Sight Support Derbyshire has won a £1,000 Movement for Good award thanks to nominations from the public.

Sight Support Derbyshire is one of 500 winners in specialist insurer Ecclesiastical’s Movement for Good awards, which is giving £1million to charities this summer.

Sight Support Derbyshire will use this award to fund its work providing practical advice, information, services and emotional support to adults and children in Derby and Derbyshire who are blind or partially sighted. In common with many other charities, the current crisis has created a hole in funds due to the cancellation of many fundraising activities which would normally take place at this time of year, including the Ey Up Mi Duck Race which would have taken place in Derby on Saturday 13^th June.

Although all face to face services are currently on hold due to social distancing guidelines, the charity is still providing practical advice and emotional support over the telephone, and sending out small aids and equipment where possible.

Losing the ability to read is distressing at any time but, during the current crisis when reading has brought comfort to so many, the impact of sight loss has been exacerbated for many visually impaired people. Sight Support Derbyshire has been able to continue supporting people by offering advice over the phone and sending out small equipment such as electronic magnifiers which can make a big difference to the every day life of someone who is losing their sight.

“Thank you so much. The magnifier is the only way I can read and I rely on it a great deal”

This award from Movement for Good will enable Sight Support Derbyshire to continue providing support to local visually impaired people both during the pandemic and into the future when it hopes to be able to re-open its face to face services.

Anyone experiencing difficulties related to their sight loss during this time should call 01332 292262 or email enquiries@sightsupportderbyshire.org.uk.

Members of the public were invited to nominate causes close to their hearts, with 500 gifts of £1,000 available for donation. 13,695 charities were nominated by an amazing 253,879 members of the public.

“We are absolutely delighted to be benefitting from this award which will make a huge difference to us at this difficult time. With this Movement for Good award we will be able to continue supporting local people who are blind or partially sighted both during and after this global crisis. Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to nominate us – we really are so grateful” (Claire Winfield, CEO Sight Support Derbyshire)

Mark Hews, group chief executive at Ecclesiastical, said:  “We would like to thank every single person who took the time to nominate a good cause as part of our Movement for Good awards. Ecclesiastical is a unique financial services group. We are owned by a charity which means all available profits can be given to the good causes that are so important to our customers. As a company whose purpose is to contribute to the greater good of society, charitable giving is at the heart of our business. We know that £1,000 can make a huge difference to the incredible work that charities do and we’re looking forward to seeing how this financial boost will change lives for the better.”

The latest Community Chesterfield newsletter inlcudes:

• Our COVID19 story
• Uni-Community connections creating opportunities
• Training Treats: our busy, free programme
• Looking ahead

You can read the newsletter here: https://mailchi.mp/30326cd00fc0/comchestnewsletterjune20

THIS SUNDAY is the national Great Get Together, in memory of Jo Cox MP who died in 2016. Jo was a strong believer that we have more in common with each other and that we are stronger together.

So although we cannot get together physically at this time, we can still be together, so Waste Not Cafe Chesterfield has organised an online get together, with live music and light conversations, this Sunday, 21st June at 6pm. Bring a drink, bring a dinner, bring yourselves, and spread the word!

Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87594483765?pwd=cHg4ZkpmUDFZZFFMTitrNnVENnNUdz09

Meeting ID: 875 9448 3765

Password: wastenot

Or join us by phone: 0203 481 5240

Meeting ID: 875 9448 3765

Password: 079561

Diagnosed with cancer in North Derbyshire? Feeling isolated? @dva_info can set you up with a Telephone Buddy once a week for support and a chat. 💚🤗

To get in touch, call or email Sam on 07926 361183
or sam@dva.org.uk pic.twitter.com/AZC2f8x1DP

— Macmillan in the East Midlands (@MacmillanEMids) June 12, 2020

On Monday 15^th June 2020 it is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD).  The aim of the day is to raise awareness in relation the abuse of all adults but in particular, older adults.

Staff and residents from two Derbyshire care homes, Ada Belfield in Belper and Rowthorne in Swanwick took part in a new Derbyshire Safeguarding Adults Board video for WEAAD 2020 which aims to share information about how to recognise the signs of abuse and neglect, and how to report concerns. DSAB WEAAD Video  https://youtu.be/wA8YcvjFoDM

Derbyshire Safeguarding Adults Board (DSAB) have a number of leaflets and posters available designed to inform both the public and professionals how to recognise and report abuse and neglect in Derbyshire.

The posters and leaflets are available in different languages and with a choice of images, please see the website for the full selection: https://www.derbyshiresab.org.uk/what-is-abuse/how-to-report-abuse.aspx

If you would like to order any hard copies of the Derbyshire SAB’s safeguarding posters or leaflets, please email DerbyshireSAB@derbyshire.gov.uk with the quantity required and the postal address to which they should be sent.

Posters and leaflets can also be downloaded and printed from the DSAB website: https://www.derbyshiresab.org.uk/what-is-abuse/how-to-report-abuse.aspx

Volunteers at Blythe House Hospicecare in the High Peak have provided over 800 support visits to local people who are elderly, vulnerable or isolated during the coronavirus outbreak. 

The Community Volunteer team has been on hand to help with tasks including shopping, prescription collections, transport to medical appointments, telephone companionship and pet walking, over the last three months.

Dedicated volunteers have also collected personal protective equipment, kindly donated by local individuals and businesses, for the hospice’s nurses and healthcare assistants to continue providing palliative and end of life care safely.

The Community Volunteer programme provides support and companionship to Blythe House patients, who are affected by life-limiting illnesses such as cancer, heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and neurological conditions like motor neurone disease.

Following the lockdown announcement in March, the team offered to help anyone across the local community, who needed extra support during the unprecedented circumstances.

Volunteers helped to spread the word about the service by giving their time, in-line with Government exercise restrictions, to post over 5,000 Here to Help leaflets in more than 300 residential streets and 65 essential shops.  

Vicci Wild and Julie Forrest have taken the huge task of coordinating the volunteer efforts across the High Peak, including in Buxton, Chapel-en-le-Frith, Chinley, Combs, Dove Holes, Furness Vale, Hayfield, Longnor, New Mills, Quarnford, Tunstead Milton and Whaley Bridge. 

Vicci said: ‘We send our sincere and heartfelt thanks to our volunteers who have gone above and beyond over the last few, difficult months, to support local people who are in need. Volunteers have been creative in thinking of substitutions for items on a shopping list that were not available; returning twice to the pharmacy for prescription mix ups; phoning daily to a vulnerable person with limited support to check they are OK; and so much more.

‘We want our volunteers to know that they have not just been filling requests for medication pickups, filling transportation needs, filling cupboards and pantries; they are filling hearts. Their simple gestures of kindness resonate across our community.  Just knowing that this service exists is enough to get some people through.’   

Above – Photos of local volunteers undertaking tasks:

• Jon Davey walks Stanley in Buxton [owner self-isolated for 12 weeks]
• Liz Burns provides transport to The Christie hospital for a patient to have chemotherapy treatment
• Denise Bloom provides telephone support

Julie added: ‘When lockdown was announced, we were not quite sure what the community response would look like, but we could not be prouder of our fantastic team of volunteers and supporters! Our flexible team, which has grown from 22 members to almost 50 since March, has ensured that every single request for help has been filled.

‘We listen to the needs of those around us, and adapt our services to fill those needs in the here and now. Sixty-one of the families that the Community Volunteer team is helping have had no prior connection to the hospice. The sense that we are in our community, for our community has never been clearer.’

Read more about the hospice’s services during the coronavirus pandemic: https://blythehousehospice.org.uk/keeping-you-safe-information-on-coronavirus/ 

Find out more about the Community Volunteer team, including how to volunteer: https://blythehousehospice.org.uk/community-volunteer-programme/