by Library Admin | 17 Apr 2024 | advice, FRONT PAGE NEWS, latest
On Thursday 2 May 2024 there will be elections for the Mayor of London and the 25 Members of the London Assembly. I am required by law to send this booklet to all registered voters who are eligible to vote in these elections. It includes mini-manifestos from the Mayoral candidates who have chosen to have one, and the names of all candidates standing for the London Assembly. Changes to this year’s elections Photo ID: If you are voting in a polling station, you must now bring photo identification. You can find out what forms of ID are acceptable here. The good news is that lots of documents are accepted as forms of ID, including, but not limited to:
International travel
Passport issued by the UK, any of the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, a British Overseas Territory, an EEA state or a Commonwealth country (including an Irish Passport Card)
Driving and parking
Driving licence issued by the UK, any of the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, or an EEA state (this includes a provisional driving licence)
A Blue Badge
Local travel
Older Person’s Bus Pass funded by the UK Government
Disabled Person’s Bus Pass funded by the UK Government
Oyster 60+ Card funded by the UK Government
Freedom Pass
Scottish National Entitlement Card issued for the purpose of concessionary travel (including a 60+, disabled or under 22s bus pass)
60 and Over Welsh Concessionary Travel Card
Disabled Person’s Welsh Concessionary Travel Card
Senior SmartPass issued in Northern Ireland
Registered Blind SmartPass or Blind Person’s SmartPass issued in Northern Ireland
War Disablement SmartPass issued in Northern Ireland
60+ SmartPass issued in Northern Ireland
Half Fare SmartPass issued in Northern Ireland
Proof of age
Identity card bearing the Proof of Age Standards Scheme hologram (a PASS card)
Other government issued documents
Biometric immigration document
National identity card issued by an EEA state
Electoral Identity Card issued in Northern Ireland
Voter Authority Certificate
Anonymous Elector’s Document
If you don’t have an accepted form of photo ID
You can apply for a free voter ID document, known as a Voter Authority Certificate, if:
you don’t have an accepted form of photo ID
you’re not sure whether your photo ID still looks like you
you’re worried about using an existing form of ID for any other reason, such as the use of a gender marker
You need to register to vote before applying for a Voter Authority Certificate.
Once you are registered to vote, apply for a Voter Authority Certificate.
How we vote: The way we elect the Mayor of London has changed. There will only be one vote for the Mayor, when in the past there has been a first and second choice. There are two types of London Assembly Member. Constituency Assembly Members represent the 14 London Assembly constituencies, and 11 Assembly Members represent the whole of London. As in previous elections you have one vote for each. You can find out more about how to vote and how we work out the results here.
by Library Admin | 10 Apr 2024 | activities, FRONT PAGE NEWS
A friendly, open group for parents with children. Meet outside the library at 1030 on Wednesdays for a walk and natter in the park, then finish up at the library from 1130 for a cuppa and a warm up if it’s cold No need to book – all welcome! The group would love some new members. Don’t be shy – come along and join the throng.
by Library Admin | 7 Apr 2024 | Cricklereaders, Cricklereaders Current, FRONT PAGE NEWS
In May, Cricklereaders are reading A Man Walks Into a Room by Nicole Krauss.
Award-winning American novelist Nicole Krauss first captivated readers with her groundbreaking debut novel Man Walks into a Room, a novel in which Krauss explores what it is to lose one’s identity and what it is to discover what makes us human.
Samson Greene has been missing for eight days when he is discovered wandering through the Nevada desert, ‘ragged as a crow’ and with no idea who he is. He is rushed to hospital where doctors save his life, but all his memories after the age of twelve have been permanently lost. Now, as he looks around the beautiful apartment he apparently shares with his wife and which is filed with all the souvenirs of a life well lived, Samson feels nothing more than a vague admiration.
In her first novel Nicole Krauss tells the story of a man suddenly liberated from the life he has made, disconnected from the people who have defined him. Withdrawing from a wife he has no memory of loving, Samson plunges weightless into the future. But when he agrees to participate in a revolutionary experiment, what he experiences a revelation of what it means to be human.
‘Krauss celebrates the anything-but-simple art of human connection’ San Francisco Chronicle
‘You’ll savour the last page – and be hungry for future work from this talented author’ The Washington Post Book World
Nicole Krauss is an American bestselling author who has received international critical acclaim for her first three novels: Great House (shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction 2011), The History of Love (Shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction 2006 and winner of the 2006 Prix du Meilleur Livre Étranger) and Man Walks into a Room all of which are available in Penguin paperback.
The group will meet on Sunday 19 May at 1030 in the library.
by Library Admin | 16 Mar 2024 | activities, Cricklereaders Juniors, FRONT PAGE NEWS
Good news! We are restarting Cricklereaders Juniors after Easter!
We have a new activity leader, Emma, who’s full of enthusiasm and keen to get going. So please, regulars, sign up again and we’re also happy to be welcoming a few new members. Booking is essential because of space constraints. So please reserve a place by completing the form on this page.
by Library Admin | 14 Mar 2024 | activities, FRONT PAGE NEWS
Would you like to learn to draw and paint?
If you are a Rusty Returner or have not done any art since schooldays, join our NEW Tuesday sessions. No experience required!
Learn the basics from scratch – how to draw items and make them look 3D!
Take the mystery out of mixing colours – no more wobbly drawings or muddy paintings!
All materials will be provided for the first session. Francine, our very patient and experienced tutor will show you what you need for future sessions.
Tuesdays 9, 16 and 23 April (more dates to come)
12.15 – 2pm
£15 per session
Booking essential
To reserve your space and how to pay
Please email Francine@artsplashlondon.co.uk
by Library Admin | 13 Mar 2024 | activities, FRONT PAGE NEWS
What better way to keep fit than by dancing with Donna? Those of you who have tried Donna’s seated exercise at the library on Monday mornings will know she’s a brilliant, upbeat teacher and great dancer. If you’re feeling the beneficial effects of seated exercise and want to take your fitness journey up a knotch, this is perfect for you. It’s also just great fun for those who just like a good bop of an evening. Why not come along and try it out?
Places are limited, because the room is not huge, so you MUST have a ticket to attend to attend. Until funding comes through there will be a small charge for this class but we hope to make it free in a few weeks.
Entry to the activity room at the back of the library will be via the side passage, to avoid disturbing the Writers Group. Please arrive from 1850.
by Library Admin | 22 Feb 2024 | activities, dancing, health and wellbeing
What better way to keep fit than by dancing with Donna? Those of you who have tried Donna’s seated exercise at the library on Monday mornings will know she’s a brilliant, upbeat teacher and great dancer. If you’re feeling the beneficial effects of seated exercise and want to take your fitness journey up a knotch, this is perfect for you. It’s also just great fun for those who just like a good bop of an evening. This is a free taster. We hope if it takes off, it will become a free, or very low cost regular class. Why not come along and try it out?
Places are limited, because the room is not huge, so you MUST RSVP to attend.
Entry to the activity room at the back of the library will be via the side passage, to avoid disturbing the Writers Group. Please arrive from 1850.
by Admin | 7 Feb 2024 | activities
Kuma Lisa has recently grown from a songwriting duo into a four-piece band, featuring vocals tinged with lyrical piano, jazz and folk-rock influences, with Bulgarian roots. Formed in Walthamstow, London, with original members from the Netherlands (Rob Stutterheim) and Bulgaria (Mariana Bogdanova), the band now play with UK-born double bassist Julia Doyle and drummer Peter Udall.
In 2012, the band appeared live on BBC London with Simon Lederman and in 2013 played on BBC6 Music’s ‘Tom Robinson Introducing’ with Dance of the Fly (mixtape Fresh on the Net). In 2014 the debut album Kuma Lisa was launched at the Vortex Jazz Club in Dalston. Other locations have included St Moritz Club Soho, The Troubadour, the Library in Islington, and St Mary’s Church Walthamstow.
Following a four-year break where life temporarily took us to different locations, the band reformed in 2019, and released the single All the Luck in 2021. In October 2023, a folk-rock collaboration between Kuma Lisa and friends led to the release of four-track EP Furniture Talkback.
Their latest EP Birds in Wells is a moody dream scape of energies, moving through themes of surrealist contemplation of pressures to perform in life (Working at the Circus), disillusionment and coping with being let down (Promised You a Diamond) and visions of landscapes for human effort (Sand Sea).
Recorded at Studio45 in London and mastered at Camden Records, the three-track EP will be released 31 January 2024.
Doors open 1900, music starts 1930. There will be pizzas!
Tickets
by Admin | 7 Feb 2024 | activities, FRONT PAGE NEWS
It’s what you’ve all been waiting for – a local ukulele jam, at your favourite library, right on your doorstep.
Yes, that’s right – from Friday 1 March, (7.30-9pm) we’ll be running a monthly drop in ukulele jam for anyone with a yearning to play the world’s cutest instrument. It really is possible to pick up a uke and play a song with only three chords, within the space of an hour and a half. If you don’t believe me, come along and find out.
We have about 7 ukes you can try, so you’re welcome to come along and take a chance on getting one, or dig out the uke you bought in lockdown and dust it off and come along. We have some spare tuners too, so we can get yours tuned up and ready to rock it out.
We have two volunteer jam leaders – Brendan and Alvaro – who will get the tunes going and lead the playing.
Gwan – you know you want to! Head over here to reserve your free place.
by Library Admin | 2 Feb 2024 | activities, events, FRONT PAGE NEWS
March’s live music event is a chance to hear a flute and piano recital.
Sarah and Oli began performing as a Duo when in May 2023, due to illness, Sarah found herself short a pianist for an imminent recital. Oli stepped in and due to excellent sight-reading skills and knowledge of the flute repertoire, did a fabulous job. They have been performing recitals together since then, across London’s churches, libraries and care homes. This is their first recital together of 2024, exploring flute and piano music by female composers from France, Italy and the USA.
