning voucher and will be presented with their awards in a ceremony taking place during Adult Learners’ Week.

Nomination forms are also available in alternative formats. Please contact the Campaigns and Promotions team on 0116 2044200/4201 or email alw@niace.org.uk

Referral Voucher Winners in November

Congratulations to all the latest winners in our referral scheme - Mr & Mrs Grantham, P Pugh and A Wall each received a voucher for recommending a friend to Farncombe. To take part in the scheme please visit http://farncombeestate.co.uk/referafriend.asp

Writing Industries Conference 2010 Early Bird Offer

Saturday 6th March 2010, Loughborough University
A Literature Network, Writing East Midlands & Loughborough University Project.
http://writingindustries.com

The second Writing Industries Conference will be held on Saturday 6th March at Loughborough University. The conference will bring together writers from across the East Midlands with professionals from the writing industries to share knowledge, develop skills and forge new contacts. 200 writers from the region will have the opportunity to hear from and meet with professionals from the writing industries in a variety of settings:

• Agents and editors in one-to-one sessions with selected writers, giving advice and support in their are of expertise.
• Panel discussions exploring specific areas of writing, from breaking into commercial publishing to working in the community.
• Writing industries fair featuring stalls from local publishers, funders and other organisation involved with the writing industries.
• And of course there will be plenty of opportunity to meet and talk with other writers over a coffee.

The full programme including details of how to apply for agent one-to-ones will be announced soon.

EARLY BIRD TICKET OFFER

The first Writing Industries Conference sold out soon after tickets went on sale. This year we have increased the number of tickets available and are offering a limited number at the Early Bird Price of £34 (Full Price is £42)

Book your early bird ticket here.

If you have any questions regarding WIC 2010 or would like further information please contact: Catherine Rogers - catherine@writingeastmidlands.co.uk

3 offers for the Yukka Folk Weekend at Farncombe 2010 - book before 31/12/2009 !

The Yukka Folk Weekend in association with Living Tradition - Making Music

New OPEN BRITAIN guide released today

‘OPENBRITAIN’, the new high quality printed guide published by national charities Tourism for All UK and RADAR is published today. The full colour 456-page guide has over 1,000 entries, and includes a wide range of accessible accommodation, as well as attractions, equipment hire and other services. It has 50 pages of featured editorial, and an extensive section on Getting There and Back.

The new guide is supported by the national tourist agencies VisitEngland, VisitScotland and VisitWales, and it includes all accommodation providers assessed under the National Accessible Scheme, as well those inspected under schemes operated by VisitScotland, and VisitLondon. Information has also been drawn from a range of organisations including the Automobile Association, the British Hospitality Association, and the Regional Development Agencies. It includes some properties who are self-assessed, who will be subject to a mystery shopping check on the accuracy of the data.

The National Federation of Shopmobility has joined with RADAR and Tourism for All to promote the guide and website. Window stickers with the Open Britain logo provided to those who have supplied access statements and joined Open Britain will help to promote it as a system of information.

For a long time, surveys have shown that disabled people want an easier way to get the information they need, not just about accommodation, but about travel, things to see and do, places to eat and drink, without having to trawl through hundreds of different websites searching for information that all too often is not there. The new www.openbritain.net website that backs up the guide aims to do just that. Visitors and guests are invited to give feedback via the website.

OpenBritain enjoys the support of Government ministers who launched the initiative in July. Rt Hon Tessa Jowell MP, Minister for the Olympics and Paralympics, Barbara Follett MP, the then Minister for Tourism, and Jonathan Shaw MP, Minister for Disabled People all expressed their support. In her foreword to the guide, Rt Hon Tessa Jowell MP states:

“This guide is a necessary and timely contribution … Not only is it an invaluable and long-awaited resource for travellers with access requirements, it also serves as a powerful incentive for those businesses that are not listed here to raise their game.
It will encourage them to look again at their facilities, to re-appraise their abilitiy to meet accessibility needs, and to act to ensure that staff and managers are well equipped to provide high-quality services to disabled people’.

London Bulgarian Choir Concert, Wed 9 December

The London Bulgarian Choir present this year's Christmas Concert, with special guest story-telling company A Spell In Time.WEDNESDAY 9 DECEMBER, 7:45pmSALVATION ARMY REGENT HALL (OXFORD CIRCUS) After a year of festivals around the UK and rocking at the Roundhouse, the London Bulgarian Choir prepare for a seasonal blast of Bulgarian harmonies and festive discordance. Our special guests, Bulgarian story-telling company A Spell In Time, will perform a winter dragon tale full of magic and surprise. Tickets: £10 full-price (£7 concessions, free entry for accompanied children under 12)Box office opens at 7 pm; Doors open at 7.30; Concert starts at 7.45. Buy tickets online, reserve your ticket in advance and pay at the door, or buy tickets on the night. http://lbcchristmas2009-dessilist.eventbrite.com/ The Salvation Army Regent Hall is very close to Oxford Circus, on the south side of Oxford Street: 275 Oxford Street, London W1C 2DJ. You can also buy cakes, sandwiches and drinks before the concert and during the interval from the lovely Salvation Army Cafe.