An Interview: Youth Space

There are so many great people living in Reddish, working to make it a better place for everyone. One of the main objectives of Reddish News  is to bring these brilliant people and their projects to light. This week Jez spoke to Christopher Hill, who is working on the Youth Space project. Don’t know what it is? That’s what we are here for! Read on to find out more in this great interview with Christopher!

Who are you and what is your connection to Reddish?

I’m Christopher Hill, a 20 year old student at the University of Manchester. I am a Reddish lad, lived here all my life and went to School at St. Elisabeth’s and Reddish Vale. I am also now deeply rooted at Reddish Vale as a Governor/Director.

I keep seeing you at events across Reddish and Stockport promoting Youthspace. What is it?

Youth Space is a concept we hope to develop into a social enterprise/co-operative/youth organisation. We aim to provide a platform for young people to achieve their ambitions whilst helping others. We hope to do this through a virtual space (www.youthspace.info) and a physical space (the youth space hub/shop in the centre of Reddish). Youth Space this year has funded work withHuman Utopia(our partner organisation) and together we have worked with over 1000 young people. We are currently continuing our Future Leaders Programme that has 3 stages; Thinking, Doing,Changing.  This is done by a combination of workshop and social action.

You pride yourself on having the co-op values. What are these and why do you feel they are such an integral part of what you do?

The values are: solidarity, democracy, equity, equality, self help and self responsibility. There are also a series of ethical values and a set of key principles that are available to see at www.youthspace.info.

The values to me represent universal aims for all human beings and so offer people the chance to grow and develop together, as one, as co-operators. The principles act as guide and temper my actions as co-operator and ensure live harmoniously with others. They are important because they have made a difference to my life through Phil Arnold (Director of College Improvement RVTC). He’s an inspirational man who was instrumental in bringing co-operation to RVTC. Since 2008 I have worked co-operatively to help develop a coffee co-op, creative co-op, and speak at high profile events, all things I wouldn’t have done otherwise. Above all else the values have made me want to be a ‘Phil Arnold’, someone that works tirelessly without courting recognition. That’s why I want to ask for help to develop Youth Space so more young people can be switched on by these values and make Reddish an even better place.

Do you feel that young people get much of a say in the local community? If not, how do you feel this could be addressed?

I think youth councils and organisations like the ROC Cafe have helped in this area to some degree. I still feel that the 16-17 year olds feel disenfranchised with no vote and no mechanism to express their good ideas, opinions and thoughts on the political questions of the day (local, national, global). Civil society can only remain ‘civil’ if young people have a point in which they can invest in hope for the future and harness the idealism that youth holds.

Specifically Youth Space proposes the Youth Space hub that would be funded through membership and wider stakeholders. This would continue our workshop work and provide a space in which young people can organise to set up social action projects to combat injustice. I believe young people have the passion and talent to be independent. Together they can take ownership of local politics without the aid of a politician/official who doesn’t know the price of milk or the plight of young people in the 21st century. Youth Space is happy to share knowledge of the political process in a neutral fashion but prefers young people to use co-operative action to bypass the red tape.

Reddish Business Forum are asking the question “What’s your vision for Reddish over the next five years?”. What’s yours?

- For Reddish to have a Councillor under the age of 24 to represent young peoples issues with real understanding. Cllrs to hold regular youth surgeries in local Schools.

- For Reddish’s youth organisations to join up their services to offer a safety net and variety of experiences for young people. No young person should miss out on the chance to develop skills outside of school hours. As “by the strength of our common endeavour we achieve more than we achieve alone”.

- To open the Youth Space Hub.

- To continue our work with Human Utopia accessing every school in Reddish/serves Reddish. With all young people in Reddish having the opportunity to be a hero.

- To see young people in Reddish celebrated as the area’s greatest asset.

We hear you’re planning an event on the 14th July. Tell us about it.

Yes, the Youth Space BBQ and Activities Day at Reddish Vale Technology College. Earlier in the year I put in a bid for £800 from the Community First pot (supported by Cllr Verdeille, Sophia and James) and was successful. The event is a reward for the contribution young people have made to the Reddish community over the past year as ‘Heroes’. On the day we will have prizes for the young people, a high ropes assalt course, live music and DJ Sets. This event will also give current learners at Reddish Vale the chance to celebrate the Schools Diamond Jubillee. We also hope to encourage more young people to get involved and adults to support us in our second year of activity.

Find more information on Youth Space:

http://www.youthspace.info/

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by Jez Myers

A Rant : WiFi

A few weeks ago, Cllr. Kate Butler sent us a tweet asking about where she could get free Wi-Fi in Reddish. Having had a think about it, I came back with nothing. Nada. Zilch. There’s a Cloud point in Houldsworth Square which is great if you have Sky Broadband or get your mobile from Phones4U. If you don’t though, then you have to pay for it. Not exactly what people are looking for when they think of ‘free’.

So, as I sit here in Starbucks, utilising their free Wi-Fi, writing this article, I can’t seem to understand why there aren’t any businesses that provide it locally. I’d have thought that in the centre, Sykes or Johnny’s Dinner would be ideal. Even the pubs would be better than the current ‘none’. Also as a way to keep people shopping locally, something that I’ll be writing about shortly, it’s of vital importance.

One of the things that we’ve noticed with this website, is the demand for a printed version, it’s something we’re working on trust me. However, the costs involved are substantial and, in reality, we shouldn’t HAVE to do a printed version. The city over we are working on improving digital connectivity and it’s something that we’re all passionate about but something that Reddish seems to do badly. Why?

Young professionals (and I’m still young at 35) want places to sit, eat, drink and work but require the space and the tools to do so. If that isn’t provided then they go elsewhere and that hurts the local economy.  The same person who goes to Sykes for a coffee and a sandwich whilst doing their work, is the same person that calls in on the way home at Price Less (or is it Priceless, I’ve never been able to work that out) or Tittertons or Hobsons. This is the very same reason why it’s so important to support the local community centre and library. We’ve already lost the swimming pool, don’t let them be next.

In 2012, asking for a high quality local business to provide me with a coffee, pannini and wifi isn’t too much to ask, is it?

What do you think?

by Jez Myers

Reddish Vale Country Park - Weekend Activities

Ok, so I was brought up in a city, and I’ve lived in cities most of my adult life, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that I have any kind of natural aversion to the countryside. In fact, maybe it’ the dash of Romany that I’ve got in me that means that I’m rarely happier than when I’m mucking about in the country.

This is why I was so happy who discover Reddish Vale Country Park when Ana and I moved here. It really is something special.

Five minutes walk from the litter of Houldsworth Square is a relatively unspoilt stretch of countryside, with three lakes, a river running through it and some spectacular views of the railway bridge into Stockport. A place where you can (very nearly) get lost for an afternoon hunting for frogspawn or feeding ducks, like a refugee from an Enid Blyton novel.

I’ve seen so much at the park, from tiny baby ducks to beautiful sunsets in the early summer. It’s a genuinely inspiring place to spend time, and as someone that spends most of their life glued to a computer screen, it’s great to go somewhere away from the hustle and bustle, to sit and feed the ducks, get lost and just BE.

Want to head down there? Well this weekend could be a great time to experience the park for the first time. Stockport Greenspace Forum have organised a special event this weekend to celebrate the Olympics, the Paralympics, and some of the best green spaces in Stockport.

Want to know more about the event? Here’s the gist of it from the official site:

“Five batons, designed by Stockport school children, will set off from five different green spaces across Stockport. The batons will be carried along five routes, calling at participating green spaces along the way until all five batons meet up at Reddish Vale for the finale.”

The finale in question will feature a brass band, some face painting, and some Zorbing – although whether it builds on Jez’s idea for a water-zorbing race including celebrities still remains to be seen. Don’t hold your breath for that bit – but the rest should be quite fun.

Find out more information about the event on the official Pass the Baton site.

by Ben Stroud

Sweat Shed Boot Camp - Survived!

June is over and so ends my first month at Sweat Shed. I have to say that I have really enjoyed the majority of the sessions (apart from one with an unmentionable amount of burpees) and have been able to sweat my way through them, with somewhat questionable performance at times.  I have become accustomed to walking like a cowboy, unable to walk up and down stairs without groaning, as well as moaning about every single muscle in my body aching at some point.

Enough about my complaints, I’m sure you want to know what the benefits have been! Well I feel much fitter. I was fairly active before however Sweat Shed has boosted my fitness to new levels. I am stronger and more confident in trying new exercise and as a bonus have lost a bit of weight. I (mostly) look forward to the sessions, even though the ones I have been to have started at 6:30am. I can’t say that I would say the same if it were winter and the mornings were dark!

The evening (6:30pm) and Saturday morning (10am) classes have been the busiest but that doesn’t mean that you can slack off, in fact I found that the busier the class the more difficult it has been, even if the exercises were meant to be the same! The early and mid morning classes tend to have between 6 and 15 people at a time, so it really feels like value for money when you get such small groups.

I would encourage anyone to sign up who wants to be pushed to the next fitness level, no matter whether you are a novice or a pro. Unfortunately you will have to wait until August, as Sweat Shed is fully booked for July. However they don’t just offer boot camp, individual and group personal training are now available and new this month is a ladies only Boxfit class run by new Sweat Shedder Jenna.

 I have enjoyed boot camp so much that I have signed up for another month, and this time am dragging Reddish News team members Ana and Ben along to be put through their paces.  Jez is still unconvinced but I think we will get him there.

 Thanks to Mat Leigh, for an awesome month of hard training, and here’s to another month of progress and pain!

Check out Liz's previous Sweat Shed Boot Camp write ups here and here!

Check out the Sweat Shed site for more details including their Facebook, Twitter and You Tube sites.

by Liz Edwards

Get Stuffed

A couple of the Reddish News team took a little trip down to Houldsworth Mill this afternoon, on the off chance that Reddish's very own taxidermy shop 'Death Warmed Up' would be open. Sadly, it was all closed up, but luckily for us there will be an exhibition of Patricia Calder's work starting with a preview tomorrow (Saturday 30th June)!

So if you are as intrigued as we are (which is VERY) then get yourself down to Unit 33M, Vauxhall Industrial Estate, Greg Street, Reddish, Stockport SK5 7BR!

by Ana Hernandez

It's a Rocky Road

One of the biggest issues I face almost on a daily basis is staying away from Classic Cakes. Positioned right next to the bus stop on Gorton Road and absolute torture for the dieter who has to catch the bus several times a week. Their window display alone is enough to get me drooling. I have to operate a serious level of restraint to stay away.

From the first day I moved to Reddish my weakness has been the Rocky Road, I have never seen anything like it. A mound of marshmallow, biscuit and what I assume is left over sugar paste from the cakes all wrapped up in milk chocolate. There is a white chocolate version but I’m loyal to the milk chocolate option. This thing is a beast – I challenge you to eat it in one sitting (but no, I am not sharing).

The Rocky Road is a sweet, gooey crunchy sensation. Possibly one of the best things about Reddish. The sweet mountain will set you back all of £1.20, a very reasonable price for the size. Not a marshmallow fan? Classic Cakes have something for everyone and I’m sure the rest of the Reddish News team will be sharing their favourite sweet treats with you in the future.

Until then let us know what your favourite Reddish cake shop is, and don’t forget to let us know what we should try out!

by Liz Edwards

A treat at Retreat

I feel like I’m cheating a bit here. I’m not a resident of Reddish (though I am a frequent visitor) as I live in London. I am, however, becoming a bit of a regular down at the Retreat Salon on Reddish Road. This time, I supplemented my usual eyebrow threading appointment (£7.50, fifth appointment is free) with a neck and shoulder massage (£10 for 20 mins). I stepped in to the salon and was greeted by the lovely Priya. The first time I met her it was a bit of a shock as I was confronted with a flustered and extremely loud person with bright purple hair. However, it’s really easy to warm to her quickly as her eccentricity is more charming and welcoming than a reason to feel uncomfortable.

After a 10-minute wait (not unusual – best to come here on a day you’re not in a rush) I was led upstairs to a massage room. It reminded me of a Turkish boudoir; all purple and complete with four-poster day bed and exotic trinkets. I don’t know if I’m making it sound slightly tacky here. It isn’t. It’s really, really nicely done and makes a huge difference to the stairs and corridor, which look like the inside of a non-descript office. I stripped off and got on to the bed, ready for the perfectly nice Tina to start on my painfully kinked neck and shoulders.

I’ll be honest. It wasn’t the best massage I’ve ever had. If, like me, you spend most of your time hunched up over schoolbooks or a computer, every now and then you need your muscles beaten in to submission by hands akin to those of an angry ogre. This was an experience closer to being danced on by fairies. Not unpleasant and relaxing enough, I just didn’t walk out as knot free as I’d have hoped.

After going back downstairs and being greeted by a glass of water and an ever-cheery Priya, I settled down to have my eyebrows done. In between threading, she told me a bit about the background of the business. The salon has been open for about 18 months and the most popular treatment is eyebrow threading. It’s easy to see why – my appointments with Priya are quick, relatively painless and I appreciate her thoroughness and willingness to talk you through the process. She’s a total boss at eyebrow threading. It’s all over in 7 minutes and, in the 3 years I’ve been having my eyebrows threaded, nobody has done it better than her.

All in all, a good experience. I find the salon good value for money and (despite the slight grumble at often having to wait) I usually enjoy the experience. Here’s a tip. Phone a week or so in advance and request Priya specifically to do your eyebrows to save time and pain.

Retreat Beauty website

By Louise Frodsham

Reddish Rubbish

I have a lot of love for Reddish, but one thing that really gets my goat is how littered our streets are. I've never lived anywhere where I've noticed the crazy amount of litter in the streets quite as much as in our fair town (and I've lived in some pretty hardcore areas of London!) It's such as shame.

I know my particular road is subject to more litter than most because school children use it as a cut-through on their way home. Every day I leave my house and scoop up tens of chocolate bar wrappers/coke cans and the like, put them in my own bin and die a little bit inside. I have become the crazy woman who calls the council on a weekly basis. They literally know me on first name terms now and I get the feeling they have stopped caring because they basically think I'm insane. At first they sent street cleaners and litter pickers (who, by the way, are terrible. I've watched them from my window just walking up and down the road not bothering to pick anything up), but I've got a feeling my one woman battle is failing.

But it's not just my road that's rubbish. Reddish Lane/Gorton Road is, frankly, disgusting. Plastic bags, crisp packets, chip wrappers fly around our streets every single day and it seems to have become accepted that that's just how it is. Is this really how we want Reddish to look? Am I the only one who feels really crappy when I step out on to dirty streets? It can't be good for anyone's state of mind.

It took these pictures between the Post Office and Williamson Street (where the side entrance to Morrisons is). It can't have been more than a 20 metre walk. 

I've been wracking my brains as to why we have such a high volume of litter in our community and I've narrowed it down to the following questions:

1) Do we have enough bins in Reddish?

2) Do we have enough support from the council when it comes to regular street cleansing?

3) Do we, as residents, just not care enough? If there is litter on the streets are people more likely just to drop their own litter?

I have my own views on the answers to these questions but I'd like to know yours.

This is the first post in what  I hope to be the beginning of a campaign to clean up Reddish.

by Ana Hernandez

Well Redd

Reddfest Weekend Roundup    

If I was to ever have picked out a career path then I’m glad it wasn’t as a weatherman. Quite clearly my wonderful prediction of '15 degrees and cloudy, no need for a brolly for the weekend’s festivities' was greeted with an almighty two finger salute, as the rain not only visited us but it felt like the rivers Tame, Medlock, Irwell and Mersey had taken it upon themselves to visit from up above. No bother though, we’re a hardy lot up North and a bit of water certainly isn’t going to dampen our spirits.

And so, to Reddfest. I walked/swam, to be greeted by organiser Cllr. Kate Butler (complete with new name tag) and Vince Mather, who were both proud to show off this year’s selection of stalls. From the Reddish building’s preservation trust (manned by Cllr. Paul Moss) to the Youthspace stall, it showed that there is clearly a great amount of community spirit in the area. However, there were a few stalls there that I feel I should single out for praise;

The Kindling Trust: Whilst it might not be hugely in the public knowledge, the Kindling Trust along with Phil Arnold of Reddish Vale College, Mark Rogers of Stockport Homes and a few others are planning a £1m bid for five years of funding to promote sustainable and green living in the area. This looks like a really exciting and interesting project and can’t wait for us to report more about it over the coming months.

Fi and Me: Fiona and Lucy, two sisters, have come together to produce a fantastic array of handmade cards/gifts/jewellery. Really impressed. Definitely worth checking them out at the various craft fairs that they attend locally.

ARC: I was only vaguely aware of their work prior to this but it looks like a fantastic community group. ARC, Arts for Recovery in the Community, aim to promote the well being of people who are experiencing emotional or psychological distress by encouraging creativity in the art. They had some great pieces on display and told me about their Summer Art Fair on the 30^th June.

Overall, the event seemed very well attended considering the downpour and I’m hoping that next year will see an increase in business based stalls. Clearly a bit of warmth is too much to ask for!
Did you attend Reddfest? Did you enjoy it? click on contact and let us know.




Failing to Produce

Not only was Reddfest on this weekend but we also saw the first producer’s market too. I popped down, along with two other members of the Reddish news team and, well, underwhelmed doesn’t cover it. We had already spoken of our concerns with regards to lack of promotion of the event but to be greeted with only three stalls was shocking. I’ve visited Heaton Moor market before and, whilst not the biggest, it was relatively thriving. I don’t want to come down too hard on it because we should be supportive of these efforts, I just felt that subsequent ones could do with significantly better promotion.

On the positive side, Ben and Ana hadn’t visited Broadstone Mill before and had a great time there, especially in the kitchenware’s section.

By Jez Myers

Reddfest weekend special

Are you Reddy?

It’s that time of year again for the annual Reddfest celebration. Organised by Reddish Business Forum ( if you run a local business and aren’t part of this organisation, you really should join) this promises to be a half day of arts & crafts, music and a load of community based stalls.

So, what do you need to know?

Well, it’s held in Houldsworth Square, it’s on Saturday 9^th June and it’s on from 11am-4pm. Most importantly though, it looks like the weather will be acceptable (15 and cloudy) so no need to bring the brolly.

St. Mary’s primary school are doing some African drumming at 11:30 and followed by the Reddish Prize Band at 12. Did you know Reddish had a brass band? I didn’t.  They’ve been about for 115 years so you’ve got to think that they’ll be awesome after all that rehearsing.

There is an art gallery and competition being judged based on local schools’ submissions. Above all that though, there’ll be the announcement of the Classic Cakes competition winner!

Some of the stalls look fantastic, I love the work that Youthspace do and they'll not only have a stall throughout the day but also a workshop at Reddish WMC from 4pm. Other stalls include ARC, Friends of Reddish Vale and The Kindling Trust, all of whom we’re planning future articles on.

We’ll be down there, we might even have some flyers to hand out so please say hi.

For more info, check out Reddfest or follow them on Twitter.

 

Farmer’s Market at The Mill

We’ve heard lots of rumours that there’s a farmer’s market on its wat to the car park at Broadstone Mill on Sunday from 10am. I think this would be a great addition to the local community and would be fantastic. However, we’ve tried and failed to get any more information on it. If I find out any more then I’ll update this and let everyone know. The last information I had was that it was from 10am, there will be stalls as well as shops and a bouncy castle for the kids. If anyone knows anything more about this then please tell us!




Messy Church

If you’re at a loose end on Sunday and have a child (or children) aged 5-11 then Messy Church could be the place for you. Reddish Life Centre on Sykes Street is offering an arts and crafts session from 4-6pm. The cost is £1 for adults and 50p for children, but this includes sandwiches and drinks.

Competition Winner

As I was overwhelmed with responses to last week’s competition to name a person who came from Reddish, I am pleased to announce that the winner of the £1 towards a cake is Amanda Green of 'Creations 4 Occasions' at Broadstone Mill. She feels that we should be known as Reddishians. A gold coloured coin will be winging itself towards you shortly.

Thanks as always for reading, we’re nearly up to 1500 views and 150 followers on twitter so please help to spread the word. See you at Reddfest!

By Jez Myers

Review: Sweat Shed

Hidden away down on the Vauxhall Estate is Sweat Shed - a place that has filled me with fear since I was talked into signing up for a month long bootcamp. I'm not scared of hard work - I used to train with someone known as 'The Punisher' - but the very idea of bootcamp left me feeling sick to the stomach. There is something about the name that makes you picture scary army trainers shouting at you to do 1000 press ups in the mud.

Luckily there was no mud and no shouting (but there were a few press-ups). Mat, owner and instructor was kind and welcoming and the first 45 minute class flew past. The session was broken down into sections. The first was partner work where there were 3 lots of 8 minute bursts or exercises. This was followed by around 5 minutes of individual work. These were challenging and luckily there was no pressure to keep going if you need to rest.

The first session has put some of my fears to rest, but Mat has a glint in his eye that suggests he likes causing pain so I'm sure the sessions are going to get tougher. I'm going to be going along to bootcamp sessions over the next month and will be updating regularly on my progress. Wish me luck!

If you're taking part in this months bootcamp, or have previously taken part let us know. Please don't scare me too much though!

by Liz Edwards

You can read Liz's Week 2 Round Up HERE

My week in Reddish

I thought that, as I have that Thursday feeling, and I’m waiting for various articles to turn up that I’d post about a few things that had crossed my path this week. This is what I love about Reddish, scratch away at the surface and you find some excellent stuff.

Reddish North End

I met John from the club at the Reddish Business Forum event and was completely bowled over by his enthusiasm for the club despite him not being a football fan. In my mind, the kind of person that Reddish should be proud to have as part of their community.

The club operates 22 youth teams and has big expansion plans afoot.  I can’t wait to write a full article on what they do and what they’re planning.

This week they’re running a football camp and, upon my visit to see him, I was roped into having a quick game. The attitude of the staff, the kids and the coaches was exemplary. Just a shame that it was throwing it down and the rain soaked into my jeans. Next time I’ll go prepared. Whilst it’s a bit late to get onto this week’s camp, they’re running a 3 day one from Weds-Fri next week at a cost of £15 total and runs from 9:30-3:30. A total bargain. More info can be found here.

They are also running a golf day at Houldsworth Golf Club on Friday 16^th June. £40 will get you a round of golf, a bacon sarnie and tea/coffee on arrival and a 2 course dinner.

It’s a Con

Marie has sent me through a list of events going on at the Reddish Conservative Club throughout June. These are open to both members and non-members. I’ll be popping in to their Jubilee party and I’m informed that Abbey Roadz is particularly good. Sadly, it seems that the Lee Martin performing isn’t the scorer of the 1990 FA cup winning goal v Crystal Palace.

The Grey Horse

Now, I’ve only ever been in once but my pint was £2.21 and that’s not to be sniffed at. However, did you know that they have poker every Thursday from 8pm? Did you know that they have a disco and karaoke every Friday and that you get a free shot if you perform? There are 30 shots in a bottle of vodka, Take That have had 30 singles. I’ll be performing all of them, chronologically, one terribly drunken night in the future.

They’re also looking for ladies to join their darts team. Apparently they play on a log end board. No, me either.

Competition Time

So, I’ve been thinking, what is someone from Reddish actually known as?  I’m really hopeful that it’s not a Reddishite but I’ve really no idea. Therefore, I thought I’d run a little competition. The person who mails us here with the best and most inventive name wins a cake of their choice from Classic Cakes (up to the value of £1 – this is coming from my own pocket!)

The competition will close by the time the post next Thursday goes out and the winner will be announced then.

Good luck and have a fantastic Jubilee weekend.

By Jez Myers

Jubilee Partee

Yes, after half an hour of staring at a blank screen, that was actually the best title I could come up with for this article.

That aside, you might be thinking what can I do this weekend to celebrate Her Majesty’s reign for the last six decades? Well, for those of us that didn’t get the invite to the party at the palace and still don’t know who Lang Lang* is, Reddish isn’t without its parties.

Sunday 3^rd June

As we’ve previously mentioned, there’s a party over on the second floor of Houldsworth Mill. They’re having an indoor street party from 10-4pm with traditional games, a re-enactment of the Queen’s coronation and all the shops will be open for you to peruse.

If that doesn’t tickle your fancy, then there’s also a big jubilee lunch on at St. Elizabeth’s Church from 1-4pm. There’s a lunch (but please bring some savoury food along and contribute), brass band, children’s games and even a royal quiz.  They’re encouraging people to dress up as a member of the Royal family, red white and blue or in a 50’s outfit. That’ll be my Dad attending in his normal clothing then.

Sunday 4^th June

Reddish Conservative club are holding a big party. From 2pm until the evening, non-members are welcome. There’s a children’s entertainer from 3pm, George and Peppa Pig and Mickey and Minnie Mouse. Activities include a lucky dip, tombola and a cake stall. At 6:30pm there’s live entertainment followed by an adult disco.

Houldsworth Working Men's Club will be holding a disco from 6pm. This will feature live music and karaoke disco with music from the 50's-90's

If you know of anything else going on, please let us know. If you’re having a BBQ and want the Reddish News team to attend, eat your food and drink your beer, we’ll be there!

*Lang Lang is apparently a Chinese pianist.

by Jez Myers

Kingfisher Health Club

I'm not a natural gym goer. In fact I kind of hate the gym with a deep, heartlfelt passion. But the thing is, I love McDonalds with that same passion and something had to give. So, after living in Reddish for about four months with 3 McDonalds in a 2 mile radius, I reluctantly looked for a gym to join to work off the excess fat that was beginning to clog up my arteries.

Cue the Kingfisher Health Club. After a quick Google I came across the KHC and was excited at just how close to my house it was. Bonus. So I headed down after work and was shown around by a nice sporty looking guy who was friendly and informative and didn't make me feel like the intruder I was. The KHC is based in Houldsworth Mill so it's all high ceilings and big industrial steel things. It feels luxurious, calm, clean and almost like you're going to give yourself a treat, which is ideal for someone like me who needs to be tricked into going.



I agreed to an induction the following week, which was thorough (full-on health check with blood pressure and weigh-in - gulp). I was then shown how all of the equipment worked and was even given a little personalised workout plan. The gym is fully equipped with all the latest gear, including those Vibration Plate things, which scare me a bit. There is also a separate part of the gym with a huge screen which has sound and usually a football match going on. Safe to say this part is usually taken up with men on running machines but I thought it was a pretty cool touch if you wanted a break from listening to your iPod or lip-reading the TV screens.



There are a huge range of classes available at loads of different times of day, which is another plus point for me as I work from home and can join the nanas for a bit of aerobics at 11am, but my favourite part is the pool. It's just lovely. Small enough to make you feel like an Olympic swimmer when you've done 10 lengths in record time, but big enough to accommodate during a busy period. I would say not to go on a Saturday afternoon though as KHC allows free swimming for members children (obviously is you have children this would be an ideal time to go). Alongside the swimming pool is a jacuzzi, steam room and sauna. Total relaxation.

Membership to the Kingfisher Health Club is £36.50 a month - this includes full use of the gym, pool and spa and all classes. Plus you are given two free swim passes so you can drag along someone else for the fun.

Kingfisher Health Club, Houldsworth Mill, Broadstone Road, Reddish, Stockport, SK5 6DD

Tel: 0161 975 5152

Twitter: @kingfisherhc

by Ana Hernandez

What's happening in Reddish

The more I look, the more I seem to find and, with that in mind, here are some of the upcoming events over the next week in the Reddish area.

Police surgeries

Want to know about what’s going on? Want to get involved? Want to complain about the person who broke into my mate’s car and didn’t actually steal anything a couple of weeks ago? Well, the local officers are kind enough to allow you that opportunity. You can do so here;

North Reddish Library: -

Wednesday 23 May from 19:00-19:30

Reddish St. Mary’s Church: -

Thursday 24 May from 18:00-19:00

Reddish Triangle Church: -

Friday 25 May from 18:00-19:00

Mo’ money, Mo’ problems

Are you aged 16-19 and not in education, employment or training? Well, If you’d like to be in one of those three things then Stockport Council are holding an opportunities and jobs fair at Reddish Vale Young People’s Centre on Thursday 24th May, from 11.00am to 3.00pm.

There will be information and guidance on apprenticeships, college courses and current job vacancies. Local employers including Michael John and the Army, will be on hand to give advice to young people who are currently looking for employment.

Stockport colleges and apprenticeship providers will also advise on training opportunities and routes into employment through further education and training.

Reddish Vale Young People’s Centre is located on Dalkeith Road, SK5 7EY opposite Reddish Vale Technology College.

Yes, the army is a ‘local’ employer. Have you never heard of the battle of Lancashire Hill?

No Money, Mo’ Problems
If you’re a voluntary community group like ourselves then you’ll find that you don’t have a pot to …err.. you get the idea. However, if you’d like to try and raise some funding for your idea then there’s this
Stockport Council is urging community and voluntary groups to come along to a funding event.
The funding event is being held on Monday 28th May, from 1.00pm to 4.30pm at the Salvation Army on Short Street in Heaton Norris.

Community and voluntary groups will get the chance to meet funders and funding experts, take part in workshops on funding and fundraising, plus discuss their project ideas.

I know we’re Reddish News and this isn’t in Reddish but the local community groups could really benefit from getting some expert tuition on applying for funding or, like we were a month ago, just have a really awesome idea.

If you need more info, drop Elizabeth.madge@stockport.gov.uk a line.

Car Booty

I love Houldsworth Shopping Village. There, I said it. I know that some of you will be reading this and thinking  “where’s that?”.  Well, you go past the main mill on Houldsworth Street and turn into the car park. Test your nerve by travelling up to the second floor in the lift and you’re presented with, well, just go and see it to believe it. I can’t think of any other place that could have a magician’s shop next to a taxidermist next to an upholsterers.

Either way, they’re now holding an indoor car boot sale every Saturday there. It’s free to visit and, for a limited time, free to run a table from. The car boot is on from 10-2 and if you’d like a table there then drop Colin a line on 07729 328496.

It’s also the place that’s holding the 3^rd June Jubilee parade as mentioned here

Bake off

Despite upsetting us with the increase of 20p on the price of Rocky Roads, we’re huge fans of Classic Cakes.  We’ve briefly covered this before but now have the full details.

Two children can win their cake designed to be displayed at the shop in Reddish. PLUS, you win a £50 voucher towards your next birthday cake as a prize.

Base your design either on a 20cm round or square cake and make it age appropriate (4-7 or 8-11) and the closing date is on Saturday 2^nd June.

Either give the entry to your school or drop it in at the shop. Please be sure to include your full name, age and the school you attend.

The winner will be announced at Reddfest on the 9^th June.

Gonna Make You Sweat

We're currently doing reviews of local gyms. We haven't been yet, but have heard great things about Sweat Shed.

£40 will get you and a mate 4 weeks of punishment at their boot camp starting on the 4th June. They claim that recent customers have lost between 4 and 10 inches. If I do so, my panto career in Snow White is looking more and more likely.

We'll be doing a full review of the place in the very near future.

go here for more info
By Jez Myers

Food Review - Dragon Palace

Dragon Palace is one of those places that, frankly, you’d walk past if you were on a night out in Reddish. Not in a bad way – it just looks a bit like one of those buildings you'd see in a bandit tow. But I’m not here for Grand Designs – I’m here for a food review.

Jez, Ana and I were lucky enough to eat at there a couple of Sundays ago, and we managed to get stuck into what they called their £8.50 meal deal (drinks not included, obviously – I had a diet coke).

The £8.50 meal deal consists of  a starter (which can be either chicken and sweetcorn soup, or chicken and sweetcorn soup), a follow-up dish and a main course. I decided to go with the standard chicken and sweetcorn soup - which wasn’t without it’s charms.



The interim course was either a couple of spare ribs in a sweet chilli sauce, or some vegetable spring rolls. Both were cooked really well, and the ribs were particularly tender, which impressed me.



The mains were served pretty quickly. I have to say that the service in Dragon Palace is particularly speedy, but not in a bad way. The food was served promptly, was cooked right through, and you didn’t have to wait long for a refill.

For mains, Jez had some beef in chilli & black pepper sauce, Ana had satay chicken, and I had the chicken with pineapple and ginger. All of us had the egg fried rice.



The chicken was pretty standard. I’m not going to go overboard – it tasted like the standard Chinese chicken that you have in restaurants all over the country. I was particularly impressed by the slithers of ginger in my dish – it really added a punch to the dish. Ana’s chicken satay was also more than passable. I’m not going to say we haven’t had better, but I was especially happy that they didn’t offer us chips at the first opportunity to go with our meals. Personally, from the couple of mouthfuls I had of Jez’s dish, I found the chilli & black pepper sauce to be a bit too heavy, but that’s just me nit-picking

With drinks and tip, the meals came to about £15 each, a price that reflected the value of the meals and the standard of service. The Dragon Palace can cater for large parties, and looks bigger on the inside than it does on the outside, thanks to extension at the rear.

Overall, I’d recommend the Dragon Palace as somewhere to stop in for a quick meal on a night out – standard Chinese fare, but with great service and decent value thrown in for good measure.

Dragon Palace, 26-28 Gorton Road, Reddish, Stockport, SK5 6AE

by Ben Stroud

Life Leisure

Having been an avid gym goer for many years, and leaving behind a family of gym buddies in Birmingham, finding a decent gym up north was very important to me. I spent a long time researching my options and seeing as it was unlikely that I could stay with my chain of club the search began for a replacement. After a bit of googleing and a quick phone call I went down to Life Leisure, Houldsworth village and after being tempted by a student friendly monthly fee I joined up.



For those that don’t know, Life Leisure is the face of Stockport Sports Trust and the facilities in Reddish seem to be very new and modern. For me there are a number of things I look for in a good gym: cleanliness, decent opening hours, good facilities and staff attitude. The last may seem a little odd but I find it really important to be in a positive, motivating environment. At Life Leisure the staff are friendly but some of the trainers and instructors seem fairly young and at the start of their fitness careers which can limit their knowledge and confidence.

The atmosphere can vary but is normally positive. A wide range of people are members and so working out is not intimidating in the slightest.  During classes there is normally a sense of team morale with members encouraging each other.



All of the facilities are cleaned to a very high standard and most of the equipment is top of the range with iPod docks and if you don’t want to listen to music you can watch one of the wall-mounted televisions. The gym itself is fairly small with limited equipment. They have everything you would expect as well as keeping up to date with the latest freestyle training trend offering ViPR and kettlebell classes; I would like to see more Freestyle equipment such as TRX or core bags but there is simply not the space. Unusually Life Leisure has two X-Dream bikes – exercise bikes that are more like videogames and take your mind off the exercise. Recently one of the indoor football pitches has been transformed into a basketball/badminton court which I am excited to try out.

If you don’t fancy hitting the gym there are a wide variety of classes to try out, although these often become very busy so booking ahead is a must. This can be very frustrating, especially when people do not turn up.

A class only membership is available, and a discounted full membership is also currently on offer at a very reasonable £17.99 per month. Pop into the club for more information and hopefully I’ll see you in there soon.

By Liz Edwards

At The Car Wash

If your car hasn't seen the inside of a car wash in a while then get yourself down to St Mary's Primary School this Saturday!

£2.50? At that price it doesn't even matter if it rains the next day! (Let's face it, it will). 

Friends of St Mary's Car Wash

St Mary's Primary School, Broomfield Drive, Reddish, Stockport

Saturday 12th May, 10am - 1pm

 

Snooker Loopy

With the snooker world championships just finishing, you might fancy yourself as the next Ronnie O'Sullivan or Chas Hodges (look, he's holding a cue in the picture above. I don't care if he doesn't actually play snooker or how his actual profession is singing about rabbits), Reddish Conservative Club have launched their summer league for members.

The cost is £1 per week, it's every Tuesday at 8pm. There's a handicap for all players, mine is the fact I need to stand on a box to see over the table, and the top eight get to share a prize fund.

For more information, click on the link below or contact the Conservative Club on 432-1530

Reddish Conservative Club

Twitter

Facebook

 

By Jez Myers

Dog Messing Me Around

One of the major problems in Reddish is, in my opinion, the sheer volume of dog mess that seems to be clogging up the streets - in particular on Gorton Road.

Now before I start this, can I please point something out? I am not the sort of person to take my grievances to the local newspaper at the first opportunity. I am not the sort of person that writes a letter that is sub-edited by the paper with a witty title - written under a pseudonym. I, dear reader, am simply one man. One man that's trod in a lot of dog mess on Gorton Road.

I've called Stockport Council twice so far about the mess that's being left on the road, only to be told that they have 'signs' up telling people they could be fined £50 if their dog vents it's bowels on the street. These signs amount to little more than glorfied window stickers stuck to a lamp post - very similar in style to the one below:

Firstly, the lady on the phone was apologetic - Stockport, she said 'has a problem' with dog mess in the streets (depressing, no?). She promised to send a clean-up team to the stretch of Gorton Road that was affected. She then passed me through to the local dog warden department, who promptly sent some people out to make sure that the stickers were stuck to the right lamp posts. They were, yet the dog's mess still remains.

This is incredibly frustrating to me, as I have to walk up Gorton Road to Reddish North train station every morning, and I am constantly having to dodge the mess. I can only image the problem that parents and the less able-bodied members of our community have with dodging this. If it's a nightmare getting out of my shoes, then I can only imagine how hard it is to get it out of the wheels of a pram or wheelchair.

If you own a dog, then if it takes a massive, Mr. Whippy-style crap on the ground whilst you're out walking it, PICK IT UP. If you can't bend down to pick up your dog's mess, then you shouldn't own a dog. I don't care how old you are, there are plenty of tools and utensils on the market to help cope with the stuff coming out of your dog.

And if you are concerned about the amount of dog mess that is in your area of Reddish, then please contact the council. They receive over 700 complaints about fouling in the Stockport area a year, so they've  put together an online form to help you organise a street cleansing. Street cleansing sounds like quite a dodgy term, but trust me, it's a Good Thing.

I would imagine that a good 98% of dog owners in the Reddish area are conscientious, and clean up after their furry friends. But, as always, the 2% of people that cannot be bothered to pick up after themselves are making the streets of Reddish a lot less appealing to residents and visitors.

I'd like the council to lead from the front on this, and not leave it to the residents. I've seen some great signage up in Wigan, which is clear, hard to tamper with, and stands out.

What do you think? Do you have a problem with dog fouling in your area? Do you have any examples of a community catching persistent foulers in the act? If so, share your story below...

By Ben Stroud

Reddish Business Forum - The Reddfest Launch Event

When we set up Reddish news, one of the main aims was to let people know about what was going on in the community. That's not just for the general public but also for local businesses too. I've attended several of these events and they're great for looking at how businesses can interact with each other.

The event is being held at

Reddish Conservative Club
1 Westbourne Grove
SK5 6UD

it's on

Wednesday, 9 May 2012 from 17:30 to 19:30

There will be a an opportunity to meet ReddFest stakeholders, discover what the festival organisers have planned for this year and discuss ways the business community can make the most of the event.

It will also be attended by the new Mayor of Stockport and there will be a buffet and wine or soft drinks available. Yes, wine!!!!

If you want to attend,  you can get a free e-ticket from here RBFevent

For more information on Reddish Business Forum, you can follow them on twitter here or visit their website here

 

By Jez Myers

Why We Love Reddish Councillors

Now, irrespective of your political leanings (and as a blog we try very hard to not favour one party over any other) you can't help but be touched by this heartwarming twitter based story.

Whilst waiting for the election results to come through a few nights ago, an interesting tweet popped up.



This immediately pushed various comical images into my head of a person in a big rosette frantically running around, shouting and flailing their arms in the Stockport Town Hall. Who would be responsible for such an act though?



For this reason alone, Paul Moss, we salute you!

By Jez Myers

Labour hold Reddish

The country is waking up to a shift in the political landscape and I'm sure that over the coming days we will hear numerous expert opinions and excuses over why some seats were won and why some were lost. Most importantly what has happened in Reddish and what does this mean for us?

In Reddish North, Labour candidate Kate Butler received 2027 votes, took 69% of the vote and was declared the winner. Meanwhile, in Reddish South, some scarily similar results were seen as Labour candidate Andy Verdeille won with 2028 votes, 70% of the vote.

In total Labour took 8 out of the 21 available seats on Stockport council. The Lib Dems did not escape the national backlash and although they managed to win 10 seats they suffered the loss of council leader Dave Goddard, who lost by just 45 votes, whilst two other members scraped through with majorities in double figures. The Tories won just 2 seats.

What happens to the council leadership is unclear at this point, but we understand that Labour will not go into a coalition with the Lib Dems.

Congratulations Kate and Andy, we look forward to seeing what you achieve in Reddish over the next few years!

Jubilee Fun Times!

Make sure you keep a space in your diary for the Houldsworth Mill - Shopping Village  Indoor (wise - we live in Manchester) Street Party on the Sunday 3rd of June!

Sykes For Sale

So, Reddish’s one and only coffee shop is up for sale. It’s such a shame and it would be wonderful if whoever buys it keeps it as a coffee shop. Reddish really needs places like this for people to socialise, relax and just pass the time drinking coffee and reading a paper.

There doesn’t appear to be any word of this news on  the official Sykes’ blog, but the great big ‘for sale’ sign on the side of the shop isn’t being too inconspicuous.It’s on the market for a snip at £32,500. Any takers?

Hello!

We’re a group of four people, thrust into the thriving metropolis that is Reddish.

We were astounded to find that there really is a lack of information out there about this place so we thought we’d start a news site. We’ll hopefully bring you news, reviews, interviews and anything else that ends in ‘ews’. Pews? We could go and take some photos at St. Joseph’s I guess.

Anyway, I hope this site is of use to you.