Numeracy courses to improve maths skills

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Courses could add up to total budget success

By Lorraine Gibson

CAN’T put two and two together? Don’t know your fractions from your factors? You’re not alone. National Numeracy, a charity dedicated to improving the nation’s numeracy skills, says a shocking 49 per cent of the UK’s working-age population has the expected numeracy levels of a primary school child.

Maths affect so many aspects of our lives, so it pays to get number savvy. We can’t all be maths wizards but numeracy skills are more important than ever as we manage budgets in the face of double-digit inflation, the cost of heating a home up by 150 per cent and food prices up by 20 per cent.

Multiply, a governmentfunded programme, is offering courses to people in Dorset aged 19-plus who don’t have maths GCSE at grade C (or equivalent). It’s designed to help adults’ numeracy skills and participants’ learning can be in person or online via tutorials given by friendly professional tutors.

The Get Number Confident courses include everyday maths, managing money and understanding data. Get Maths Confident for Work is for people wishing to enhance their employability by building maths confidence and is good preparation for future maths qualifications.

Multiply programme manager Hannah Ball said: “We are all faced with maths

In the picture (from left) Multiply Learning co-ordinator Kate Holmes, Multiply programme manager Hannah Ball, Multiply marketing officer Olivia Girling, Multiply learning support officer Aimee Brown and business and finance manager Terri Clark. problems every day, from working out our weekly household budget, energy and fuel bills, to finding the best value phone contract, comparing mortgage rates and deciding whether that supermarket multibuy offer is good value.

“But for many of us maths evokes feelings of insecurity and anxiety – not surprisingly research shows that almost 50 per cent of us struggle with even basic maths.” Add poor numeracy currently costing the UK economy £25 billion a year and you get the drift. Courses are flexible and can be used to improve basic maths skills or as a springboard to more advanced courses like GCSE. Visit https://www. skillsandlearningace.com/ subjects/multiply-free-mathscourses/ for more information.

Finance firm’s staff in 12-hour workout to raise money for charity

PROPERTY finance specialists at a Poole firm traded mortgages for miles during a 12-hour charity fundraiser.

More than half of the team at MSP Capital ran, cycled and rowed in a continual collective triathlon challenge in aid of Young Lives vs Cancer.

Together they covered an equivalent distance of 330 miles using a treadmill, static bike and rowing machine at the Poole office.

Among those cheering them on as they raised a total of £6,800 was Liz Blunt, senior fundraising engagement manager at Young Lives vs Cancer.

“It was absolutely wonderful to come by the office and meet the fantastic staff from MSP Capital,” she said. “A massive thank you to them for their incredible triathlon.

“As a charity, we provide emotional and physical support to young people who have been diagnosed with cancer, and we help their families find the strength to face whatever cancer throws at them.

“The amount MSP Capital has raised will make such a difference as we don’t receive government funding.

“We only have our social workers providing emotional, practical and financial support, our ‘home from home’ Jean’s House and grants such as a new crisis fund for Dorset families made possible thanks to supporters such as MSP Capital.

“The aim of the fund is to help those families who are struggling with rising cancer costs amid the cost-of-living crisis.”

The triathlon was organised by members of MSP Capital’s community committee, who provided supplies of bacon sandwiches and pizza to fuel participants throughout the day.

Martin Higgins, MSP Capital’s managing director, said: “The treadmill, bike and rower had someone on at all times during the triathlon.

“Team MSP kept moving constantly for 12 hours with no rest. Every participant was aiming for their personal best on each piece of equipment.

“It was wonderful to see the team pull together and support each other throughout the day.

“The buzz in the office was great fun and we are very proud to have raised so much money for a charity that is close to our hearts.”

The community committee organises a charity challenge each December.

Last year, a treadmill climb raised nearly £4,500 for Dorset-based children’s hospice charity, Julia’s House.

The team are pictured above left celebrating their hard work for Young Lives vs Cancer at their Poole base.

purbeckgazette.co.uk Top tips to beat the burglar

By Lorraine Gibson

DORSET Police remind us that many burglaries are committed by thieves gaining entry through unlocked doors or windows.

It’s not rocket science, we all know we should lock up every time we leave the house, but it’s easy to forget to check that entrances are secure. Use this ten-step checklist to help deter a burglar from targeting you. 1 Doors: Keep them locked, even when you’re home or in your back garden. Remove keys from locks as a burglar could reach through a letterbox or cat flap. 2 Alarm: Install a burglar alarm and ensure everyone in the house knows how to work it and uses it daily. 3 Windows: Close and lock! Also, draw curtains if you’ll be out when it gets dark or you’re going away. 4 Paths: Consider a gravel path/ driveway – it makes anyone

Homeowners should lock up every time they leave their property PHOTO: Kris/Pixabay

approaching the house easier to hear. 5 Shed: Secure tools and ladders to a heavy object if possible, ideally hidden from external view. 6 Fencing: At the back of your property, put up high fences or plant prickly bushes that would be difficult to climb over. 7 Gates: Ensure they can’t be climbed over and secure with locks. 8 Milk and newspapers: Cancel deliveries. 9 Driveway: Before going away, ask a neighbour or friend to keep an eye. Ask them to park on your driveway or outside your house to make it appear that someone is home. 10 Lighting: Use timer switches and install night lights outside on pathways.

News Help for those in crisis this New Year

IN recognition of the real struggle that so many local people are experiencing due to the relentless cost of living crisis, Coda, a Poole firm specialising in marketing for industry, is urging people to help.

Putting their money where their mouth is, they’ve already donated £4,000 to Poole Food Bank and Crisis so that they, in turn, can better help the community at a time when their services are at an unprecedented level of demand.

Their contribution to Crisis alone meant that as well as a Christmas lunch, 15 people will now receive ongoing support over what will be the coldest part of the new year.