Christian Jewellery Business to help long-term unemployed

Oct Inspire Magazine

A Christian jewellery company has teamed up with The Salvation Army to offer young people hope of finding a job.
The Silver Fish Company, based in Birmingham’s historic Jewellery Quarter, is offering four young people between the ages of 18 and 24 training and employment. It will be providing mentoring, training and employment for young long-term unemployed at its workshop, where it crafts Bible-inspired jewellery.
The Salvation Army’s Employment Plus UK scheme is funding each position, which has been given cash after winning a contract under the Government’s Future Jobs Fund.
Norma Murrain, who runs The Silver Fish Company, said she was delighted to be taking part and helping people gain new skills to improve their chances of finding work.
She said: “Each position is funded for six months per delegate and the aim is to provide mentoring, training and employment for young long-term unemployed people.
“Successful applicants will be based at our workshops in Vyse Street where they will be trained in jewellery making. I’m really excited about this new project. I hope that they will come to know God’s love and care during our time together as well as learning a new skill and becoming more employable.”
Norma added that she hoped the new skills gained by those who are chosen for the scheme would make finding a job easier.
Nichola Nunn, 20, from Worcester (above, third from left) is one of the four apprentices who successfully gained a place as an apprentice.
The former shop worker said: “After one week I felt like I’d been here for years. It has been a real blessing and I’m learning new skills that I will be able to use to find a new job. I feel really comfortable and it’s great to work somewhere where I can be open about my faith and can share my faith.”
Major Ivor Telfer, director of Employment Plus UK, said: “The Salvation Army is pleased that, in partnership with the Department for Work and Pensions, we have been able to help long-term unemployed young people make a new start and find work.
“We send our congratulations and best wishes to all the new employees at the Silver Fish Company and we look forward to helping more young people into meaningful employment in the coming months.”

Do you have what it takes to be the Sunday Mercury’s Top Model?

Oct 22 2010 By Midlands Marketing

Then we have the perfect competition for you. Most people only dream of walking down a catwalk, but you could make it reality. We’ve teamed up with the Jewellery Quarter Marketing Initiative to offer two aspiring models an opportunity of a lifetime. We are looking for one male and one female to win an amazing prize which includes one year’s modeling contract and a mini portfolio! 

The Overall winners will receive:

• An interview and the opportunity to be registered on Alan Sharman Model Agency books for the 12 months after the competition, with the option to extend if proves beneficial to all parties - www.alansharmanagency.com

• Hair and make up styled by Harris & Gibbs at one of the City’s most luxurious style sanctuaries - www.harrisandgibbs.com

• Photo shoot with Graham Oakes Photography, one of the most experienced Jewellery Quarter model photographers in Birmingham, providing the winners with a mini portfolio - www.oakesstudios.com

• 1 day catwalk training with Wannabe Workshops (Birmingham) - www.wannabeworkshops.com

• A chance to have their faces on the Front cover of the Jewellery Quarter’s most prestigious publications, The Essential Guide to the Jewellery Quarter wearing exquisite jewellery provided by Crystalink Jewellery Manufacturing, one of the Quarter's prestigious jewellers - www.crystalink.co.uk

• Plus lots of other opportunities to model for the Sunday Mercury and the Jewellery Quarter

We will print all the entrants in paper on Sunday November 14 in a pullout so readers can vote for their favourite. The top 10 from each sex will be invited to meet with the judging panel who will then select their top 3 girls and top 3 boys. These finalists will receive a full makeover and have a photoshoot with stunning pieces of jewellery from Birmingham’s very own Jewellery Quarter. They will then feature in paper again for readers to vote for the winners of Sunday Mercury’s Top Model!

So what are you waiting for? There isn’t even an upper age limit, as long as you are over 18 you can enter…all you have to do is text or email us your picture by Wednesday November 10!

How to enter

Email your photos into us, we need the images to be like the ones here and saved as a jpeg you then just need to email the image as an attachment to topmodel@mrn.co.uk including your full name, age, address and a contact number. Please only send one image that you would like us to use.

Remember you have until Wednesday November 10 to get your photos in so plenty of time to glam yourself up!

The Jewel in Birmingham's crown

Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter has always been a unique feature of the City so their Marketing Initiative are delighted to be joining forces with another much loved Birmingham institution - the Sunday Mercury - to give two of their readers the chance of a lifetime to become both a Professional Model and the Face for the Jewellery Quarter!
With over 100 specialist jewellery retailers and Europe's largest School of Jewellery, the Quarter has always been about showcasing style. Creative businesses, from model agencies to photographers, abound in this famous area with its historic buildings and award winning Museums and Galleries - plans are even being made to secure World Heritage Site status.


Terms and conditions
All images must be with us by 5pm, Wednesday November 10. Your photograph and the comments you send may be used for publication in our newspapers and on our websites along with on Jewellery Quarter marketing literature. We may phone you for clarification. Text cost £1 plus standard network charges. Copyright in all materials remains with you but by participating you grant a perpetual license to Trinity Mirror Group and all of its subsidiaries, permitting publication of any and all materials submitted at any time in any manner determined by Trinity Mirror Group or any of its subsidiaries. All images are accepted in good faith. Trinity Mirror Group companies may contact you by phone with details of goods and services you may be interested in. Please note we will not share your details with third parties. Each person can only be entered once. All pictures remain the property of the Sunday Mercury and will not be returned. The Sunday Mercury and the Jewellery Quarter Marketing Initiative may use selected pictures for in-paper promotions. Sunday Mercury reserves the right not to include pictures that it does not consider suitable for printing in paper. Entrance to the competition will automatically involve the publishing of the owner’s name, photograph and the supporting text. The Sunday Mercury cannot be held responsible for the quality of photographic print in the newspaper. The winners must be prepared to take part in any subsequent publicity or promotion. All prizes are subject to availability. Each element of the prizes is subject to its own terms and conditions, which will be printed throughout the promotion. There is no cash alternative. No purchase necessary. Usual Sunday Mercury terms and condition apply. Entrants must be aged over 18 to enter. Std Trinity Mirror rules apply see www.trinitymirror-midlands.co.uk/rules. Competition open to residents within the circulation area of the Sunday Mercury. A full postcode list and footprint of the circulation can be found at http://www.trinitymirror-midlands.co.uk/locations.html.

£63 million revamp of former Science Museum site unveiled

by Jon Griffin, Birmingham Mail

IT’S full steam ahead for the £63 million redevelopment of Birmingham’s former Science Museum site – after well over a decade lying derelict.
Developer RO St Bernards (ROSB) has opened a temporary public square at its Newhall Square scheme, breathing new life into an area once best known for housing the museum.
The Jewellery Quarter site marks a mixed-use development with a public square the size of five tennis courts, and comprising offices, a Travelodge, leisure space and a car park.
Chris Bond, chief executive officer of ROSB, said: “Although the Newhall Square scheme is still under development, the hotel and office space mean that it is open for business. We wanted to invite people to visit Newhall Square and experience the public meeting and events space there.
“Although the temporary square is around a third of the size the proposed public square will eventually be, it gives visitors a flavour of the kind of space we are hoping to create.”
To mark the development, local artist Kate Farley has designed a collage, called The Order of Things, based on photographs and other items salvaged from the old Science Museum.
Meanwhile, an exhibition featuring a selection of 2,500 photographs taken at New York’s notorious Terminal Bar was recently held in the Engine Room, the refurbished former exhibition hall at the Science Museum.
The photographs were taken by Sheldon Nadelman at the New York bar.
The 100-bedroom Travelodge marks an investment of more than £5 million by the leading UK hotel budget chain.
ROSB is planning a regular programme of events at the square, which can be accessed from both Newhall Street and Charlotte Street, throughout the year. The 2.3 acre site has lain derelict since 1997 when the Science Museum, which opened in 1951, closed in the Jewellery Quarter.

Inner-city dwellers find a taste of the countryside

October 14 2010 - Co-operative News

A community initiative to bring a taste of the countryside to inner city Birmingham is becoming a co-operative with the help of Co-operative Futures.

Farmers’ market 24 Carrots started in July last year, and brings around 20 market stalls every month to the trendy Jewellery Quarter.
Following a successful pilot of five markets in 2009, the event is now a regular fixture in Birmingham’s calendar, attracting around 700 shoppers to each event.
But as well as bringing fresh produce to the middle of the city, 24 Carrots has a social aspect. Unusually, the organisers are not the farmers themselves, but people who live in the Jewellery Quarter and work together to create a sense of community and bring an atmospheric and lively event to their area.
The long-term aim of the organisation is to turn a profit, which can be ploughed into less affluent parts of the Ladywood area of Birmingham, which has the highest unemployment rate in the West Midlands.
Clare Sillery, one of 12 committee members behind the venture — easily identified on market days by their carrot-coloured hoodies — said: “We want to take the idea of healthy eating into the wider community. We also plan to produce a book featuring fabulous pictures, anecdotes and recipes.”
24 Carrots celebrated its first anniversary with a birthday carrot cake, a handful of jewellery stalls from the surrounding businesses, and a tombola with prizes donated by stall holders.
The party was joined by Martin Saunders and Phil Etheridge from indie rock band The Twang, who come from Birmingham and whose second album, released last year, was called Jewellery Quarter.
The group is currently forming the community co-op with support from the Midcounties Society, which is helping members through the process of formally setting up the organisation, and the western region of Midlands Co-op, which is paying the group’s Financial Services Authority registration fee.
• For more details visit: www.24carrots.org.uk. The next market dates are November 20th and December 18th.

New projects planned for Colmore Business District

Oct 2010
by Alun Thorne, Birmingham Post

Colmore Business District has revealed new development plans to enhance Birmingham’s city centre business area.
At its annual meeting, CBD Chair, Gary Cardin - boss at Drivers Jonas Deloitte in Brindleyplace - announced a number of key projects including the creation of a new public space in Church Street. This project will see the widening of pavements and the creation of a more pedestrian-friendly environment.
Mr Cardin said: “The Church Street project is a joint venture with Birmingham City Council and forms part of the Big City Plan Initiative.
“The project will see the development of a new square on the key route between St Philip's Cathedral and St Paul’s Church, creating a relaxing space to pause, linger or pass through when travelling on foot between the Jewellery Quarter and Colmore Business District.”

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Other recent successful projects have included providing additional street cleansing services through to hosting a variety of events such as the current Brian Griffin “Face to Face” exhibition outside Snow Hill Station and inside One Snowhill.
Other projects that are currently in discussion to enhance the business district include the rejuvenation of the pedestrian footbridge across Great Charles Street to Ludgate Hill in the Jewellery Quarter and the launch of the CBD Food Festival in 2011.