Giving people a reason to smile is simply wonderful.

My column in the Herald Express 4th February 2015

The Monastery Berry Drive Paignton

As a bright-eyed student, so many years ago, I thought that I might have a vocation for the Catholic priesthood. By the time I had escaped from college it was clear that I didn’t have a vocation and so I lurked quite happily in the secular world. People who know me then asked why I didn’t test my vocation and all I can say is that I found it hard. However as part of my course I spent a month or so teaching at Saint Cuthbert Mayne School Torquay and whilst there bumped into a newly ordained priest from the Marist House of Studies that was then housed in Monastery Road Paignton. As a consequence of that meeting and my possible vocation I spent a little time visiting what we now refer to locally as the Old Monastery. At that time it was the home of some very clever academic priests and a simply stunning library.

The Marist priests and nuns had a long association with Paignton with many local ladies educated at the Marist Convent School Paignton in the building that is now occupied by Tower House School. Indeed until twenty or so years ago Marist nuns were still providing teaching staff at the Sacred Heart School in Paignton under the leadership of Sister Monica O’Brien.

A few weeks ago the nuns running Stoodley Knowle School announced that it will shortly close ending over eighty years of teaching in sixty-five acres of picturesque woodland overlooking Anstey’s Cove. Times change and so much of what we have always taken for granted quietly slips into history as fewer people seek the celibate life within the religious world.

Recently I've become engaged with a number of people who have been looking at old church buildings and how they might be used for the good of the community. One leader in this field is Andrew Richardson of W4G (Working for Good Communities (http://www.w4gcic.net/ )). He has been actively looking at the development of socially inclusive entrepreneurial system that is ethically based within unused or under used church buildings. These buildings tend to be in the middle of communities that have often been battered by the economic downturn and therefore offer an excellent hub for community re-engagement.

The other day I happened to be walking around the gardens at Oldway Mansion and looked over the valley toward Winner Hill. I noticed the statue above the Old Monastery sparkling in the afternoon sunshine. It seemed to call me and so I nipped over for a long overdue visit.

The chapel at the old Marist House of Studies is now the home of Anode (http://www.anodecharity.org.uk). I had recently been in contact with Anode’s founder Nigel Williams and had been captivated by their mission. This is what they say about themselves.

“Anode is a Charity that provides a holistic service to help an individual through challenging times by engaging with one or more of our programmes. We look to build a foundation that encourages self-belief, independence and responsibility. Our Motto is ‘Changing Lives, Giving a Voice & Fighting Poverty’ and we are passionate about helping out where needed. We recognise that each individual is unique and we are committed to helping people connect with HOPE!”

A member of the Anode community gave me a quick tour of the chapel building showing me the food bank store, the meeting rooms, kitchen and counselling area. The last time I had been in the lovely chapel building was back in 1970 and at the time was hugely warmed by the spiritual energy of the chapel which was at that time a house of prayer. I have to say that what Anode is about still captures that magical spirit but in a very different way.

We live in troubled times and those on the margins of our society seem to be being pushed over the edge on a daily basis. The crushing deprivation that drains hope from so many has to be stopped and to do that it needs all of us to pay careful attention. Look out for those around you who might be in danger.

Organisations like Anode, W4G and others help to bring hope. Building communities by developing employable skills from within seems to me a way to create a more hopeful future. The Anode Smile Maker programme is such a platform and giving people a reason to smile is simply wonderful.

Keep the smile.

Helping homeless would be a start

My column in the Herald Express 22nd January 2015

Kate Humble is an interesting girl! Recently I watched her abseiling down the inside of an active volcano toward the bubbling molten lava lake on the island of Tanna in the southern Pacific. That is a very scary thing to do.

Two things struck me about this dramatic event that had been brilliantly filmed by the BBC. The first was Kate’s obvious anxiety. Someone told me years ago that if we weren’t living on the edge then we were taking up too much space. I’m not sure about that but Kate was certainly on the edge and you could almost taste the fear in her voice as she slid down a rope to a narrow ledge above the hostile lava lake. That has to be one of the scariest places in the world.

The second thing that struck me was the molten lava lake itself. How easily do we forget that this world of ours is a ball of fire covered with a thin crust? Occasionally we get a glimpse of that destructive power when volcanoes suddenly spew molten material high into the sky. Do you remember back in 2011 when aircraft were grounded as a dust cloud drifted across Europe after the eruption of an Icelandic volcano? Kate’s slide toward that molten lava lake is striking evidence of how delicate it all is. That boiling cauldron spews noxious gas high into the atmosphere on a daily basis.

Whether you are a creationist or an evolutionist you have to be very aware of how fragile our existence is. Whilst we worry about daily things that trouble us it is good to be grateful for whatever we have and to hang on to this life with both hands.

It occurred to me that our mayor might well be hanging on to things with both hands just now when I listened to him speak at the Torbay Business Forum breakfast a few days ago.  The attentive business community listened to him talk about the good things that have happened in Torbay whist he has had the reigns. Of course many good things have happened and we must celebrate that. At the same time there have been draconian cuts in public spending. So many services have been forced to the very edge financially and others simply sank without trace.

So many of those cuts hit people with the least power first and it seems to me that the gap between those that have and those that have not is getting horribly wider by the day. Many families face increasing hardship as things like energy prices climb ever higher.  The increase in the number of food banks must have many people scratching their heads. It worries me and I hope that it worries you too.

One of the outcomes from this troubled time is the increase in homelessness. As I walked the icy roads just before six this morning with my dog I thought how hard the night will have been for those sleeping rough. That penetrating cold made me shiver and be thankful that I wasn’t clutching a damp blanket under a bush.

Later in the morning I joined a group of people attending a training session at Saint Paul’s church in Paignton. We had gathered to listen to Rachel Makin from Housing Justice speak about running night shelters. You may like to know that under the direction of THE HAVEN (http://www.haven-torbay.org.uk ) seven church halls will become overnight shelters for the homeless during February.

Being lonely and homeless has to be a scary place and whilst I might have been impressed with Kate Humble’s bravery it seems to me that members of our community have to face those demons of fear on a nightly basis.

Homelessness, in our fragile world, is something we must face and act upon. Our prime minister says that we are all in this together but sadly the evidence seems not to support that. Rachel Makin made an interesting point when she said that with overseas aid we attempt to offer people access to water and sanitation. That, she says, is something that our homeless often cannot access.

As a community we need to pull together in the hope of building a future that includes everyone. What we do should be for the good of all and hopefully offering hospitality to the homeless is a start. I will be staffing one of the night shelters during February and am a little worried about to be quite honest. One thing I will do is what I tell others to do and that is to keep the smile, hard though that might be. Please remember that when it comes to being homeless; there but for the grace of your god go you.

Keep the smile!

The Bonus Culture Trundles On...

My column in the Herald Express 9th January 2015

Sunrise over Singer Court

Recent research reveals that if you worked at the sharp end of Goldman Sachs in 2013 that the annual monster bonus event was a time of celebration! Those intrepid risk takers each received £2,570,000 bonuses on average. Meanwhile the poor old risk takers and senior staff at RBS over the same period only received a tasty £600,000 on average. Not a bad income boost when all is said and done.

I don’t know whether you noticed that news sound bite over the Christmas period and if you did what was your reaction? Probably, like most of us, you simply shrugged your shoulders. The problem is, or so it seems to me, that so much sensational news is too often received with a shrug of the shoulders. Why is that? It is quite likely because so much of what is happening to us seems to be outside of our control. If that is the case then perhaps the occasional raising of an eyebrow is all that we can hope for.

These monster bonus decisions tend to be decided by the financial gatekeepers and despite the turmoil in the money markets the bonus culture trundles on. Of course it isn’t only the money men that expect a bonus for doing what they are paid to do efficiently. Many of the higher echelons of the Civil Service, NHS and other similar bodies also anticipate huge annual bonuses. Many senior posts have a large cosy bonus as part of the contract of employment but at least one, Network Rail’s Mark Carne, may not take his this year after the Christmas rail chaos. Hmm. We’ll see.

You might ask why I use the word gatekeeper in this context. An accountant once told me that he who controls the quill controls the money. Those with the power have a habit of protecting themselves and the people immediately around them. They toast the system with the words “Here’s to us and those like us” which immediately excludes those not part of this exclusive world. That is why the word gatekeeper offers a glimpse of why little is likely to change. If you guard the gate then you decide who comes in and who stays out.

If we simply accept that the self-appointed gatekeepers decide to reward each other little will ever change. Part of our reluctance to change is I suspect the worry that rejection may threaten our own socio-economic stability. You will be aware of the political rhetoric surrounding the payment of huge bonuses but since so many of our political elite benefit from the system there isn’t, despite the rhetoric, really that much appetite for change.

2015 is election year and so if you have an appetite for change then this might be your chance to come up for air. Once again you might find yourself facing the gatekeeper mentality and so take a good look at the names on the ballot paper. Comments like “They’re all the same” may have some validity but doesn’t really help. This is the time to engage with the people making the decisions and has to be an excellent reason for hopping down from the fence!

Talking about fences, I have to say how impressed I am with the new pathway through what is left of Oldway Mansion’s Fernacombe Wood. The new huge apartment block called Singer Court (see picture) is now towering above that part of Paignton and a little woodland walk has been constructed outside the newly fenced grounds. I recommend this short walk as a way of accessing the Oldway Mansion gardens that are still being beautifully maintained by Torbay Council. I was however a little curious about the ‘No Horse Riding’ sign since it a long time since I have seen any horses trotting down the busy Paignton to Torquay road!

Thinking about local developments in general I have to say how impressed I was the other day when I made my first visit to Living Coasts in Torquay. It’s been on my list of things to do for quite a while and so during the Christmas holiday I made the effort. It really is an interesting place and the knowledgeable staff made sure that visitors had every opportunity to learn. I timed my visit to include lunch at their terrace café overlooking the whole of Torbay and found the whole experience quite atmospheric. Recommended!

That little jaunt has prompted me to produce a list of other South Devon places of interest for 2015 visits including Torre Abbey, Torquay Museum, Kent’s Cavern, Bygones and the Model Village in St Marychurch, Coleton Fishacre and Brixham Heritage Museum. I plan to add steam trains and river trips to my rapidly expanding list. We live in a stunning part of the world and that has to be something for us all to celebrate.

Keep the smile!

Platform For A New Energy.

My column in the Herald Express 23rd December 2014

I’ve not looked yet but I rather suspect that the film Love Actually will pop up at least once over the Christmas period. Love Actually and another Richard Curtis film, Notting Hill, always make me smile. Both have quite serious themes but also have a lightness that lifts my battered spirit. What really does it for me is the last scene in Love Actually that ends with a huge storyboard of people being united at an airport because it seems to capture the essence of Christmas; that wonderful joy of reunited friends and family coming home for Christmas.

I love Christmas and always have. That statement may be slightly overegging the truth because sometimes things can become a little bumpy as the reality of life too often makes us less than happy. Christmas Day for me has always started with the first church service which I suppose is the nature of the day. It is an acknowledgement of the Christmas message for the Christian Faith, which is the birth of Jesus. But the winter celebration itself of course predates Christianity and emphasises the long dark night coupled with very short cold days. A time when folk gathered in the icy semidarkness around a fire as the night world outside shivered.

There was a time when that first Christmas Day service was a collective family event shared with the community. In these unusual and too often confusing times the need for family and community is huge. Christmas traditionally is a time for heading home, for sharing, for caring and perhaps capturing a little of the seasonal magic. Sadly for too many these days, Christmas will not be a time for family or friends. For those struggling to put food on the table or indeed to find food at all the wall to wall commercial invitations to feast will simply bring pain. Too often that pain will also be a place of intense loneliness. In the helter-skelter run up to Christmas Day it is important to remember that we are a community which is hopefully inclusive.  

Keeping all that in mind I do love the idea of a friendly Santa Claus travelling the world bringing a sparkle into lives and occasionally granting special needs rather than simply satisfying superficial wants.

This Christmas I will look to the heavens in the hope of catching sight of that famous speeding sled pulled by celestial reindeer high above Torbay. During the past year I have found myself wishing for a few special Torbay ‘presents’ and perhaps this Christmas some of Santa’s sparkling fairy dust will fall from the sleigh like golden snow settling on those dreams.

A light covering of Santa’s golden fairy dust on Oldway Mansion would be wonderful. Seeing that now exhausted building suddenly spring into life as bright lights shine from the windows, excited people walk the beautiful halls and atmospheric gardens, newlyweds showering rose petals on the terrace and a community energised by the reawakening. To bring that iconic building back to life will send a tingle through the whole of Torbay.

That magical dust might also fall lightly on the Parkfield Youth Centre where beleaguered youth workers suddenly find that their prayers have been answered as endless streams of young people ride the BMX track, clamber up the stunning climbing wall, skate endlessly on the ramps, swing from the trees, play games in the sports hall, make music in the garden and bring a smile to the most battered faces. This wonderful £4.8 million pound facility has lost its way and seems in the words of a young local accountant “To be a waste of a fab opportunity” as the consequence of funding cuts cast a sad shadow over the estate. Will Santa listen?

Hopefully a few flakes from that golden shower might flutter over Torquay Pavilion and Cary Green bringing hope for an amicable future that will capture the magic of the past in a union with a vibrant future. Perhaps part of a new harmony will be a change from the collective mayhem of the drunken night-time madness in the harbour area into a place that generates a new energy of hope.

But most of all I pray that the energy of Christmas will bring joy to the whole community and lift the spirit of us all. In my last article I wrote about developing a ‘White Monday’ for the good of all rather than the demonic ‘Black Friday’ evidenced by greedy grabbing. Perhaps Christmas can be a platform for a new energy working for the good of the community as we rocket toward a more meaningful future!

Keep the smile.

Perhaps we should start 'White Friday'

Watching Torbay Council’s civic chairwoman Councillor Jane Barnby present DofE certificates to local young people the other evening was a wonderful experience. More than two-hundred young people and their guests had gathered for a glittering ceremony at Beverley Park in Paignton. This annual event celebrates the hard work put in to achieve the Bronze, Silver and Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. Councillor Barnby praised the youngsters for their perseverance and positive energy.  In a conversation after the ceremony we both agreed that all too often we hear about the silly things that happen because they provide an easy headline, but lose sight of the dedication of so many.

Councillor Jane Barnby

To gain a Duke of Edinburgh’s Award young men and women between the age of fourteen and twenty-five have to help others, demonstrate leadership, work as a team, follow an interest for a number of months and keep fit. That has to be a wonderful platform for any community and something to be celebrated. Part of that platform will be the huge number of people that also work as volunteers, leaders and supporters. I’ve been part of the Award Scheme for a long time and did make an atmospheric trip to Buckingham Palace forty-eight years ago to receive my Gold from a young Prince Philip! As chairman of the local DofE Network I really would like to thank all those who help and congratulate all the wonderful participants.

I bumped into Councillor Barnby again a few days later at a Torbay Business Forum breakfast event and she once again said how inspirational the DofE evening had been. Curiously this business breakfast had a youthful twist because the speaker was Paignton Zoo’s education officer Lisa Stroud who spoke about the excellent conservation work at the zoo and then went on to talk about the contribution our young people make. Lisa Stroud is soon to become chair of governors at South Devon College and that liaison has to build an even stronger bond between the College and the Zoo offering many more wonderful opportunities for the next generation to flourish.

Looking around at our young citizens I really do think that the future is in good hands. That is, I think, true also in the wider world. The attractiveness of Torbay brings visitors from many different parts of the world. I was invited to spend a little time at the Devon School of English in Paignton a few days ago. During my visit I shared lunch with a couple from Spain, Christian and Anna, working for a year locally whilst improving their business English at the Devon School of English. Again I found two young vibrant people looking to build a better world. One language school locally, EF, is also offering the DofE Award for longer stay students and that has to be a wonderful way of building international relationships in a very meaningful way.

One of the reasons for my visiting the Devon School of English was to gather a little more information for a talk that I was about to give to owners and managers of language schools throughout the West of England. The theme of my talk was about leadership and the impact that leaders have upon business. Basically the thread was whether you brought light into the workplace or darkness. Do you make the place tingle with excitement or suck the joy out of the air? Those who read my words regularly will know that I am constantly banging on about treading lightly on the world.

With that ‘light’ theme it is worth keeping an eye on atmosphere we generate around us as we rocket toward Christmas. For me the seasonal start was rather bleak with the arrival of the new Black Friday shopping phenomenon from the good old US of A. I don’t know whether you saw the television pictures with the demonic frenzy feeding for shopping bargains with people beating neighbours around the head as they fought for discounted shiny goods. The fight was mostly for ‘wants’ rather than ‘needs’ of course. Compare that selfish stampede with the good work evidenced by the young people doing good things for others!

Perhaps we might start something called White Friday where we all go out to do something nice for someone else without looking for a payback or perhaps donate to a local charity. It is just a thought at this stage but who knows it may catch on.

Keep the smile.

Think before you add to the social media bonfire!

I was saddened by a headline the other day. Saddened because the headline reported the fall from grace of a public figure after doing something rather silly. Of course it was simply a headline and the story lacked insight into the personal landscape that brought the individual to that point. I think that so many headlines report dramatic moments in the lives of many and that is the nature of our world. However what really saddens me is the hurtful rhetoric that too often follows a fall from grace.

How quickly we pick up the sticks and stones and throw them! Of course I don't actually mean sticks and stones but the hurtful negative comments that can be made, often without fully understanding an event. Those spiteful comments usually come from comparative safety behind a little barricade of anonymity or pseudonym. The thing is that despite the person in the headline being a public figure they are still, when all is said and done, a man or woman journeying through life: a man or woman with a family and a circle of friends who will now also take the pain.

I don't usually have a problem with headlines reporting an event but I am deeply troubled by the somewhat vigilante mentality lurking beneath many of the comments that follow. Arthur Miller's play The Crucible and William Goulding's Lord of the Flies provide powerful insights into the darkness of spiteful rhetoric. How quickly dark comments can gain a momentum that can tip a community over the edge turning neighbour against neighbour! It can and does happen in the blink of an eye! I have a friend who a little while ago said how beautiful the Syrian city of Aleppo was. The horrors of the Syrian conflict evidence the catastrophic impact of community collapse.

I say the blink of an eye and today that is very much the case. Modern communication techniques mean that an event can be reported globally in a matter of minutes. Texting, emails, social media platforms, television, radio, mobile phones and almost endless apps mean that story sound bites travel at amazing speed. Sound bites lack substance and can be troublesome.

But what is it about our time that has us wanting to heap humiliation on others? I certainly accept the place of righteous indignation but am troubled by the joy that so many find in ritual humiliation. There is, or so it seems to me, a need in many to validate their own reality by savaging others. This simply adds to the avalanche of negativity that can too often thunder through fragile communities. You will probably be reading this either in a paper copy of the Herald Express or viewing an online version. If you want to evidence some of the throwing of verbal insults then do look at the online comments that pop up after many articles! Of course many comments offer balanced opinion but sadly quite large numbers evidence less wholesome rhetoric.

Thinking about the political landscape for a moment and the way in which words are used I was quite intrigued by the rhetoric leading up to the Rochester and Strood by-election and the period immediately after. Party workers from Torbay joined numerous leading politicians in walking the streets of the constituency campaigning for their hopeful candidates. As you probably know the outcome was a UKIP success for Tory defector Mark Reckless, but what caught my attention was the resignation from Labour's front bench of Shadow Attorney General Emily Thornberry. Emotions were running high at Rochester and Strood which made it a breeding ground for loose comment. Emily Thornberry sent a Tweet about white vans and Union Flags which caused upset to many and provided fuel for the opposition. My point is that this one brief Tweet caused outrage and had her bumped from political office in record time. The Tweet was divisive and a divided community is a worrying place. That is something we must guard against. Hmm. If the Shadow Attorney General is that loose with words what hope is there for the rest of us?

Emily Thornberry

So, the next time you feel like saying something nasty about someone else why not preface the comment mentally with the words "Would you like a cup of tea?" That peaceful mental picture quite often is enough to stop the hurtful words becoming a reality! At the very least think before you add to the social media bonfire or launch careless words into the public domain.

Keep the smile

(Published in the Herald Express 27th November 2014) 

Political manoeuvres on the English Riviera!

Also published in the Herald Express 30th October 2014. For many years I've been up before the dawn walking my dog and thinking. It's a good thing to do because very little moves and at this time of year the darkness provides a feeling of isolation that is curiously comfortable. I think that it is possible to taste the new day and if my walk takes me near the beach the first shards of light add to the delicious tingle of being alive! My dog, Marley, has the advantage of a 'doggy' sense of smell and therefore sniffs the retreating nocturnal wildlife before other hounds pollute the landscape.

Nick Bye and Gordon Oliver a little while ago! Both looking much younger!!

Yesterday morning I was out and about in Paignton shortly after 5.30 and the first thing that struck me was the almost absolute darkness. As I turned into Barcombe Lane it felt as though I was about to disappear down a rabbit hole. The streetlights were off and the darkness was almost a little sinister. In these dark hours I do wear a high resolution vest in the hope of avoiding destruction at the hands of a sleepy motorist staring myopically through a misty windscreen at the road ahead. To date that has been a successful strategy!

The absence of street light is of course a consequence of a local council attempting, perhaps hopelessly, to save money is these hard economic times. As I walked in the darkness that morning two things came to mind. The first was recalling the Spanish Roman Catholic mystic John of the Cross who battled with personal demons so long ago in the dark hours. He spoke of the 'dark night of the soul' and I am certain that many of us may, whilst not being mystical, have tasted the curious loneliness of being awake long before the dawn. I've been messing around with a theory about that time of night that I add to a model which for the moment I simply call a fear index.

The second thing that caught my early morning mercurial mind was a recent event at Preston Conservative Club that was more a 'night of long knives' rather than a 'dark night of the soul'. Our mayor, who also happened to be the leader of the local Conservative Party, faced a challenge to his leadership that night. The consequence, as I am sure that you know, was his loss of the leadership. He remains, at the time of writing, the mayor. I gather that he thought he would weather the storm that night and expected support from members but that turned out not to be the case. Of course describing it as a night of the long knives is perhaps over egging it but Gordon Oliver did seem a little shaken by the outcome.

My dark 'streetlightless' walk that morning brought home to me the challenges of political leadership these days. Of course our mayor does have enormous power but it should be remembered that he also has a small army of highly paid local government officers offering strategic advice. Whether he always takes that advice is another matter but nonetheless it is something to keep in mind. We seem stuck with the mayoral system for at least another five years after the 2015 elections and the question that we must ask is what is that going to look like? You may remember Nick Bye not getting the support of his backers five years ago and it looks as though Gordon Oliver may be facing the same landscape!  Oddly enough Nick Bye's name has popped up again as a potential candidate. As they say "Watch this space!"

Oddly enough I almost bumped into our mayor at the annual MTI (manufacturing, technology and innovation) Exhibition at the Riviera International Conference Centre in Torquay and he seemed to be a somewhat lonely figure. Perhaps he was still pondering the fallout from the unpleasant meeting that bumped him from the local Conservative Party leadership. I don’t know and didn’t get a chance to ask because other demands got in the way.  What was my reason for being at MTI 2014? I wanted to spend a little time amongst some really positive people. It’s all too easy these days to sit back and criticise. Too often that criticism is simply a pop at easy targets. If we allow that to be the way in which we approach our community then the outcome is likely to be miserable. Martin Foulger chairs the Torbay Hi-tech Forum and is also a divisional director with Spirent Communications. He says “Torbay is home to a successful sector of national and international hi-tech companies and today due to its location and availability of skills, is attracting more such businesses, developing Torbay into a thriving centre of excellence for the hi-tech market.” Now that has to be something to celebrate!

Keep the smile.