Charity&Community News

Community news from across the counties

The National Garden Scheme (NGS) doesn’t just open beautiful gardens for charity, they are passionate about the physical and mental health benefits of gardens too. They also support charities and help community gardening projects. They have donated over £63 million to nursing and health charities and made an annual donation of over £3 million in 2021. Their core beneficiaries include Macmillan Cancer Support, Marie Curie, Hospice UK and The Queen’s Nursing Institute. For more information and to view all the open gardens near you, visit www.ngs.org.uk. Nature-friendly road verges are helping pollinators across West Sussex. If you notice a verge with grass that’s longer than you’d expect, it’s likely to have been left to help nature. Inspired by the council’s Pollinator Action Plan, which aims to increase the number of crucial pollinating insects - bees and moths – this has become a much higher priority in recent years. Friends of South Downs are focussed on the pollution caused by plastic tree guards. On 21 May their band of volunteers collected over 700 plastic tree Guards for recycling in Singleton Forest in partnership with Forestry England. Details on: www.friendsofthesouthdowns.org.uk/ban-plastic -tree-guards Sussex Search & Rescue, a team of volunteers that support Sussex Police in searching for vulnerable missing people, has been awarded the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. This is the highest award that can be given to voluntary groups in the UK. More information on the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service and all winners can be found at www.gov.uk/queens-award -for-voluntary-service The end-of-life charity Marie Curie is calling on people in Sussex to throw a Blooming Great Tea Party in July to help fund vital care and support for those living with a terminal illness, and their families. Simply set a date and invite family, friends, or colleagues to tuck into a treat and catch-up over a cuppa. Every penny raised will go towards ensuring more people have access to the care and support they need at the end of life. More details at: www.mariecurie.org.uk/ teaparty or contact your local Community Fundraiser Clara Gill on Clara.Gill@mariecurie.org.uk / 07717 480602. Arundel & South Downs MP, Andrew Griffith, is leading a bid for West Sussex to pioneer trialling new acoustic cameras to catch anti-social road users in the act. The Department of Transport confirmed it would be trialling four innovative noise cameras across England and Wales. Andrew Griffith MP has joined forces with Sussex Police, the Police and Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne, West Sussex County Council, Sussex Safer Roads Partnership and local campaign groups, to make the case for a camera to be located on the noise ‘hotspot’ on the A29 at Bury Hill. West Sussex Libraries are looking for volunteers from age 14 up to support children with the Summer Reading Challenge in libraries. The ideal commitment is a minimum of 10 hours from July to September but there can be flexibility in choosing days and times. Young applicants could also use this volunteering opportunity as part of their Duke of Edinburgh award, (must be agreed with the library in advance). For more details and to apply visit www.westsussex.gov.uk and search for ‘Summer Reading Challenge volunteer’. S tu den ts from West Sussex Alternative Provision College (WSAPC) brought a sustainability and recycling stall to the “Goodwoof” dog event at Goodwood recently. Students teamed up to make a range of products from recycled materials, including dog toys, bandanas and waste bag pouches; they raised a total of £2,012 for WSAPC’s College Enterprise Fund. WSAPC delivers the equivalent of 292 full time places for children and young people from West Sussex who have been permanently excluded, those at risk of exclusion and those out of school for medical reasons.

Hospice seeks nurses

Like other hospices, Chestnut Tree House are currently looking for more nurses, from a variety of backgrounds, to join their team to care for children and young people with life-threatening and life-limiting conditions in Sussex and South East Hampshire. You might be already working within palliative care, or be a paediatric, adult or learning disabilities registered nurse looking for a new challenge. If this sounds like you, or someone you know, you can find out more by visiting www.chestnut.org.uk/job-type/clinical. Debt Adviser for Arun District

Arun & Chichester Citizens Advice (CAB) is working in partnership with the Housing Options team at Arun District Council to give budgeting and debt advice to those at risk of homelessness. A full-time position has been funded to support clients who may have rent arrears or budgeting issues that put them at risk of losing their property. Our advisers work with clients to maximise their income, reduce their expenditure and look at a debt solution that suits their situation. The Housing Options team have been referring more and more clients to the service and CAB say this preventative work will be essential as the cost-of -living crisis continues. Citizens Advice volunteering

Arun & Chichester Citizens Advice (CAB) has a range of opportunities that can suit vounteers who either want to work at home or from an office. People may be looking to volunteer to do something to give back to their community that is rewarding, or might help gain new skills and meet new friends along the way. CAB iscurrently recruiting for a number of roles; details of each role are in the volunteer's section of their website www.arunchichestercab.org.uk Worthing Beach - no Blue Flag

Worthing Beach is being prevented from gaining a prestigious Blue Flag award by Southern Water’s “release of uncertified sewage” according to Cllr Vicki Wells, Cabinet Member for the Environment at Adur & Worthing Council. Stories to info@sussexlocal.net

BBC Nostalgia at Amberley

A unique glimpse into television history will be offered to visitors to Amberley Museum in July 2022, when a r e s t o r e d B B C outside broadcast unit will be part of an exciting working exhibition. From the 1930s until the 1980s, Britain led the world in developing television technology and the BBC’s design of the mobile control room was an important advance, taking programming out of the studio and enabling the broadcast of major national and sporting events to viewers across the UK and overseas. MCR21 (mobile control room 21) was one of ten outside broadcast units designed by and built for the BBC during the 1960s and covered events such as the state funeral of Sir Winston Churchill in 1965, England’s football World Cup victory at Wembley in 1966, and the investiture of HRH the Prince of Wales at Caernarfon Castle in 1969. Once sold for scrap but discovered and restored by expert enthusiasts under the banner of the Broadcast Television Technology Trust, MCR21 is the oldest and most complete outside broadcast van in existence, and has been chosen by the BBC in its centenary year as one of the ‘100 objects that made the BBC.’ From 6th-17th July, visitors to Amberley Museum can experience the atmosphere and operation of early programme-making inside MCR21, as a specially-created jazz show recording shows pictures from four cameras on the monitors and the director calls the shots. Please pre-book your tickets online by visiting the museum at www.amberleymuseum.co.uk