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May 2012

The Magazine of Grampian Opportunities

Issue Seventeen

GO to Work Club

Starting in April, GO has been piloting a twelve week work club programme, with ten participants signed up for the course.

The sessions are designed to help people identify their personal skills, strengths and qualities and understand how to include these in their CV as part of a CV building workshop .

Following on from this is the opportunity to learn about job seeking skills, discuss how best to cope with discrimination and workplace bullying. Sessions are also planned around work interviews, presentation skills and hearing from an employer on employer expectations.

Later sessions will provide information on the impact of returning to work and the effect this may have on someone’s benefits, and help people plan strategies for managing health issues and sustaining work as they move forward.

Feedback after the first few weeks has been positive:

“The work club is a good forum for discussion”

“Its good for confidence building, especially when you have been in a vulnerable place” “

“Its great to have these group discussions (about work) because everybody comes from different angles”

“The discussion groups are invaluable, it expands learning beyond the worksheet exercises and builds on the experiences of group members.”

An application through Job Centre Plus for Work Club start up funding has been successful and Grampian Opportunities will now be able to purchase a small printer, a laptop and specialist software to support people with visual impairments participate in future workclub activity.

The newsgroup team would like to thank everyone who has contributed to this bumper edition of our newsletter. Without your support this edition of the newsletter would not have been possible.

Many thanks. The NewsgroupTeam.

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Youth and Philanthropy Initiative Scotland

Grampian Opportunities are invited to an event in Glasgow on 25th June 2012 to celebrate YPI highlights from across Scotland.

“It was great for us to see how the young people portrayed and understood the challenges faced by people unemployed and affected by mental health problems.” said Marie. “We were delighted to be chosen as an organisation to be portrayed by the pupils and to win £3000 to help us develop and pilot our workclub programme”.

The Youth and Philanthropy Initiative is an innovative way to financially support local, grassroots charities while engaging young people in a hands-on active citizenship experience. It has proven impact on personal, enterprise, employability and citizenship skills.

In its first year, this programme was rolled out to ten schools in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire. In 2010, the Wood Family Trust assumed operational and strategic management of the programme with ambitions to turn YPI into an educational programme of national significance across Scotland, and in the academic year 2011/12, YPI will be delivered to 54 schools.

By the end of this academic year 10,000 young people will have engaged with the programme in Scotland, granting £408,000 to 136 Scottish charities.

Accessible Meeting Places Launch

at JG Ross, Highclere Business Park, Inverurie

Grampian Opportunities held an information day to launch the first version of a Garioch ‘Accessible Meeting Place Guide’. The day was attended by over seventy people and gave an opportunity to promote what happens within GO.

The day was very useful to us all with all our services within GO gaining new contacts and furthering new networking services established. A fantastic atmosphere was felt by all who attended on the day.

GO would like to thank Central Aberdeenshire Access Panel & the local MS group who took part on the day. We would also like to thank the Garioch Community Planning Partnership for their support and J G Ross for their hospitality and continued support of GO projects.

Thank you to everyone involved in the launch event and to all who came along on the day.

http://www.woodfamilytrust.org.uk/index.phphttp://gsstrojantalk.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/ypi-logo.jpg

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Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland After more than 2 years as one of the admin assistants at GO, at the end of January, I reduced my hours down to 4 a week. But I’m not sitting back and enjoying the additional time off – instead I’ve gone full time as part of the North Supporter Fundraising Team at Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland (CHSS). And what a busy time full time has been!

Each year, the CHSS events programme starts in March and already we’ve had 3 events. The weekend of the 17/18th March brought the first weekend of our Ultimate White Water Rafting Challenge and also the Aden Bike Challenge. The Aden Bike Challenge was a fabulous event which was organised by a partnership involving CHSS, Aberdeenshire Council, the NHS and several others. At the finish line, we had organised a huge country fayre and had bouncy castles, circus skills, craft stalls, various food stalls and a bike roadshow. The country fayre was fabulous and attracted about 500 visitors. Next year’s date is 10th March.

The following weekend meant more White Water Rafting. This is a team challenge where groups of 6-8 people have to undertake a variety of challenges on the river. 486 people took part over the two weekends and more than £55,000 has been raised this year.

The final spring event was the Glenlivet 10K (roughly 6.5 mile) road race through the beautiful hills surrounding the Glenlivet Distillery at the edge of the Cairngorms National Park. There was a record number of people that had signed up to take part (567) including people from all over the UK, Holland and even Canada! This event raised more than £14,000.

So far the ‘North’ events programme has raised more than £71,000 this year from the first 3 events and there’s still another 7 events to go....If you would like to get involved and support CHSS drop, Heather an email on heather.morrell@chss.org.uk

Quotes: We liked these quote - something about them remind us about the peer support in GO.

"The world doesn't change one person at a time. It changes as networks of

relationships form among people who discover they share a common cause

and vision of what's possible." Margaret Wheatley

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can

change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead

GO would like to thank Curves gym in Inverurie for the kind donation of food items received as part of Curves food drive initiative. Items received included tea, coffee and biscuits.

Thank you from all at Grampian Opportunities.

mailto:heather.morrell@chss.org.ukhttp://www.curves.co.uk/

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Life Skills programme “Confidence to GO”

GO for it …2012: This was our second delivery of the Life Skills programme with Grace and Susanna facilitating the sessions. The feedback was again very positive. “I wish I had done this years ago” was one response, and another participant said “at the start I was worried about the course, I thought it might be a waste of time, but its been the starting point of my journey.”

Fourteen people signed up and participants this year had the opportunity to be matched to a mentor through our New

Explorations Service providing one–to–one support to look at future options. Some of the participants have now moved onto the Discover New Horizons course and some onto the GO to Work Club with several mentoring matches continuing.

The Development of Brain Gym

As part of the Confidence course the group took part in Brain Gym exercises. All found these very interesting and enjoyable.

Linda Cunningham, who delivered the programme, said that if possible, notice how you feel before and after doing Brain Gym as this will help you to find out which exercises work best for you.

We had handouts show the different exercises and a quick guide to when to use which exercises.

PACE describes four exercises to do at least once a day for energy, clarity, activity and positivity. We were also shown different exercises for developing a positive attitude, promoting feeling safe, improving focus and concentration and wanting to participate. Still, other exercises enhanced Listening Activities, including internal & external listening, thinking and remembering. Finally there were exercises to stimulate visual activities including external & internal vision, and perception.

A key message from the day was to drink plenty of clear, room temperature water. Keep a bottle of water by you, and take sips throughout the day to keep your brain and body topped up. The message behind this was that water conducts electricity and allows the brains’ electrical messages to be passed efficiently to other parts of the brain and body, helping us with everything we do.

Brain Gym had its seeds in the learning challenges that Dr Paul Dennison, experienced as a child. He came to realise the involvement of the body in all learning, whatever the subject or area, therefore its potential use in enhancing learning skills.

Dr Dennison evolved a programme, known as Educational Kinesiology that would address this physical component of learning. Part of this programme was a group of body-based movement tools that he named “Brain Gym®”. These were the movements that had proved to be the most effective with the greatest number of people.

For more information contact Linda Cunningham Tel: 07876 102026 Email: linda.cunningham@braingym.org.uk .

mailto:linda.cunningham@braingym.org.uk

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Discover New Horizons

This Discover New Horizons course started on 17th April and is providing participants the opportunity to share experiences with each others, build confidence and get in touch with who they are and what they want. With the support of Grace, the tutor and the other students in the group, participants can improve their ability to communicate assertively and explore ways in which you could build on the skills you already have.

Personal achievements

Appointed Persons First Aid Course On 21 March, GO volunteer Marie Johnston along with Heather Morrell passed the Appointed Persons First Aid Course. Both enjoyed the course, “I found it very interesting, and learned a lot and hopefully it will save someone’s life” said Marie.

Community Kitchen

GO members are currently taking part in the Confidence to Cook , Food Hygiene and Nutrition courses being delivered at the Garioch Community Kitchen. Congratulation to Scott, Phyllis and Brian who have already gained qualifications. The Community kitchen’s new email is gariochcommunitykitchen@hotmail.co.uk

Where Am I

Now?

What Am I

Good At

How do I use

the skills I have or get

the skills need?

Confident

Communication

Assertiveness

Making

time for

you

How to

control stress

mailto:gariochcommunitykitchen@hotmail.co.uk

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Signposting Training

Signposting training took place over three half days in the month of February and at the beginning of March, this is the second time the training has taken place. This time, we had a group of eight participants and Tricia McLean mentoring co-ordinator was lead trainer. It was felt that sign posting training would also benefit the volunteers involved in the Short Break Project.

Since becoming a sign poster at GO after completing my training, I realised how important this service is and the impact it could have for someone and their future. One interview with a sign poster may help a person move forward on the right road and help them to explore the opportunities out there. Within the organisation there are various opportunities for volunteering and moving forward, but the same can be said for outside GO too.

As a volunteer with GO over several years I have had many opportunities to develop my skills. One of my goals was to present training to a small number of people. I was asked to take up this opportunity by co-training along with Tricia, and despite knowing most people, on the first day I was rather nervous. Thanks to the support from Tricia and the group I felt I coped fairly well and felt a great sense of achievement at the end .The following two training sessions were more relaxing for me but I realise I have so much more to learn. Wendy Booth

Volunteer Customised Award

In April 2012, Denise received a record of her achievements, having completed three of the five modules as part of a Coordinating Volunteer Customised Award. Denise was supported by Diane Miller of the CVS Training Initiative to record her answers.

It was great that Denise was able to speak her answers and have these recorded for assessment help. Denise is passionate about volunteering and plans to complete her further 2 modules in the future.

Aberdeenshire CVS Training Initiative offers small and medium sized community & voluntary groups high quality, affordable, accessible and relevant training.

Details can be found on their website http://www.cvstraininginitiative.org.uk or by contacting Shirley or Diane on 01358 722205 admin@cvstraininginitiative.org.uk

Funding support for your learning could be available as an Individual Learning Account (ILA). ILA Scotland is a Scottish Government scheme that helps you pay for learning. It’s for people who have an income of £22,000 a year or less, or who are on benefits. If you are 16 or over and living in Scotland, you could get up to £200 towards the cost of learning. Check the ILA Scotland website or call their helpline for more information 0808 100 1090 www.ilascotland.org.uk

http://www.cvstraininginitiative.org.uk/mailto:admin@cvstraininginitiative.org.ukhttp://www.ilascotland.org.uk/

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Short Breaks Project visit to Aberdeen

Representatives from GO were invited to join the Short Breaks Project research visit to Aberdeen. The purpose of the visit was to

test different types of transport & to cooperate with various agencies to see if we could discover new and/or best travel options for people with disabilities. The exercise was to determine how to facilitate successful travel, enabling beneficial experiences for both carers and those they care for. We decided to visit Aberdeen as we could test many types of transport in a single visit.

Inverurie Train Station The first part of the day involved Liz and Angie getting a taxi to Inverurie Train Station to meet Shona. The Inverurie taxi driver was welcoming and considerate of Angie’s needs and arrived in plenty of time to get Angie and Liz to the station. Liz had phoned Scotrail in advance to reserve the wheelchair space on the train and book assistance.

The staff at Inverurie gave clear information about how they would board us as a group. When they took us onto the train they politely asked passengers who had taken Liz and Angie’s spaces to sit elsewhere. We were met by a Scotrail representative at Aberdeen station, who helped Angie off the train & checked we had all the assistance we needed. Stagecoach Aberdeen

In Aberdeen we were joined by volunteer Allan Spence and then met Julie Barker, the representative for Stagecoach Bluebird. She arranged to show us two bus types that are wheelchair accessible. We tested both; a ramp entry bus and a lift access bus. Any bus that has wheelchair access will have the blue wheelchair symbol at the door.

All drivers driving one of these busses should be fully trained in the specific operation of the equipment. Stagecoach advised that if there were ever any problems to note the bus number, the time & place in order that the driver can be traced and re-trained correctly. If you have a ticket, keep it as the best reference.

We had previously thought that only 1 wheelchair user could travel on a bus, however, we discovered that if the wheelchair user can transfer to an ordinary seat then more wheelchair users could use the same bus. It is very important that Stagecoach is notified before you travel in order the wheelchair seat is reserved.

We discussed that many drivers tend to drive off before people sit down. Julie gave us ‘Journey Assistance Cards’, credit card sized for you to show to the driver. You can stick on one of 9 different stickers letting the driver know about your needs, e.g. visually impaired ‘Sight’ sticker or ‘Please wait for me to sit down’ etc. You can get more information about this at stagecoachbus.com or from the disability helpdesk - contact 01779 470077.

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Scotrail Aberdeen

Following our Stagecoach visit we went to the train station where we were met by Allan Jones who manages Scotrail operations from Huntly to Dundee. We were shown the two types of trains in operation. Where you might be able to get up to 4 wheelchairs onto an older style train, you would only get one on the new style train; however this would be more if the user could transfer. The new trains have larger and better wheelchair accessible toilets.

Allan Jones said that train users should register with Scotrail at Fort William (08456 015929) to create an individual profile.

This means that for each new booking you make Scotrail have detailed information about your specific requirements. The recommendation is the same as Stagecoach – pre-book your seat/space in advance to guarantee your travel.

As a lovely surprise we were invited into the first class lounge for coffee and biscuits Shopmobility / Union Square Management

Our next stop was with Katrina Erskine at Shopmobility on the 1st floor of Union Square (01224 254338). We were joined by Malcolm Brown, Manager of Union Square. Angie thought she would enjoy using a motorised wheelchair but wouldn’t be able to do so as there was no hoist facility at Shopmobility to do so, but Malcolm told us he had a hoist in the large wheelchair accessible toilet on the ground floor of the shopping centre, near the bus station. It was decided that a practical solution was for Shopmobility to take a motorised chair and meet Angie to hoist her from one chair to another, keeping Angie’s own chair until she returned. This means as long as Angie brings her own sling, she can go shopping to Union Street and beyond! Jury’s Inn Hotel

After a busy morning we were happy to stop at Jury’s Inn for lunch (01224 381200). However this was a working lunch where we met the manager from Jury’s, Mark Payne. We had a discussion about the need for hoists in hotel rooms and were able to pass on information regarding this. As a project team we still have more work to do in this area. Taxi to the Ferry

We tested the availability of multiple short taxi journeys from Jury’s Inn to Northlink Ferries. Rainbow Taxis (01224 725 500) were happy to provide the service and both drivers were very helpful.

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Northlink Ferries First to arrive at reception were Denise & Barbara, who unfortunately had not been able to join us earlier. Peter Hutchinson, General Manager for Northlink in Aberdeen (01224 564893) introduced himself as well as Fiona Anderson, the shore side representative.

Denise & Barbara investigated the terminal & found the wheelchair accessible toilets to be very big and clean, as were the public areas. The access to the building was good for wheelchairs and the lifts and ramps were easy to use.

Once the full team was assembled, we were issued with special passes to board, we went on the lift, then the long, gentle sloping ramp onto the ship. First we stopped for a photo shoot at reception – very “bling”! Next we looked at one of 4 accessible cabins, 2 of which have tracking hoists.

The cabin had a little bit of a bump to get into, however Northlink are having gentler slopes fabricated. It was noted

there was not a shower chair suitable for Denise, so it was agreed that we would send Peter information regarding this. Denise was impressed by the tracking hoist and the fact that there was a separate bed for a carer/companion. The staff were extremely helpful and very keen to have any constructive input to make travel for all as positive an experience as possible.

On board Denise loved the luxury and space there was a great many “oooo’s” and “ahhhhh’s”, admiring the spacious corridors, the different restaurants, cinema with special seating for watching and listening, where someone in a wheelchair that cannot transfer can benefit from using the speakers. There were additional recreation areas to meet the needs of various age groups. It was also noted the number of accessible toilets there was throughout the ship. The whole team were thoroughly impressed with the facilities and agreed this was the highlight of the day. Angie said ‘It changed my mind to looking at going on a cruise and how a wheelchair user can go on a cruise’, and ‘It has inspired me to go on a trip with Northlink to Orkney or Shetland’ added Barbara.

Allan reported ‘I found there was plenty space throughout the whole ship, the wheelchair accessible cabin was fantastic and I wouldn’t worry about travelling on my own’. ‘I would never have imagined it could be so good – I’m very keen to visit Shetland now. The Northlink staff gave me so much confidence that I could manage this trip. A great many hotels could learn from Northlink!’ said Denise.

After a long but exciting day we all made our way home. Allan in his own car, Shona by bus, Denise, Liz & Barbara by taxi. Angie however hadn’t had enough of Aberdeen. She stayed on for a night with the OSMONDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But that’s another story……

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MY OSMONDS NIGHT OUT!!!!! I met up with my friend Lesley and we went to book in to our rooms. The staff at the Jury’s Inn could not do enough to help us.

We went into our rooms to get ready for our night out to the Music Hall and after getting ourselves all dolled up with our makeup on we went down to the Jury’s Inn for our meal before getting a taxi to the back door of The Music Hall to see THE OSMONDS final tour. Lesley who had never been to a concert before said “I will just sit and enjoy the concert I am not chanting!” First on stage was the support group and then the “OSMONDS”.

They started with the old songs then there was call from a lady on the balcony that there was a lady that was 80 years old, so the brothers got together and sang her the song they used to sing to their mother. When the Osmonds finished, the audience all started to chant “we want the Osmonds” - Lesley included.

I tried to get over to the stage and Jimmy Osmond gave me a smile. Then he sang his song from the 70s when he was a kid, “Long haired lover from Liverpool. That was the concert finished, and it was back to the hotel in the rain.

My carers from Transitions turned up at 11pm to bed me. In the morning my carers came and Lesley went down to wait for me, and as part of the price of the room we had breakfast before going our own ways.

A particular thank you to the carers from Transitions, who helped make my short break dream a reality.

Theatre Trips and Shows

On February 4th Denise, Emma, Kathryn and Heather went to see Grease and on 12th March we went to see Dirty Dancing at Her Majesties Theatre Aberdeen. We all thoroughly enjoyed the shows and thought they were brilliant.

When we went to see Dirty Dancing, Denise and Emma stayed at the Jury’s Inn overnight. Outside the theatre we spoke to one of the actors and in the hotel spoke to another actor. We got autographs from both actors. Great time had by all. Watch out for reviews of Sister Act and Legally Blonde.

The Short Break Project at Grampian Opportunties would like to hear your stories and gather information that would help others. If you have a short break experience to share or would like support to plan your own short break, contact the Short Break Team at GO – email shortbreaks@grampianopportunities.org.uk Tel 01467 629675

mailto:shortbreaks@grampianopportunities.org.uk

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Getting There... building on self-directed support GO are currently working in partnership with Outside the Box Development Scotland (OTBDS) and Stepping Stones (Mental Health Service) on a Scottish Government supported programme to build the capacity of small provider organisations. Working under the name of “Getting There”, the partnership has helped us recognise that our approach of self help, mutual support, and collective working combines the need for individual and social change; for personal and political development.

Self Directed Support is one of the tools to achieving Independent Living and to extend our understanding of the impact this may have, we decided to invest the time and resources needed to attend the Self-Directed Support Scotland Conference held in Edinburgh in March 2012. “The day didn’t go as I thought it would, there was too many speakers giving quite a bit of meaningless information. Even although people have done pilots on self-directed support, there were no firm conclusions and information was a bit sketchy” reflected one of our team who attended. “This still leaves me feeling that self-directed support is a myth … some speakers did not appear comfortable on the topic and only two people showed passion on the subject. If paid people are uncertain of self-directed support how does this reflect on others.” The key message we did take from the day was the need for people to work better together, to collaborate, and to engage in genuine dialogue - as one of the Highlands Council speakers said: “Co-production and creativity are crucial for Self-Directed support to work effectively for people who use services.” * A guide to Co-production is published on Independent Living in Scotland Website www.ilis.co.uk Discussions after the event reminded us that the Local Authority are not necessarily the “providers” of Self-Directed Support but they and other Providers have a role as enablers and facilitators with a responsibility to provide information, promote understanding and ensure informed decision making.

We believe that individuals can find their way forward if they have the information, support and resources from the outset.

The research GO carried out in 2006 highlighted the value of peer support, networking and mentoring which led to our Signposting activity and our New Explorations mentoring service – can we develop these to build on the value of peer support?

http://www.ilis.co.uk/

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Self Directed Support…are we Ready?

ARC Scotland secured Scottish Government Funding through a Consortium bid, and Aberdeenshire is one of four Local Authority areas benefiting. Miles Davis is ARC’s project worker and Grampian Opportunities has joined the local consortium group.

The aim of the ARC consortium project is: “For the lives of people who require support to be enriched through having greater independence, choice and control by building the capacity of provider organisations.”

Denise, supported by fellow GO volunteers attends ARC’s local working group and was one of the speakers at the Acorn Centre on 24th April, where she spoke on her personal experiences of having your own budget. Jamie Law was another speaker sharing personal experiences of using Self Directed Support

Over sixty people attended the Inverurie event, representing more than twenty organisations. Information packs included a list of definitions of the key terms used around Self-Directed Support and what this means for providers. A checklist of progress for providers to measure their progress in delivering personalised services.

In Control Scotland was set up to promote the development of self-directed support and individual budgets and Keith Etherington of In Control Scotland was the first speaker of the day.

Keith said ‘Self-directed support (SDS) allows people to choose how their support is provided to them by giving them as much control over the individual budget spent on their support. In other words, SDS is the support a person purchases or arranges to meet agreed health and social care outcomes’

Research finding on the In Control website identified that: “With the same money… people who are in control got themselves better lives… and were dramatically more satisfied with the quality of their lives and their support”

Aberdeenshire Council’s Self-Directed Support team members, Sheena Thomson and Yvonne Strachan then spoke about the proposals in the Self-Directed Support (Scotland) Bill. This Act will make changes to how local authorities make sure people who need it get social care support. The Bill lists 4 options which apply to services someone is getting as a result of a community care assessment.

Option 1: Direct Payment – individual selects, directs & arranges their own support

Option 2: The individual selects and directs their own support but the local authority arrange it on their behalf

Option 3: The local authority selects, directs and arranges the support

Option 4: A mixture of the above

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Information was provided on the current take up of Direct Payments (approx 200 individuals) and an update of the “In Control Pilot” operating locally confirmed that twenty five people have now had an individual budget calculated; support plan agreed and are receiving their support through a variety of mechanisms.

There is considerable work needed before the Act is implemented and the Council informed the ARC consortium that they are:

Developing training for staff.

Looking at what we require to make this work, IT, financial systems, etc.

Working closely with providers to inform and learn.

Working alongside other local authorities to gather examples of good practice

from other parts of the country and beyond.

Receiving support from national experts in Self-Directed Support.

Continuing to offer Direct Payments via existing scheme.

To complete the Council presentation, Jean Stewart-Coxon a member of the commissioning team outlined some of the legal implications and thoughts on the changes of how services could be commissioned. The difference between public and private funds was discussed and consideration of a Framework Tender or the alternative approach of having an approved provider list was touched on.

Key Community Supports representative, Andrea Wood was the final speaker of the day. She focused on the issues provider organisations needed to consider. She shared the experiences of their organisational development and the changes they had made to respond to Self-Directed Support, highlighting the issues some providers will need to consider.

The first area they developed was outcome based support planning, a critical part of the process for the people they currently support. They put together a task force who became experts in planning with folk around their indicative budgets–making sure each plan had clear outcomes linked to the funding available and using natural supports, assistive technology and community assets to achieve this.

Reflecting on what helped Andrea highlighted that it was:

Different in different areas, so no one approach will suffice

Collaboration and a shared vision with the local authority

Transparent and fair systems

Positive and imaginative responses, developing Outcome Based Support Plans as fully as possible

Good risk enablement.

A “Can Do” attitude

Users and carers are at our heart

Fostering community connections

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Four workshop topics discussed on the day will inform the future work of the Consortium:

1. What would you expect from a service?

2. Are we ready?

3. What are the Blockers and Enablers?

4. What could support progress with SDS?

Responding to the concerns expressed by some Providers, Denise stressed:

“Providers need to stop thinking about the people who use your service as commodities and start thinking about us as assets”

Adopting an asset based approach (i.e. to start with what people can do) and listen to what disabled people have been saying for years are a key part of the culture change that needs to take place. It is important to remember that Self-Directed Support is about the wellbeing of people, supporting independent living and quality of life outcomes. “It is not just about care and support but very much about the right to access the same opportunities in life as non-disabled people.”

Little reference has been made to the emotional impact when someone has to adapt to entering the care system, coping with the change this brings, needing support to self manage, to organise resources, the vulnerability of having a responsibility but also reliance on others . Self-Directed Support in Aberdeenshire: Your Life - Your Choices Aberdeenshire Council have started on a series of public awareness raising session about the new legislation which is expected to be implemented around October 2013, when the Council has to involve people in selecting and directing their own support. Our own volunteers were disappointed in the lack of local information provided at the event but Contact details for more information have been given as selfdirectedsupport@aberdeenshire.gov.uk or Tel: 01467 629034.

The Social Care (Self Directed Support) (Scotland) Bill was introduced to Parliament on the 29 February 2012. As part of the consultation we responded through our “Getting There” project, supported by our partners from Outside the Box. It is expected that the Act will be implemented in October 2013.

Our GO volunteer team are focusing on what we as a provider need to do to build our capacity to respond to the changes. To do this we need to be very clear about the type of support people will need and understand how best we can respond. Outside the Box Development Scotland have a parallel project to “Getting There”. This is titled “Over the Fence” and aims to share information on how people can get the support they need.

Have your say and let us know what you think is working, what could be better and what are the issues we need to address? Contact GO on 01467 629675

mailto:selfdirectedsupport@aberdeenshire.gov.uk

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Carriage Driving Interview with Allan Spence Q. How did you get involved with carriage driving?

A. I was invited by Diane Morrison along to Strathorn Farm, Old Rayne about seven years ago to see the carriage driving, obstacle courses and dressage. I was quite impressed with what I saw at the time and thought I would like to give it a try. The opportunity arose the following year for me to join the group. Q. When is the carriage driving season?

A. Carriage driving is seasonal during the summer months from the beginning of May to the end of September including evenings. It is held two days a week, Wednesday mornings and Thursday evenings. It is outdoor only and weather dependant. Q. Are there many people involved in the group?

A. It is part of the Garioch Riding for the Disabled Association and there are approximately 40-50 people involved. There is 15 drivers and 30 volunteers. Q. Do you do any shows or take part in competitions?

A. Yes, there is the annual Strathorn shows and Riding for Disabled groups at Maryculter which we go along to. We also entered a competition at Stirling last year. Ten groups were involved. Two drivers from Garioch Riding for the Disabled, Dave McEwan, our other driver, won the competition and I, Allan Spence came fourth overall. Q. How long does a carriage driving session last?

A. Usually about 20 minutes on cross country but a tarmac road is also available. Special facilities are put in place for wheelchair users with extra people being in the cart to assist if necessary. Q. Who do we contact for further information?

A. Garioch Riding for the Disabled & driving group, Strathorn Farm, Old Rayne. Speak to Ruth Skinner, owner. Tel: 01464 851222. We are a charity run organisation and always looking for volunteers. We use 3 Clydesdale horses, Rikki, Rodney and Prince.

Come along, we are a very friendly, sociable group.

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Future Events

Hobby Time Craft Classes

These classes will re-started on Wednesday 07 March 2012 and are held fortnightly at Comraich, 1a George Square, Inverurie from 10am –12 noon. If you wish to take part in this group please contact Phyllis at GO - Tel: 01467 629675.

Come and have a Rumble in the Jumble! Jumble Sale Grampian Opportunities is having a jumble sale at the West Church Hall in Inverurie on Saturday 23rd June 2012, from 10am – 3pm. If you are interested or could help please contact Phyllis at go.events@grampianopportunities.org.uk Westhill Gala on Saturday 9th June 2012 Grampian Opportunities are sharing a stand at the Westhill Gala to raise awareness of the opportunities we can offer. As part of our promotional activity we are happy to meet with people and talk to groups about our work.

Insight Aberdeen: Third Sector and Volunteering Fayre Saturday 28th July 2012

10am to 3pm, Music Hall, Aberdeen Although our office is in Inverurie we work across Aberdeenshire and Aberdeen and this year Grampian Opportunities will have a stand at Insight Aberdeen. This is an annual event showcasing the city’s charities, community groups and voluntary sector. Each year

around fifty organisations participate in the event, promoting the valuable work which they carry out and providing information about volunteering opportunities.

HEALTHPOINT NEWS

May: National Smile Month.

Fruity Friday 18th in Aberdeen Indoor market

June: World Kidney Day 8th,

Dementia Week 20th,

Carers Week 18-24th,

National Falls Aware 18-22nd

July: Nutrition

August: World Breastfeeding Week 1-7th

Call the free health line on 0500 20 20 30 for all your local health information needs.

mailto:go.events@grampianopportunities.org.uk

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Towards a Mentally Flourishing Aberdeenshire

A conference was held in Inverurie Town Hall on Wednesday 2nd May, as the Aberdeenshire Mental Health Strategic Outcome group invited people to look at what makes a mentally flourishing community.

Dr Lynne Friedli, a leading mental health promotion specialist spoke to the theme of “Freedom to live a valued life: What kind of Communities Support Recovery”, describing the social detriments of health under headings such as:

Status Control Relatedness e.g. decision making, respect and a sense of belonging

She highlighted the inequalities in who is heard, believed, understood & respected, quoting from the experience of others, “we need each other” and “a sense of belonging, being seen, heard and recognised.”

The message one participant took from the session was it was about Communities, being accepted in communities and working together in the community.

During the day, there was a celebration of the work already done, showcasing projects operating in Aberdeenshire, learning from people’s shared life experiences and considering the needs of carers and people who need support. This included:

Mental Health Aberdeen is a voluntary organisation which aims to achieve the best possible mental health for the people of Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire, and Angelika, the senior services manager for Aberdeenshire, introduced the audience to the Mental Health

Recovery Star they use, describing it as a tool that supports and measures positive growth and change, focusing on potential, and less on problems.

Thanking Comraich staff for their ongoing support, Marie spoke about her personal use and experience of the recovery star tool. “It’ not about being at the top of the ladder” she said, “it is about you and where you are most comfortable being in your personal recovery with your mental health”.

Westhill Buddies described their peer support group which meets together to plan a programme of activities and speakers promoting social and learning opportunities.

Penumbra’s Fraserburgh Recovery project outlined the progress of their service over the last ten years moving from smaller projects to focus on self-directed support.

Aberdeenshire Council’s Employment Support Service was described by Peter.

Information stands, discussion tables and workshops added to the days participation and learning, groups looked at Singing 4 fun, a walk around Inverurie, Grampian Strikers (football team), Dru Yoga and Creative art.

Jill Sowden outlined the see me “Opening up Inclusion and Anti stigma work” being supported by the Community Planning Partnership and then Alexis Chappell, who currently chairs Aberdeenshire Council’s Strategic Outcome group for Mental Health listed the strategic priorities which led onto table discussions on “How can we contribute to delivering this agenda in Aberdeenshire?”

18

Health Reading Experiencing stress and anxiety, low mood and depression affects the way we feel about ourselves and others. The healthy reading scheme is there to help people who are keen to increase their wellbeing. The books are based on self-help approaches so the aim is to provide you with information and strategies to achieve and maintain your emotional wellbeing. You can access Health Reading simply by joining the library and borrowing the book(s) you are interested in. Books can also be reserved online at www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/libraries

Energy Saving Trust If you want information on heating your home at an affordable cost, the Energy Saving Scotland advice centre provides free, impartial advice on energy efficiency in the home. For further details contact Diane Bannerman, Community Liaison Officer Freephone: 0800 512 012 Mobile: 07506 040 690 Email: diane.bannerman@ne.energysavingscotland.org.uk

Wanted-Readers Hints and Tips We are still looking for our readers to send in any helpful/useful tips that you use to help make your life easier? Examples include how to remove blood from a carpet. Pour cold water and salt onto the affected area and then wipe your carpet clean. Good as new. Send your tips to go.events@grampianopportunities.org.uk

“Fish and chips” (Babies Need You) Babies suffering from AIDS are caledl fish and chips babies because they are sent home from hospital wrapped in newspaper. In order to help these tiny babies we are asking if you can knit a small jumper which will be sent to Africa to keep the little children warm.

Instructions Use Double Knitting wool in dark colours as they cannot wash them like us. Tight knitters use size6 (5mm) loose knitters use size 7 (4.5mm)

Jumper Pattern (knitted all in one) Cast on 44 stitches Work 18 rows in K2, P2rib.

Work 30 rows in stocking stitch (1row K 1rowP)

Cast on 12 stitches at beginning of next 2 rows & change to K2, P2 (for the Sleeves)

Then Rib 22 more rows

Next row (for the neck) rib21, cast off 26 rib21

Next row rib 21 cast on 26 rib 21

Work 22 rows K2 P2

Cast off 12st at beginning of next 2 rows

Work 30 rows stocking stitch

Work 18 rows K2 P2

Cast off

Sew up the sides seams

**Wanted any spare wool that can be donated for this cause.

http://www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/librariesmailto:diane.bannerman@ne.energysavingscotland.org.ukmailto:go.events@grampianopportunities.org.uk

19

New Explorations Mentoring Service

Grampian Opportunities are members of the Scottish Mentoring Network and we regularly attend national and local events.

The local North of Scotland Mentoring Network met in Elgin on the 14th of March, where Maurice and John, two of our volunteer mentors took part in a promotional film to promote the work of local mentoring projects. They provided very personal experiences of what they get out of mentoring, the things they do through mentoring with our own New Explorations mentoring service.

“The two mentors were very natural and confident speakers and made the service very real, practical, person centred and flexible, some of the things we have always aimed for from the initial development. It’s good to go along to these events to meet other volunteer mentors, to learn about different projects and get updates from the Mentoring Network” said Tricia McLean one of our mentoring coordinators.

As an organisation, we signed up to be part of a trial of the new online Quality Award developed for mentoring services to allow projects to gain recognition that the service they provide works within good practice guidelines and standards. We have now completed the online application, and as part of the trial, gave feedback on using the system for the first time. Completed applications are externally assessed and the Quality Award lasts for three years.

The Scottish Mentoring Network have also developed an evaluation framework with three key elements i.e. statistical data, a self efficancy scale which measures change within a mentee, and gathering feedback from mentors on the most significant change they have observed. We plan to join the twelve organisations already signed up to provide data to inform learning and help highlight the spread and impact of mentoring in Scotland.

Time to Spare? Time to Listen? Do you want to do something

inspiring and different?

BECOME A VOLUNTEER MENTOR with New Explorations Mentoring Service within Grampian Opportunities. Training starts May/June 2012

Grampian Opportunities is a charitable organisation working to support and promote opportunities for people with disabilities and mental health problems.

For more information and informal chat please call Tricia McLean, Mentoring Co-ordinator on 01467 629675

Email :go.mentor@grampianopportunities.org.uk Website : www.grampianopportunities.org.uk

mailto:go.mentor@grampianopportunities.org.ukhttp://www.grampianopportunities.org.uk/

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Employment Focus

Skills Development Scotland www.skillsdevelopmentscotland.co.uk Inverurie office Tel: 01467 623623 Tuesday All day–Drop In (lunch 12.30 – 1.30pm) Wednesday – Appointment only Thursday – Drop In

Promoting positive mental health in your workplace.

Talking about mental health in the workplace can be intimidating and managers often worry about getting it wrong. Acas can provide guidance and training to help.

A CIPD study has highlighted the real business impacts of poor mental health in employees:

- 37% of sufferers are more likely to get into conflict with colleagues - 57% find it harder to juggle multiple tasks - 80% find it difficult to concentrate - 62% take longer to do tasks - 50% are potentially less patient with customers/clients.

Mental health costs UK employers £26 billion every year including £8.4 billion in sickness absence and £15.1 billion in reduced productivity.

Acas deliver a training course titled Mental Health Awareness for Employers which can help managers and supervisors:

recognise the signs of mental health problems in the workplace

understand how good management and early intervention can reduce the risk of stress or other mental health problems

support employees affected by mental health problems whether in work or during any absence

enable return to work and feel more confident helping employees settle back in following absence.

It is also possible to download a guidance booklet 'Promoting positive mental health at work'. For more information Contact Acas using their online enquiry form. Alternatively call their customer services team on 08457 38 37 36. Barriers To Volunteering For Disabled People

Scope is researching the barriers to volunteering for disabled people, as a follow up to research in 2006. They would like to hear from volunteer-involving organisations about their experience of involving disabled volunteers, and will share the research findings. Grampian Opportunities responded to this before the deadline of 18 May. We look forward to reporting on the findings when they are published.

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Inclusion Scotland Working towards a society where disabled people are equal citizens

Inclusion Scotland are pleased to announce that from May 2012 they will be hosting the Independent Living in Scotland (ILiS) project, which has been moved to us from the Equality & Human Rights Commission (EHRC) – Scotland. We would like to welcome Heather Fisken (Project Manager) and Pamela Duncan (Policy Officer) to the office and look forward to working with them to promote our shared aims over the coming years.

Inclusion Scotland is one of Scotland’s leading organisation of disabled people. They aim to draw attention to the physical, social, economic, cultural and attitudinal barriers that affect our everyday lives as disabled people in Scotland.

If you or your organisation would like free membership to Inclusion Scotland or information on joining Contact 100. www.inclusionscotland.org for more information, or contact admin@inclusionscotland.org or telephone 0141 221 7589.

New RNIB Young People's Website

The new RNIB Young People's Website has been launched at: www.rnib.org.uk/youngpeople .Containing over 70 pages of information, advice and guidance for young people aged from 14 to 25 on all stages of their transition from school, to college, university and into employment. The site also includes information on moving out of home, emotional support, free time, technology and more!.

The website includes a variety of individual experiences, video and audio case studies and information from young people. It also hosts the new Young People's blog, 'Mind's Eye': www.rnib.org.uk/mindseye

Further information contact: Dominic Everett, Education and Family Services Manager RNIB Scotland. Email: dominic.everett@rnib.org.uk T: 0131 652 314

Spinal Injuries Scotland is pleased to announce the launch of a sensational new Communication Project.

This new communication project uses live internet webcasting as a simple but yet powerful means of delivering key information, advice, support and education across boundaries and borders to all our members regardless of where they live, is flexible and will enable webcasts to be accessed from members home, place of work or other social venues.

These internet broadcasts are scheduled for two-hours on the last Friday of every month and aim to achieve greater integration, participation and representation of spinal cord injured individuals in all areas of societal life throughout Scotland. To find out more visit www.sisonline.org or email netcas@sisonline.org

http://www.inclusionscotland.org/mailto:admin@inclusionscotland.orghttp://www.rnib.org.uk/youngpeoplehttp://www.rnib.org.uk/mindseyemailto:dominic.everett@rnib.org.ukhttp://www.sisonline.org/mailto:netcas@sisonline.orghttp://www.sisonline.org/

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Citizen Advice Bureau / Advice Centres in Aberdeenshire

Banchory Advice Centre Banchory West Church Halls, Mount Street, Banchory AB31 5PA. Tel: 01330 825551. Email: banchory.advice@gmail.com Open: Mon/Tue/Wed 10.00 – 12.00

Banff and Buchan Citizens Advice Bureau Town House, Broad Street, Peterhead AB421BY Tel: 01779 471515. Fax: 01779 478586. Email: peterhead@aberdeenshire-advice.info Open: Monday - Friday 10.00 – 14.00

Ellon Advice Bureau Inverythan House, The Square, Ellon. AB41 9JB. Tel: 01358 724425. Email: enquiries@gordonrural.org.uk Open: Monday and Friday 10.00 – 14.00

Fraserburgh and District Advice Services 10 Commerce Street, Fraserburgh. AB43 9AQ. Tel: 01346 515307. Email: fraserburgh@aberdeenshire-advice.info Open: Tuesday/Thursday 10.00 – 12.00 Wednesday 14.00 – 16.00

Huntly Advice Bureau Gordon Rural Action, Huntly Business Centre, Gordon Street, Huntly. AB54 8FG. Tel: 01466 793676. Fax: 01466 794209. Email: enquiries@gordonrural.org.uk Open: Mon-Thurs 10.00 -12.30 and 13.00 -15.00 Fridays – by appointment only.

Inverurie Advice Bureau 49c Market Place, Inverurie. AB51 3PY. Tel: 01467 624421. Email: enquiries@gordonrural.org.uk Open: Monday and Thursday 10.00 – 14.00 Tuesday – by appointment only.

Kincardine and Mearns Citizens Advice Bureau 9 Cameron Street, Stonehaven. AB39 2BL Tel: 01569 766578 Fax: 01569 765675 Email: bureau@kamcab.casonline.org. Open: Monday/Wednesday/Friday 09.30 – 12.00

Westhill and District CAB Suite 1, First Floor Offices, Westhill Shopping Centre, Westhill. AB32 6RL. Tel: 01224 747714 email: adviser@westhillcab.btconnect.com Open: Westhill Tuesday/Wednesday 09.30 – 13.30 Friday 13.30 – 16.30

Aboyne Outreach Thursday 10.00 – 13.00 by appointment only Aboyne Business Centre Huntly Road, Aboyne. AB34 5HE (Contact as per Westhill) Alford Outreach Tuesday 10.00 – 13.00 by appointment only Howe Trinity Church Centre, Main Street, Alford. AB33 9AD. (Contact as per Westhill)

Turriff & District Citizens Advice Bureau SCIO, Masonic Building, Gladstone Terrace, Turriff. AB53 4AT Tel: 01888 562495 Email: adviser@turriffcab.casonline.org.uk Web: www.turriffcab.org.uk Open: Monday/Tuesday/Thursday10.00 – 12.00 and 13.30 – 15.30 Wednesday:10.00 – 12.00

The Banff Outreach Wednesday 14.00 – 16.00 by appointment only Chalmers Hospital Outpatients Oldmeldrum Thursdays 10.00 -12.00 by appointment Town Hall (Contact Turriff office on the number: 01888 562495)

mailto:banchory.advice@gmail.commailto:peterhead@aberdeenshire-advice.infomailto:enquiries@gordonrural.org.ukmailto:fraserburgh@aberdeenshire-advice.infomailto:enquiries@gordonrural.org.ukmailto:enquiries@gordonrural.org.ukmailto:bureau@kamcab.casonline.orgmailto:adviser@westhillcab.btconnect.commailto:adviser@turriffcab.casonline.org.ukhttp://www.turriffcab.org.uk/

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Benefits update

Contribution-based ESA is now time-limited to one year, so you and for some people those payments are being stopped. In most cases, DWP will have identified those who may be entitled to Income-related ESA so if your client has not been offered the option of claiming Income-Related ESA, it is likely that they have a partner working 24 hours or more, or household income or capital that exceeds the limits.

Although payments have stopped, these clients can still continue to claim National Insurance credits so long as they continue to fulfil the requirements of their ESA claim. If your client has no working spouse, other income and/or high capital, they have not been told to claim Income-Related ESA, and require assistance to do so, a referral would be in order.

Secondly, successful new claims and revisions for DLA are becoming rare. There is no automatic entitlement to DLA, (other than for those with a terminal illness AND under 6 months to live); it is purely based on care and/or mobility needs so please refrain from telling your clients they 'are entitled' to DLA or to more DLA on the basis of their illness or diagnosis. Each case is examined to see if the pattern of needs and eligibility criteria are met and a diagnosis does not guarantee an award. Asking for more DLA can sometimes result in the reduction or removal of the existing award so please consult us first if contemplating this.

I think it is important to add the following:

1. The 365 day time limit only applies to people in receipt of contributory ESA and in the work related activity group.

2. People in the support group are not affected by this change. For people whose ESA stops on 30th April 2012 or at the end of the 365 day award period should consider if there has been deterioration in their health since the last ESA decision. If so they should seek supersession to have their claim reassessed with a few to being placed in the support group. If successful, this would ensure that their contributory ESA continues to be paid and they will receive the higher support group component rate.

3. For all clients following a re-assessment, migrating from IB or starting a new claim for contributory ESA if at the end of the assessment phase they are placed in the work related activity group they should seek an ‘any grounds’ revision within one month of the decision to try and move to the support group, assuming of course that they may meet the criteria for one of the descriptors as set out in Schedule 3. If successful this would protect the payment of their contributory ESA for as long as they are in the support group.

Answers: to quiz from back page:

1. COTTAGE. 2. OUT. 3. BREAK. 4. DAY. 5. TABLE. 6. CREAM. 7. CHAIR. 8. POOL. 9. BEACH. 10. SHOW

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WORD LINKS – SHORTBREAKS THEME

1. COUNTRY - - - - - - - CHEESE

2. TIME - - - SIDE

3. SUPPORTED - - - - - AWAY

4. FUN - - - OUT

5. PICNIC - - - - - CLOTH

6. SUN - - - - - TEA

7. DECK - - - - - MAN

8. PADDLING - - - - TABLE

9. SANDY - - - - - BOULEVARD

10. THEATRE - - - - CASE

Answers to the quiz can be found at the bottom of page 23.

WANTED …Volunteering Opportunities at Grampian Opportunities:

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the authors of these articles are the

individuals own opinions, and are not in any way endorsed by Grampian Opportunities.

Grampian Employment Opportunities Ltd. Company no. SC20823 Charity no. SC030396

Registered office: 1 High Street, Inverurie AB51 3QA; Tel: 01467 629675

Email:info@grampianopportunities.org.uk Website: www.grampianopportunities.org.uk

Volunteers wanted for: GO Signposting Service

New Explorations Mentors

GO Newsletter Team

Short Breaks Project Group

Training Team

Fundraising and Event Team

Self Directed Support Project

To all our readers!!! What would you like to see in the GO newsletter? Let us know by email go.news@grampianopportunities.org.uk or Tel: 01467 629675. Thank you.

Readers Would you like to advertise in our newsletter? Would you like to sponsor our newsletter? If so email go.news@grampianopportunities.org.uk or Tel: 01467 629675. Thank you.

http://www.grampianopportunities.org.uk/mailto:go.news@grampianopportunities.org.ukmailto:go.news@grampianopportunities.org.uk