River Festival
set to sail into City
ONE of the biggest maritime
festivals in the UK returns to the Liverpool waterfront in June.
As part of the Mersey River Festival from Friday, 7 June to Sunday, 9 June
2013,
half a dozen Tall Ships will grace the River Mersey, as Liverpool
becomes one of the host ports for the Irish Sea Fleet; Maritime
Tour 2013. The weekend will not only see ships from Ireland, but
also from Denmark, France and Belgium.
The waterfront will come alive with aerobatic displays from Russian
aircrafts, stunning live street theatre, wake boarders and a canoe
polo tournament. And this year sees an international flavour
to the weekend as a World Music Stage will be set up at the Pier
Head playing authentic African, Indian and Arabic music and dance
for all to enjoy.
Cabinet member for culture and
tourism, Councillor Wendy Simon, said:- "The Mersey River
Festival is always hugely popular, attracting hundreds of thousands
of people. The River Festival is one of many occasions this year to
showcase our historic waterfront to visitors from all over the
world. As in previous years there will be something for all
the family to enjoy so I would encourage as many people as possible
to spend a day or two at the Pier Head, soak up the wonderful
atmosphere and celebrate the return of this much loved and popular
festival."
The River Festival will also coincide with Music on the Waterfront,
building on the successful partnership with Smooth Radio, established
last year. After welcoming 20,000 people to the Pier Head in 2012,
Love Live Music returns with a bigger line up than ever - and it's
all free. Big names such as Katie Melua, Nell Bryden, Russell
Watson, KT Tunstall and local band The Christians will perform.
On Sunday, 9 June 2013, the City will host Brouhaha International Carnival,
Liverpool Arab Arts Festival and Sights and Sounds of India,
bringing a splash of colour and music to the Albert Dock and Pier
Head.
To see the full programme visit:-
itsliverpool.com.
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£32m Skills
Investment Fund to support creative growth
CREATIVE Skillset's new
Skills Investment Fund (SIF) addresses skills gaps and shortages in
the growth sectors of film, animation, high-end TV, games and VFX.
Industry co-investment to meet identified priority skills needs will
be matched by the Treasury of up to £16m over two years. For every
£1 invested by industry Creative Skillset can match £1 from the SIF,
leading to a total of £32m.
Creative Skillset is working with all five sectors to identify
priority skills areas and ways to address skills gaps and shortages,
including a new cross sector employer Challenge Fund, due to be
launched later this year.
Each sector will have an advisory skills Council to identify key
skills shortages and develop action plans to oversee the collection
of the fund and how it is invested.
The SIF will invest in a range of initiatives, from new entrant
training to continuous development for professionals already in the
industry. These could include bootcamps and apprenticeships,
subsidised training schemes, short courses and shadowing and
mentoring programmes. This will secure the best new talent into the
industries as well as train and develop the existing workforce.
The film, high-end TV and animation sectors will contribute to the
SIF through production levies and other co-investment. The games
industry will co-invest via a number of schemes, including investing
in training for professionals and supporting trainees via a pilot to
be launched next month. Creative Skillset is in discussion with the
VFX sector to agree the best way forward.
Further details of how industry can co-invest and how individuals
can develop their skills and careers will be announced over the next
month.
Did you feel the
Earthquake?
ON May 29 2013, did any of
our readers feel a Magnitude 3.9, Earthquake that happened 48km West
of Nefyn, Wales, at 3:16.26am. We are interested to know as reports
about this shallow earthquake which struck along the coast of Wales
and there are reports stating that people in Southport and Blackpool
felt it. We would love to know if your dog or cat woke you up
as a result of it... Also if you did feel it then please do email
our newsroom via:-
news24@southportreporter.com
and let us know.
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