News Bulletin of 4 September 2025, 5pm

Volunteers and local businesses recently joined the Cleaning and Beautification of South Africa team to restore streets and public spaces in Sophiatown. The clean-up focused on pavements, bicycle lanes, and removing illegally dumped rubble, including debris left after road repairs.
Members of the Johannesburg bomb squad participated, adding a sense of hope and social cohesion. Local businesses such as Roodt Butchery, South Bakels, and Build It Hardware supported the initiative, providing food and supplies for volunteers.
Organisers said the effort not only creates a greener, cleaner environment but also strengthens communities and encourages other neighbourhoods to take similar action, promoting civic pride and local well-being.

Durban is preparing to welcome poets from across the world as the Poetry Africa Festival runs from the 6th to the 11th of October.
Hosted by the Centre for Creative Arts at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, the festival explores the theme Poetry: an architecture of social justice.
The line-up includes local and international poets, with performances, workshops, and debates taking place both in-person at Seabrooke’s Theatre and online for global audiences.
Highlights include a keynote by sociologist and poet Ari Sitas, international panels featuring poets from Kenya, Ukraine, Réunion Island and beyond, and outreach sessions engaging young audiences.
Festival curator Siphindile Hlongwa says poetry continues to build bridges across borders while inspiring equity, inclusion, and transformation.

A pioneering programme in Scottish prisons is helping fathers and their children reconnect in new ways.
The Healthy Dads, Healthy Kids initiative, first run at HMP Barlinnie, allows fathers and children to play, exercise, and even share meals together outside the usual visiting rooms.
The eight-week programme, developed with researchers from Glasgow, Stirling, and Newcastle universities, has already involved 14 families and focuses on positive parenting, health, and quality family time.
Following its success, staff from other prisons are being trained to run the programme, which will soon expand to several more facilities, offering fathers and children meaningful connections and a healthier family dynamic.