Discover our history - Paddington Development Trust

Harrow RoadNeighbourhood Partnership newsPHOTO COURTESY OF HRNPThe All Sing! Community Choir practices onTuesday evenings at Paddington Academy.Music makes the world go roundIn briefChat MondaysChat Mondays will offerinformal talks around healthand wellbeing, volunteering,family, housing and welfare,weekly event listings andmuch more. There will be freerefreshments, music, games andsocialising. Come and makenew friends and have fun everyMon 10am-12pm at WECHCommunity Centre, ChantryClose (off Elgin Ave) W9. Fordetails call Paola on 020 89685543 or email hrnp@ghg.org.ukResidents enjoyed a trip to aconcert at Wigmore Hall lastmonth as part of the wardcouncillor funded All Sing!Community Choir.The Choir began in late 2009 asan experiment, to see if a groupof strangers could be encouragedto come together to learn, makebeautiful music and have fun.‘It’s been going really well! Wehave almost 50 singers involved,ranging from the youngest at sixto the oldest at 86,’ says IsabelleAdams, All Sing! Project Manager,who leads the choir.Meeting every Tuesday evening atPaddington Academy, the groupsings its way through a repertoireof tunes including English andIcelandic folk songs, South Africanfreedom chants, and even ‘I wentdown to the river to pray’ – aGospel song best known from thesoundtrack of the film ‘O Brother,Where Art Thou.’The choir handles three-partharmonies, solos and intricaterhythms with ease; and theenthusiasm of the participantsreally shines through in theirperformance. Isabelle describestheir most recent efforts as ‘a reallygood sound, with people reallygaining in confidence each week.’The choir members seem to havetaken a genuine interest in eachother’s lives. ‘People have reallybeen chatting,’ says Isabelle.‘There’s a real sense of everyonetrying to find out about the otherparticipants and how they came tobe here.’One participant has even bloggedabout the experience of joiningthe choir: ‘We leave the practicesessions...full of happiness with aspring in our step singing our wayhome.’On 21 March, the All Sing!Community Choir will be givingan exclusive performance atthe prestigious Wigmore Hall.Free tickets are available byphoning 020 7935 2141. Becauseof the success of the All Sing!Community Choir, Wigmore Hallis looking for a way to continue tosupport it in the future.If you are interested in other musicopportunities available locally, contactWigmore Learning on 020 7258 8240.TimeBankThe TimeBank has started andwe now share our time in thecommunity to help and gethelp with what we need, likebabysitting, gardening, dogwalking, ironing, sewing, cyclerepairs, sports training, visitingpeople, doing errands, shopping,etc. Drop in to Chat Mondays(see above) to find out howwe can help each other in theneighbourhood. TIMEBANK =TIME to GIVE & TAKE!Trying to get on theproperty ladder?Homeownership Westminster isa council service that can help.Homeownership Westminsterenables those living or workingin the City of Westminsterto be prioritised for homeownership opportunities in thearea. These include part-buypart-rent, intermediate rent andshared equity schemes. Youcan register by calling 0845437 9701 or by completing aregistration form located atwww.homeownershipwestminster. co.ukFor information on Harrow Road Neighbourhood Partnership go to www.harrowroadblog.com