Wirral Donate/News Feb 07

Multiple Sclerosis Society: Wirral Branch

This year is our fortieth anniversary and, as part of our celebrations, the Wirral branch of the Multiple Sclerosis Society is now expanding its wide ranging support to people affected by MS to include a second weekly aqua-therapy session at Total Fitness, Prenton.
Funding has been provided by Wirral PTC's Innovation Fund in recognition of our striving to “minimise secondary deterioration” (if you don't use it you lose it).

Generous donations have also been received from Wirral Donate, fundraising days, charity shop sales and bequests. Funds raised enable us to continue our key support to specialist activities, including neuro-physiotherapy, for many of our members.

Many of our 250 members utilise the branch's accessible mini-bus transport, run by our dedicated volunteer drivers. We have an active social calendar, including a monthly get - together and members are also kept up to date with a bi-monthly newsletter and through our website at www.mssociety.org.uk/wirral

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Crosroads in Wirral: Caring for Carers

It's been a very busy time of the year during summer holidays and many of our parent carers really appreciated our additional holiday play scheme we ran for several weeks during the long break. Currently we employ 42 staff and in 2007 - 2008 delivered over 50,000 hours of respite care to local carers. We continue to improve our specialist skills, one of which is palliative care. This is one of the areas where your ongoing support is needed. In addition, we are pleased to tell you that we will be receiving a grant of £22,000 from Wirral Primary Care Trust to provide a tiered Crossroads service for older people in Meols, Hoylake and West Kirby areas later in the year.

To end on some more good news, we received a 2 star rating from the Commission for Social Care Inspection. Our photo highlights the work of our volunteers at one of our CAMEO Clubs, supporting a recent awareness-raising event in Wirral.
Back to Top Copyright © Wirral Donate 2008. Registered Charity - 1066247. All Rights Reserved. 42/44 Market Street, Birkenhead, Wirral, CH41 5BT Tel No. 0151 666 2220 Webmaster: Imaginata

Wirral Donate
NEWS

Wirral Donate NEWS is a newsletter that is produced every six months and will keep you up-to-date on the goings-on of our six charities. Wirral Donate NEWS is also available in pamphlet form. Please contact us for more information. We have an archive of Newsletters and the links for each of these are listed below.

March 2010 Sept 2009 March 2009 Sept 2008 Sept 2007 Feb 2007

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September 2008 Newsletter

As an incentive for new donors the Government has pledged to ‘match pound for pound’, up to a maximum of £10 per month, an employee’s donations for the first six months! Maybe you can persuade a colleague or friend to become a donor? There is a form printed at the back of this Newsletter which they could complete and give to their Personnel Department. All funds raised by Wirral Donate are distributed equally among the member charities. Your generous donations are helping to fund this work.
Our thanks to all donors for their continuing support. Your generous donations are helping to fund this work.
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Helen Benson - a tribute

Sadly, I must start by giving you the news that Helen Benson, who was the driving force in establishing Wirral Donate over 12 years ago, died towards the end of last year. Helen was a wonderfully unselfish person, who spent most of her life helping others. She, with her late husband Keith, started Wirral Autistic Society 40 years ago and they worked tirelessly to build it up to the diverse Society assisting over 90 residents with 24 hour care, as well as providing many more autistic people with day care. It was Helen's idea to bring together Wirral – based charities to form a consortium called Wirral Donate which is, as you know, dedicated to generating income through “give as you earn”, with all funds raised being shared equally between the member charities. In the 12 years we have been in operation Helen was our Honorary Secretary and she continued to inspire her colleagues with her cheerful and positives attitude. She will be greatly missed. On behalf of our member charities, sincere thanks for your continuing support. In the following contributions our members update you on their news, and how your donations are helping local people. George Eakin, Wirral Donate Chairman

Wirral Talking Newspaper

Despite occasional hiccups with the post we continue to send out approximately 500 tapes each week to the blind and partially sighted community of the Wirral. This year we lost one of our long-standing volunteers when Bryce Halliday died. Bryce had been associated with the Newspaper since 1984 in the role of Head of the Technical section and invaluable jack-of-all-trades. He will be difficult to replace and is sadly missed.

Preparing the tapes for posting

We have continued to look at new ways to deliver our service to our listeners, in the light of new technology and have decided that MP3 players and memory sticks are the best option at present. After considerable investigation we are now poised to conduct listener trials in the autumn. We would like to thank all the Donors to Wirral Donate for continuing to support us.

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Wirral Autistic Society

40th Anniversary Year 2008 is the year we launched our "Home from Home" appeal, to build a much needed respite centre.

	The launch was at the home of the Duke of Westminster, the Society's President, and marks our 40th anniversary. Over a 100 people attended to hear about the appeal and view a short film about the desperate need for respite for people with autism, and their families.

We are looking to construct the only purpose built, autism specific respite service in the North West to support the many hundreds of families who have to cope daily with the stress of caring for someone with autism 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

This year the Society have had a whole range of fundraising events to finance the £1.3 million project, culminating on Saturday 8th November with a Gala Ball at the Thornton Hall Hotel.

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Age Concern Wirral

1948 - Diamond Jubilee - 2008

Age Concern Wirral is continuing to meet the needs of older people throughout the Borough. The provision of care and services is carried out in venues right across Wirral and the demands are ever increasing.
	In this our Diamond Jubilee year we are acknowledging the creative work we have done in introducing new services. At the Devonshire Resource Centre on Park Road North close to Birkenhead Park, we provide a 32 place day care provision for people suffering with Alzheimer's and dementia. In helping these people we have been made aware of the acute needs of early onset dementia sufferers as there has been nobody helping people under the age of 50. From September 2008 this is a service we will be meeting and anyone who needs to refer to this service should do so by contacting 0151 653 4404.
In addition at Harvest Court in Berrylands Road, Moreton and at Pensall House in Fairview Way, Pensby we have services which include day care, active ageing, information and advice. At Harvest Court there is also a café. For further details about the services we provide at Harvest Court phone (0151 678 2358) and at Pensall House phone (0151 342 5629).

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Wirral Resource Centre and Toy Library

We are a specialised Centre offering OFSTED regulated Childcare sessions to premature babies with special needs between the ages of 0-5 years. We have a team of qualified staff and an abundance of volunteers who work alongside visiting professionals including Neo-natal Nurses, Occupational Therapists, Speech & Language Therapists and Physiotherapists. We currently have 134 children with allocated places and a growing waiting list. The children who attend very much enjoy our specialised play sessions designed to develop their own individual learning and development skills.
These aims are mainly delivered through play activities both indoors in the nursery and light room and outside in our adventure playground and sensory garden. We also run successful baby massage courses, encouraging and teaching parents to interact on such a unique and wonderful level with their child.

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