Newsletter September 2018
Chair’s Message CONTENTS Looking at how we are governed across the many levels of today's society, I know I'm not alone in seeing a veritable whirlpool of contradictions on every side. Not just here but Chair’s Message Page 1 around the world. Perhaps 'twas ever thus, but now subjected to more media attention. These cross currents suggest to me that how we steer through troubled waters must continue to be Farewell to Derk van der Wardt articulated with calm and reasoned voice so as to establish a Say hello to Dr Iris Lightfoote firm foundation for the wellbeing of all folk affected by strategic Page 2 initiatives and changes. Research your Family A few weeks ago I heard a ten year old boy on his School History Online
Council say, "Please sir, can we form a group for normal people." Of course, his choice of words is very forthright, and at first we might feel inappropriate. But please look behind his Leicestershire County Page 3 request. Doesn't it challenge us to remember you shouldn't have Council Updates to belong to a pressure group or special interest group to get noticed or to be empowered so you can influence change? At LECG we are often presented with facts and figures. These we New LECG Members translate into faces and people. All different, all equal. Micheal Smith Page 4 Derk Van Der Wardt, the County's Consultation & Engagement Liz Blackshaw Manager, has been appointed to an exciting new post in Cornwall - I'll resist obvious references to 'riding into the sunset.' We'll say formal farewells at our 7th September meeting. He will Next Steps to Better Care be missed. I've worked with him here and earlier contexts, and Page 5 found him one of the most modest, effective, thoughtful and Saturday Club for Dads considerate officers I've encountered in local government over many years. Derk built bridges between the county and its people, and articulated these both lucidly and fairly. Our loss is Caring for Carers Page 6 undoubtedly Cornwall's gain. Our work continues apace i.e. working with our health partners Thank You to Our Heroes on their various task groups for the Joint Strategic Needs Page 7 Assessment (JSNA) and contributing to the LCC Passenger LECG Contact Details Transport Review and the Integrated Lifestyle Services Review. Continued thanks to all who've made LECG relevant, informed and useful to the decision makers. I'd welcome anyone new who Charity Link might feel they too have something to contribute. Do first check Page 8 out our brief. Then let Carine know of your interests and experience. Dates of LECG Finally but importantly, as our judgements need to remain truly professional, I urge we each refresh our understanding of 2018 Quarterly Meetings Equalities Law and Assessment. Dr. Iris Lightfoote leads us on this. Please do your Friday 7th September very best to attend her presentation - otherwise we could fail those people who Friday 7th December we wish to sustain. Peter Lewis, Chair LECG
LECG NEWS
Sad farewell to Derk van der Wardt Consultation & Engagement Manager Leicestershire County Council I joined LCC 11 years ago to set up and manage a network of Community Forums to bring together local residents, county, district and parish councillors, police and NHS to discuss local issues and services. Later, things like Participatory Budgeting and community grants were added to that. Those were the good days! With the recession and austerity the nature of my work changed and the focus shifted to consultation & engagement around major service change. That has been a challenging job at times, but there have been positives. I’m particularly proud of the role I played in supporting the establishment of Community Managed Libraries. Working with LECG has certainly been another positive. I know the input from LECG Task & Finish Groups has made a real positive difference to how sensitive service change proposals have been implemented. From mid-September I’m going to tackle a new challenge as I go to Cornwall Council to become their Consultation & Engagement Manager. It has been a pleasure working with you all and I wish you and LECG the very best for the future.
Say Hello to a LECG Member - Dr Iris Lightfoote Chief Executive at TREC Dr Iris Lightfoote was educated in Leicester at primary and secondary levels through to Leicester Polytechnic and University of Leicester where she gained a BA in Social Sciences and an MA in Criminology respectively. She was a Cropwood Fellow at Cambridge University in 1995. She was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Loughborough University in 2006. After working at Nottingham and Leicester City Councils, Iris joined The Race Equality Centre (TREC) as a criminal justice officer, becoming its Chief Executive. TREC is a charity established to champion racial justice and challenge race discrimination through a number of service provisions and strategic participation. Its primary area of benefit is Leicester and Leicestershire. During this period Iris also lectured part time at De Montfort University.
Research your Family History Online
All are welcome to this FREE session aimed at people over 70 Delve into your family history with Library staff and volunteers. Learn how to research your family history online using free library resources including Find My Past and Ancestry. The library can provide public PCs, free wifi and tablet devices if needed. Free tea and cake too When: 20th September 2018 from 10am to 12 noon At: Loughborough Library, Granby St, LE11 3DZ More info: Call Rachel on 07795 450602
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Leicestershire County Council Updates
Leicestershire Smart Libraries
In 2018, 14 of Leicestershire’s libraries will be converted to a self-access Smart Library after a successful trial in Syston. Self-access means that library members will be able to use their library card to access the building outside of staffed hours. During self-access hours, Smart Library members can: Borrow, return and renew library books using the self-service kiosks Pick up and borrow reserved items awaiting collection Use public computers, photocopy, print and access Wi-Fi Access the public library catalogue Meet as a group free of charge in the open library space Hire a meeting room (pre booking required).
We recognise that some library users might need more support in order to make full use of library facilities, so we are proposing to concentrate the staffed hours at times when these customers are more likely to use the service.
From analysis of usage patterns we know that: Mornings are generally a more popular time to use the library for people over 60 and people with a disability, Afternoons are more popular with children and young people under 16 Saturday mornings are a popular time for all user groups.
LECG is having a task group on Thursday 13th September 2018 for members to discuss the pros and cons of smart libraries. Places are limited. Contact Carine if you would like to participate. Visit https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/smart-libraries to have your say about what self-access works best for you and to access a timetable which shows the dates for when installations are due to take place.
Digital Leicestershire Matters The latest online version of the council's residents' newsletter – Leicestershire Matters is now available. We create the online version of Leicestershire Matters by tailoring content from our on-going communications campaigns. The summer edition brings together stories about a timetable for unitary proposals, tackling speeding in communities, investing in supporting vulnerable people, plans for a new heritage hub, and more. We're currently building up our mailing list and encouraging people to sign up to receive future editions. If you'd like to stay up to date with what's happening at the council and the work we're doing around the county, sign up and read Digital Leicestershire Matters.
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Welcome to a New LECG Member - Micheal Smith I’ve lived in Leicester since moving here over 20 years ago to study at Demontfort University. After working in the private banking sector for 10 years (mostly in complaints management ) and taking voluntary redundancy, I had thought of moving into teaching in primary schools.
However fate had other plans as I had to wait to start the teacher training and whilst I was waiting I took a job managing the Local Involvement Network (LINks) in Leicester City in 2010. Working in community engagement in Health and Social Care and learning about Patient and Public Involvement helped me find the career I had been looking for. Since then I have continued to work with the LINk and Healthwatch (what LINk turned into in 2012), working in different roles as Healthwatch has moved between contract providers.
I am currently the local manager of Healthwatch Leicester and Healthwatch Leicestershire, which was jointly commissioned in April of this year. Healthwatch works closely with the NHS and Social Care providers to help them understand what the real patients/Carers experience is of their services and we are always eager to hear your experience, either good or bad. I am also the father of three amazing children and have been known to tread the boards in an amateur dramatics group based in Birstall.
Welcome to a New LECG Member - Liz Blackshaw I combine my passion for science with a refusal to accept social inequality and injustice. I graduated from Exeter University with a BSc Education Hons and then took on a variety of posts ranging from teaching to working with Findel Education to manage their educational Science range of materials and publications and then with the Royal Society of Chemistry as a regional officer for ‘Chemistry: The Next Generation’. I then had a break to nurture my family and during this time, campaigned for legal changes in the issuing of birth certificates. I was determined to seek the right for both parents to be included on birth certificates, regardless of gender. I then trained to be a Breastfeeding peer supporter and advocate and was instrumental in developing the first 'Returning to work or study' workshop for breastfeeding parents. I also campaigned for increased service provision and against the proposed cutting back of Health Visitor and nursery nurse services delivered by the NHS in Leicester Leicestershire and Rutland. Through this work I created an effective network of breastfeeding advocates, health professionals and services users, which convinced the NHS to reconsider their proposals. I also created ‘Action on Breastfeeding Support’ which has since developed into the highly successful lobby and campaign group ‘Action on Infant Feeding and Inequalities Leicestershire and Rutland’. I returned to the classroom on a part-time basis in 2014 and balanced looking after my young family to continue my role as a champion for rights, arguing successfully against the closure of her local library. I am currently advocating against the closure of the Children’s Centres and have set up ‘Sorrel Stones’ a local arts project with the intention of sharing happiness and promoting outdoor exercise for adults and children of all ages. I share my life with my partner, two children and three cats. My life is pretty full but I can always find time for walking, crochet, gin and catching up with friends (but not necessarily in that order).
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Report: Next Steps to better care in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland
The above report has been produced by the three NHS trusts and three clinical commissioning groups in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland working alongside a range of partners including local councils who combine to improve services in order to secure better health outcomes for the whole population. The report: provides an update on the progress we have already made to deliver high quality, sustainable services. sets out our refreshed strategic direction which responds to the feedback on our initial proposals and the actual experience of services summarises our plans for our priority areas like cancer, mental health and general practice explains how we are working together across NHS organisations, and in partnership with others, in a more integrated way that is focused on doing the right thing for local people not necessarily individual organisations describes the on-going work to develop care services, for example some community services and hospitals.
To view the report online, please go to www.bettercareleicester.nhs.uk
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Caring for Carers in Leicester If you look after a friend or family member, who relies on your support to manage their daily life, you are a carer. The Caring for Carers initiative supports informal, unpaid carers who live in Leicester and is available through Age UK Leicester Shire & Rutland on behalf of Leicester City Council. This is a free service and available to adults from various communities. Our aim is to provide information, advice, guidance, training and wellbeing breaks to enable Carers to feel more knowledgeable and confident about their caring role and the person they care for. To help them understand and access their rights and entitlements and ensure that they have the information they need to make choices and decisions about access to additional support that they may need. My role is to engage with older Carers from the Asian communities. I visit Lunch Clubs, Temples and Community events to make people aware of the support we offer. Carers then contact me to arrange a home visit as this offers the carers a change to ‘open up’ in the comfort of their own home and I am able to gain their confidence quickly and see the whole picture. I usually find that carers are isolated in the caring role that by the time they seek or get help there is a catalogue of issues that require resolving e.g. Benefits, Social & Health Care and Wellbeing. One of the benefits of being part of Age UK is that many issues that the Carers are faced with can be resolved in house or by referring to other projects. If this is not possible we can then signpost them to other organisation who may offer more specific help. One of things that has been important is that if I refer them onto other organisations then I make sure that the carers knows that I am still here to support them if they need further assistance. As we are coming to the end of the project there is strong evidence and proof that there are many, many Carers out there who are in desperate need of support in carrying on with their caring role. The support has to be person centred as no two Carers needs are the same; they need initial hand holding to regain their confidence in being able to make decisions for themselves. If this type of support is not continued it is more than likely that the Carers will continue to be isolated which we know will in time more than likely cause them to have health issues of their own which will certainly impact the local authorities and the NHS. We hold regular Carers Drop in & Out Reach Sessions and Training Workshops at various locations i.e.: Carers Café at Age UK Clarence House, Humberstone Gate, Leicester LE1 3PJ Wednesdays 10am-12pm Carers Drop In & Wellbeing Session, Belgrave Neighbourhood Centre, Rothley Street, Leicester LE4 6LF Thursdays 12.30pm-2.30pm Carers Community Gardening, New Parks Allotments, Bonney Road, Leicester LE3 9BY - Thursday 1pm-4pm Carers Drop In Session, St Matthews Neighbourhood Centre, 10 Malabar Road, Leicester LE1 2PD - Tuesdays 1pm-4pm For more information, please contact me, Pratibha Pankhania, on 0116 2220538 or 07711325510 or email on [email protected]
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Thank You to our Heroes - the men, women & children of WW1
It is almost 100 years since the World War One armistice and The Royal British Legion have created the Thank You Campaign to give everyone an opportunity to reflect on and show thanks for the contribution and sacrifices made by the WW1 generation. Not only for the fallen but also for the women and children who worked in the factories and fields and the members of our commonwealth who were sent overseas to fight for a country they never even knew.
To commemorate the occasion, local Poppy Appeal organiser, Liz Mitchell is planning a special event at Thornton Community Centre on Saturday 6th October 2018 from 10am to 4pm. The events of the day are aimed at including and involving the communities of Bagworth, Markfield, Stanton under Bardon and Thornton and will offer everyone a chance to say Thank You to all those who sacrificed so much and who changed our world forever. The day will include: Marking the silence at 11am with a live solo performance of the last post/reveille and the exhortation and epitaph View a short film then write a Thank You card to hang on our very own ‘Siegfried line’ Take a Walk for Heroes around the reservoir where the names of the fallen from the villages will be on display View original artefacts including WW1 trench art from a private collection Hear letters from the front and WW1 poems read aloud Take part in RBL competitions Purchase a limited edition ‘Thank You’ pin View the work of pupils from Thornton Primary School Make a poppy for display in Markfield Library.
If you would like to take part, please contact Liz Mitchell on 01530 230172.
LECG Contact Details LECG Chair Peter Lewis, email: [email protected]
LECG Vice Chair Lucy Smith, email: [email protected]
Leicestershire County Council Derk van der Wardt, Consultation & Engagement Manager Email: [email protected] Nyasha Nyambuya, Consultation & Engagement Officer Email: [email protected] LECG Carine Cardoza, Engagement Officer, Email: [email protected] Website www.leicestershirecommunities.org.uk/lecg/
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We can help with food and utilities for those who are experiencing a crisis situation.
With the introduction of Universal Credit we are aware that some people may need additional support during this time. If your client lives in Leicester or Leicestershire and is unable to buy food or top up their utility pre-payment cards due to awaiting a Universal Credit payment, a benefit payment, or due to a crisis situation, then we may be able to help.
We can provide short term help in the form of food vouchers or assistance with gas and electricity payments. This service is extremely quick and effective - in many cases we can help the same day.
You can refer clients in now either online or via our PDF form which can be dropped or sent into our office at 20a Millstone Lane, Leicester, LE1 5JN or faxed to 0116 222 2201.
If application’s are urgent, then please call us on 0116 222 2200 so we can look out for your application and process it immediately.
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