12 minute read
Fitness Tips
from SE21 September 2021
by SE Magazines
Energisers!
Fitness tips with Leanne Spencer | www.bodyshotperformance.com
One of the big questions that people have is how can I get more energy? How can I be more mobile and get more movement into a working day? For many of you, or perhaps most of you, your working days will be relatively sedentary. Movement snacking, which is something I have already written about in one of my previous blogs, is a partial solution to getting more energy, improving your mood and getting your body moving. But if you are not familiar with the concept of movement snacking, here is a quick definition: A movement snack is a little pocket of movement, just a minute of movement every hour. For example, you might get out of your chair and you may do some squats. Or, you may go up and down your stairs a few times. This month I’ll share quick energisers or movement snacks that you can build into your day.
Connecting Your Mind with Your Body
This energiser is designed to get you out of your head quickly, connect your mind with your body. How to do this? A Qigong Twist is a great full-body movement, it gets your whole body moving and gets your breath going. The Qigong movement gets the energy flow or QI going. But more than that, it starts connecting your brain to your body. Some call it Qi or Chi, or maybe blood flow, electricity, neutrons, protons, all of the above. It’s a simple movement twisting the spine slightly, making sure to slightly bend the knees, perfect for waking up the joints. Turn the head, let the neck relax and take some deep breaths with it.
Shake It Out
Bend your knees, jump up and down and shake. By jumping up and down, you’re getting your joints activated, getting some blood flow. Using that connective tissue, plus shaking is meant to help release stress. It gets energy around your body, flowing through the Meridian lines on your body. Once they’re activated, they get energised and send good energy around the body.
If It All Sounds Nuts, Just Think of It as a Dance
Dancing we all know is good for you, emotionally and physically. So just shake it out, jump up and down. Get everyone in the office/home doing that, joining in next time you see them. So following on from this once you’ve shaken out a little bit and feel a bit de-stressed. We want you to twist. So you’re going to twist and touch the opposite foot, and then jump, and touch the other foot.
Benefits of Jumping and Twisting
This is a simple way to energise. Jumping helps to lighten the mood, get your body feeling agile. Jumping gets your blood rushing and the oxygen going. Twisting is great it gets the spine, gets the vertebrae, some well needed movement and you get some blood flow there as well. So get silly, give them a bash. As always have fun and let us know how you get on.
Stepping into School
Education News from Alleyn's | www.alleyns.org.uk
Kristy O’Donnell, Reception teacher at Alleyn’s Junior School, tells us how to prepare our children for their first day at school.
The first day at school is a huge step for both children and parents. During their Reception year your child will develop their independence, maturity, confidence, resilience and curiosity. They will learn by doing things for themselves, exploring, investigating, watching and listening, engaging in discussions, through creative and imaginative play… the list goes on. How can you prepare your child for the first day of this seminal year? There are three skill areas to focus on.
1) Physical
• Dressing independently: practise buttons, zips and shoe fastenings with your child so they can feel confident getting changed. • Playing outside: ‘big’ physical play, such as climbing, will help your child’s brain to develop and improve their motor skills, preparing them for writing.
2) Personal, Social & Emotional
• Sharing and turn-taking: playing games in small groups will encourage your child to understand that others are important and prepare them for sharing toys in class. • Socialising: spending time with other children will support your child in feeling comfortable in initiating play and conversation with their new school friends. • Feelings: little souls have big emotions. It is important that children can recognise and acknowledge their feelings so that teachers can support and encourage them to process them. Ask your child ‘how do you feel?’ when you can see them experiencing different emotions and help them to understand what these are and that they are normal.
3) Academic
• Developing a love of books: if your child sees you reading, they will want to read. Chose a range of stories to enrich their vocabulary and interests. Encourage them to ask and answer questions and use their imagination to think up new characters and alternative endings to the story. • Holding a pencil correctly: practise holding a pencil in your child’s dominant hand using a tripod grip. The wrong grip can be uncomfortable and hard to correct down the line. • Counting everything: build early maths skills by identifying numbers on buses or front doors or counting anything from buttons on coats to how many stairs you climb.
Talk, Talk, Talk
Above all, and fundamental to a successful first day at school, is talking about school. Discuss in advance with your child what you will do in the morning leading up to dropping them off. Listen to any concerns or questions your child might have and give them all the positive reasons why you chose the school they are joining. Explain when and how you will say goodbye and then do it! A positive, confident handover is critical for leaving your child happy and safe. Every school has a different drop-off procedure so if you’re not sure, check with the school how they approach this. Remember, your child will be one of a whole class of new pupils with a teacher intent on settling them all in!
Useful Links
• www.theschoolrun.com • www.oxfordowl.co.uk • www.thebookpeople.co.uk
Sunday 5 September: Dulwich Park Fair
12-5pm. Dulwich Park Fair has been running since 2007 and normally ends the Dulwich Festival but this year has been postponed, to comply with COVID restrictions, to Sunday 5th September 2021. It is a free outdoor, family friendly, event that includes a Fun Fair, Vauxhall City Farm, Punch and Judy, the Magician, interactive performances and a dog show. The stage by the café will feature local musicians, brass bands, choirs and dance acts of all ages. There will be a huge variety of food, craft, drink and charity stalls.
Dulwich Park, College Road, Dulwich SE21 7BQ. https://dulwichparkfair.wordpress.com/
Sunday 5 & 12 September: Open Garden with Link Age Southwark
2pm-5pm. Link Age Southwark are delighted to be involved in 2 upcoming Open Garden events hosted by local supporters, in aid of the charity. The beautiful Dulwich gardens will open to the public with all proceeds of tickets and refreshments going towards Link Age Southwark’s work with older people and people living with dementia in the community.
Sunday 5 September:
• 115 Dulwich Village, SE21 7BJ. 2pm – 5pm
Sunday 12 September:
• 148 Court Lane, SE21 7EB. 2pm – 5pm For more information and to purchase tickets in advance, please visit
https://www.linkagesouthwark.org/
Sundays 5, 12, 19 & 26 September: Horniman Market
10am – 3pm. The weekly Market is open to provide food items including fresh fruit, vegetables, cheese, bread, cake, meat and street food. Alongside food stalls, you’ll find body care, clothing, jewellery, design and craft; most are locally produced, ethical and many use environmentally friendly materials, natural and organic ingredients. Strict and enhanced hygiene measures are in place with all traders. Please sanitise your hands at each available stall, only touch produce you intend to buy and pay for goods using contactless methods.
www.horniman.ac.uk. 100 London Road, Forest Hill, SE23 3PQ
Sunday 5 September: Dyslexia Fair 2021
10am - 4pm. The third Bell House Dyslexia Fair will take place on Sunday 5 September 2021. The fair brings together families, teachers and the wider dyslexia community to learn more about dyslexia, talk to experts, discover useful resources and share experiences and learnings. Admission is free but please register.
bellhouse.co.uk/events/2021/9/5/dyslexia-fair Bell House, 27 College Rd, Dulwich SE21 7BG
FAC OMNIA AD DEI GLORIAM
22 | SE21 - September 2021 ‘The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is outstanding’ Ofsted 2017
First Class & Top of the Class!
*OPEN DAYS AND EVENINGS 2021
September
Wednesday 22nd Saturday 25th Wednesday 29th | 5.30-8.00pm | 1.30-3.30pm 9.30-11.30am | 4.00-6.00pm | 1.00-3.00pm 10am-12 noon | 5.30-8.00pm | 1.30-3.30pm 9.30-11.30am | 4.00-6.00pm | 1.00-3.00pm 10am-12 noon
October
Come and Visit One of the Most Outstanding and Popular Schools in the Country!
Specialist 11-19 College in Mathematics & Performing Arts Headteacher Mr S H Morrison Alleyn Park, Dulwich, SE21 8SQ Tel: 020 8670 7575 Six of the BEST from Ofsted!
*Sixth Form Open Days 2021
4.00 – 5.40pm & 6.00 – 7.30pm 1.30 – 3.30pm & 4.30 – 6.30pm 1.30 – 3.30pm & 4.30 – 6.30pm 1.30 – 3.30pm & 4.30 – 6.30pm
• Wednesday 29th September • Wednesday 20th October • Wednesday 10th November • Wednesday 24th November
*By prior appointment only. Virtual tours will also take place during events above.
We invite you to come to West Dulwich in South London to discover just how we get the best out of our students and harness top talent within an ethos characterised by warmth, culture and care. The amazing popularity of the school is a refl ection of our renowned academic achievements, inspirational award-winning learning environment and the unusually rare opportunities we provide. Kingsdale is extremely proud of its special reputation and heritage in Music and Mathematics. We offer scholarships for new entrants to the school who show musical, mathematical, artistic or sporting talent. Scholars receive free individual or small group tuition provided by expert professionals, to the value of £1,000 per annum. There is equality of access for admission places irrespective of distance from the school or home For information on admission to our Sixth Form for 2022 and to receive a Sixth Form prospectus please visit our website or contact the school by email at:
sixthform@kingsdale.southwark.sch.uk
locality. Kingsdale offers private tours of the school during normal working hours throughout the academic year. Tours are arranged for prospective parents at a time that best suits them!
Financial Matters
With David Frederick FCCA | Marcus Bishop Associates | marcus-bishop.com
Company Cars Are Changing
The appeal and glamour of the company car if ever, now seems to be a memory of a bygone era. Today the company car is less attractive especially, those cars with higher emissions. Their unattractiveness arises because they impose upon the employee a higher taxable benefit-in-kind charge. Beyond the individual pain such cars are now recognised as imposing greater harm to our environment. Economists may assert that, such cars incur greater costs upon society, beyond the financial burden born by the individual. Consequently, employees who are still wedded to the company car, are transitioning to the more environmentally caring green option and choosing hybrids or electric cars. The personal attraction for employees is the more favourable taxable benefit-in-kind. This attraction is a continuation of the initial 2010-2015 government incentive which saw zero emission electric company cars being tax free to employees. Central government continues to offer incentives and devise tax policies to encourage the switch to environmentally friendly cars. For example from 12 March 2020, a grant of up to £3,000 was available to drivers switching to electric cars. To further stimulate the transition to electric cars, the government reduced the plug-in car grant (PICG) and capped the value of cars on which it could be claimed. At present the PICG grant is £2,500 and available to cars with a list price ceiling of £35,000. Furthermore, the government has introduced a voucher-based workplace charging scheme. This enables eligible employers to receive support towards the capital costs of purchasing and the installation of electric vehicle charge points on their grounds. Employers pay a fuel-only mileage rate for the fuel cost that they reimburse employees, who use a company car for business journeys only. The applicable rate set by HMRC is determined by the car fuel type and engine size. For example, the current advisory fuel rate for an employee driving a company car with an engine size of 1401-2000cc is 13p per mile. If that employee drives 10,000 business miles per annum, the employer fuel cost would be £1,300. However, if that same employee drove an electric car, the advisory fuel rate is reduced to 4p per mile. This saves the employer £900 per annum. It is not difficult to see the attractiveness to employers with multiple employees who drive thousands of business miles per annum. The comparative savings would be even greater for shifting from a petrol company car over 2000cc. The comparative saving amounts to £1,500 per employee per annum. Employers also have a financial interest in the taxable benefit-in-kind incurred by their employees. Why? Employers incur a Class1A National Insurance Contribution (NIC) at 13.8% on their employee’s benefit-in-kind value. Therefore both sides have a vested interest in the assessed benefit-in-kind being low. The lower the car emission the lower the benefit-in-kind charge and a win-win for both parties and the wider society. In short the benefit-in-kind is based upon a fixed percentage charged upon the UK list price of the car. The fixed percentage is directly related to the emissions of the car. Despite the desire to move to a greener environment, there are some internal obstacles for employees, employers and the government to overcome. A major hurdle, at present is the price of electric cars. Further operational issues to be addressed include the UK network infrastructure and charging points despite the improvements in recent years. Employees travelling long distances daily have yet to be satisfied about the car range. Finally, the charging time dwarfs fuel stops and needs to be accommodated into the employees’ productive capacity schedule. These are merely temporary hurdles as society transitions.
