Catherine Meyer-Funnell

Posts

Petition for Prince Philip statue launched on Twitter (South West Londoner)

A petition has been launched to erect a statue of Prince Philip in London, following the Duke of Edinburgh’s death this morning. The petition was started on change.org by Save Our Statues after Buckingham Palace confirmed that the Queen’s husband of 73 years died peacefully aged 99. The statement on the website said: The Duke of Edinburgh served our country for 78 years, serving 13 in the Royal Navy & then 65 as Britain’s longest serving consort, including 22,000 engagements & supporting 780 organisations. “We say there should be a prominent statue of the Duke in London to recognise the above, as well as his great personal dedication and support to Her Majesty the Queen.” At time of writing almost 800 people had signed the petition. The duke had previously been admitted to hospital on 16 February where he remained for two weeks. He was then transferred to St Bart’s hospital for treatment for an infection and heart condition after which he was discharged on 16 ...

How has your mental health coped with Covid-19? South London Listens launches survey to find out (South West Londoner)

A new community survey has been launched to discover how people have been coping with their mental health during the pandemic. South West London and St George’s Mental Health Trust created the survey as part of its South London Listens campaign. South London Listens is part of a new mental ill-health prevention programme bringing together NHS Mental Health Trusts, Healthwatch, Public Health England, Black Thrive, Citizens UK and other community partners. More than 5,700 south Londoners have already shared their experiences of their mental health struggles with South London Listens at listening events. It is hoped the new survey will draw attention to the biggest issues to come out of the campaign. The Trust is encouraging everyone from south London to take part. Chair of South West London and St George’s Mental Health Trust Ann Beasley described the last year as an exceptionally challenging time for everyone with some communities affected more than others. Trust chief executive V...

Anti-social behaviour in Hammersmith & Fulham angers residents (South West Londoner)

Anti-social behaviour in Hammersmith & Fulham has angered residents and caused them to complain. Large groups have been gathering along the riverside and sitting on private walls in Bishop’s Park and Fulham Reach, upsetting inhabitants who have accused them of smoking cannabis and urinating publicly. Security patrols have been installed along the river walkway but the area has remained busy since the coronavirus restrictions easing and the weather warming. Councillor Amanda Lloyd-Harris represents the Palace Riverside Ward on Hammersmith & Fulham Council and has lived in Fulham for 25 years. She said: “People are frightened, in some cases, to go out. “People are allowed out there if they use the river walk and it’s public, so they should be able to do that. “But it’s not acceptable to be drinking in these areas in public, or urinating in front of residents.” The river path is a public area, however there are still some restrictions in place, such as a b...

A plea for medium fashion

This is not an article in the traditional sense. It is not an argument but rather a plea, a crying out for us to find a solution to a problem that seems to be dividing the fashion world. Neither side has currently offered up a feasible fix, yet their greatly opposing stances on this issue has only caused shoppers and fashion fans like me to feel even more guilty and confused about what I should be buying and wearing. What I'm talking about is slow vs. fast fashion. Fast fashion is one of those uncomfortable truths that has always existed on the periphery of our consciousness; we always knew deep down that the people who made our clothes didn't have the happiest lives or earn the most money, yet we managed to push it down. It happened in a far away place, it wasn't our fault, it was probably exaggerated or inaccurate information. But this year the Boohoo factory scandal in Leicester made it harder for us to ignore it. All this negative publicity might have been the first s...

Being an eco warrior has been a middle class privilege - but it doesn't have to be

Being able to worry about the future is a luxury. It may seem a strange statement to make, given the current state of the world. A recent art installation of a ‘Climate Clock' on a Manhattan skyscraper, a Doomsday style countdown on how long we have left to reduce our emissions enough to give Earth a 67% chance of staying below the 1.5 ° C of warming that scientists say is crucial to avoid catastrophic natural disasters like floods and wildfires states we have just over seven years. But this contemplation of an abstract and still preventable future peril will not be high on the list of priorities of those struggling to make it through each week. The move towards a more sustainable and considered way of life is necessary, yet it has a tendency to feel like quite a big commitment. The cost of saving the world is more than just financial - it takes time, energy and ambition. Initially I had planned to write this piece on how unattainable this goal can feel to many people. When there...

Enough is enough!

When we were all stuck in lockdown, what did we do? What indeed do we spend much of our weekends and free time doing? The concept of leisure is a relatively new one, given that most of our ancestors spent all their time and energy just trying to survive, but nowadays (especially in the surreal world that is 2020) we find ourselves with a lot of time to fill. This is in itself a good thing; the problems start to arise when we begin to feel pressured by the sheer volume of choices we have to make - and how that can spill over into other areas of our lives. Perhaps this is something that only I and my fellow neurotic Type A's struggle with, but every single app and feed we are plugged into is streaming information at us 24/7, and keeping up with the cultural and political zeitgeist is starting to feel like a job in itself. The mood du jour now has the potential to change with greater rapidity than ever before; no sooner has a particular TV show or writer become this centu...