Community section.qxp_Layout 1 18/11/2021 17:53 Page 78
MENDIP TIMES
Anti-fraud advice works
Drawing attention to polio
Club president Sandy Maclachlan with Ashley Jones
A MEMBER of the Inner Wheel Club of Mendip had every reason to feel grateful to the group’s speaker at their first meeting in-person since pandemic restrictions were lifted. Ashley Jones, from Avon and Somerset Police’s Organised Crime Unit, gave a talk about how to prevent various types of fraud at the meeting at the Rodney Stoke Inn. He later handed out information booklets which proved useful when the club member was the victim of an attempted scam just a short while later.
Members of the club including Alison Webb and Irene McIntosh (pictured) have been supporting the Rotary Club of Mendip in marshalling at the vaccination centre at Winchester Farm at Cheddar
The exhibition
ROTARY Nailsea and Backwell highlighted World Polio Day in October, as polio cases increased during the Covid pandemic, when polio vaccinations were suspended. Three years ago it looked as if the world was close to eradicating polio. Members led by Chris Broughton, himself a survivor of the disease, arranged for an iron lung (tank ventilator) to be exhibited in Tesco car park. This was the main treatment for polio from 1928 to the early 1960s and the display was designed to draw attention to this dreadful disease. Chris also organised the planting of crocus corms at Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm and hopes to have other sites available in due course. It is hoped that some £400 will be raised locally and with a contribution from The Gates Foundation, this could reach £1,200 which equates to 3,000 vaccinations.
Bulb planting at Noah’s Ark Farm
Grants available to restart services
DISCOVERY, the organisation which supports people with learning disabilities and autism across Somerset, is inviting groups across the county to submit applications for grants ranging from £500 to £50,000 from its community fund. This new round of funding will focus on supporting organisations to recover, innovate, and restart services in the wake of the pandemic.
“Iron lungs” saved many lives
Applications through Somerset Community Foundation (SCF), who are administering the Fund, are particularly encouraged from groups which tackle health inequalities, combat hate crime, and support people into employment. Discovery is a social enterprise formed from a ground-breaking partnership between Dimensions and Somerset County Council. The deadline for submissions is Friday, December 17th.
Details: www.somersetcf.org.uk/discovery or call 01749 344949
PAGE 78 • MENDIP TIMES • DECEMBER 2021
