Worcestershire Now - DEC 22/JAN 23

Worcestershire Now

THE LATEST NEWS FROM YOUR AREA

A Decade of Air Ambulance Support

Droitwich couple, Roger and Diane Cole along with Evesham-based Claire Dyson Racing and Rehabilitation recently commemorated ten years’ support of Midlands Air Ambulance Charity at Stratford Racecourse, after raising £103,000.

Claire Dyson Racing and Rehabilitation has been a steadfast supporter of the charity for many years in loving memory of the yard’s former head girl, Charlotte Cole, who was involved in a tragic equestrian incident in 2011.

To raise funds for Midlands Air Ambulance Charity, Claire Dyson Racing and Rehabilitation and Charlotte’s family, Roger, Diane and their daughter Stephanie Cole, have undertaken numerous fundraising initiatives for the air ambulance including open days at Froglands Stud Farm, evening events and annual

sponsorship of a race in Charlotte’s memory at Stratford Racecourse.

The race, which took place on Thursday 27th October, means the fundraising total has now reached an impressive £103,000, funding dozens of vitally important air ambulance and critical care car missions in the region. To bolster the total, the National Trainers Federation have kindly donated £500 on the day in memory of Charlotte.

Hanna Sebright, chief executive for Midlands Air Ambulance Charity, said: “Sadly, our advanced critical care paramedics and doctors are called out to a horse rider in desperate need of enhanced pre-hospital care every week, so support from the equestrian community is critical to maintaining our service in the rural communities we serve.

“The Cole family and Claire Dyson are very

dear to us at Midlands Air Ambulance Charity and we are continually grateful for their unfaltering support of our organisation. Their milestone £103,000 donation over the last ten years has enabled us to assist more than 60 patients in their critical hour of need at the scene of their incident.”

Claire Dyson, on behalf of Claire Dyson Racing and Rehabilitation and the Cole family, said: “While the reason we fundraise for Midlands Air Ambulance Charity is out of tragic loss, we are extremely proud to have reached this incredible milestone having supported the charity over the last decade. We would like to offer our enormous thanks to the many people who have supported our fundraising activities. Their unwavering support and kindness has been very much appreciated and gives us some comfort in honouring Charlotte’s memory.” n

100-year-old Droitwich Care Home Resident Wants to ‘Share the Joy’ this Christmas

Residents at Woodland View care home in Droitwich, operated by Ideal Carehomes, are getting in the spirit of Christmas by helping local families via the Salvation Army’s Christmas Present Appeal.

Each year, the Salvation Army collect new and unwrapped Christmas presents to distribute to local children who might not otherwise receive one.

This year, staff and residents from Woodland View are determined to offer their support by asking their neighbours to donate Christmas toys, which can be dropped-off at the home on Woodland Way.

A Salvation Army spokesperson said, ‘We are very grateful to Ideal Carehomes for supporting our Christmas Present Appeal. It makes such a difference to people who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford Christmas at

all, and to children who wouldn’t have any presents to open at Christmas without it.’

In mid-December, the residents at Woodland View will take the gifts to donate to the Salvation Army church in Droitwich.

All are welcome to donate new and unwrapped toys to the Christmas Present Appeal. Please drop all donations at Woodland View care home, Woodland Way, Droitwich, WR9 7FX.

Woodland View recently had a visit from television’s Alison Hammond, who helped the home to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Research UK. Alison said, ‘I’m moving to Droitwich, I’ve decided! I’m moving in with these residents and I’m going to be here forever! It’s absolutely beautiful here.’

For more information visit www.idealcarehomes.co.uk.

For those that don’t know, a community fridge does exactly what it says on the tin – it is a fridge for the community. But just as importantly they are an extremely efficient way of redistributing unwanted food.

The Community Fridge Network was set up by environmental charity Hubbub to help distribute all types of unwanted food; from households, allotment holders and supermarkets and currently have over 300 throughout the UK. They have partnered with the Co-Op with the aim of reaching 500 community fridges by the end of 2023.

Worcestershire’s first community fridge was opened in Upton Baptist Church in November 2019 and together with Malvern Hills District Council and Worcestershire County Council, who paid for the fridge, the local branch of the Co-Op pledged to donate their unsold items each day to give the fridge a good stock of bread, cake, fruit and vegetables.

Within weeks the community fridge was incredibly popular, with queues forming outside before it opened. And everyone was using it as that’s the most important thing about a community fridge – it’s not to be confused as a food bank as anybody and everybody can use it and donate to it.

Unfortunately COVID put pay to plans to roll out other fridges, but since hosting an online Community Food Forum in early 2021,

Worcestershire County Council has been able to signpost a number of organisations to the Community Fridge Network and the county now has eight community fridges along with other organisations working as community pantry’s.

The advantage of working with Hubbub and the Community Fridge Network is that they will help you along the whole of your journey and provide advice, guidance and cut price fridges/freezers. Being part of the CFN also gives you the opportunity to access food from supermarkets, support from other CFN members and all the signage that you will need. And most importantly, it brings people together to help each other as Upton Community fridge demonstrated during COVID by taking out food to people isolating in the rural communities. And Westland Moving Forward community fridge has

starting cookery classes for residents to help them with much needed skills.

The Community Fridges are located at: Alcester

• Church Street, Alcester B49 5AJ

Droitwich

• The Old Library, Ombersley Street East, Droitwich WR9 8QS

• Westlands Community Centre, Meadow Walk, Droitwich, WR9 9BF

Malvern

• St Mary’s Pickersleigh, Sherrards Green Road, Malvern WR14 2EE

Pershore

• Pershore Baptist Church, St Andrews Centre, Church Walk, Pershore WR10 1BH

Upton

• Upton Baptist Church, Old Street, Upton-upon-Severn WR8 0HN

Worcester

• Ronkswood Community Hub, Canterbury Road, Worcester WR5 1PJ

• Tolly Hub, Rowan Avenue, Worcester WR4 9QW. n

Please check the Hubbub website (www.hubbub.org.uk) or the individual fridge pages for opening times.

HomeEnergyTips

TheEnergySavingTrustbeenencouragingpeopletoinsulatetheirhomesforovertwodecades now,andmanymillionsofhomeshavebeeninsulatedinthattime.

As with any building work, the quality of installation has varied from house to house, and unfortunately some homes will have had a decidedly substandard job.

As the years have gone on, most standard insulation opportunities have been taken up and the focus has shifted to older and more complex properties, presenting new challenges that some in the industry may have limited experience in overcoming.

As these millions of refurbishments have gone ahead, while many have been highly successful, poor workmanship and misunderstanding have led to problems in some cases. Most of the problems we hear about are to do with damp.

Working to improve the process Representatives of the insulation industry are keen to stress that they have learned from previous failures. Certification bodies have

been working to improve the certification and installation process, introducing measures such as increasing the number of trained operatives on site and mandating a verbal handover to owners, among others to reduce the likelihood of insulation failure.

The proportion of insulated homes with related damp problems is very small but, because of the scale of the work that has been carried out, the number of problem homes is still significant. If you were faced with problems due to a botched installation job, what could you do about it?

Try to find the cause of the damp

If damp problems turn up after you have installed floor, solid wall, cavity wall or roof insulation, there are four likely possibilities:

• There is a new damp problem that occurred around the same time as the insulation as installed, but that’s not actually related to the insulation.

• The house was not suitable for the insulation measure installed (for example, the location was too exposed for standard cavity wall insulation).

• The installation was not carried out correctly (for example, external wall insulation has bridged the damp proof course – a barrier that sits just above ground level to prevent damp rising through your walls).

• There was an existing damp problem, and the insulation has made this more obvious (for example, a gutter was leaking into a cavity, and now cavity wall insulation is allowing that water to reach the inner leaf of the wall).

Most householders won’t be able to diagnose the first two, but you may be able to check for an existing or new damp problem that’s separate to the insulation, if only to rule it out. Common things to look out for are:

• Damaged or blocked gutters.

• Damaged or blocked downpipes.

• Missing slates or tiles.

• Missing or damaged flashing (this is usually made of metal and helps to protect parts of the roof or external walls that are particularly prone to leaks and water damage).

• External ground levels that are now higher than the damp proof course.

• Failing doors or windows.

• Blocked air bricks (these look like regular bricks, but they have holes in them for ventilation), or other ventilation issues.

• Damaged bricks, pointing or render.

• Plumbing leaks.

• Excessive moisture production, such as drying clothes indoors.

If you used a reputable installer, they will have carried out a pre-insulation survey that should have picked up many of these issues at the time. But if any of these have happened since the insulation was fitted, and you own your own home, then it’s up to you to fix the problem.

Once the damp problem is sorted, you may need to get a specialist to check that the insulation is still OK, and that any water that has built up anywhere has the chance to dry out.

However, if you can’t find an obvious cause for the damp problems and you suspect an installation problem, you need to move on to the next step.

Speak to your installer

Most installers should be willing to come and check out any problem and do their best to work out the cause. And if it turns out that there was a problem with the installation, they may simply offer to fix the problem for you.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t always go that smoothly – the company may no longer be in business, or they may be difficult to find, or they may turn out not to be as helpful as you would hope. If that happens, then there are a few things you can try.

Check for a guarantee

You may think a guarantee is useless if the company that did the work is no longer in business. But it’s become increasingly common for insulation work, and especially wall insulation, to have a long-term guarantee that is provided by someone other than the installer, so you can still get help if the installer has disappeared.

The Cavity Insulation Guarantee Agency (CIGA) has been providing 25-year independent guarantees for cavity wall insulation for many years, and the Solid Wall Insulation Guarantee Agency (SWIGA) now does the same for solid wall insulation. And there are a number of insurance companies that provide independently backed guarantees for various insulation jobs – there’s a list of the key providers on Trustmark’s website.

If you have some paperwork about a guarantee for your insulation work, then it should have details of who to contact if there’s a problem. If not, but you think you might have had an independent or extended guarantee, you can try contacting the schemes to see if they have a record of your property.

Bear in mind that these guarantees will only support you in the case of poor workmanship. If the damp problem is the result of any other issue, such as poor building maintenance, the guarantee won’t help you, although the guarantee provider may provide advice on how to put the issue right.

Contact the funder

If you had your home insulated through a funding scheme, such as the Energy Company Obligation or a local authority scheme, then you can try contacting the funder to see if they can help resolve the problem. It’s not always obvious who provided the funding, but your local council and your energy supplier are good places to start. Failing that, it could have been one of the other larger energy suppliers operating at the time of your installation.

Contact your installer’s trade association or accreditation scheme

Most specialist insulation installers are members of one or more trade associations or certification bodies, and these organisations will generally have some sort of code of practice for their members. If your installer has failed to follow the guidelines of an organisation they belong to, you might get some support from that organisation.

Look at any paperwork the installer gave you, such as brochures or headed paper, or look at

their website. You should find reference to any organisations the installer is a member of or is accredited by.

What if I rent my home?

If you rent your home, whether privately, from the council or from a housing association, speak to your landlord first about any damp problems. It’s their job to sort it out unless it’s demonstrable you caused the problem yourself. And if the landlord doesn’t help, contact your local council, even if you rent from a private landlord. Citizens Advice also has useful information on how to resolve damp issues with your landlord.

Taking it further

There should always be a material supplier or industry body that will provide advice and support. But if you don’t have a guarantee and can’t get your installer or a scheme funder to sort the problem out for you, then you’re left with two options:

• Bite the bullet and arrange for another company to come in and fix the problem. Some issues are quite cheap to sort out, while others can be worryingly expensive, but it might be worth getting a few quotes to find out.

• Take advice on whether you can pursue a legal case. This is a big thing to take on – you might want to talk to Citizens Advice first to get some idea of your options.

Both the major insulation guarantee providers, CIGA and SWIGA, urge caution here. They claim that there are fraudulent operators in the legal market that encourage homeowners to take out loans to go to court, which in the worst-case scenario can mean people losing their homes if they lose the case.

Hopefully it won’t come to this. If things do go wrong, there are a few ways it could be successfully resolved – as detailed above. There’s also some good general advice on how to complain if building work has gone wrong, as well as how to escalate the issue and your specific consumer rights on the Which? website.

The key to a positive experience, as with any other building work, is to be careful about who you employ to do the job. Request quotes from multiple installers, we recommend at least three. Avoid heavy-handed sales techniques, like highly discounted prices or pressure to sign on the day. Always insist on any work having a third-party guarantee and check the length of that guarantee, and choose an installer that’s signed up to a trade association like CIGA or SWIGA.

Choose the right installer in the first place, and you should have a positive experience. n

www.energysavingtrust.org.uk

Speak to your landlord... It’s their job to sort it out unless it’s demonstrable you caused the problem yourself.

AFreshCoatofPaint

WhiteisthemostGoogled‘bathroompaint’intheUKbutpsychologistsaysit’s‘uninspiring,particularlyforfemales’

The bathroom is where most people start and finish their day, but how important is the paint colour on the walls? Very - according to Shower Enclosure Experts, who have partnered with Psychology and Wellbeing Consultant Lee Chambers MSc MBPsS to highlight what paint means when it comes to the powder room.

Key Findings

• light greys, blues and greens, can help us feel assured in ourselves

• natural materials are grounding, such as metallic, stone and wooden elements

• reds, oranges and yellows have the power to make us feel energised

First, Shower Enclosure Experts used search volume tool Ahrefs* to extract the number of times per month Brits research different paint shades - from white, to purple and metallic. Then, Lee Chambers MSc MBPsS provided

expert commentary on the psychology behind some of the shades ranked.

1. White: 8,400 searches 2. Grey: 5,700 searches 3. Green: 5,100 searches 4. Blue: 4,800 searches 5. Pink: 1,500 searches 6. Black: 1,300 searches 7. Purple: 1,000 searches 8. Yellow: 700 searches 9. Brown: 300 searches 10. Orange: 280 searches 11. Cream: 160 searches 12. Red: 120 searches 13. Metallic: 20 searches

White

The analysis found that ‘white bathroom paint’ ranks top and is searched for in Google over 8,000 times a month [8,400] - almost double the number of searches for ‘blue bathroom paint’ [4,800].

Additionally, experts have claimed Farrow and Ball’s ‘All White’ [No. 2005] to be among the best shades of white paint to choose. It contains no other pigment except for white, creating a soft and sympathetic colour palette.

But, despite many DIYers opting for white paint, as it’s typically viewed as a clean and timeless shade, Lee Chambers notes: “An all-white bathroom is very clinical, clean and spacious, but lacks character and can be uninspiring, especially for females, studies have shown.”

Greys and Greens

Following, ‘grey bathroom paint’ and ‘green bathroom paint’ rank in second and third place - with 5,700 and 5,100 searches per month, respectively. Indeed, “When it comes to helping us find a calmer moment of serenity in the evening, or as you rush around in the

morning, cooler colours that still have vibrant elements, such as light greys, blues and greens, can help us feel assured in ourselves and convey a message that we can handle the day’s challenges.”

Black

Interestingly, ‘black bathroom paint’ ranks mid table, with over 1,000 Brits searching for the hue per month. But colour psychologist, Chambers, warns: “Dark bathrooms can feel enclosed and uninviting unless the lighting is beneficial, and mirrors are used to create the perception of space.”

Metallics

‘Metallic bathroom paint’ ranks last - with 8,380 less [20] Google searches per month than the top colour white.

Although, according to the analysis, metallics in the bathroom are seemingly unpopular with Brits, Lee Chambers notes it’s worthwhile to consider thinking outside the box and incorporating metallic shades and texture too: “Consider patterns and textures; natural materials are grounding, such as metallic, stone and wooden elements, and they can help us to feel more connected to ourselves.”

“If you want to start the day with a stimulating boost, bold shades of warm colours like reds, oranges and yellows have the power to make us feel energised, and this can be incorporated through accessories and decoration on a more muted colour palette if preferred.”

If you are bold enough to opt for reds, Alan Boswell Landlord Building Insurance recently

discovered Farrow and Ball’s ‘Sulking Room Pink’ [No. 295] to be this autumn’s trendiest paint colour, with romantic muted rose hues,

“The last thing to consider is your colour preferences. If there’s a particular shade that you feel expresses you, you have a personal connection, and that is powerful when deciding what colour to use. Just ensure that the colours you choose let you have that moment of peace in a place that feels like home.” n

www.showerstoyou.co.uk

• Fire Door Installation, Maintenance & Stopping

Snoozing through Winter

How often have you thought it would be nice to go to sleep in December and wake up when spring arrives...

It’s cold, it’s often damp and it’s sometimes snowy. Food is hard to come by and can be difficult to find. Insects are buried under a duvet of leaf litter or hidden tightly in crevices. Berries, ripe and juicy just a month or so ago, don’t last long as frosts take their toll and everything wants to eat them. Simply keeping warm takes huge amounts of energy. What better way to survive winter than to pretend it isn’t happening?

Hedgehogs, dormice and bats hibernate. A healthy summer dormouse weighs around 17g but as they ready themselves for the winter, that weight more than doubles to 35-40g. Like hedgehogs and bats, their body temperature and breathing rate slow significantly, helping them to survive on their fat stores alone. A hedgehog’s heart rate is usually between 200 and 280 beats a minute but in hibernation this drops to as low as five beats a minute. When to hibernate and wake up depends on both the species and the weather. Dormice can snooze from October to May whereas hedgehogs often don’t drift off until late November and wake up in March or April. Mild weather may cause them to wake up sooner; they’re able to forage for food but waking up often uses more energy than they can replace.

Worcestershire Wildlife Trust

@WorcsWT t

worcestershirewildlifetrust G worcswildlifetrust.co.uk w

It’s not just mammals that enter a truly deep sleep. Perhaps you’re familiar with snakes and lizards disappearing during winter? This is called brumation, a dormant state that’s a reptilian version of the mammals’ hibernation. Common lizards, widespread but thinly distributed across Worcestershire, will have

found hidden cavities between and under rocks or in hollow tree trunks. Like snakes, groups of lizards have been found hibernating together.

What about a hibernating bumblebee? As summer colonies come to an end, the newly emerging queens are the only ones to survive winter, ready to start new colonies when they wake in spring. To ensure they have enough energy for the big snooze, new queens drink plenty of nectar beforehand, which is why it’s important to have as many plants flowering through the year as possible. They’ll find somewhere safe – under the base of walls, in old mouse holes, under loose bark or at the top of northfacing banks in well-drained soils. Queen bumbles even have the ability to produce glycerol, which acts as an antifreeze to prevent ice crystals forming if the temperature drops below a certain point. As our winters are getting warmer, some bumblebee colonies are finding it easier to survive – look on heather, mahonia and other winter flowering plants and let us know if you see one www.worcswildlifetrust.co.uk/wildlife-sightings

Why not give dozing wildlife a helping hand? If you’ve got a garden, leave it alone until spring, all those fallen leaves and deadheads provide hiding places for lots of wildlife, from ladybirds to springtails. If you’re stuck for a gift idea, head to our website and take a look at our cards, calendars and gifts – every purchase helps the wildlife that’s snoozing through winter on our nature reserves www.worcswildlifetrust.co.uk/shop n

Wendy Carter Worcestershire Wildlife Trust

Dormouse © Danny Green

Action on Elder Abuse

The National Careline are here to help

What is Elder Abuse?

On our helpline at The National Careline, we get many calls from very distressed people who are either calling about themselves, their mother/father or other close relative about the actions being done by someone to another person. This is usually a family member to another one, but it can be a person such as a neighbour who is distressed by the way an older person they know is being abused and wants to report it.

The term “Elder Abuse” has been adopted by many bodies including the World Health Organisation and other notable organisations and countries and is established to mean: ‘A single or repeated act or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any relationship where there is an expectation of trust, which causes harm or distress to an older person’.

Because the core of the definition is an ‘expectation of trust’ that an older person may rightly establish with another person,

but which is subsequently violated, it mostly takes the form of abuse which happens within families and those within close relationships. It doesn’t usually happen with strangers unless those strangers have also abused the older person’s ‘expectation of trust’ and thus also become a source of elder abuse.

Safeguarding Adult Boards (SABs)

These became a statutory requirement under the Care Act (2014) in all local authority Social Services. They bring together other safeguarding partners such as police, health and housing and are critical in taking the lead to respond to adult safeguarding cases in their areas. They have done, and continue to do, significant work on investigating financial abuse but, with the most common place that financial abuse taking place is in the home by family members, more work needs to be done within SABs to ensure that cases of theft and fraud are investigated properly by their teams.

Elder Abuse is a crime against the members of one of our most vulnerable sections of

society. So, if you feel that someone is being financially, physically or mentally abused then it is important that you contact their local council and report it to the Adult Safeguarding Unit in their Social Services and to the Police.

The Mental Capacity Act 2005

It is important for anyone acting as an attorney or deputy to remember is that any decisions made for the person must be made whilst adhering to the five statutory principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005. These are:

• Every adult has the right to make his or her own decisions and must be assumed to have capacity to make them unless it is proved otherwise.

• A person must be given all practicable help before anyone treats them as not being able to make their own decisions.

might be seen as an unwise decision, they should not be treated as lacking capacity to make that decision.

• Anything done or any decision made on behalf of a person who lacks capacity must be done in their best interests.

• Anything done for or on behalf of a person who lacks capacity should be the least restrictive of their basic rights and freedoms.

who are either the victims of elder abuse or they know of someone who is suffering from someone’s abusive behaviour towards them or someone they know of, and they want to know how to report it.

The abuse can be physical or, more often mental and is usually towards people who can no longer defend themselves.

It often starts when a person is finding it

difficult to cope with living on their own anymore and the offer of help from a relative or friend to move in and provide the necessary care so that the person can remain in their own home rather than going into care seems an ideal solution.

In most cases this is a very good arrangement however it can go very wrong with the helper taking steps to isolate the victim from other members of their family. They will do this by telling family members that the person doesn’t want to see them anymore or other blocking tactics with the intention of keeping other relatives and friends at a distance so that they cannot see the victim and report the abuse that is going on.

This member of the family will then use controlling behaviours to persuade their victim that is would be a good idea to give them a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA).

From here, it is just a short progression into the victim having their money stolen from their accounts, without their permission and without any other family members knowing

what has happened. Left unchecked, this can progress to the point that the victim’s future financial security is threatened. If they are already in care, this is where the Social Services must step in to stop the person being evicted.

This is just a small part of what we hear on The National Careline Helpline and the financial cost to the individual, to the teams investigating the crimes and to taxpayers picking up the bill are just a part of widespread theft and fraud within families in Britain today.

So, what can we do? What should we do? The thing we should remember that if we are not part of the solution we are by default, part of the problem. We all need to be aware of the problem and should never stand by and let abuse take place without reporting the circumstances to the relevant authorities.

We need to work responsibly towards a society where older people and their rights are respected and to raise awareness in practitioners working in this field so that they can act appropriately when circumstances of abuse and coercion occur.

If you are worried about a family member and suspect that something is amiss but need to find out more, do contact us on our helpline number 0800 0699 784, as we can often help by using the appropriate channels.

In all cases contact the Office of the Public Guardian if you have concerns about an attorney, deputy or a decision they’ve made for someone else. For example: the misuse of a person’s money, decisions made that

aren’t in the best interests of the person they’re responsible for or any criminal activity. Email: opg.safeguardingunit@ publicguardian.gsi.gov.uk Telephone: 0300 456 0300 Textphone: 0115 934 2778 Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm (except Wednesday)Wednesday 10am to 5pm

The Office of the Public Guardian can help if there is a registered lasting power of attorney, a registered enduring power of attorney or a court order.

If one of these isn’t in place, you may have to contact:

Department for Work and Pensions for concerns about benefits. www.gov.uk

• your local adult social services for concerns about care or safeguarding

• your local police if you think someone is not in immediate danger but the attorney has committed a criminal offence

• Call 999 if someone is in immediate danger. n

The National Careline

Helpline: 0800 0699 784 Email: office@thenationalcareline.org

ANSWERS

Quality care in Worcestershire you can trust

Care UK’s Brook Court, Chandler Court and Perry Manor care homes in Worcestershire provide residential, nursing and dementia care, giving families peace of mind that their loved ones can stay living at the home should their needs change.

Living at our Worcestershire care homes is all about quality of life. Every colleague in the home is passionate about enabling residents to enjoy a fulfilling lifestyle, tailored around their unique needs and preferences. The lifestyle teams organise a huge variety of group and one-to-one activities, with plenty going on each day.

The teams at our Worcestershire care homes are proud to have achieved some great results in the recent relative survey. One relative at Perry Manor said “They are extremely diligent. Communication is excellent and so is attention to detail. When I visit Dad, they will check if dad needs

anything and let me know so I can bring it in. The care home manager is excellent.” (Relative of a resident – April 2022)

Once their relative has settled into the home, they are able to focus on spending quality time with them again just enjoying each other’s company.

With the extra support that our care homes offer, new residents are often surprised at what they can do, whether that’s being able to continue with an activity they’ve enjoyed

in the past, or even discovering new hobbies with our daily activities.

Brook Court, Chandler Court and Perry Manor care homes are part of awardwinning provider, Care UK – one of the UK’s most successful care home operators* with over 40 years’ experience of delivering high quality care to older people. n

Brook Court care home

37-38 Oldnall Road, Kidderminster DY10 3HN kay.mayes@careuk.com

Chandler Court care home

Recreation Road, Bromsgrove B61 8DT rosalind.lockley@careuk.com

Perry Manor care home

Charles Hastings Way, Worcester WR5 1ET shilpa.odedra@careuk.com

Careuk.com/Worcestershire 0333 173 0359

*AsratedbytheCareQualityCommissioninEnglandandthe CareInspectorateinScotland.

Tips to try at home to support your child’s language development

Here are some practical tips, from Fennies Child Development Expert

- Professor Sam Wass - based on neuroscience, about how to talk to children in a way that helps their speech and language as much as possible.

Start with your face

For a child learning speech and language, it helps for them to be able to see your face while you talk. This helps them to map together the sounds that come out of your mouth with the movements that your mouth makes. Faces are hard things for young babies to make sense of, and the more time that your baby spends ‘learning’ your face, the easier it will probably find it to make sense of other people’s faces, including recognising intentions, and emotions, on them – which can support language development. A good place to start is to think about physical positioning. The best position is for a child to be head-on to you so that they can see your whole mouth and both eyes. Not too far away, because babies are short-sighted. To make your face and your facial features as easy as possible for a child to identify, it also helps to present your face against a plain white background.

Think about background noise

Studies have shown that children who often have the TV on in the background at home while someone is talking tend to show slower language development. And why studies at schools have shown that the levels of background noise in a school have a big effect on children’s language and reading performance.

Simplify your speech

When we talk to a young child we naturally use a special type of talking, known as ‘babytalk.’ Research suggests that this time of speech sounds more rhythmic, with a more sing-song intonation, with clearer articulation and shorter phrases. All of these factors make it easier for young children to tune in to what you’re saying, by exaggerating the difference between different words. Articulating clearly makes it easier for children to understand what you’re saying.

Use Repetition

The final thing that can help a child to understand your speech is to say the same thing, over and over again. Babies and young children love repetition. Repeating particular words or phrases over and over again may help young childrens’ noisy and overconnected brains to build up stable and efficient processing patterns. So if your child wants to have one nursery rhyme or phrase repeated over and over again, that’s fine – go with it!

Follow their interests

If we wait until a child has pointed at a particular object before we present the word label for that object, then the impact of that word on the child’s brain activity is measurably larger than if we just presented the word label without the child ‘asking’ for the information first. Our brains are more responsive when we’ve predicted and anticipated new information before it arrives. So the best course of action is to wait until a child

has started to show an interest in something and only then tell them what it means.

Read books

There is a lot of evidence that children who spend more time reading books early on tend to show better language development during later life. But actually, this isn’t so much about teaching language directly. There is even evidence that younger children find it hard to map 2D representation (like a picture of a ball) onto 3D representation (an actual ball). Instead, probably the most effective way to read books with your child is, not for you to lead the exchange, but rather to sit and wait, and let the child play with the book. And then, when they show interest in something, only then do you present the word label.

Rhythms

All forms of conversation involve turn-taking, which generates rhythms. But ‘babytalk’ is particularly rhythmic, and young children generally prefer other sorts of rhythmic interaction, too such as nursery rhymes of peekaboo games.

Be patient

When I’m interacting with my own children, and I’m trying to follow their interests, and let them lead the conversation, the thing that I personally find hardest is to give them the time that they need to do this.

I hope that these tips have been helpful! If you’ve got any questions, or queries, then please do get in touch. n

www.fennies.com

King’s Worcester Announces New Sixth Form Centre

exciting new chapter has begun at King’s Senior School with the announcement that

work on Phase One of a new Sixth Form Centre for Year 12 and Year 13 during the summer of 2023.

The Sixth Form Centre will be developed with a remodelling of the existing building, School House, and will see the addition of a plethora of enviable new Sixth Form facilities. With the collaboration of architects Squires and Brown, the new Sixth Form Centre will offer a first-class Sixth Form facility in the heart of Worcester City Centre.

The phased development will include individual study spaces, a new Café, seminar rooms, IT facilities, improved facilities for Post 18 university and career support and new offices for the Head and Deputy Head of Sixth Form. Alongside this, the Sixth Form-specific departments such as Economics, Business Studies and Psychology will be relocated.

The investment in the new Sixth Form Centre will sit alongside the redevelopment of the Sixth Form Curriculum by Deputy Head Academic, Katie Beever. September 2023 will see extended provision in this

curriculum, augmenting our exceptional academic provision with an enhanced qualification programme that will assist students as they enter Higher Education and the world of work, helping fulfil our vision for pupils to be curious, caring and confident.

Headmaster, Gareth Doodes said, “This is an exciting time for the growth of the King’s Sixth Form. The new Sixth Form centre will offer a much-needed larger space in which students will be able to learn, study, meet, engage with mentors and support staff, and develop the skills required to ensure they have an effective transition into Higher Education and the working world.

“Alongside the new Sixth Form Centre, an enhanced Sixth Form Curriculum and Sixth Form Programme will create well-rounded, ambitious young adults, who are well equipped to take their next steps, whether into Higher Education, apprenticeships or straight into the world of work.” n

To hear more about the new Sixth Form Centre and extended Sixth Form curriculum, join King’s at their forthcoming Open Morning on Saturday 21st January. www.ksw.org.uk/shapedbykings.

An

they will be starting

What's On DECEMBER

Until Saturday 17th Santa Trains

Let the festive magic begin! It’s the most wonderful time of the year and Santa is coming to the Severn Valley Railway – plus, mischievous elves Jingle and Jangle are joining him for more festive fun! Meet a pair of Christmas characters at our beautifully decorated station at Kidderminster, then travel by vintage steam train in reserved seats to Arley and see your favourite characters in an all-new pantomime. After being entertained by Jingle, Jangle and friends, you’ll re-board the train where a present for each child awaits. Suitable for all ages. www.svr.co.uk

Until Monday 2nd January 2023

Cinderella

Swan Theatre. You shall go to the ball this Christmas! Join Cinderella, her best friend buttons and the ugliest sisters in town in the classic rags to riches fairy tale that enchants all ages! The Worcester Repertory Company proudly presents the most magical pantomime of all, packed full of all your favourite traditional pantomime comedy moments. Join us for this well–loved tale

and cheer, boo, hiss, laugh, and sing along to your favourite songs in what promises to be Worcester’s most spectacular family pantomime yet! £10 - £21

It’s Christmaaas! at Hanbury Hall

This Christmas, we’re turning back the clock for a nostalgic trip to the late twentieth century, inspired by rumours of wild and vivacious house parties at the Hall in the 70s and 80s. Get a blast from the past as you explore the house dressed for the Christmas we all remember: a riot of colour, with bright lights, baubles and tinsel galore! And whilst you’re here why not have a reminisce over your favourite toys from the era or dander around listening to all the Christmas number ones? You never know, you might spot Father Christmas having a snooze in front of the television! Admission prices apply to this event, free for National Trust members.

Thursday 1st - Sunday 4th

Worcester Victorian Fayre

The Victorian Fayre was first started back in 1992 by traders from picturesque New Street and Friar Street. The Fayre may have grown a lot but it has stayed true to its traditional roots with plenty of Victorian

themed characters, festive treats and a wonderful atmosphere. This year there will be almost 200 stalls across the city centre, selling local arts and crafts, delicious street food and gifts. As well as a wonderful array of stalls, we are looking forward to a fantastic programme of entertainment. Look out for Victorian characters in Gin Lane, lofty entertainers on stilts, brilliant musicians on our stages and buskers on every street corner. There really is something for everyone and we hope you have a wonderful time! Come along and see all the fun festivities for yourself, support local businesses and take part in one of the highlights of the Midlands’ festive calendar.

Friday 2nd Christmas in the Link

Join us on Friday 2 December from 4pm to 7pm for an evening of late night shopping with a warm glow of Christmas spirit.The community of Malvern Link warmly invites you to celebrate Christmas in the Link, an evening of carols singing, Santa’s Grotto, festive stalls, late night shopping with local independent businesses, children’s craft activities, charity tombola and a Christmas

Peter

December 2022.

The bakery has been winning awards for its bread since 2014 and won the Baking Industry Awards ‘Britain’s Best Baker’ in 2022. The bakery will be ‘Sharing the Joys of Real Bread’

each day Monday to Saturday 8.00am until 5.30pm, alongside pastries, local produce and Christmas specials.

Pop along to the launch on Saturday 10th December 2022 to meet Peter and celebrity Chef Marcus Bean from 10am until noon and join the tasting event. www.petercooksbread.co.uk

Cooks Bread, an award winning bakery will be opening a new Bakery Shop at No.3 The Hop Market on Saturday 10th

EDUCATION What's On

tree light switch on.Local choirs and groups with be spreading festive joy and all are welcome to sing along!The United Reformed Church Hall will offer facilities and host various activities to keep you entertained, so please pop in and say hello! Malvern Link, your local independent shopping and service hub, we are here all year round... not just for Christmas!

Friday 2nd & Saturday 3rd

Christmas Winter Wonderland

Ralph Court Gardens. Throughout the day and selected evenings in December the gardens will be filled with Christmas cheer. Whether you are young or ‘young at heart’, we have lots to make you smile.The musical fountain will be set to Christmas songs, there will be Christmas inflatables, a Christmas story read by Boris the bear and hear our singing reindeer, supported by a donkey and snow. Evening ‘Winter Wonderland’ Sessions6pm – 8.30pm. (Adults £15, Children £10 and Family £48): Our licensed restaurant will be offering festive hot food, our special Alice in Wonderland cream teas and cakes all homemade on the premises. Father Christmas will be in attendance on the various dates in December. Please see website for full details. £4 per child (includes gift) All

proceeds to Bromyard Lions. No pre-booking available, just turn up on the day to see him. Also taking place on Friday 9th, Saturday 10th, Friday 16 and every evening through to and including Friday 23 December.

Friday 2nd - Sunday 4th Craftworks

Elmslie House, WR14 3AG. An exhibition and sale of jewellery, textiles, ceramics, glass and metalwork created by twenty local designer-makers.

Saturday 3rd

Colwall Mistletoe Fair

Colwall Mistletoe Fair will be outside Colwall Provisions (Walwyn Road) all morning with our mulled apple juice, cakes and mince pies offering: mistletoe in decorated bunches and balls; wreaths, holly and fir cones; all manners of jams, jellies and chutneys (and some honey; Colwall Apple juice and preserves; lip balms and gardener’s hand balm; fruit leather and dried apple rings; various handmade crafts (robins, snowflakes, lavender bottles etc). Do come and stock up with presents for your friends and relatives. Another opportunity to buy preserves and juice and other orchard related cards and books.

The Mistletoe Festival

Tenbury Wells. Come along for the traditional crowning of the Mistletoe Queen, stalls, music, Mistletoe ceremony, workshops and more. Don’t miss this free family day out. 10am. www.tenburymistletoe.org

Tenbury Town Band Christmas Charity Concert

Regal Tenbury Trust49 Teme StreetTenbury Wells, WR15. 7pm - 9:45pm. Tenbury Town band presents its annual Christmas concert where we give the proceeds to charity. Come along and get your Christmas season off to the very best start with a fabulous mix of Christmas music with a few additional acts to entertain you.

Thursday 8th - Sunday 1st January

Beauty & The Beast

Malvern Theatres Grange Road, Malvern, Worcestershire, WR14 3HB. A sparkling fairy tale pantomime for 2022-23, starring Melanie Walters (Gavin and Stacey) as Fairy Bon Bon, Malvern’s Favourite Funny Man Mark James as Louis La Plonk, Olivia Birchenough from Channel 5’s Milkshake! as Belle and Leon Craig as Polly La Plonk. Join Belle, The Beast, Fairy Bon Bon, larger than life Polly La Plonk and

EDUCATION What's On

her cheeky chappy son Louis La Plonk as they are transported to a cursed castle, under the spell of an evil enchantress. Can the wicked Hugo be defeated, can Belle see beyond the Beast and fall in love with her captor, will the Beasts heart be melted by Belles beauty? With an unmissable transformation moment, slide splitting comedy, stunning sets and costumes, and an award winning script (Best Script –Great British Pantomime Awards 2019), join us for a must see, magnificent adventure.

Saturday 10th

Hallelujah!

Worcester Cathedral. Music lovers will have a chance to hear Handel’s best-loved oratorio, Messiah, sung by 140 voices and renowned soloists at Worcester Cathedral on Saturday 10 December at 7.30pm. The concert, which includes the stirring Hallelujah chorus, is being staged by the region’s leading large classical choir, Worcester Festival Choral Society, under the baton of Worcester Cathedral director of music, Samuel Hudson. Also appearing are acclaimed soloists Philippa Hyde (soprano), Sarah Denbee (mezzo soprano), Tom Robson (tenor) and Edward Grint

Established in 1861 and closely associated with Sir Edward Elgar in its early years, Worcester Festival Choral Society draws its auditioned singers from across the region. The Society stages three major concerts in Worcester Cathedral each year, bringing some of the world’s ‘great choral works’ to the City. A Come & Sing one-day workshop, open to all singers, is also held each spring. Tickets £15£27 from www.wfcs.online or the TicketSource hotline: 0333 666 3366.

WYO & WYSO Winter Concert

St Martin’s Church, London Road, Worcester, WR5 2ED. Concert by Worcestershire Youth Orchestra and Worcestershire Youth String Orchestra, showcasing a variety of music performed by our talented Severn Arts young musicians. Tickets will also be available on the door: Adults - £5.00, students, over 65 years, unemployed - free. We want as many Worcestershire children as possible to benefit from taking part in musical activity. This is why we are building a music fund for families who can’t afford the full cost of music lessons and instrument hire. Donations made when completing your booking will be added

Sunday 11th

Big Fish Little Fish EVESHAM Christmas

DnB Family Rave

Marilyn’s Nightclub Bridge Street Evesham R11 4RY. Join award-winning, Glastonbury Festival playing, family-rave sensation, Big Fish Little Fish for a festive skank out! Expect a nightclub environment with club lighting (no strobes) and dnb tunes, bubbles, confetti cannons and a certain Mr. Claus will lead the giant parachute dance! All music is played at a safe level for little ears. All ages are very welcome, but activities are designed with 0-8 years olds in mind. There will be Multi-sensory dancefloor filled with confetti cannons, bubbles, snow, balloons and our fab parachute dance finale; Festive craft activities; Homemade playdough table; Toddler Area - tents, tunnels and toys; Baby chillout areamats, small ball pool and tents; Licensed bar with snacks; Christmas fancy dress is optional but encouraged! Please email Sophie at sophie@bigfishlittlefishevents.co.uk, if you have any questions.

Wednesday 14th

Festive Late Night Studio Opening

EDUCATION What's On

Come along to The Fold’s festive late night studio openings for mince pies, mulled wine and special late night festive offers.Shop for unique, handmade, eco-friendly gifts from local artists, designers and makers at The Fold. All welcome. 5pm – 8pm.

Saturday 17th

A Christmas Wassail Hartlebury Castle, Worcestershire County Museum. Begin your Christmas celebrations in the best way possible with the Crescent’s ever-popular Wassail - a show with enough Christmas spirit to last all year! We’re delighted to say that the Wassail is back for 2022 with the usual festive feast of music, comedy and spoken word, all brought together to warm your heart with the magic of Christmas. Come and enjoy a mince pie and a glass of mulled wine with us. Our wassailers are here to enchant, delight and entertain you. Be sure to get a ticket while you can!

Tickets £25.00 - Including a serving of Mulled Wine and a Mince Pie Also On Tour Highbury Hall Crescent Theatre - Main House

Stourport Christmas

The Civic, Stourport, Worcestershire, DY13 8UJ. 7pm. The annual traditional concert

featuring Stourport Choral, Stourport Brass Band and local Primary School choir.

Sunday 18th - Wednesday 21st

Stanbrook Abbey Hotel, Jennet Tree Lane, Callow End, WR2 4TY. Powick Community Choir will be joined once again by the fantastic string chamber orchestra led by Shulah Oliver. Concerts take place in the chapel at Stanbrook Abbey hotel. Bring your family and friends to make this the most fabulous start to the Christmas season. There will be a retiring collection for charity. These festive concerts are a sell-out year after year so please book early.Tickets are £12.

Tuesday 20th – Friday 30th

A Christmas Carol

Malvern Theatres, WR14 3HB. Malvern Theatres Stage Company presents A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. A Seasonal treat for all the family. A Christmas Carol recounts the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, an elderly miser who is visited by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley and the spirits of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come. After their visits, Scrooge is transformed into a kinder, gentler man.

Thursday 22nd

Santa Saves Christmas

The Civic, Stourport, The Civic, Stourport, DY13 8UN. Each performance lasting approximately 45 minutes, followed by a meet, greet and treat with Father Christmas that includes a wrapped present for each child Starts at 11am. Individual ticket price £9.50£10.50 Group ticket price £36.00

Wednesday 28th

Funhouse presents: Live Stand-up Comedy Funhouse Comedy Club brings another night full of laughter to 45Live, Kidderminster on Wednesday December 28th. Topping the bill is the appealing and gripping writer and comedian Eddy Brimson. Known as a ‘geezer’ he is one of the most entertaining comedians on the circuit. Opening the night will be comedian and actress Fiona Allen who has appeared on ‘Mock the Week’ and in many sketch shows, including ‘Smack the Pony’. Completing the line-up is ‘Brummie’ funny man Tom Christian joint winner of 2015 Midland Comedy Awards New Act with his liking for customer complaints and complex and silly wordplay. Compere for the night will be James Cook with his sharp tongue and dry sense of humour. 7.00pm doors. 8.00pm show. Tickets £10 advance.