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City celebrates
250th birthday of ‘’founder of Liverpool’s culture’’
Report
with thanks to Liverpool City Council.
THE 250th anniversary of the birth of William Roscoe on March 8 marks one of the cities and the nation’s most outstanding citizens
To mark this event Liverpool Libraries is mounting an exhibition from April to July in the Picton library, in the Central library, to celebrate Roscoe’s life and times.
Roscoe was a philanthropist, politician, religious reformer, poet, artist and patron of the arts. He played a leading role in the life of the city at the end of the eighteenth and the beginning of the nineteenth century helping to establish 19 societies.
Joyce Little, Head of Libraries, said:- ‘’William was a prominent advocate of the abolition of slavery at a time when such a stance was deeply unpopular with the merchant classes. He also helped to found Liverpool Botanic Gardens, the Royal Institution and the Athenaeum. His legacy is vast. In today’s world he would be a phenomenon.’’
His most celebrated poem is the children’s’ verse The Butterfly’s Ball and the Grasshopper’s Feast, and the exhibition will include a rare early edition of this poem.
Roscoe, who died in June 1831- after influenza and a stroke - most famously wrote a biography of Pope Leo X. But it was his collections which most left its mark with his family. He left more than 8,000 books from his personal library to the Liverpool Athenaeum, many of which ended up in Liverpool Central library.
His wife Jane once remarked:- ‘’I could never send him out for apples and oranges without him coming back with a picture.’’
The library exhibition will feature books from Roscoe’s collections, manuscripts, correspondence with famous people of the times and superb examples of Roscoe’s own work as a botanical artist. Also included will be watercolours and other material reflecting life in Liverpool at the turn of the nineteenth century.
Roscoe was also a supporter of John James Audubon and encouraged him in his superb work the Birds of America – the Libraries’ greatest treasure with only 39 editions left in the world – which forms part of the exhibition.
Sir Bob Scott, Chief Executive of the Liverpool Culture Company, said,
‘’Roscoe’s contribution to Liverpool’s cultural heritage is unparalleled. He is without doubt one of the greatest Liverpudlians and I’m sure the exhibition will be a real treasure itself.’’
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The exhibition in the Central Library, William Brown Street will be officially opened on April 10th, by Lord Alton and will run until July. It will be open every day of the week free of charge.
Sexual
Health Services.
Report
with thanks to NHS.
WIDE ranging expertise to help deliver better sexual health services
Public Health Minister Hazel Blears today announced the members of
the Independent Advisory Group on Sexual Health and HIV.
The group, which will provide a wide range of views from health
professionals involved in all aspects of sexual health, will monitor
progress and advise the government on implementation of the
Sexual Health and HIV Strategy. The commitment to appoint this advisory
group was included in the government's Sexual Health and HIV Strategy
Implementation Action Plan, published in 2002.
Welcoming the appointments, Hazel Blears said:-
"I am delighted to announce these appointments to the new Independent
Advisory Group on Sexual Health and HIV. The Group will monitor progress and advise government on implementation including any
further action necessary to improve England's sexual health and HIV
services and address the rise in sexually transmitted infections and
HIV. Instances of chlamydia have gone up by more than 100% between
1996 and 2001; gonorrhoea increased by 86% in the same period. Syphilis, thought of as rare until recent years, has started to
surface in greater numbers. HIV/AIDS remains a threat to every new
generation of young adults and the wider population but disproportionately affects gay men and ethnic minority communities.
By working together - at a national, regional and local level - we
can reduce the problems which poor sexual health brings to our most
disadvantaged communities and provide better services in every area.
However, sexual health is not just about disease. Planning parenthood, understanding
contraception and age of first intercourse
can all have an important impact on individuals and communities and
we are working to improve the range of contraception provision and
its accessibility across England.
This new Advisory Group will provide us with wide-ranging expertise
from professional groups in the statutory and voluntary sector and
service users and providers. In turn, this will enable us to deliver
against the Strategy's implementation action plan."
Baroness Joyce Gould, who is currently president of fpa, will chair
the group. The first meeting will be held in May.
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