Bank Holiday Monday (27 May) is a date for your diary if families want to experience a great day out while having fun and enjoying the festivities that this year’s Family Fun Day has to offer.

The Family Fun Day is in support of BBC Children in Need and the event will run from 10am to 6pm at Stormont Estate with the guarantee to give both children and parents a very enjoyable day out. There are a wide range of activities including live entertainment with a Lady Gaga tribute act, amusements, motorcycle displays and sports day activities. There will be numerous trampolines, bouncy castles and even an opportunity to enter your non-pedigree dog in our Scruffts heat. Maybe your dog could follow in the footsteps of crossbreed Becky from Bangor. Becky qualified at last year’s Fun Day and went on to make history as the first ever Scruffts winner at Crufts.

The Finance Minister, Sammy Wilson is lending his support and is more than happy to help launch the Fun Day for the second year running. Speaking about this year’s event this is what he had to say:

“I would encourage families to come along and check out what The Family Fun Day has to offer. Not only is there going to be a huge amount of fun and various activities to enjoy but it is also set in impressive surroundings in Stormont Estate.

The Family Fun Day really does cater for all ages, there are bouncy castles, egg and spoon races, puppet shows and live entertainment from Hugo Duncan who will be broadcasting his show from the estate. The list of activities is endless and apart from the funfair type attractions, the vast majority of the event’s attractions can be enjoyed free of charge so it really does provide a value for money day out.

Last year’s family fun day raised £22,000 and we will be doing all we can to maintain this level of support to a great cause in BBC Children in Need. I hope with your help we can make this year’s event even bigger and better and hope you all can come along and enjoy everything the Fun Day has to offer.”

Ronnie McAleese, the Event Director, who makes these fun days happen every year, had this to say: “I am delighted with the way in which this event has grown since the first one was held in 2008. It really is aimed at the whole family and with all the new attractions this year it should be bigger and better than ever.”

You can view the full programme of events taking place at the Family Fun Day by visiting the nidirect website.

East Belfast MLA Sammy Douglas has praised Queen’s University (QUB) on their recent success on the world stage. A member of the Committee for the Department of Employment and Learning (DEL), the East Belfast MLA was reacting to the recent findings published in the QS report on world University Rankings.

Queen’s University Belfast has been ranked in the top 1% of universities in the world according to a new report by the QS World University Rankings by Subject.

Out of 30 subjects evaluated, Queen’s now has 5 subjects in the top 100; English, History, Geography, Law, and Politics and International Studies, with a further 13 in the top 200.

For these rankings, QS Intelligence Unit (QSIU), evaluated 2,858 universities and ranked 678 institutions in total. Now in its 3rd year, the QS World University Rankings by Subject series takes into the account the opinion of academics and employers via a global survey.

The rankings series is the only international evaluation that allows prospective students to compare universities in their particular area of interest.

Reacting to the news the East Belfast MLA stated; “Yet again Queen’s University has proven itself to be a world leader in academic research, teaching methods and subject innovation. This recent publication serves as a testament to the hard work and dedication of the teaching staff, students and management team at Queen’s.”

Sammy further added; “At a time of economic uncertainty having a world leading academic institution in the heart of Belfast is a magnificent benefit to Northern Ireland. This report serves to highlight Northern Ireland as a centre of academic excellence and QUB as a vital tool in our efforts to stimulate our local economy.”

East Belfast MLA Sammy Douglas alongside the Lord Mayor Gavin Robinson called with Mrs. Mary Lough at her East Belfast home on Thursday 9th May 2013 to express congratulations on the happy occasion of her 100th birthday

Mrs Lough pictured alongside East Belfast MLA Sammy Douglas and the Rt. Hon, The Lord Mayor, Alderman Gavin Robinson

Mary was delighted to receive birthday wishes from Her Majesty the Queen and thanked her friends and family for a wonderful day.

Sammy commented: “It was a pleasure to call with Mary and to share in her family celebration of this wonderful milestone. She is in remarkably fine form and she was full of chat. I enjoyed listening to her recollections from her long life, stretching back to times when there were very few cars and other modern conveniences. It is always interesting to listen to the recollections of our most elderly citizens and to reflect on the many changes in society and the historic events which they have witnessed over their lives. I wish Mary and her family well for many more years of good health and happiness.”

Over 80 representatives from East Belfast community and voluntary organisations, credit unions and the housing sector came together today (1 May) for the ‘Towards Financial Inclusion’ seminar, hosted by the Consumer Council and the Housing Rights Service.

First Minister, Rt. Hon. Peter Robinson gave a keynote address stating “it is vital that Government works innovatively with all stakeholders including business, community and voluntary sectors, housing providers and consumers to ensure we achieve growth in the economy whilst protecting the most vulnerable in our society”.  The event explored the impact of financial exclusion on low income consumers, for example not having access to a bank account, insurance products or affordable credit.

Pictured from left to right are: Housing Rights Service Chair, Andrew Hassard, Rt. Hon. Peter Robinson, First Minister and Consumer Council Chief Executive, Antoinette McKeown.

Consumer Council Chief Executive Antoinette McKeown said: “Financial exclusion has a devastating impact on consumers and the current economic downturn has hit communities like East Belfast very hard.  The First Minister’s attendance today and his address reflect the importance of this event, which is about listening to consumers in local communities describe the key issues affecting them in terms of managing money and accessing financial services.  The Consumer Council will continue to  work with local politicians to represent consumers, give them a voice and access to much needed practical support during these hard times.

“The Consumer Council will ensure that consumer views heard today, and at other similar events, will be fed back to help shape Government policy and our own educational campaigns,” said Antoinette.

1. For more information, visit www.consumercouncil.org.uk or Facebook  The-Consumer-Council-Northern-Ireland/ or Twitter ConsumerCouncil