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Northants Police Recruitment Drive

Northamptonshire Police are currently recruiting police officers and special constables and are keen to attract interest from people of all different background and communities. They have created a Positive Action Recruitment Newsletter with information of career opportunities available within their Force, and for the promotion of up and coming intakes and current campaigns.

Northamptonshire Police welcomes applications regardless of racial or ethnic origin, religion, beliefs, age, gender, marital status, disability or sexuality.

For further information on anything mentioned in the newsletter, either visit www.northants.police.uk/careers or email Chandi Patel.

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'Celebrate 08' 29th September – 5th October 2008

Celebrate 08 is a week of LGBT community events in the Leicester area. We received the following call for people to get involved from Siân Lambert at Leicester LGB Centre:

As you probably know, Leicester Pride (the company which ran the annual Pride event in Leicester until 2006) has recently ceased to exist. This means that there has not been a Pride in Leicester for the last two years, and there won’t be one in the future unless new people step forward to put one on. Sadly, Leicester LGB Centre does not have the capacity, resources or expertise to manage a full-blown Pride event. But we couldn’t let another year go by without doing something to celebrate the LGBT communities of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. So the idea of Celebrate 08 was born!

Celebrate 08 will be a week of grass-roots community events which will hopefully bring together LGBT people from across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. There’ll be events in several of the city’s gay venues and in other spaces across Leicestershire and Rutland. We’re planning this with little time or money but with a lot of enthusiasm and we hope you’ll want to get involved!

Want to get involved? Here’s how you can!

• Strut Your Stuff! Are you a performer? Whether it’s music, dance, comedy, drag, theatre, whatever, if you or someone you know would like to perform during Celebrate 08 please get in touch. We are hoping to hold a multicultural cabaret night at the Y Theatre on Friday 3rd October and we need acts! We can’t guarantee you a spot and we won’t be able to pay you but we may be able to help with travel costs. We’ll also be having acoustic music at the Centre on the evening of the 4th October and there may be other opportunities to perform as well.
  
• Plan an event. Feel like you have a bit of time and energy on your hands and could plan an event? We’d really like to get as many diverse events happening during the week as possible so whether you’d like to put on a mela, a poetry reading, a themed night, an art show, an outdoor event, a coffee morning, kids activities, whatever, we’d love to hear from you! You’d need to take responsibility for planning the event but we will help promote it and we may also be able to provide room at the Centre to host it.
  
• Give some time. In the run-up to the week and throughout the events we’ll need people who will help with publicity, organisation, planning, etc. If you have a few hours to spare and you’d like to get involved please get in touch!
  
• Pass it on. Even if you don’t have time to spare or talents to showcase please pass this email on to as many people who you can think of who may be interested in getting involved.

Call 0116 2547412 or email sian@llgbc.com if you want to get involved.

Celebrate 08 is not being planned as a profit-making week, but any money we do make will go towards more events and services for the LGBT community.

Best wishes

Siân Lambert

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London Lesbian & Gay Film Festival on Tour at the Forum Cinema

Once again the LLGFF will be featured at the Forum Cinema, Northampton and this year's programme has been announced:

Breakfast with Scot (Canada) 2007 Dir Laurie Lynd - Monday 8th September
Finn's Girl (Canada) 2007 Dir Dominique Cardona - Monday 15th September
Otto; or, Up with the Dead People (Germany/Canada) 2008 Dir Bruce LaBruce - Monday 22nd September
Spider Lilies (Taiwan) 2007 Dir Zero Chou - Monday 29th September

Check them out on www.llgff.org.uk and support the screenings if you can to ensure this recognition continues.

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NLGBA Presence at Local Events

NLGBA will be out flying the rainbow flag at a couple of events in Northampton over the coming month. We will have a staffed stall with leaflets and information on all our groups and services. Pop along and say hello!

Northampton Balloon Festival Friday 15th- Sunday 16th August

This popular annual event boasts the balloon tethering, races and evening glows as the centerpiece of the event. Alongside the balloons, the event will offer all the fun of the fair as well a wide variety of food and beverage and market stalls. The balloon festival will also host a fun packed 3 days entertainment programme from arena displays to staged entertainment for all the family.

NLGBA will be having a presence, and staffed attendance with information on the Friday within a community/ voluntary sector tent.

More info on the festival website.

The Umbrella Fair 2008

Taking place on Sunday August 31st in Abington Park, this is the annual event raising awareness of environmental issues. A very welcoming and all inclusive event with stalls, information, entertainment and performing art. As with last year NLGBA will be there with a stall, and rainbow flags flying.

More info at the Umbrella Fair website.

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Civil Partnership Ceremonies Guide

Northants County Council Registration Service have just published a great new guide packed with information, helpful guidance and adverts from providers, plus a list of all the approved venues throughout the county. NLGBA now has a stock of these guides. If you would like a copy pop into the office, or get in touch and we will send a copy out to you.

You can also contact the Registration Service directly via registrationservice(at)northamptonshire.gov.uk or look them up on their website.

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Kettering LGB Group

Great News for LGB people North of the County - an new independent group has been established, run by volunteers. The group met for the first time on Wed 6th Aug, and will run every Wed from 7-9pm at Melton Community Centre, Melton Road, Kettering. NN16 9DS.

The group is a space to chat, socialise, make friends & get support. It is open to all ages and ethnic origins. Accessible for disabled people & includes disabled toilets. Tea & coffee is available. Customer car parking is on site.

Membership fees are £1.50 each week (or £4 for one month) to cover room hire.

For enquires, comments and suggestions contact 07877 825235 or email lgb.kettering(at)hotmail.co.uk .

Stonewall Report Published

Stonewall have published a new report into Homophobic Hate Crime: The Gay British Crime Survey, available as a PDF for you to download.

It states: One in five gay people victim of hate crime in last three years. Three quarters of victims don’t report to police.

Home Secretary promises action:

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has tasked the Ministerial Action Group on Violence to address homophobic hate crime in the light of disturbing new findings from major new research. The first statistically significant national survey of its kind, commissioned by Stonewall from YouGov, reveals the extent of abuse facing many of Britain’s 3.6 million lesbian and gay people on a daily basis. One in five have been a victim of one or more homophobic hate crimes in the last three years. However three in four don’t report such incidents to the police, many believing that no action will follow. The incidents ranged from harassment to serious physical and sexual assaults.

Go to www.stonewall.org.uk for more info on current campagins and gay rights.

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