Shades of Black
Encyclopedia
Shades of Black is a community organization in the Handsworth
area of Birmingham
, England
, formed after the Handsworth riots
in the mid 1980s, extending from the 1990s to work in other deprived areas including Stechford.
The group works with local schools at two large allotment
s in the city.
Children from disadvantaged backgrounds are taught about vegetable
gardening
. The produce is distributed to elderly people who cook for themselves, to elderly day care centres and any surplus used at a local catering college to help students prepare food from other cultures.
The founder, Mrs E C McGhie-Belgrave, a former probation
worker, was awarded an MBE by the Queen
in 2002.
Handsworth, West Midlands
Handsworth is an inner city area of Birmingham in the West Midlands, England. The Local Government Act 1894 divided the ancient Staffordshire parish of Handsworth into two urban districts: Handsworth and Perry Barr. Handsworth was annexed to the county borough of Birmingham in Warwickshire in 1911...
area of Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, formed after the Handsworth riots
Handsworth riots
The Handsworth riots may refer to:* 1981 Handsworth riots* 1985 Handsworth riots* 1991 Handsworth riots...
in the mid 1980s, extending from the 1990s to work in other deprived areas including Stechford.
The group works with local schools at two large allotment
Allotment (gardening)
An allotment garden, often called simply an allotment, is a plot of land made available for individual, non-professional gardening. Such plots are formed by subdividing a piece of land into a few or up to several hundreds of land parcels that are assigned to individuals or families...
s in the city.
Children from disadvantaged backgrounds are taught about vegetable
Vegetable
The noun vegetable usually means an edible plant or part of a plant other than a sweet fruit or seed. This typically means the leaf, stem, or root of a plant....
gardening
Gardening
Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants. Ornamental plants are normally grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants are grown for consumption , for their dyes, or for medicinal or cosmetic use...
. The produce is distributed to elderly people who cook for themselves, to elderly day care centres and any surplus used at a local catering college to help students prepare food from other cultures.
The founder, Mrs E C McGhie-Belgrave, a former probation
Probation
Probation literally means testing of behaviour or abilities. In a legal sense, an offender on probation is ordered to follow certain conditions set forth by the court, often under the supervision of a probation officer...
worker, was awarded an MBE by the Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
in 2002.