Brighter Future for Young Girls

Schools Minister Vernon Coaker officially opened state-of-the-art buildings at Reading Girls' School and Kendrick School on Tuesday October 21st.

Mr. Coaker visited Reading Girls' School in Northumberland Avenue, Whitley, where he opened a £5.5 million post-16 learning centre. The centre will provide facilities for young Mums who want to return to education with an on-site nursery for children. It also provides purpose-built hair and beauty salons for girls who want to achieve vocational qualifications such as hairdressing or leisure or tourism. Thames Valley University will run the courses at the centre, which was funded by Reading Borough Council and the Learning and Skills Council.

Mr. Coaker also opened the new Sixth Form Block at Kendrick School as well as its new Faraday Building for Sixth Form students. The £3.15 million Sixth Form block at the London Road school was developed as part of the Kendrick Federation that was formed between Kendrick and Reading Girls' Schools in 2007. It was built using £2.3 million funding from central government and the balance from the borough council's capital programme. It provides a common room and library for students. The new block means that the school can also increase its Sixth Form by 50 pupils and provide better learning resources.

The £1.2 million Faraday Building is an extension to the main school building. It features laboratories for Sixth Form students and was funded by £150,000 raised by the school, while the rest was funded by government and the council's capital programme.

Mr Coaker said, "The important thing the people of Reading will want to know is that standards are improving and that young people, whatever their background, whatever their ability, will achieve the very best they can. It's obvious that the council has improvd standards across the board. I think Reading has demonstrated that, in the federation of those two schools, to the rest of the country."

Marsha Elms, Executive Head of the Kendrick Federation, said, "We are thrilled to be leading an initiative which will serve the women of all abilities across Reading."

Viv Angus, Headteacher of Reading Girls' School, said, "It is indeed an innovative project which I am confident will greatly enhance opportunities for girls."

Jon Hartley, lead councillor for education and life-long learning, added, "These superb new facilities show the real benefits to both schools of being in a federation. Everybody involved should be proud to have been able to make these ambitious projects a reality."

Source: Reading Post lherbert@reading-epost.co.uk


It gives me great pleasure to post about this - not least because my daughter was educated at Kendrick School before going on to study Classics at Leeds University and much later to teach English in Vietnam, where she set up a charity in Ho Chi Minh City in memory of her father (my husband) which, for seven years now, has trained disadvantaged young people in hairdressing - see http://www.vuonlen.org.uk .

'Difficult to keep it going'

When my husband died in the year 2000 the family set up a charity in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, in his memory. He himself had found it difficult to gain higher education and he took a keen interest in the work that our daughter was doing in ho chi Minh City.

'Vuon Len', which means 'making the effort to succeed in spite of adversity', was opened in June 2002 with the aim of providing free skills training to young people who have no means of finding the necessary fees for skills training.

Each course lasts for 6 months and equips normally ten trainees with the skills they need to be able to find work in hairdressing salons and to make extra money as freelance manicurists. The apprentices complete their course with a good understanding of how a salon should be run. They invariably leave 'Vuon Len' better-groomed than when they arrived, exhilarated by all they have achieved and with tangible hopes for their futures. Most of the former apprentices are now settled in stable hairdressing jobs, a number of simple salons have been set up, both in the city suburbs and the countryside, thanks to the skills learnt at 'Vuon Len', and there has been a very significant trickle-down effect with former trainees teaching their relatives and friends.

Today I thought I would share with you the latest e-mail from my daughter, Sheila, which tells you how difficult it can be to keep small charities going. She wrote,
"Just this week we've had the bombshell that ₤800 has to be paid by the end of May, ₤400 immediately, for a compulsory Environment Protection Certificate, which has suddenly become obligatory for all state-approved premises first, to be extended to other premises later, without which the premises will be forced to close. These sudden demands for money are typical and this time it seems to be to help pay for the massive cost of replacing all the city's waste water pipes with larger ones to try to solve the flooding problem ( the photo was the other day ). They are currently doing the pipes in front of my house. They work from 8pm to 5am so it's very difficult to sleep, and for months there have been terrible traffic jams as everyone tries to get past the roadworks all over the place.

The environment certification is a long process which has to be begun immediately to meet the deadline before the forced closure in case of failure to comply. Environment inspectors will keep coming to do tests on the waste water. Yesterday was the deadline for the first payment and I managed to find enough as it is very difficult to envisage closure when there are young people counting on VL for their futures, eager to study and who understand nothing about environment certificates.
But it's so difficult to keep it going."

So we have been very grateful for the support of the Tanner Trust and, in the beginning, the Chic Salon in Jersey. If you are interested to read more about Vuon Len, please go to www.vuonlen.org.uk where you can see photos and case histories of the apprentices who have been trained.

The Poor need both Fishing Rods and Fishing Skills - HCM City (4)

Existing subsidy policies have turned out to be inadequate to assist the nation’s poor on the threshold of the Lunar New Year.

Price hikes are hitting them in the stomach and more action is needed to assist to improve their lot. In recent days, dizzying price spikes in rice and meat have nearly doubled the cost of these two essential Tet items since last year. The price of gold has not even surged this much. Several enterprises have offered meager Tet perks for their staff, ranging from VND50,000 to VND100,000 (US$3.20-$6.20). Such small incentives are not even enough to buy a kilogram of pork, which has reached up to VND70,000 as Tet approaches. Unjust bonuses have resulted in disgruntled workers going on massive strikes as their families tighten their belts for Tet.

In recent days, Thanh Nien and other newspapers and organizations have traveled to remote areas across Vietnam to donate gifts to poor families. But such kindness does not do much to lift them out of grinding poverty.

More action is, therefore, needed. Programs to help the poor could include setting up credit funds and providing free vocational centers. To help realize the goal of helping the poor rise out of poverty, Vietnam’s youth has turned out to be an efficient task force. It is essential that youth unions bolster their engagement in this regard to equip the poor with both fishing rods and fishing skills.

Welcome to the Year of the Rat - HCM City (3)

You will see that this was written just before Tet (New Year)

HCM CITY — Viet Nam Television and HCM City Television will broadcast live celebrations from Ha Noi and HCM City on Lunar New Year’s Eve tonight, 6th February, to welcome the Year of the Rat.

In the heart of Ha Noi, Sword Lake – A Shining Gem programme that will be the highlight of the city’s festivities. Ngoc Son Temple and Sword Lake will be lit up and alive with video performances by French architect Alain Hubert. This is the first time a French architect has been responsible for a light show in Ha Noi. Hubert had done a display in the Hue festivals. A light show will go on for 30 minutes accompanied by a special concert with violinist Bui Cong Duy, pianist Trinh Huong and other popular singers. Two ao dai (traditional dress) collections by famous designers Quang Huy and Minh Hanh will be exhibited at the The Huc Bridge.

In Ho Chi Minh City, a huge concert will take place on Nguyen Hue Boulevard from 9pm on New Year’s Eve, along with a laser light show and a clock count-down. The performance will be in three parts: Songs for Spring Flowers, Tet and Motherland, New Spring and More Prosperity. At midnight, 12 artists in animal costumes, one for each of the oriental zodiac years, will perform a show to bid farewell to the Year of the Pig and to welcome the Year of the Rat.

All show spaces will be covered by paper flowers and fireworks at midnight. Meanwhile, other activities have been organised on Nguyen Hue Boulevard and parks throughout the city. At Youth Palace, activities to celebrate Lunar New Year were opened before Tet for migrant workers and students who will not be able to visit their families. Street fairs for old scholarly teachers to paint calligraphy, and others to sell souvenirs and photographs and a newspaper exhibition have been held. The festivities at the Youth Palace will continue over Tet with traditional Guinness record activities, music concerts, human chess, comedy party and traditional martial arts.

As usual, Spring Flower Festival will open at Tao Dan Park with more than 6,000 decorative plants and ornamental animals, along with stone art. There will be contests for flower arranging and ornamental birds. Dam Sen, Suoi Tien, Binh Quoi, Tan Cang and Van Thanh Tourism parks will offer more fun for visitors with artistic performances for the whole Tet festival. —VNS

The Other Side of the Picture - HCM City (2)

As in all large cities, there is always another side to the picture which should never be forgotten. While we rejoice to hear of the progress made in Ho Chi Minh City in the last year, we must continue to pray and work so that the poor can share in the prodperity. The report continues:-

"But the poor feel pinch

If Tet (New Year) is a time to splurge and make merry with tables overflowing with food and gift-giving for some, it’s another reminder of what it means to be poor for others.

A soy milk vendor on Nguyen Tri Phuong Street named Suong is feeling the pinch. She spent half a day bargaining for candied fruits and melon seeds to put on her ancestral altar on the first day of the year. Having had to spend VND200,000, Suong said this is the most expensive Tet for her. On top of the fact that prices are always more expensive around Tet, inflation has created a double whammy for her pocketbook.

At the candy and preserves stall at Binh Tay Market, a middle-aged customer bemoaned, "Last week I bought a kilogram of candied coconut with VND35,000. Now the price is nearly double." A retired civil servant in District 6 said she decided to shop at Binh Tay Market because its prices were still lower than those at other markets. "I shopped at three markets. One kilogram of candied ginger at An Dong Market was VND60,000. Ben Thanh Market sold it for VND70,000 while the price at Binh Tay Market was VND45,000," she said. "With such high prices, I bought little to celebrate a simple holiday."

Trinh Quoc Tuan, a resident of Tan Binh District, had to be particularly price conscious as well. Shopping at Big C Supermarket, Tuan spent around VND100,000 to buy a dozen packages of instant noodle and fresh milk for his two children.
With a monthly salary of VND1.5 million, the Tet bonus equal to one month’s earnings was a significant addition to the household income. Still, he set aside only VND300,000 to buy clothes and food for the children.

Nguyen Ngoc Tuan, head of Ben Thanh Market management board, said the prices of all goods had increased by 10 to 30 per cent. Up to 70 per cent of retailers were selling at higher prices.

Speaking at last week’s meeting to mark the 40th anniversary of Tet Mau Than 1968 general offensive and uprising, the city’s Party Secretary Le Thanh Hai said this year the city would strive to make higher and sustainable econmic growth, create a significant change in the quality, competitiveness and efficiency of products and services, improve local residents’ quality of life, and bridge the gap between the rich and the poor. — VNS"

City bids fond farewell to Year of the Pig (06-02-2008)

I thought you might all like to share reading this press report sent to me by my daughter who lives and works in Viet Nam. It is good to learn of the relative prosperity that this vibrant City is experiencing, even though there is a continuing need for the charity set up in memory of my husband to help girls (who previously could only earn a living by selling toast, etc., on the streets) by training them as skilled hairdressers and manicurists. I will have to split up this report because of its length but I hope you will find it as interesting as I do:-

"2007 was a year of robust development and growing prosperity for the nation’s largest city.HO CHI MINH CITY — Downtown HCM City is overflowing with locals and foreigners streaming in to enjoy the tree-lined streets decorated with lanterns, decorative balloons, flower displays and terra-cotta figures of the rat, the zodiac animal this lunar new year.

Markets and supermarkets were still overcrowded with shoppers hastily stocking up on food, fruit and clothes bought with last-minute Tet work bonuses. "During the last two weeks, sales of goods at our supermarket chains have increased by 40 to 50 per cent," says a manager of a Co-op mart store. The city of 8 million is celebrating the end of a record economic year, which had a growth rate of 12.6 per cent, the highest in the last ten years, despite various challenges brought by globalisation."That figure makes up 21 per cent of the nation’s GDP," said Le Hoang Quan, chairman of the city People’s Committee at a meeting with overseas Vietnamese who have returned for Tet (the Vietnamese New Year).

According to the chairman, the year of the Pig was a good year for the city. It recorded a high growth rate in foreign investment, banking and finance, telecommunications, tourism and logistics. Politburo member and City Party Secretary Le Thanh Hai said the number of poor households that have an average annual income of under VND 6 million only account for 1.8 per cent of the local population. "That fact shows that the city’s economic restructuring process is going in the right direction, especially during the first year Viet Nam became a member of the World Trade Organisation," Quan said.The country’s economic pacesetter is leading the country in terms of FDI with US$2.8 billion invested last year, representing an increase of 27.5 per cent. Banks processed remittances from overseas Vietnamese worth $4 billion last year. Some 2.7 million foreign visitors came to the southern economic hub last year", Quan said.

After two decades of Doi Moi, economic development in this southern business hub is seen everywhere with private cars streaming down the streets, such as expensive Lexus 460L, Audi Q7, Porsches Cayens and Mercedes-Benz models.Earlier this month, a female entrepreneur was featured front-page in the local press as she paid VND13 billion in taxes for her imported Rolls-Royce Phantom model 2008 that she had ordered in London at a price of $500,000. Duong Thi Bach Diep, the director of the Diep Bach Duong Real Estate Company Ltd., also reportedly owns three of BMW’s latest models.

With last year’s average per capita income of $2,180, HCM City was seen as a promising land for many people who came from other localities across the country to find a better paying job. But life was harder than they expected as they had to struggle to pay for basic necessities with low salaries paid by employers at the labour-intensive factories in the southern industrial parks.Although the economic boom of recent years has brought positive changes for many local residents, the gap between the rich and the poor is growing at an exponential rate.

While many families can afford to buy material goods such as expensive high-end audio systems and large LCD television sets, not a few families still have to earn their daily bread by doing odd jobs like selling fruits and cookies and lotteries tickets on the streets. For Tet, many migrant workers at industrial parks could get only a meager bonus of VND100,000 and VND500,000 while the highest Tet bonus is reportedly VND240 million at some companies. The rich and the famous such as Duong Thi Bach Diep are rare in a developing country where the number of households that can spend between VND300 million and 400 million per annum on goods, makes up 20 to 30 per cent of the city’s total population.