Young and old performers join forces for Big Sing

Young and not so young performers from across York are joining forces this week to stage a celebration of music.

The Big Sing event will be held at New Earswick Folk Hall from 11.45am-2.15pm on Friday 27th March.

Students from York St John University will perform to over 80 care home residents, sheltered housing tenants and their friends and relatives as part of Big Sing event, and residents from the homes will be staging some performances of their own.

The Big Sing event is being organised by the Musical Connections Project which currently runs weekly music sessions in City of York Council’s seven elderly person’s homes and sheltered housing accommodation.

The weekly musical sessions maximise social interactions between residents, incorporating a wide variety of musical genres and will enable residents to learn new songs and styles, contribute to writing songs and use percussion instruments.

Fiona Chapman, the founder of the Musical Connections project, said: “It is a well known fact that both care home residents and sheltered housing tenants are at risk of loneliness, low self-esteem, lethargy and depression, all of which can affect both mental and physical health.
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New Inclusive Cycling Club makes sport accessible for all

A new, Inclusive Cycling Club is launching in York which will allow disabled residents who would like to enjoy cycling on specialised bicycles to take up this popular activity.

The club sessions, organised by City of York Council, will take place at York Sports Village and start on Thursday 9 April from 2pm to 4pm. The sessions are suitable for young people and adults over the age of 11 years and will continue three times a week at the following times:

  • Wednesdays from 5pm to 6.30pm
  • Thursdays from 2pm to 4pm
  • Sundays from 3pm to 5pm

A range of different specialised bikes will be on hand to enjoy, including three wheeled bicycles and ‘steer from the rear’ tandems which help improve balance and cycling confidence. Flat bed bikes with platforms for wheelchairs at the front, mountain bikes and road bikes will also be available. The new club welcomes the support of local cycling organisations Get Cycling and Open Country, who are bringing additional bikes and with a fleet of 30 cycles available to the club everyone attending will be able to have a go.  

This new Inclusive Cycling Club is one of the ways in which the council is working to reduce health inequalities in the city, help improve physical and mental health and provide financially sustainable health and wellbeing opportunities for everybody across the city.

The cost for club sessions is £5 per hour (free for carers), payable on the day at the Sports Centre Reception.

For more information on this and other disability sport opportunities call Glyn Newberry on 01904 553377, email glyn.newberry@york.gov.uk or visit www.york.gov.uk/disabilitysport

For more information on cycling in York visit www.itravelyork.info/cycling

Property marking events in York today (Saturday)

Don’t miss out on a chance to get you property registered and marked free of charge

North Yorkshire Police

On  21st March starting at 10 a.m.  there will be a property marking event.

Members of York City Centre Safer Neighbourhood Team will be in attendance.

These will be held at both,  Your Bike Shed on Micklegate and City of York Library Museum Street.

This enables people to bring along one  item such as a cycle, mobile phone, tablets etc. to create their own Immobilise account and further enable them to register anything of value within the family home that has a serial number, totally free of charge.

This helps with any property that is stolen, lost pr recovered and enables property to be returned to their rightful owners. Just bring along one item to create your own account.

Over 34 million items have been registered so far.

Deaflympics Badminton Player to launch new club

Andrea Hardwick, a Deaflympics badminton player is bringing along her gold and silver medals to York on Thursday 19 March to help launch York’s first deaf badminton club.

The new club will meet at York Railway Institute from 8pm to 9.30pm each week and is open to anyone who is Deaf or hard of hearing who would like to learn and play badminton. All levels of ability are welcome to attend and participants will be instructed by the club’s coach, Denis Cleary, who also coaches the Great Britain Deaf Badminton team.
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