Liverpool Life 5:9 December 7 2016 by Steve Harrison

07 - December - 2016

INSIDE THIS WEEK’S FESTIVE ISSUE... NEWS

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Wirral man to run seven marathons in seven days

CHRISTMAS PAGE C1 Bumper eight-page Christmas special pull-out

SPORT

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LJMU women’s basketball team faces relegation

LJMU meets the Governor of the Bank of England

The Governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney took time out of his hectic schedule to talk to Liverpool Life about Brexit. Before delivering the prestigious Roscoe Lecture at Liverpool conference centre on Monday, Mr Carney gave an exclusive interview to LJMU journalism students, which touched on Brexit, the £5 note controversy, the media landscape ... and the recent league form of Everton. Full story: page 3 Left: Mark Carney meeting journalism students and lecturer Shirley Lewis. Inset: Mr Carney on set with interviewer Nathan Archer. © John Mathews

CHILDREN FIRST By MATTHEW NOONAN

The governor of a Cheshire school has backed plans to improve the futures of young people in the North of England. A report by the Children’s Commissioner Anne Longﬁeld has raised questions about how to resolve the growing gap in life chances between children in the north and south of England. A year-long study will now begin in order to examine the situation and establish reccommendations for both regional and national gov-

Backing for new study to tackle youth inequality

ernment to follow. Kevin Hassett, Governor of Oak View Academy, told Liverpool Life: “There seems to be a poverty of aspirations amongst the North, perhaps because we have had a hell of a kicking in the 70s and 80s when the industry went. “I think to a large extent much of it is due to wealth and prosperity and we need to just shake ourselves and get ourselves organised since the recession.

“I don’t think we should necessarily put up with it and we don’t let the argument lie there. I think we should be more assertive in terms of demands.” The report - prepared for the launch of the study, published by the Children’s Commissioner and the Government - paints a mixed picture for northern children compared to their southern counterparts. It also reveals that young

people in the north have the same chances to attend university – but are less likely to end up at a top university. The project aims to highlight the growing inequality within education and the chances for young people between the north and south of England. It will collate data on pupil outcomes in order to increase understanding of differences between regions and to identify ‘where children

are excelling and being left behind’. Speaking at the launch of ‘Growing up North’, Anne Longﬁeld said: “The economic disadvantage of the North is well established but as a place for children to grow up the reality is far more complex. “Whilst there are parts of the North where children fall behind there are places where they excel. “The regeneration under

way provides a unique opportunity to reshape prospects for children in the North. ‘Growing up North’ will put children at the heart of discussions about northern regeneration. It’s time to leave the North-South divide behind.” It is hoped that the project will highlight the opportunities presented by devolution in order to ‘further children’s interests and the challenges that need to be overcome’.

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Christmas comes for Life news team By ANDREW NUTTALL

Welcome to the special Christmas edition of Liverpool Life! It has been an exciting few months working to deliver you the news from around Liverpool and we are currently in the ﬁnal stages of organising our professional work placements. January is set to be an exciting month for the Liverpool Life team, with people heading across the UK to take up these valuable work experience positions at organisations including the Liverpool Echo, The i, The Times and The Index on

Censorship. From Liverpool Life, we wish you all a Merry Christmas and will be back to bring you the latest news, features and sports stories from February 2017. Laura Hughes is going to the magazine company Style Birmingham. She said: “I am really excited to put everything I’ve learnt into practice in the real world. This is the kind of magazine I would like to work for once I graduate so it will be great experience.” Gabby Walsh will be working at Kenyons PR, following on from her Public Relations module. She said:

By LEWIS JENNINGS

Cheer: Christmas jumper day © JMU Journalism “I really enjoy my PR module at the moment so this will be a great opportunity to learn more and give me the head start I need once I graduate.”

Proud: JMU Journalism and Liverpool Life news teams call time on another busy year of news coverage and get set for work placements in January © John Mathews

Cadets’ highway to the raising zone By SAVANNAH WYLDE

Air cadets helped raise over £400 for Wirral hospice, Claire House at the Prenton Christmas toy sale. Claire House teamed up with the local air cadet squadron to organise and run their first Christmas-themed toy sale, including a Santa’s grotto. The squadron raised £435 by selling tea, coffee and cakes alongside three toy stalls and a raffle. 1175 (Prenton) squadron decorated their cosy building with tinsel, fairy lights and Christmas decorations to create a little winter wonderland in the middle of Prenton. The walls of Santa’s Grotto were covered in white sheets and the floors in fake snow. With an ornate and vintagestyle Santa-throne, children came to sit on Santa’s lap and

Life

ask for last-minute Christmas presents. With a special visit from Claire House’s mascot Claire Bear, children and families were welcomed in by a friendly face to a warm reception from the cadets. The cadets helped to run the day’s festivities by dressing up as Santa’s little helpers, running stores, making refreshments and even having a go at dressing up as Claire Bear. With smiles and laughter throughout the day, the squadron and Claire House representatives deemed the day a great success. George McGrath, volunteer co-ordinator for fundraising for Claire House, said: “Claire House runs entirely on donated funds and what we have done here today is amazing. “It has raised the proﬁle in the local community and

Team

Bringing you the news every Wednesday Features Editor Rosie Steedman Poppy Backshall Sam Heyhirst News Editor Andrew Cook Emma White Alistair Baker Features Editor Gabrielle Walsh News Josh Hodge Andrew Livingston David Purcell Damien Horwood

Sports Aaliyah Rugg Hollie Hayes Christmas Laura Hughes Andrew Nuttall

Pub’s pop-up party cheer

enlightened local residents about what we do. If we have touched at least one person here today it will have been a success.” The young cadets donated their spare time to help prepare for and run the day’s events. Mr McGrath explained: “Claire House is a local charity for the local community, so the cadets have acted as communicators to the local community by going door to door and dropping leaﬂets, telling friends and family and really raising the proﬁle of Claire House in Prenton.” Sgt (ATC) Jonjo Sullivan praised his cadets, saying: “The cadets have helped to decorate the hall and spread the word about today in their spare time. “They have done their squadron proud, and given 110% effort.”

Inspiring: Air Cadets raised £400 for Claire House © Savannah Wylde He continued: “This is defi- would do again.” nitely something that we With the Christmas season would consider doing again, upon us, this squadron is with Claire House and per- definitely jumping into the haps other charities, so we festive spirt, by helping the can help out more within children and families of our community and help out Claire House Hospice to have our fellow charities, so yes it a wonderful Christmas and a is definitely something we happy new year.

A not-for proﬁt business support group has been working a Christmas miracle in Bootle. Safe Regeneration, based in Bootle, will host a series of festive-themed ‘pop-up pub’ charity events to coincide with the renovation of the Little Merton Pub in Merton Road. Proceedings kick off with ‘Pip’s Pop up Pop Quiz’ tomorrow, where local legend Philip Hayes will be hosting his famous quiz and offering a collection of unique prizes. Christmas lunch will be held on December 9 while the following Friday a yuletide-themed party will spread the festive cheer and bring together the local community during the special time of year. Katie Barnett, who works closely with SAFE, explained more about the initiative. She said: “SAFE Regeneration has been working creatively in the heart of the Bootle community for over ten years. “For many people experiencing disadvantage and distress, SAFE provides an opportunity for meaningful activities and to gain skills for employment as well as a green oasis to meet, create, grow, work and dream. ”The organization has partnered up with CanCook, who will provide a feaststyle dining experience as part of their region-wide ‘Share your Lunch’ campaign to tackle food poverty. “For every meal bought, a meal will be provided to a person in need.” Also on Saturday is the Santa Splash, which gives thrill seekers the chance to paddle from Eldonian Village to Bootle.

Ford Lane bags a boost for garden By LEWIS JENNINGS

A Litherland garden has bagged a share of a £12.5m carrier bag charge fund, after coming ﬁrst place in a nationwide initiative by Tesco. The canal-side Ford Lane is based in the heart of Ford, Litherland, and aims to provide meaningful activities through volunteering such as planting wildﬂower meadows, beekeeping, making garden furniture and nature trails. Andrea Ku, a spokesperson from the garden, said: “The grant will be used to design, build and plant a whole new garden. We will

install beehives to produce L21 honey, create a chicken run and we will also be delivering horticulture, beekeeping and environmental courses.” The award-winning green project received £12,000 from the 5p bag levy, after Tesco teamed up with Groundwork on its Bags of Help initiative. The funding means three beehives will be installed by spring 2017. Groundwork’s national chief executive Graham Duxbury said: “Bags of Help is giving our communities both the funding and the support to create better, healthier and greener places

Rich: Money will make the grass greener © Andrea Ku for everyone to enjoy. “We’ve been thrilled to see the diversity of projects that have applied for funding, ranging from outdoor classrooms, sports facilities, community gardens, play areas and everything in between. “They’re all fantastic projects that make a real difference in our neighbour-

hoods.” More than 2,800 groups applied for grants from the scheme. Lindsey Crompton, Head of Community at Tesco, said: “We are already seeing some great results from groups transforming their own environmental and greenspace areas.”

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John’s seven marathons in seven days By PAIGE FRESHWATER

Determined: John Hammond is running seven marathons in seven days. © Force12 Events

Running one marathon is enough for most people but a Wirral man is attempting to complete seven treadmill marathons in seven consecutive days. John Hammond, 40, from Oxton, Wirral, is aiming to raise funds for Claire House Children’s Hospice by running seven treadmill marathons in one week. After setting the aim of completing 100 marathons over four years, Mr Hammond said he wanted to run for a charitable cause before attempting his 99th and 100th runs. He told Liverpool Life: “I have done lots for various charities since I took running up seriously [a few]

years ago. The response I get off people is unreal each time. “I was thinking of a way I could involve running and charity work in the build up to Christmas. “I had a three- week period in between my planned 99th and 100th marathon and I somehow came up with the idea of a seven treadmill marathon in seven days. “I have raised money for Claire House in the past and I felt it would be great to do what I could in the build up to Christmas. “People have also been donating toys which I have taken to Claire House retail shops.” After taking to Facebook to ﬁnd out whether anyone would be interested in

joining his challenge, Mr Hammond said the response was “mad” and will now be running alongside 40 other determined people. Starting on December 12 at Total Fitness in Prenton, Mr Hammond and his friends will be covering a distance of 26.2 miles every day for one week. Mr Hammond said: “Last year I ran seven marathons in seven days and this year I managed ten in ten, but running on a treadmill is completely different and much harder on my eyes. “The advice I would give to anyone is to give running a try, no matter if it’s one mile, ﬁve miles or ten miles. I ﬁnd it the best feeling ever - once I complete a run or a race.”

Carney: ‘Brexit is opportunity for UK’ By PAIGE FRESHWATER Brexit should be seen as an opportunity for UK businesses to forge a new relationship with Europe and the big emerging economies of the world, the Governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney said when he visited Liverpool John Moores University to deliver the prestigious Roscoe Lecture. Mr Carney took time out of his hectic schedule to talk to Liverpool Life about Brexit, the state of the economy and his love for Everton FC when he arrived in the city on Monday. Prior to delivering the ﬁnal Roscoe Lecture of 2016 to an audience of 2,000 at ACC Liverpool conference centre, the 51-year-old Canadian warmed up by meeting JMU journalism students at Redmonds Building and ﬁelding a range of tricky questions, providing an overview of the state of the nation’s health, along with the local outlook. Mr Carney has been widely reported as favouring a period of transition before the country fully withdraws from the European Union, and he agrees that investment in the North of England must not suffer when Brexit is complete. He told students: “I think we have to look at it as an opportunity. It is the decision of the people of the United Kingdom to leave the European Union. “It is important that this process of determining what the new relationship will be

Introductions: Mark Carney, left, with LJMU Vice Chancellor Prof Nigel Weatherill and, above, with some of the LJMU journalism students ©JMU Journalism

with Europe is as smooth and as orderly as possible and that businesses here in the North West and across the country can plan, with as much certainly as possible, for not just that new relationship with Europe, but potentially new ones with the United States, with Canada, Australia, China – the big emerging economies of the world. “That’s what will bring investment along. This process will create a number of changes and it’s up to all of us to make them as positive as possible.” While Mr Carney said he felt the nation’s ﬁnances were relatively strong in terms of growth compared to other G7 countries, he admitted to concerns about levels of productivity in the economy and the

fact that “wave growth itself hasn’t continued to pick up”. He added: “More broadly, where I would be less happy and certainly people, whether they are here in Merseyside or across the country, are less happy - is around broader issues about the security of work and uncertainty about the future. “They know they have work today – not everybody – but most people do, but what kind of jobs are they going to get tomorrow?” Mr Carney has local connections, with cousins on Merseyside who encouraged him decades ago to become an Everton supporter, and he revealed: “I’ve been an Evertonian since the late 1980s when I ﬁrst lived in the United Kingdom. I saw

them in the 1989 FA Cup [ﬁnal] against Liverpool [when Everton lost 3-2]. Ian Rush is forever burned in my brain and [those] two brilliant extra -time goals for Liverpool to win it.” Speaking about the recent controversy over traces of animal fats being used in the manufacture of the new £5 notes, Mr Carney admitted that the Bank of England had been taken by surprise, adding: “We were unaware of it. One of the core things with the Central Bank is to be open, accountable and transparent. “A member of the public had asked us about this. It actually took us about a month to track down the answer because we went to our main supplier … then they went

to their suppliers and their supplier’s supplier and discovered that there are these traces. “To go back to football, the amount that’s in the note, from what we can tell, is the equivalent, if you ﬁlled Wembley Stadium three times over and then asked one person to leave, it’s that amount. But, the fact is that there are these animal fats and it is a cause of concern for some people. “We respect those concerns, we treat it with seriousness, so now we are working with our suppliers to ﬁnd out what the options are. “The short answer is, yes [it was] a surprise, but we weren’t going to withhold that information. We were going to let everybody know as soon as we knew, and now we are trying to take action to see what we can do about it.”

Critic: Joe Anderson © JMU Journalism

Mayor hits out at plans for Park

By CONNOR BENNETT

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson has criticised Alder Hey Trust’s plans to build homes on the Springfield Park site. Plans had been submitted to the council to build 400 new homes and retail units on the old Alder Hey hospital site, but the plans been met with a backlash from local residents as they could take up part of the Springfield Park site. Mayor Anderson tweeted: “I will make sure they [Alder Hey] deliver on promises to the community.” He later added: “I will not let Alder Hey deliver a housing scheme that ruins the lives of their neighbours, and I will defend Springfield Park, so they deliver the likefor-like world class replacement park they promised.” With the previous plans, there had been ideas to zone the original nine hectares back to the residents with opportunities for housing alongside the space, not on it. A petition against the housing plans has already gained over 1,000 signatures as residents have begun their revolt, with many using the Facebook page of the West Derby Society, a resident’s page, to voice their anger. The West Derby Society said: “In the past decade or so since the new hospital was announced, new housing and commercial property on the site has never been mentioned. The Society may also call for a public inquiry into the whole planning process.” There are worries about the impact any potential new homes will cause to the traffic in and out of the area. Alder Hey Trust said: “Alder Hey remains committed to continuing the development of Springfield Park as originally intended and honour all its commitments.”

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Life|News|4

Photo © Herzi Pinki

Cracking down on illegal taxi jobs By CONNOR BENNETT Liverpool City Council are beginning their crackdown on private hire taxi drivers who pick up fares that are not booked in advance. The council is working alongside Merseyside Police on undercover operations against the illegal fare pickups. Eight drivers have already been found in breach of the rules and could face the new repercussions. Any driver found to be breaking rules could face prosecution in court with a possible six to eight points on their license and a heavy ﬁne. Councillor Christine Banks, chair of the Licensing Committee, said: “We want to make sure that our taxi industry is fair, and we are determined to crack down on those private hire drivers who are ﬂouting the rules and taking work from hackney cabs. “The run-up to Christmas is an incredibly busy time for drivers and unfortunately there is a very small minority who breach regulations to make extra money. “We are committed to taking action and in doing so, send a clear message out that will stop this activity being commonplace over the next few weeks.”

City charity gets boost from council By PAIGE FRESHWATER A Liverpool charity is set to receive a £10,000 boost from a Catholic men’s group. Following a walk in memory of Steve Dooley, a former member of the Knights of St Columba, around £6,200 was received in donations and £3,000 was then match funded by Barclays Bank. The funds will now be donated to the Children’s Cancer Support Group, which provides information and support for parents of children with cancer. Covering around ﬁve miles, the walk stretched from Albert Dock to the Liverpool Cricket Club in Aigburth. The Knights of St Columba is a Catholic fraternal service, which describes itself as being dedicated to the principles of charity, unity and fraternity. David Linford, Grand Knight of Council 9 South

Liverpool, said: “When it [the walk] started 18 years ago, there was only one parish involved, but now there are contributions from as many as ﬁve or six parishes. “Not only has the number of Knights that walk grown, but it has now extended to parishioners also taking part. “We have seen people coming along with their dogs and we have had an increase of youngsters joining in. “There are a lot of young and old people who take part in the walk and it has become quite a big social occasion.” The walk is an annual event that supports a range of charities, explained Knight and Provincial Publicity Ofﬁcer, David Keane. He said: “The council decides each year which charity should receive the funds raised from the walk in that particular year. “Steve unfortunately died a

Support: Walkers get ready to set off few years after the inauguration of this annual event and so we decided, as a council, that we would keep his mem-

ory alive by naming the walk after him. “Steve was a prominent and very active member of

the Council and he was also a great leader. It is a unifying thing for the rest of us to do this in his memory.”

Tate hosts new LGBT pride museum By NICOLE QUINN

A pop-up museum of Merseyside’s LGBT+ history is on display at The Tate Exchange Liverpool until tomorrow. Personal artefacts have been donated by members of the community to create a timeline through 30 years of their achievements. Advice and Guidance GYRO Worker Chris Porter told Liverpool Life: “There are artefacts of all shapes, sizes and monetary value. “However, all items are priceless to the young people who donated. One young person donated a binder and testosterone packaging that they used for years to compress their chest to help with their gender identity. “Another young person donated a gift from an ex which brings back bitter memories. There is also a really cute note asking a classmate out. A real mixed bag of memories and emotions really.” The items are accompanied by a digital archive put together by Thinking Film, a ﬁlm and production enter-

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Display: Scenes from LGBT museum. Photos © Nicole Quinn

prise funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund. They collaborated on the ‘You Are Here’ project alongside GYRO, a collection of groups for young people who identify themselves as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Trans and those who are questioning their sexuality or gender identity. The aim is to raise awareness of the history, educating audiences and celebrating the people who have made the region a better and brighter place for LGBT+ people. Mr Porter added: “Merseyside has always been quite a radical-activist, grass rootsget involved- loving place. Recently there has been a lot of concessions and progress for the LGBT+ community nationally and visibility is getting better. “For us it is important that young people know their history, that people before them fought for their liberties and it is important to keep that ﬁght alive for future generations. Merseyside is a trailblazer in provisions for young LGBT+ people. We hope this rubs off on the rest of the country.”

Christmas Life Your eight-page festive special supplement

Merry Christmas from the Liverpool Life team XXX From left: Rosie Steadman, Laura Hughes, Alistair Baker and Gabby Walsh. Centre: Josh Hodge

PAGE 2 Santa’s magical grotto

INSIDE:

PAGE 3 It’s a dog’s life this Christmas

PAGE 7 Our favourite things

Life|Christmas|C2

The Town Hall Express Laura Hughes steps in to Santa’s Magical Grotto at his new home in Liverpool Town Hall

Magical: Santa’s Grotto sets’ up at Liverpool Town Hall

reaking news from the North Pole: Santa has brought his magical grotto to Liverpool’s Town Hall for the ﬁrst time ever. After three successful years at St George’s Hall, Father Christmas has decided to have a change of scenery for Christmas 2016 and has set up his new festive Grotto in the grand setting of the city’s Town Hall. Lord Mayor Councillor Roz Gladden said: “Liverpool Town Hall is a Liverpool landmark, so where better to bring your family and enjoy a traditional magical grotto. “This year, our excited young visitors (and old ones too) can look forward to meeting Father Christmas in the grand surrounds of Liverpool Town Hall. We look forward to en-

Festive: Lord Mayor Councillor Roz Gladden with Santa and his elves. © Laura Hughes

suring everyone has a truly magical time.” The traditional style grotto will be housed in The Crypt of the Town Hall. The magical staircase invites you in to see the festive setting. The path meanders its way around the cosy venue with children then being greeted by Santa’s Elves and meeting the man in the red suit for themselves, letting him know what’s on their Christmas list. Manager of St George’s Hall Alan Smith discussed why the decision was made to move the grotto from its original home. He told Liverpool Life: “St George’s Hall is a colossal building, multifaceted, a concert room and great hall in the heritage centre, but this year we’ve got DreamWorks

based there which is a huge offer for the city. We’ve got the markets there too so there’s a beautiful experience down there. “The Town Hall have kindly offered the possibility of putting a grotto down in the basement and as you can see it’s an amazing little space. It’s cosy, it’s intimate and it’s made for this type of event - it’s grotto-esque, in fact.” Organisers hope that Santa’s new home will attract more people into the city’s landmark building. Alan added: “With the Town Hall a lot of people feel it’s not for them and they can’t come in, but this type of programme means this is for you, it is your Town Hall you can come down, you can access it, you can get to see spaces you’ve never

Decorations: Light up baubles set the scene.

been in before. “I love the idea that if you’re three or four coming here in 80 years’ time you can say ‘Oh, I went to a grotto in the Town Hall when I was three’. Now I know we’ve had that legacy in the past in St George’s Hall but it’s lovely to think that those thoughts are in the legacy of this building now and the charming little space is made for it.” The Grotto is open each weekend until December 11 and it will be open daily from Friday, December 16 to December 23. Children on Santa’s good list will be offered an early Christmas gift and a professional photographer will be on hand to capture all the festive moments. This year Santa’s Magical Grotto will run a pre-booked slot system.

Alan said: “In St George’s Hall because of the scale we sometimes have pre-booked tickets or we have drop-in. Drop-ins worked for us because we’ve got the space and the capacity to do these things but the Town Hall is unique and slightly different, so what we’ve done this year is formulate a pre-booked slot so you can book online and you choose what time you want to come and then hopefully get a quality experience.” Tickets cost £7.50 per child (with up to two accompanying adults go free), additional accompanying adults £1.50 each and a 75p booking fee will also apply online. You can purchase tickets at: www.ticketquarter.co.uk/Online/ magical-grotto.

Heebie Jeebies Winter Fayre returns By LAURA HUGHES

C Food: Hot and cold drinks served to raise funds for the Whitechapel Centre. © Laura Hughes

Decked out: Heebie Jeebies all set up for the annual winter fayre. © Laura Hughes

hristmas arrived early at Heebie Jeebies and its new basement venue EBGBS as the annual Winter Fayre took place at the weekend. The event raised money for those who are in need over the Christmas period with all door proceeds going to one of Liverpool’s homeless and housing charities, the Whitechapel Centre. The fayre had a festive twist to it by splitting into two, with those on the naughty list and those on the nice. Held over three ﬂoors the fayre featured a host of festive fun, with independent stalls, interactive decorationmaking workshops, live music acts, as well as hot and cold food stalls in the venue’s courtyard. For those on the naughty list, the EBGBS basement was the ‘den of debauchery’ home to 13 Ink

tattoo studio and alternative clothing brands and gothic jewellery. Heebie Jeebies marketing and promotions manager Joe Maryanji told Liverpool Life: “The fayre started about two and a half years ago and we’re just trying to get more independent businesses involved in what we’re doing here at Heebies. Obviously we’re independent as well and have been for about 20 to 25 years and we want to reach out to the wider community. “So we’re doing the Christmas fayre and we’re also doing summer and Easter fayres as well, which is a chance for us to use each ﬂoor and each area of Heebies as a completely different way to how everyone is used to it. Everyone thinks of Heebies as a night out but it’s the chance to do something different and quite fun, I do most of my Christmas shopping here too.”

Heebie Jeebies help out a lot with homeless organisations and donate any unclaimed lost property, such as coats and jackets, to a local homeless organisation. Therefore, it was ﬁtting that the fayre raised money for the Whitechapel Centre. Joe added: “Over the last couple of years we’ve seen a massive increase in the amount of homeless people in the city centre and to do with recent reports and recent studies that have come out and homeless slopes being put up and things like that. We need to try and show solidarity between not only the people of Liverpool but the businesses who work in and around the affected areas where there are homeless. We need to try and help that as much as we can.” The event didn’t set out a target of money to be raised for the Whitechapel Centre as they felt this could put pressure on people to donate,

Joe said: “We want to raise as much as we can. If you set a limit you’ve set yourself to fail. It’s all to do with how generous people feel on the day and usually the people of Liverpool are generous so a lot of the time we raise some cash.” Joe admits it’s not all plain sailing when organising this kind of event. He said: “The very first one that we did two and a half years ago was a summer cider festival and that took about three months of planning and that’s all that I did for three months. “As it’s got on we have all the contacts now, we know a lot of how to do it. So each time we’ve done it it gets cheaper and cheaper for us to do as we’re making less mistakes. “The only issue you tend to find is last-minute cancellations of stalls which we’ve had every year. If anyone out there wants to do something like this the first one’s really hard but it gets better.”

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Here comes Santa -Paws!

Grotto: A happy dog getting his picture taken with Santa © Amelia Eccleson-Davies

Smart: A furry friend getting groomed at the festival © Amelia EcclesonDavies

Amelia Eccleson-Davies reports on the Doggy Grotto at Heswall Ice Festival

hey say dogs are like their owners, and with the arrival of Santa Paws at Heswall Ice Christmas Festival, it was difﬁcult to tell who was the most excited. As part of the four-day festival across the town, a dog grotto was set up with Simply Debonair Dogs grooming parlour on hand to give canine friends a festive treat. Husband and wife Nik and Liz Ellis took over the Chairmanship of the Heswall district business association this year so it’s the ﬁrst year they have put together the Ice Festival. Liz told Liverpool Life: “We’ve had really good feedback from local

people. They’ve really enjoyed being able to bring the children somewhere of a weekend and get involved with everything that’s been going on. We’ve had a lot of local businesses here supporting the event.” The festival was held at four locations across Heswall with over 45 stalls, creative workshops, live music and an ‘Ice Factor’ competition. Next year, the organisers hope to hold the festival in one location, as spreading it across the whole town proved to be slightly difﬁcult to run at times although it did allow festival -goers to explore all of Heswall’s high street. The idea for the dog-grotto itself arose when the couple visited a

wholesalers which had attracted massive queues as they were holding a similar event to treat customers’ furry friends to a toy and photo with Santa. Nik said: “It started as a bit of a joke and we’ve had a huge response to it. We had local dog-whisperer John Harrison and he’s been brilliant, people and dogs have really, really loved him. So that’s deﬁnitely something we’ll be bringing back next year.” Kirsty Wilson, 46, from Eastham told Liverpool Life: “The event was lovely, it was really nice to bring the dog down, but we did ﬁnd out she doesn’t like beards! It was really nice to get everyone out together and I’d love to see it again next year.”

Stylish: Pretty poodle at the Heswall Ice Festival © Amelia Eccleson-Davies

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Your secret is safe with us Our pick of the top secret Santa gifts for under £10 For him...

For both...

£4.99 Christmas polar bear socks www.tkmaxx.com

£7.99 Beer pong drinking game www.blueinc.co.uk

£9.99 Personalised pint glass ‘Oh Deer’ www.gettingpersonal.co.uk

£5.00 Hot cocoa mug set www.wilko.com

£5.00 David Beckham Instinct set www.wilko.com

£6.00 Traditional sweets www.debenhams.com

For her...

£6.00 Cranberry scented candle www.marksandspencer.com

£7.00 Nivea beautiful moments gift set www.wilko.com

£6.00 Shades of nude nail collection www.marksandspencer.com

Life|Christmas|C5 Cats & dogs hanging decorations, £8 www.george-home.co.uk

Pinecone decorations, £7.50 www.paperchase.co.uk

Nordic tree pack 34 baubles, £10 wilko.co.uk

Wooden nutcracker, £12.99 www.homesense.com

Deck the halls with boughs of holly A selection of our festive favourites to ensure your home is colourful this Christmas ... Background picture Lit berry garland, £25 www.next.co.uk

Stag cushion, £8 www.matalan.co.uk

Crackers, £15 www.marksandspencer.com

Life|Christmas|C6

Arts and Craftmas Have yourself a merry little Christmas tree

by Paige Freshwater

Instructions 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Cut your chosen material into strips of one centimetre, around all sides, larger than the size of the cone’s base. Overlay the cut material over the cone’s base and pin it into position. Proceed by cutting the strips of material into squares. Twice fold the squares of fabric to form small triangles. Take a piece of the squared material and pin the fabric over the top of the cone. Attach the small triangles onto the tree by pinning them into position and continue up the tree until it is fully covered. Attach a bell onto a pin and push them through the cone to create decorations. Finish by adding a small accessory onto the top of the tree by pinning it into place.

Christmas Creation: All taken by @ Paige Freshwater

What you’ll need: Polystyrene cone

Pins Small bells Coloured fabric Scissors

Life|Christmas|C7

All I want for Christmas is ... Laura Hughes and Rosie Steedman asked people in Liverpool city centre what the festive season means to them. Here’s what they had to say...

Ben Walsh, 32, Reading: “I’m going to visit my family down south because I’m originally from Reading. I’m excited to all get together as I love spending time with family at this time of year. “I haven’t asked for anything in particular. As you get older you realise there’s more to Christmas than presents.”

Jennifer Smith, 26, Bootle: “Christmas is family time isn’t it, it’s all about spending time with your loved ones, and the presents is my favourite part. “This year I’m just getting my hair done as my present, I can’t wait to have some new hair.”

Brynn Williams, 69, Wales: “Christmas is a good time because I am a Christian and it’s the way I’ve been brought up. I spend Christmas having a few drinks, some turkey and being with family. “If I did ask for anything for Christmas I don’t suppose I would get it, I don’t believe in Santa.”

Carole Wilson, 46, Liverpool: “Getting together with family is my favourite all sitting down together. The dinner always has to be turkey; it wouldn’t feel right without having turkey. “We are quite sensible with presents; we always ask each other what presents we would like so it saves getting any unwanted presents.”

Laura Campbell, 29, Liverpool: “Food is my favourite thing about Christmas because I love food. I love waking up in the morning and seeing my little boys face when he gets down the stairs and he sees all of his presents. “I haven’t asked for anything in particular because I’m not fussy, apart from a pair of new boots.”

Francine Rice, 19, Belfast: “Usually Christmas means presents but this year it actually means going home and seeing my family, we’re from Belfast so we’re excited to go home. “I’ve asked for mainly money and I’ve asked for a speaker as well just because the whole ﬂat has one and I don’t have one.”

Pick of the seasonal TV adverts - your choice

estive adverts are now as much a part of Christmas as a helping of sprouts or a cheesy ‘80s ballad. At Liverpool Life, we wanted to know what Merseyside’s favourite ad was this year, so we went out into the streets of Liverpool asking Christmas shoppers what they thought. Niamh Kelly, 19, Birkenhead told Liverpool Life: “The Heathrow advert with the two teddy bears should have been on the list – I almost actually teared up at that one!” Millie Holding, 20, Nottingham: “The Aldi advert with the Christmas carrot can’t compete, it’s not sad enough for Christmas, I want it to give me the feels!” Robert Barry, 22, Kent said: “I’ve only seen the Amazon one

so far and I hate it!” Jamie Reed, 21, Kent said: “To be fair, I’ve preferred previous John Lewis adverts to this year. This one is alright but it’s nowhere near as good as usual.” Hannah Banwell, 19, Croydon said: “I haven’t really been watching much telly lately but I always love the John Lewis ones” If you want to vote for your favourite Chrimbo advert, then head over to our LiverpoolLife Facebook page to cast your vote. Words: Danyaal Yasin, Jess Harris and Amber Roberts

Pic © Jess Harris

Life|Christmas|C8

Lend a helping hand this Christmas Charities always need support at this time of year. Amy Shirtcliffe finds out how to get involved

erseyside Dogs Home was set up in 2013 in the hope of making a difference. They created a chance for unclaimed stray dogs that couldn’t be taken in by local authorities. Every Christmas, the home launches its ‘Cold Nose Warm Heart’ appeal. The winter months put a strain on the charity as they have to cover the costs of extra heating, which will be around £4000. The home is collecting for the large bill on their Just Giving page. Centre Support Ofﬁcer Emma Logan said: “We are in desperate need of pennies to keep our dogs warm and dry. This is especially important for the hundreds of sick dogs who will come through our doors in need of TLC in order to get on their feet again.” The home expects to almost double the number of dogs they care for over the winter period and want to get them healthy and ready for rehoming as soon as possible. The home currently has 60 dogs in their care, but the number is expected to rise to over 100 over the coming months as more people abandon their dogs. As well as covering the cost of heating, the home needs plenty of help with other donations and volunteering. Emma said: “Support

comes in lots of different forms, from donating or in person at the dogs home, volunteering their time to walk our dogs, or donating food and bedding to the home. “We are always in need of any type of tinned meat, dry bags of Chappie as well as towels, blankets or even old curtains!”

he Whitechapel Centre has helped the homeless of Liverpool since 1975 and works with over 2,500 people a year. Their mission is to prevent and resolve homelessness and poverty by providing tailored support so that each person can achieve their individual potential. The centre receives many donations of new bedding from local suppliers and hotels and some toiletries, but is still in desperate need of other essentials. They have put out an appeal for underwear, tracksuit bottoms, warm winter wear, trainers, razors and shaving foam and dog food, leads and collars. The centre is also asking for food donations for their Christmas meals. They are open to provide meals on Christmas and Boxing Day and are accepting food donations until December 23. Fundraising manager Ruth McCaughley said: “Helping the charity a little will make a huge difference to the people we work with.”

Christmas dinner: Volunteers at Merseyside Dogs Home with donations. Pic © Facebook/ Merseyside Dogs Home

The HOPE (Helping Other People Exist) Project was founded in 2013 and is powered entirely on community spirit. The project is not a registered charity but has become a pillar of the community by going out and making a difference. The project’s founder Colin Dobie has rallied the people of Merseyside to get hundreds of donations and volunteers. The volunteers go out in groups of three or more every Tuesday to hand out food, drinks and essentials to those sleeping rough. Project organiser Sarah Morton said: “People are constantly getting in touch on our Facebook page to see how they can help. “Sometimes it’s a few packs of biscuits, other times it’s someone who wants to come out and help permanently.” The volunteers are doing a shoebox appeal over Christmas and are asking for help. They are asking for warm clothing, toiletries and food that could go in the boxes. They also need volunteers to help handing the boxes out in the days leading up to Christmas.

arah said: “Every single bit people do makes a massive difference.” KIND was started in 1975 to help disadvantaged families in Merseyside. In the 40 years it has been active, founder Stephen Yip

MBE has helped tens of thousands children and families living in poverty. They are appealing for help to raise at least £75,000 this Christmas to help as many families as they did last year. In 2015 they hit their target of the same amount, helping thousands in the region. The charity is entirely self-funded, needing all the help they can get from donations and volunteers. The ﬁnancial and emotional strain on deprived families at Christmas also adds pressure to KIND, who don’t want to see a single person miss out. Stephen Yip said; “We want to make a difference at Christmas. “Most charities get the boost for months to come from the generosity people feel around Christmas time, but we have to spend every penny we get.” From the donations, KIND hopes to deliver a fami-

Community spirit: Staff at KIND have helped disadvantaged children for decades. Pic © Stephen Yip/KIND

Joy: Volunteers ready to hand out the donations Pic © Facebook/The Whitechapel Centre ly-sized hamper containing food and toys to over 1000 families. Each hamper is put together by volunteers and costs £65 to produce. As well as Christmas presents and dinner, the hamper comes with a crate of fresh fruit and vegetables. Although over 1000 hampers will be delivered this Christmas, demand far

exceeds how many people receive help. As well as donations of money, the charity will need help from December 15-17 to pack and deliver the hampers. Stephen added: “Many families in Liverpool are facing a bleak Christmas. “We want to give them one to remember, not one to forget.”

How to get in touch: The Whitechapel Centre Langsdale Street Liverpool L3 8DT Tel: 0151 207 7617 No Second Night Out: 0300 123 2041 Email: volunteer@ whitechapelcentre. co.uk

Merseyside Dogs Home Greensbridge Lane Halewood Liverpool L35 1QH Tel: 0151 487 3592 Fundraising: 0151 374 2001 Email: fundraising@ merseysidedogshome.org

KIND 19 Back Canning Street Liverpool L8 7PB Tel: 0151 708 8273 Email: info@kind. org.uk

The HOPE Project 60 Fontenoy Street Liverpool L3 2BE Tel: 07450 268161

Life|News|5

Landlords ‘unaware of April tax hike’ By NICOLE QUINN A leading regional solicitor has explained that landlords, property developers and investors are still unaware of a 3% tax that most buyers of additional residential properties have to pay. Jasper Dawson, from North West law firm Kirwans, said: “Since the 3% stamp duty was introduced in April, we have dealt with a number of clients who have discovered that the residential property they were planning to buy, perhaps to turn into offices or to regenerate and re-sell, is subject to this tax.” According to the solicitor, most buyers are subject to the additional cost, but many don’t realise until the point at which they’re about to exchange contracts. At this stage, they are forced to seek urgent legal advice to find out if there is a way that they can legally avoid paying the tax.

ACC calls on local support ACC Liverpool is calling on local support as it has been nominated for the Best UK Conference Centre at a national industry awards. Voting is now open for the M&IT 2017 industry awards hosted by industry magazine Meetings and Incentive Travel. The venue is hoping to retain their title for the ﬁfth year running. Winning this award proves that Liverpool has the facilities, organisation and support to position the city’s business tourism as one of the best. When you register your vote you will be entered into a prize draw to win an amazing trip to Vietnam for two.

Think before you give, charity urges By JOSHUA DOHERTY

A former homeless man from Liverpool has welcomed recent comments from a city councillor about the problem of professional begging in the city. Paul Doke, who now works for the homeless charity Whitechapel, spoke to Liverpool Life following Liverpool housing councillor Frank Hont’s comments on homelessness. Mr Doke reiterated his re-

marks about a range of issues on the subject, including how best to help rough sleepers this Christmas. He was particularly vocal about the issue of professional begging. He said: “Liverpool’s known to be a generous city. You’ve got people that come here for the festive period to pretend to be homeless, because they know the people in this city will give them money. “There’s always been a

problem with professional begging in this city, you get people travelling to hotspots. “You even have people travelling in cars, parking outside a city centre and driving back home at the end of the day.” The Whitechapel worker was also keen to advise anyone thinking of giving to homeless people over the festive period and, like Cllr Frank Hont, advises people to give to recognised charity. He explained: “People have

good intentions but the people that are giving money don’t really see what happens beyond the here and now, they don’t understand addiction, they don’t understand alcoholism. “They want to help that person there and then, which is all good and well but I’d advise someone to stop and think about whether that money might present harm to this person through alcohol and substance abuse.” Mr Doke also went into

more detail about Cllr Hont’s claim that many homeless people refuse the offer of accommodation. He said: “Any council-`run accommodation is heavily policed and would prevent them from seeking alcohol and drugs, so often they will choose to stay outside, regardless of the cold. “ For more information about the problem and how to help, visit the White chapel website at www.white chapelcentre.co.uk

Sixth form ‘model UN’ holds meeting By POPPY BACKSHALL

Liverpool Town Hall held its annual model UN conference for sixth form students across Merseyside. The students were grouped together to represent the 26 different countries in debates on climate change, migration and ﬁre arm safety. The young people were prepared and conﬁdently argued in representation of their country. The event is run by Enid and Phillip Lodge who have been organising the conference for 31 years, an indication of its educational success. Enid told Liverpool Life: “After working in education for over 30 years we tend to focus on these annual conferences because they’re great. “The young people always seem to enjoy it and it’s a different way of learning. It’s important that they get used to discussing these important issues.” The aim of these conferences is to sustain the Model United Nations General Assembly and embedding discussions by involvement across other

United Nations: The ‘model UN’ discussing global issues schools. Lord Wood of Anﬁeld, chair of the United Nations Association, explains the importance of discussion: “I am very sorry that I cannot be present at your meeting of the United Nations in Liverpool today. “I was looking forward to hearing how you take on a

breathtakingly diverse and ambitious range of issues that the world faces. “Your conversation is an important part of the dialogue across national boundaries that our world so desperately needs. “Climate change does not respect national borders. Migrants travel across the globe

to seek safety and a better life. But when we trade with other countries, we help create jobs, opportunities and lift people out of poverty.” Catherine Magennis, 16, from Merchant Taylors girls school: “I’ve really enjoyed today but it wasn’t what I expected. I was representing Nigeria as their scribe so I got

to drift in and out of the different groups and listen to all the arguments. I’m not interested in history and politics I prefer science but today showed me it can be interesting. “There are so many different countries with different opinions but we can all come together to make the world a better place.”

The Blitz 75 years on: Birdsong steps back in time By RHYS EDMONDSON To mark the 75th anniversary of the Blitz, the Epstein Theatre has been transformed - decked out with posters and memorabilia from yesteryear. That’s because the Blitz musical Liver Birdsong has taken a step back in time to Liverpool during WWII. And as the live band starts to play the ﬁrst of many 1940s songs before the curtains rise, it is difﬁcult not to feel as though you too have gone

back in time. However, it is not just feelings of nostalgia that Liver Birdsong has to offer. Billed as a “compelling mix of tragedy and comedy”, the musical is set on the night of November 28/29 1940 when Liverpool was hit heavily by the German Luftwaffe. We are introduced to Maggs, Carla, Daisy Mae and Lil - four working women who have joined the war effort while their men are away. Leaving the Kirkby

munitions factory where they work for a night on the town, the women are subject to a series of events that change their lives for ever. In this battle against the Nazis and their own personal problems, it is easy to see where the writers have got the inspiration for their strong, sassy and ﬁercely patriotic female characters from. Three of the four women are caricatures of the typical “Scouse bird”, feeding the audience a variety of humorous

quips throughout the duration of the show and providing light heartedness when things get dark. However, the musical is often let down by a poor script, relying too much on the charisma of the talented cast to pull the story along. At times, it is difficult to keep track of what is going on as too many sub-plots fight for attention. Despite this, this first full production from father and daughter duo Tony Bradley

and Rebecca Myers is both aesthetically and musically pleasing. The wider context of the musical is well thoughtout and the celebration of Liverpool’s heritage appears to be genuine and proud. THE VERDICT:

****

A beautiful step back in time that will make you laugh and cry all at the same time.

Life|Health|6

Giggle: Jordan Fawcett leads laughter yoga.

PAIGE FRESHWATER discovers the latest exercise trend to come to Liverpool and how LAUGHTER YOGA is beneficial for everyone

laughter enthusiast is encouraging people to release their inner child and be silly for one hour a week in Liverpool. Jordan Fawcett, founder of Laughter Yoga By Jordan, attended Rodney Street Therapies Wellbeing Day to deliver a class and inform people about the benefits of the laughter. The 25-year-old admitted to being spectral of Laughter Yoga at first, but after participating in a session he said that he felt a need to bring the exercise to Liverpool. He told Liverpool Life: “I was quite sceptical when I first heard about it [Laughter Yoga] and so I went to try it in Manchester and it was really beneficial and I learnt so much. “I thought this needs to come to Liverpool, so I did a course earlier this year to teach it and that is how I became inspired. I felt all the benefits from doing it and I wanted to share them with people and try to get as many people laughing as possible.” Originating from India, the practise is based on the belief

that voluntary laughter provides the same psychological and physiological benefits as spontaneous laughter. Preformed without any humorous reason to laugh, Laughter Yoga has been found to reduce heart disease, help with weight loss, decrease stress levels and improve breathing. Mr Fawcett said: “There have been a lot of medical experiments done about laughter and in the 1980s there was an experiment done involving a group of patients in America, all with heart conditions. “Over the course of a year, half of the group of patients were given a comedy routine to follow as well as standard medical care and the other group were just given the standard medical care with no comedy involved. “A year later the results were quite astonishing, the blood pressure and stress levels of the patients involved in the comedy routine were a lot lower.” With an aim of increasing laughter in Liverpool, Mr Fawcett hopes to “take laughter yoga to the next level” by bringing

the exercise to as many people as possible. He added: “In America, a lot of hospitals and care homes do laughter yoga for patients who don’t really have a lot of laugh about. I aim to take it to as many people as possible and get more people laughing across Liverpool. “The only thing you need to do is allow yourself to be silly for one hour a week and go back to being your childlike self.” Student of Laughter Yoga By Jordan, James Doherty told Liverpool Life: “I’d never actually done any yoga prior to laughter yoga. “ I went to the first session and I really enjoyed it and it actually inspired me to take up traditional yoga. “I find yoga as a great stress reliever. When you’ve had a stressful day at work you just laugh and it’s not laughing at any sort of comedy or humour it is a lot of improvisation which I like as well. It is just something that makes you feel good and it is good for the mental health as well as the physical health.”

How a laugh a day keeps the doctor away “Allow yourself to be silly for one hour a week”

A ray of light during the winter blues

ver two million Britons suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a form of depression caused by lack of natural daylight. Research has shown that a lack of light creates a chemical imbalance in the part of the brain that regulates many body functions, affecting our sleep, our moods and our energy levels. Now recognised by the World Health Organisation as a legitimate illness, SAD is believed to affect approximately one in 15 people in the UK during the winter months. In around a quarter of a million cases, the condition is so serious that it can cause depression, and can be particularly severe during December, January and February. For some people, SAD is so disabling that they cannot function in winter without continuous treatment. Others may experience a milder version called subsyndromal SAD or ‘winter blues’.

JESSICA HARRIS looks at the condition affecting millions of Britons at this time of year and what can be done to resolve it

Katie Carson, a SAD sufferer from Eastham, Wirral, told Liverpool Life: “My first episode of SAD was when I was about 17. I had caught the flu in the winter and was stuck inside a lot. I just became very anxious and miserable and tired. It wasn’t until the early summer months that I felt better again. “Now I use a dawn simulator alarm clock (a clock that wakes you up gradually with increasing light), which helps massively in the dark mornings. “Last winter I made a much more conscious effort to get out of the office during the middle of the day. Unlike the ‘normal’ depression and anxiety I have experienced; I at least know that there is some kind of end date to my SAD.”

The Seasonal Affective Disorder Association (SADA) recommend light therapy to treat SAD. The idea is to try to provide extra light and to make up for the shortage of daylight in winter. The treatment uses multiple wavelengths of light energy to target skin tissue at underlying levels. Yellow light is recommended to treat SAD as it stimulates the area of the brain that is responsible for low mood and can potentially banish seasonal symptoms. A light box is used which has a similar effect to sunlight, but without the ultraviolet rays, therefore it is not harmful to the skin or the eyes. Light therapy works quite quickly, with most people will noticing improvement within the first week.

The NHS provides free light boxes to those who suffer from severe cases of SAD. However, Aesthetics Liverpool offer affordable LED light therapy to those who are ineligible. Imagine Independence Liverpool, an organisation that specialises in promoting positive mental health, told Liverpool Life that making minor alterations to a person’s lifestyle can be just as beneficial as therapy or medication. A spokesperson for Imagine said: “The key to overcoming SAD is to expose yourself to as much natural daylight as possible. We know that a lot of people work in office space environments and access to daylight during the shorter winter days is less manageable. “However we recommend utilising the free time you have to take advantage – walking ten minutes to a shop where you can buy your lunch, for example.”

Life|Sport|7

Reds aim to get back on track By JAMES JONES Liverpool will hope to bounce back from Bournemouth’s astonishing comeback on the weekend when they face relegation-battling West Ham on Sunday at Anfield. The team had travelled to Barcelona to train and keep their mind off the embarrassing defeat as they look to resume their title chase. Everton travel to Vicarage Road on Saturday where they will play Watford, who currently lie middle of the table. After scraping a draw against United, Everton will look to get back into winning ways in their bid for European football. Tranmere go to Wrexham for their first game in the FA Trophy this Saturday and head into it on fine form. A late goal gave the Rovers a 1-0 win over York, sending them top of the National League with a one point lead over Lincoln City in second. Southport head to West Yorkshire on Saturday to play Farsley Celtic FC in the FA Trophy.

Students glide to frisbee fun By LEWIS JENNINGS A sport known as Ultimate is gliding into Liverpool as the latest way for students to get healthy. Ultimate Frisbee is a sport in which players pass each other a ﬂying disk, with the aim to reach teammates at the opposing end zone in order to score points. The game has become increasingly popular, particularly with LJMU students, and as a result Liverpool Ultimate Frisbee team was born. Matt Melling, the co-founder of the club, told JMU Journalism: “I was contacted by Oliver Browne, who works for Merseyside Ultimate, and he said he wanted to start an Ultimate Club. “So we got support from the Student Union and they gave us funding for the year and IM Marsh sports hall to train in on Tuesdays.” Since the beginning of the group, the amount of members has increased from 27 to 77. The team have since entered two beginner’s tournaments in Liverpool and Manchester. They ﬁnished higher than University of Liverpool beginners in both

Rangers remain an unstoppable force By HOLLIE HAYES

John Moores Rangers are an unstoppable force this season after yet another successful win on Wednesday against Salford University. The women romped to a 65-0 victory in their second BUCS game. Liverpool’s side made a promising start to the match with outside centre Maddy Gresty scoring two early tries, which she converted with a clean kick through the posts. The opposition began to bounce back with an extended run from their wing, who was able to gain momentous amounts of ground. Salford pursued this aggressive comeback halfway through the ﬁrst half as they began to put pressure onto the host’s defence. The visitors

Unstoppable: Liverpool John Moores Women continue to sit at the top of the BUCS league © Phillipa Stirling transitioned into each phase with ease, clearing their rucks with slick pace. However their attempts ground to a halt as Gabi Corby exploited a gap in their defensive line from Liverpool’s 22-meter line and left their attack in her wake. Once again JMU stole an

extra two points off the boot, putting them ahead before half time. JMU retaliated to this aggression and kept up their persistence to steal yet another try. Sarah Gethin crept up the blind-side wing after receiving a short pop from Liverpool’s outside centre

and crashed the ball into the corner of the try line. Scrum half Hollie Hayes ended the ﬁrst half with two tries leaving Liverpool with a 36-point cushion at half time. The aggression from both sides was maintained throughout the second half as Salford and JMU battled it out at each ruck with conﬁdence. However, John Moores created havoc for their opposition which proved crucial, as they retained a majority of possession during the second half. As the game progressed, possession switched between the teams. Each ruck was evenly matched for both sides as they hovered between the half-way line and Salford’s half. The game remained balanced for several minutes until Chloe Garner extended JMU’s lead after picking

the ball from the scrum and sneaking blind-side. The battle continued with high intensity until the home side struck again. Loose-head prop Abbie Romano securing a well-deserved try after she drove through Salford’s tackles with ease from the 22mark. Liverpool put another two tries under their belts after Gresty scored a hat-trick try and Garner made no mistake in her decision to pick up straight from the ruck and crossed over the line. The try was then converted. The home-side scored 11 tries in total and converted ﬁve. It was Corby who ﬁnished the game by snatching the ball from the opposition’s kick on the try line and secured Liverpool’s 65-0 demolition.

Let’s get physical, physical! By AMELIA ECCLESON-DAVIES Merseyside Sports Partnership are teaming up with employers in Liverpool to get workers moving. Liverpool Active Workplaces is a programme launched in an attempt to achieve the city’s ambition to become the most active core city in the UK by 2021 through getting people working in the city to increase their physical activity through the Fit for Me campaign. The campaign promotes the beneﬁts of physical activity, supporting people to take small steps to being more active and by making it as easy and fun as possible for them to join in and feel good. The programme is a key part of the Liverpool Active City Strategy 2014-21. The initiative is resourced through a partnership between Liverpool City Council, NHS Liverpool Clinical Commissioning Group and

strategic stakeholders with the aim of inspiring people who live or work in the city to be more physically active. Research shows that physical activity initiatives can reduce absenteeism by up to 20%, as well as improving teamwork, communication and morale. The World Health Organisation has identiﬁed physical inactivity as the fourth biggest killer worldwide. It costs the UK economy over £5.4bn every year through absenteeism. Sandra Davies, Director of Public Health from Liverpool City Council, said: “We need to encourage workers to be more active in order to counteract the effects of sedentary behaviour at work. “As adults spend up to 60% of their waking hours in the workplace, this programme presents an excellent opportunity for Liverpool employers to send a positive message out to their workforce to be more active.”

Active: Workers get active as part of Merseyside Sports Partnership © Professional Liverpool Workplaces that pledge their support to the city-wide goal will have access to a range of services to encourage participation. These include constant support, free staff training places on the Physical Activity Champion training course, funding to pilot physical activity training, and a mass participation ‘step challenge’ in January 2017. The step challenge is de-

signed as an easy way for people who would like to become more active to gradually change their lifestyle. Bespoke programmes will be created for each workplace that pledges its support after studies have shown that 87% of employees would be more productive if they could take time out of their working day to eat healthily and take exercise. Danny Woodworth, Physi-

cal Activity and Sport Ofﬁcer at Merseyside Sports Partnership told Liverpool Life: “Employers recognise that they need to do more to encourage their staff to be active, but often don’t know where to support or have capacity to deliver workplace activity initiative. “Therefore we have put together a free package of support that they can take advantage of.”

An�ield living legends live again

By AMELIA ECCLESONDAVIES

The LFC Foundation, Liverpool FC’s official charity, announced on Monday that the first ever official Legends game will be held at Anfield next spring. Liverpool FC Legends will play Real Madrid Legends in a charity match on March 25 2017.

Robbie Fowler will captain the Reds in the rematch of the 2015 Corazon Classic game. The Spanish giants beat the LFC Legends 4-2 in front of a crowd of 70,000 at the Santiago Bernabeu. Ian Rush, Liverpool’s all time record goal-scorer, will act as player-manager for the team with Jamie Carragher, Michael Owen, John Aldridge and Bjorn Tore Kvarme amongst other leg-

endary LFC players playing against Real Madrid. All proceeds from the match will go to the LFC Foundation, funding the support of the ofﬁcial charity’s programmes and partnerships with the aim of making a difference to the lives and health of children and young people in and around Merseyside. Andrea Cooper, head of the Liverpool FC Foundation,

said: “We are delighted to host our friends from Real Madrid in the return leg of the charity game held in 2015. With our fans’ help we can make a really positive difference to thousands of children and young people who need it most.” In a press conference on Monday, Robbie Fowler said: “Obviously we’re not players anymore so any chance we get to put on our

shirts again and run about is fantastic.” Real Madrid legend Emilio Butragueno told the audience: “We are delighted to be here at one of the temples of football. “We’ll do our best to gather the best possible team with the aim of offering a marvellous spectacle for everybody to enjoy.” Adult tickets are £20 and £5 for juniors.

Liverpool

LifeSPORT The unstoppable John Moores Rangers

Inside Sport Aiming to get fit at work

Another impressive victory for LJMU as the women’s rugby team trounced Salford University in their second BUCS game. Full story on page 7

RISING TO CHALLENGE By JAMES JONES LJMU’s women basketball had a brilliant run last season when they came third in the Northern League First Division. However, this season has been a completely different story. The team looks set to be relegated after only being promoted two years ago, with a dip in form and the loss of vital players proving costly. The ‘ballers currently reside in last place in the division with only a few games left in the season, and are still yet to register their ﬁrst win of the season.

Action: LJMU Women’s Basketball Team © Rebecca Breen Vice-captain Rebecca Breen explained why the season had gone wrong: “We lost a few players last year and all the other teams in the league have got a lot stronger so we are yet to win a game. “The other teams are much stronger, and we had a coach

for every other game at the beginning of the season, whereas other teams have coaches for every game.” However, the team and vice-captain are still hopeful for the season, with the second year student saying: “Recently we’ve acquired a

© Rebecca Breen coach who’s willing to travel to games with us, and we have seen an improvement in our games so we’re hoping we can transfer that into wins. “We all get on really well as a team. We knew we wouldn’t be as successful as last season but we’re starting to play bet-

ter now, and the new girls that have just come into the team are ﬁtting in well with the girls who’ve been in the team for the last couple of seasons.” The vice-captain is realistic in the hopes for this season and the next. She said: “I don’t think we’re going to be able to save ourselves from relegation. A lot of the other teams have scholars from America who have played their entire lives and I don’t think we’re going to be able to beat them. “There’s only about ﬁve players in the team who won’t graduate this year so we’ll have to pick up quite a few new people next year.”

Gliding into Liverpool

Legends charity match