Hello Everyone,
This week we launched the Let’s Love Newham campaign, because we all love our borough! The campaign is the next phase of our all-important work of keeping our borough clean. It’s about embedding civic pride in the streets and neighbourhoods we live; tackling fly-tipping and making sure that that everyone takes responsibility to reduce waste! Building on other campaign successes such as Be Bin Day Ready and the award winning and tireless work of our Council teams who are out and about day-in-day out to keep our streets and parks clean. Did you know that in the past 8-months alone they’ve cleared 50,920 fly-tips across the borough, weighing a total of 2,800 tonnes which could fill approximately 1.8 Olympic-sized swimming pools! Through Let’s Love Newham campaign, we are asking that everyone plays their part by reporting fly-tipping through the free Love Newham app or join local clean-ups with other residents in your area because everyday actions when we work together will create tangible impacts and improvements for everyone. Earlier in the week, I spoke at an event organised by the Social Mobility Commission, which does work to ensure that everyone in the UK gets a fair chance to get on in life because people’s backgrounds shouldn’t be a barrier to their aspirations. Having a fair chance to get on in life, regardless of your background, is something I deeply care about, and that’s what I’ve been driving since I became Mayor of Newham back in 2018. When we allow the talents of all of us to be unleashed, we benefit everyone. It’s what our Building a Fairer Newham mission is all about. Already, Newham continues to rank among the highest performing local authorities in the country for social mobility, with the East Ham and Stratford constituencies leading the way nationally. Our outstanding schools, strong Year 6 and GCSE results, and inclusive local initiatives are helping young people access opportunity. But we also know that structural barriers in housing, employment, and access to services persist. That’s why I launched the independent Commission on the Future of Inclusion and Belonging in Newham: designed to embed fairness and inclusion across all council services, ensuring that every resident has a chance to thrive regardless of background. The Commission currently wants to hear from as many Newham residents about experiences of social cohesion and inclusion in the borough – so please share your views and experiences by taking the survey here. There are also several engagement events planned, so keep an eye out and get involved in shaping the future of the Council. Wednesday was a biggie of a day with two stand out events for me that I immersed myself in! The first was another meeting of the Race Equity in Employment Task Force, which I am a member of and which is chaired by the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham. It’s a national effort, backed by Business in the Community, to tackle youth unemployment which I am passionate about. Every day, when I am out-and-about in our neighbourhoods or in our schools, libraries and Youth Zones I speak to our young people who are really worried about what the future holds, whether they’ll be able to get paid work experience and eventually get a job because of how the world of work is changing rapidly. That’s why I’ll carry on doing all that I can to keep the future of our young people a priority in Newham and nationally. Later that day, I headed to preview the new David Bowie Centre at the V&A East Storehouse – and it is amazing! Did you know he filmed his infamous music videos for his ‘Dancing in the Street’ duo with Mick Jagger in the Millennium Mills over in the Royal Docks in Newham!? The Centre is now the new permanent home for Bowie's extensive archive – and offers an unprecedented glimpse into the life and work of one of the most iconic artists from the UK, regarded as among the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Housing over 90,000 items, including handwritten lyrics, stage costumes, musical instruments, and personal notebooks, chronicling five decades of Bowie's artistic evolution. It is yet another example of the growth of cultural opportunity in our borough and officially opens today, so head over! I was also heartened this week, when I was told that Newham Council was shortlisted twice at the prestigious CiTTi Awards 2025 which recognises the best in transport and traffic innovation. It’s great that we remain recognised for the innovative work we are doing in making our streets safer, more accessible, and better connected. We’ve also received a special commendation for our climate leadership when we got shortlisted for Green Public Sector Organisation of the Year at the Green Awards UK 2025! I was proud of the work we are doing in response to the climate emergency, through our Just Transition Climate Action plan because I want the Council to always do the best it can in support of our people. For instance, from planting over 16,000 trees to giving our people the opportunity to access cheap and green energy through our community energy initiative with Repowering London, we are showing our commitment to building our climate resilience in our borough and to environmental justice for local people. Before I sign off, another reminder that Newham is the beating heart of London’s culture and it is thriving! Head over to the Dialogue Express Café this Sunday 14th September for Stratford LOVES Jazz festival. Bringing live, family-friendly jazz music to the heart of the Carpenters Estate, the festival will showcase local and emerging talent, from traditional jazz to contemporary compositions, providing a platform for young musicians to develop and share their craft. Also, next week sees the start of the 2025 Royal Docks Originals biennial festival! This year’s free cultural festival has a host of great events, performances and art installations for all ages, including Pump House Pulse, the Bioluminescent Garden and Get Moving! Events like these all highlight our ongoing commitment to unleashing culture and creativity in our borough because it’s good for our people, our communities and our economy. As you know, I believe that culture and the arts should be accessible to everyone, regardless of background, postcode, or income. But it’s not just about watching performances. It’s about creating opportunities: volunteering, training, and employment for our residents are the things we build into all our collaborations. For instance, for last weekend’s GDIF 2025 Dancing City over in Stratford, we made sure that through a targeted recruitment drive, the festival created paid roles for Newham locals, including a stage manager, an access manager, and for the first time three BSL interpreters to support Deaf audiences. Twenty-five Newham volunteers also joined the festival team, with one stepping into a leadership role. All volunteers received specialist training in accessibility, customer service, and event coordination - skills that open doors to future employment. And we’re proud to showcase Newham-based artists and the creative talent rooted right here in our borough. It’s a powerful example of our Cultural Strategy: Building Newham’s Creative Future. Because in Newham, the arts are not just something to witness, they’re something to participate in fully. Until next week, stay well and stay happy!
Best wishes, Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz OBE Follow what I am up to via X/Twitter: @rokhsanafiaz | 
