With Winter closing in and the days getting even colder in the run up to christmas, this is the time when everyone starts to get their little sniffles and sneezes, the time when everyone calls in sick with a bunged up nose and a sore throat. Unfortunately these are not going to be the only worries this winter as the threat of Swine Flu rapidly grows, everyone is getting worried about the effects of Swine Flu and how they can prevent themselves from getting the dreaded virus and how to pick up on signs for others who may be at risk.

Swine Flu has caused an immense panic worldwide and many people don’t actually know how to prevent themselves from retracting the virus, the UK is one of the places with the least cases of Swine Fu at the moment and has not yet been ordered as a pandemic, so we have given you a few of our tips to avoiding Swine Flu this winter to keep the stress from your minds. Here are our top tips for preventing Swine Flu this winter.

1.Wash your hands

This is the simplest, yet most important tip of all, it may sound odvious but making sure you wash your hands properly at every opportunity is a must, if you don’t have any hand washing facilities then try and carry some antibacterial gel in your bag with you, you can pick it up at any chemist for very little.

Use warm or hot water if you can. – Lather up and rub not just your fingers and palms but also under the fingernails, around the wrists and between the fingers for as long as it takes to sing “Happy Birthday” twice. – Rinse well.

2.Cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze

This yet again may sound odvious but alot of people don’t think to raise their hand to their mouth, it takes just a few seconds to stop the spread of germs and afterwards make sure you wash your hands thoroughly.The government are saying there is no need to wear face masks at the moment as long as everyone covers the face when coughing or sneezing and then thoroughly washes their hands.

3. Stay Home

If you have the virus or feel like you have the symptoms then stay at home and reduce the risk of passing the virus into others. The virus is very easily spread and the best option is to call the National Pandemic Flu Service on 0800 151 3100.

4.Keep your hands away from your face

Try your hardest to keep your hands away from your eyes, ears, mouth and nose as much as possible as these are direct routes to the blood stream and can attack the protective barrier of the skin. Again if you are needing to touch any of these areas then make sure your hands are thoroughly washed.

5.Avoid anyone who is ill

Try your best to avoid anyone who is feeling unwell or has been diagnosed with the virus as it can spread very easily. This just prevents the risk of further contamination and can prevent others from becoming ill.

6.Don’t Panic

At the moment the best advice we can give to anyone is not to panic although Swine Flu is an issue, it is not yet a pandemic in Harrow and hopefully will not be. to most healthy people Swine Flu causes no threat and with the best advice and medication it can be easily treated, the people most at risk are the people with underline health problems, the government has started to treat the public in order of the highest risks, everyone is getting injected in order of how much they are at risk.

So if you stick to these tips this Winter then you should have a great christmas and an extra safe one at that.

Runners for the Virgin London Marathon 2010 are wanted, which aims to raise money for local causes in Harrow.
The London Marathon is the largest annual fundraising event in the world. Since 1981, runners have raised over £450 million. In 2010, it will establish partnerships with The North West London Community Foundation and Harrow Association of Voluntary Services. All the money raised by the London Marathon will be part of the Harrow Grass grassroots Endowment Challenge Fund.

The goal of these organizations is to reach more than £300,000 by 2011. At the same time, with every £1 raised firstly, then the government will match another £1. The money will be used to help local community groups to go through the recession period. In addition, it could provide financial support to develop new services and volunteers’ opportunities.
In fact, 30 community groups have already been benefited.  The North West London Community Foundation has awarded £115,056 to start a range of activities, such as IT training for older people, after school activities for teenagers, radio projects and health support, etc.
There are available places for Harrow residents to participate in the Virgin London Marathon 2010. Kath Sullivan, the grants officer of North West London Community Foundation explained that, “We ask the runners to exceed £2,000 fundraising target. Along with the application forms, we provide with advice sheet about how to raise money. Once registered, runner will set up their own websites to encourage families, friends and colleagues to use Virgin donation box. ” Meanwhile, training program starts from application. Tips about exercise, food and cloth will be published in the Virgin Magazine. Runners could ask any questions by phone.
“We are not expect to see Olympic runners, this is a fun running. We hope grassroots could match challenge, and raise funds for their boroughs,” Kath said.

Christmas is a time of friendship and joy but it could also turn your house into the most dangerous place on earth. People drinking over the stove, draped tree lights overheating on the Christmas tree and candles flickering amongst the display of Christmas cards make the average house an accident waiting to happen.

Wembley station officer Paul Askew said, “Christmas is a time when people feel relaxed and safety can be overlooked” continuing “We just ask the public to be sensible and aware of fire safety practices.”

The fire service has published their traditional festive warning pack including information on a range of seasonal issues from overloading plugs to drink related fires. Fireworks, parties and drink driving are also other issues the campaign hopes to address.

Figures show that alcohol related fire incidents increase over the seasonal period as people are more likely to drink whilst cooking and entertaining. “We had one incident in Harrow ” Mr Askew remembers, “where someone had started cooking, got drunk and then fell asleep and set their kitchen on fire.”

He insists that more vigilance in the kitchen would cut down on such incidents and being sensible with the consumption of alcohol whilst cooking would go a long way. “Just use your common sense” he says.

“People think it’s okay to drink and drive in this period and it’s not” he adds. The relaxed attitude people have to their own and others safety at Christmas is being brought to question with their range of safety leaflets looking at celebrating sensibly.

With over 1,900 accidental fires in the UK occurring in the home from candles, people are being warned to take care with candles and flammable decorations. The London Fire Brigade advises people to “never leave them burning unattended.”

“The influx of fairy lights can cause problems” Mr Askew adds. With hundreds of festive lights every seasonal period it is of prime importance that home owners are aware of the strain this can put on plugs.

Harrow station manager Paul Simpson agrees “fairy lights and decorations using electricity can be a problem, make sure you don’t leave fairy lights on overnight and try not to overload plugs.”
He also advises against using the square extension plugs as they overload easily, “The bar extension leads are fine , be sure to spread your plugs out.”

Fire safety procedures in the seasonal period ,both Mr Askew and Mr Simpson are keen to insist comes down to being sensible and having an awareness of your surroundings.

“We offer free smoke alarm checks” Mr Askew says. In the last four years, smoke alarm checks by The London fire brigade has reduced 13,670 incidents of fires in people’s homes.

An awareness of simple fire safety practices over the holiday period could be the difference between your celebrations being a blazing success or a tragic disaster.

Taking a moment out of your seasonal excitement to check your fire alarm could be the greatest gift you could give your home.

Harrow firestation offers a free smoke alarm check. More details of this can be found at www.london-fire.gov.uk/HomeFireSafetyVisit.

The Metropolitan, Jubilee and Bakerloo underground are the most important lines to the Harrow community. The Jubilee line has had major changes and has been closed most weekends for the last 7 years. These changes were meant to only last for 7 years but now have taken even longer and will take at least another 28 weekends to complete, but what can residents expect in 2010?

The main change on the tube in 2010 is the tube fare prices. The transport for London team is making the tube prices even higher starting from January in 2010. The fares package for 2010 means that, overall, bus fares will rise by 12.7 per cent and Tube fares by 3.9 per cent. This affects everybody in London, especially in zones 4,5,6,7,8 and 9. The tube already costs a lot when travelling further into and out of central London and with the tube prices going up it can be expected to be spending about the price of a normal single day travel card daily. This would cost between £10.00 and £16.20 pounds a day. This is of course for people who do not have an oyster card or year or month student travel cards. There are also the same discounts as before for people with disabilities or who cannot afford it. Even so, it should be expected to be paying an extra 20p for each journey compared to last year.

The Mayor said: “Nobody wants to make an announcement like this, especially when Londoners are feeling the effects of the recession. It is not a decision that I have taken lightly. Indeed, I have been persuaded of the need for fare rises only after ensuring that every efficiency possible, at least £5 billion in total, is being made at TfL.”

Johnson justified the price rise saying that “the era of ever rising funding from the taxpayer is now firmly at an end”. This would need to be taken into account when setting fares in the future, he added. London’s Congestion Charge has also had some changes, as it should be easier to pay now and easier to avoid penalties.

After asking a few people around Northwick Park tube station in Kenton about their thoughts on the fare increases the public generally did not feel happy with these changes. Many just could not understand where the extra money would go, as tube fares went up last year as well and little changes that had actually been made. One lady I asked stated, “It’s unfair to keep charging us more for something we can’t live without.”
In spite of everything, transport for London and the Mayor, Boris Johnson are sticking to their decisions and are proud of it and do believe it is necessary.

It’s that time again and you have been allocated the job of organising the works Christmas party, It’s always a tough one on where to go, what to do and how to please everyone. Christmas is a time of festive fun and lot’s of food and drink, so play up on that and try and get your budget as big as possible, you want the party you organised to be the one that everyone remembers and you definately don’t want anyone leaving early, so we have put together a few little tips on how to throw the best christmas party.

Food

Make sure that you work out everyones likes and dislikes, for example if the majority of your work mates love thai food don’t go and book and indian restaurant, make sure that you have a look around, if you decide that you want to book a chinese then have a look at all the chinese restaurants in the area and ask people’s opinions, It is also a good idea to try out the food yourself, so why not use it as an excuse to take the partner out for dinner or just go for a meal and a few drinks with mates, it’s “research”. The most important thing is to make sure that the restaurant caters for everyone, so make sure they have a vegetarian option, a meat option, a light option etc.

Alcohol

Who doesn’t want to have a few drinks at their christmas party, most people only go to their christmas party so they can get drunk on the companies expense, so make sure you find somewhere with a big bar and a large amount of choice, if your boss is paying then don’t worry about the price but if you are all forking out of your own pockets then try and find somewhere with a cheap bar or strike up a deal with the manager, maybe try and get a free bottle of wine with the meal or a glass per person.

Dancing

You want to make sure that everyone enjoys the night and has a great time, so why not try to find somewhere that may even have it’s own little dance floor or entertainment during the meal, these places are quite hard to find and can prove quite pricey, so if your struggling why not try to find a place near some clubs or bars, so that after the meal everyone can carry on partying the night on elsewhere.

Make it unique

Try to add one little special touch that will make your christmas party stand out, maybe have a theme or fancey dress, it’s up to you what you decide but be inventive and make sure you have fun with it, everyone loves a laugh at christmas and just because your going out with work mates it doesn’t mean you can’t have fun.

Enjoy yourself

The final tip is to just enjoy it, once all the preparation is done it’s time to let your hair down and enjoy the party you have created. Have a great time and deal with the hangover in the morning. Merry Christmas.

The residents of Harrow are quite the party crowd, well so I found out when I went around the shopping centre in Harrow. It only takes half an hour to get to central London from Harrow with the privilege of London Transport.

Harrow residents are able to take the metropolitan line and quickly get into central London. Some may think it is simply obvious that Harrow residents would choose to go central since it is so near by. The question, do you party in Harrow or go party elsewhere, was raised to the people of Harrow.

There was quite the response. “I go central more than Harrow,” twenty year old Tommy Hobbs from Northwick Park said.

“I go central more than Harrow” Tanzi McKeever eighteen, from Northwick Park said, “I’m too lazy and broke to party central, plus it is cheaper to party in Harrow. I go to the student bar at Westminster University and I go to a club called, Junction”

Someone who is not too lazy to travel central is twenty year old Ollie Thomas from Wealdstone he said, “I do stay in Harrow a few times but I go central also. I go central more than Harrow.”

Lisa Anderson and Theo Anderson from Harrow-on-the-hill said, “we usually chose to go central since it is more to our style, there are all types of people in clubs in London. People from all over London, which makes it more interesting than just going Harrow where you usually see the same people and we’ve been to all the clubs and party events that could possibly be held in Harrow.” They added, “we do like to go to places like club KOKO and Amika club in Kensington.”

Harrow has many built vibrant venues for parties and clubs such as ‘Masti’ and ‘Ash bar’. Nightlife in Harrow is better we think it is as these Harrow residents said.

For a lot of people a new year means starting a fresh in no matter what aspect of life.

We asked our fellow Harrow citizens and neighbours what their new years resolutions for 2010 are and we were surprised at how much similarities we found.

‘ I can’t wait to start playing football again. I just had a sprain on my leg’ said 17-year old student Ahmet Akkurt from Harrow ‘I want to shoot more goals next year’.

“ I want to take dance lessons” said Andrew Porter, 31, a Teacher from Wealdstone

“ I’m planning to get married during the next year so I literally need to step my dancing up”“ Me and my sister decided to walk up the escalators on the tube stations from now on” Alina Liepa, 23, Barrista from Harrow on the Hill said “ It’s supposed to be sort of a new exercising method, before and after coming from work. We want to lose weight”

It is not only personal health at the top of the new years resolutions list, the health of our planet seems equally important as 18 year old student Mila Rippenbein from Willesden Green states “ I just watched the movie 2012 and it really made me think about what we are doing to our Planet” she adds “ I want to go green. I want to use recyclable bin bags and all of those things”.

A travelling becomes more affordable every year, we hear that our fellow citizens plan to travel a lot further in 2010.

“I plan to visit my daughter and her family in New Zealand this summer” said 73 year-old Alcott Chidgey, a former butcher, from Harrow “I’m about to become a great-grandfather in march”

“We didn’t have a honey moon this year” said Rachel and Josh Foster, a couple from Harrow “We couldn’t afford one this year so we plan to visit Thailand in the new year”

“ I want to spent less money on casual clothing” 21 –year old ,cosmetic consultant Senna Oezkuerkcue from Kingsbury said “ I need to save money so I can travel to Australia”.

Although there are many people with long lists of resolutions, there are lot’s of people who have given up on the idea. “I don’t make any new years resolutions anymore because I have seen that mine is never meet” said April Francis, 20, Student from Northwick Park.

“Every time I end up doing one, I end up making the exact opposite. Instead of thinking about it I rather tend to forget it”.

Nevertheless we hope you all can meet your resolutions for 2010 and enjoy the year ahead.

Seasonal holidays are the perfect time for family bonding, and what better way to do it than ice-skating around the banks of River Thames! For the 7th year, Hampton court palace is back with the 6-week event.

The ice rink is set around Henry VII’s amazing red-bricked Tudor palace, decorated with lighting that will take your breath away. Hot food and drink will be available while you, take a break, watch a friend or make memories by recording all the fun.

With the weather bringing everyone into the Christmas spirit, booking a session at Hampton court palace will be the icing on the cake! So don’t forget to bring your hats, scarves and gloves too keep you nice and cosy while to skate around the unmissable and most enjoyable event of the year! It’s never to early to book so session, so grab a friend or bring the whole family down for a night you won’t forget!

www.hamptoncourticerink.com

Awaiting friend confirmation

Winter is the flu season, as virus stays longer when air is cold and dry. As Christmas is coming, people have more chances to meet together. It is necessary to give advices about how to protect yourself and the whole family from swine flu.

The first thing is that if you are feeling ill, do not go to Christmas parties. You should make apologies and go home, rather then take the risk of infecting others. Also, etiquette advisers said that a kiss hello is a more hygienic than a handshake. So if you want to show the greeting, the best way to do so is to briefly touch cheeks with friends. No matter you are attending a party or visiting a Christmas market, don’t have a close contact with people who are coughing or sneezing.

Moreover, all people dressing up as Christmas Santa are recommended to get vaccinated against the swine flu. They should avoid kissing children and shaking their hands to prevent spreading flu.

In addition, pack instant hand sanitizer in kid’s backpack. Slathering it on throughout the day can minimize the chance that your child will transmit potential germs on his hands to his mouth and nose.

If you have a travel plan in this Christmas, you should consult the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for the latest travel advice for the country concerned.

Although the UK has moved to a treatment phase for swine flu, it is still important to remind people to continue to do everything they can to stop the virus from spreading. Death rates in the swine flu pandemic are lower than previously anticipated, but vaccination programme must carry on to combat the dise

Harrow Arts Center delighted, inspired and educated audiences last week by a theatre performance with a difference. And Then They Came For Me debuted in Harrow on Wednesday, December ninth at the Travellers Studio and was a stunning success.

The play tells the story of Eva Schloss, then Eva Geiringer, who is Anne Frank’s step sister and knew her during her time in Amsterdam. Eva was a jewish girl of thirteen from Vienna, but forced to move to Amsterdam.

She had grown up as the Nationalist Socialist movement came to power and suffered through the steady increase in anti-Semitism, leading up to and during the Second World War. Then gone into hiding, moving from building to building until betrayed and sent to Auschwitz. “It was luck for us that we survived” said Eva.

Played by Alexandra Vevers, the performance shows the emotions and fears that Eva and her family experienced when hiding and as they were captured. Her thoughts as a young teenage girl are very well portrayed and show her humanity during those terrible years. Even her lack of understanding for how serious the situation really was is presented in a way that today’s youth can connect with.

Eva’s story is told using live actors and with the accompaniment of video footage. The footage consists of real interviews with both Eva Schloss and Ed Silverberg, then known as Helmuth Silberberg, who was Anne Frank’s sweetheart; known in her diary as “Hello”. His tale of escape from persecution and transport to the camps is also told and played by Michael Gambaro. The role of Anne Frank in the play is very small and more of a cameo appearance, played by Shani Perez.

The interviews help narrate the play as events unfold and added a different dynamic to what you might normally expect from a stage show. Sometimes the cast spoke over the voices of the narrating holocaust survivors, other times seeming to ask questions, which were then answered via the interviews. This created a sense of interactivity between the actors and the video screen.

Unknown to the audience, Eva Schloss sat among them during all four performances over Wednesday and Thursday and stayed behind to answer questions at the end. On Wednesday morning’s performance, a group of school children attending for an educational experience and were able to interview Eva.

One question asked was if she could forgive the German officers who took her father and bother and so many others from her. She answered, “No, I don’t want to forgive those people. They are not what I consider to be people.”

She went on to explain that the officers had been brainwashed and conditioned to become so uncaring and inhumane. “They were trained like a little dog.” This was explored during the performance by actor Barnaby McCarther, who plays a Hitler Youth instructed to care for a puppy and then later strangle it.

Eva is a good friend to the director, who aims to bring the play to many different audiences, not only to show how very real the holocaust was, but also to highlight issues within modern society; specifically those that deal with religious hatred and intolerance.

Featured at the start of the play was a video slideshow ‘Making Hate History’ accompanied by the song ‘Know My Name’, which was especially written for the play which lasted one hour.