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Christmas Lunch

In December we had our annual Christmas lunch where we were entertained by The Vintage Singer. See link
Members had a really good time and joined in with the singing.
Food was once again supplied by Rumblings, who do a really good spread.
Raffle made £68 on the day.
This year, due a generous donation on behalf of Mrs Lawton, we were able to provide the buffet free to members.

September 2024

AGM

In September the AGM was held, where the latest accounts were presented and people elected onto the committee. See committee page for details.

We also heard from ‘Florence Cottage’ who produce jams, honeys and chutneys from home grown produce,

We heard how they started and how they ended up in Lincolnshire. They sell products to local companies including Vine House farm.

November 2024

We heard from the British Red Cross who were founded in 1859 when a Swiss business man got caught in a conflict in Italy and felt something needed to be done to assist. H recruited volunteers who took messages from the dying of injured soldiers back to their families. It is still volunteer led and still does that role, However it had developed into a large international organisation and along with the Red Crescent operate in all but 3 countries in the world. Each country has its only specialisms in conflict situations, the UK’s being sanitation. Germany for instance, deal with accommodation and another country would source operating theatres. BRC UK are also developing a cash assistance scheme so everyone can benefit equally rather than delivering provisions and the strongest getting there first, leaving others in need still needing.

Locally they still provide first aid courses including Community First Aid which is free, they work with the Fire Brigade and attend 24/7 with all call outs to provide clothing, toys, food in the event they are needed. They offer a wheelchair hire service for a small fee and when commissioned will support with hospital discharge. Unfortunately, they do not offer this service in Lincolnshire.

We also heard from HW Lincs who manage the Healthwatch contract in Lincolnshire. Their role is to hold commissioners within health and social care to account, based on what they hear from patients and service users through engagement activities. They are particularly interested in ‘what is it like accessing health care services. The NHS have a patient user group and they are currently looking appointment letters. Apparently, there are over 3000 different letter options with Lincolnshire so this process is being streamlined.
She also referred to the difficulty recruiting dentists and doctors as only 10 trainees have signed up to the medical course in the county, but that all newly trained GPs must do at least 6 months of their training in a rural setting.
New diagnostic centres are being set up in Lincolnshire and are currently based in Skegness, Lincoln and Grantham but there are three more due to come into operation. This lends itself to a streamlined process where patients can get quick appointments and can be in and out without too much delay away from mainstream hospital settings

July 24

34 members were present.
Tim gave an introduction & welcome and raised a number of points for discussion.
There was some discussion about the Cromer trip. Overall it was a very good outing.
Our AGM is in September & members were asked to think about how to encourage new members.
Discussion about our Christmas “do” in December: following discussion about an entertainer there was a vote. Jordan was a popular favourite

He also mentioned events at URC including 2nd Tuesday of the month, 2-4pm in this hall, sessions to do with macular degeneration in particular & eyesight generally.

Tim spoke about voluntary drivers for medical appointments & explained how the scheme worked. More drivers are needed.

This year there will be a free Christmas lunch for members, courtesy of a donation from the late Mrs. Lawton

Jackie from the Lincs Partnership Trust was introduced to the meeting.

She explained that she was here to up-date us about mental health
Funding has been given for mental assessments specifically about memory loss
Due to covid, intensive support was offered at home. This worked well & has been expanded. The medics are actively trying to avoid hospital admissions as home care is better
July 2024 the funding runs out – what to ask for next? Overall opinion suggests extending treat-at-home provision, whilst keeping a crisis centre with some hospital beds, with a dedicated team to support carers
Jackie then led a Q & A session: she explained that she was more involved in form filling in, her team are experts in the non-medical side of dementia, she was delighted to have some funding specifically for memory/dementia needs.
She will return next year to up-date us.

As the second expected speaker had still not arrived, Tim led a general discussion.
Gateway club at Broad St Methodist church hall needs volunteers for its work with disabled people on Friday nights – Tim has details
The Meadows also needs volunteers: in the kitchen, driving the bus, in the day centre chatting to people
It is hoped that our M.P. (following the election) will be invited to speak to us. Tim asked for issues we might want to raise (apart from potholes!) -footpaths are not steady for those with poor mobility; parking on pavements; profiteering prices in shops; cash not always being accepted e.g. in car parks; the council car park is closed on Saturdays why?; having to pay before you see a dentist; litter & fly-tipping; empty shop windows looking grotty

The meeting closed at 3.30pm. The next meeting is Tuesday 17th September.

May 24

At the May meeting Becki from Adults Move came along to do just that - getting us all moving, some sitting some standing. Lots of aches and pains afterwards but an enjoyable session

March Meeting

The March meeting opened with the Chair having a number of announcements to make. These were a follow up to Lincs Digital (see separate news item); a series of questions from a fun quiz produced by Centre for Ageing Better as part of their Age without Limits Action Day; SELCP Lottery; LCC devolution plans; NHS Lincolnshire ICB Older persons strategy consultation; Castle Sports Complex/Well being Hub consultation. MS introduced the options for the summer outing being National Arboretum; Stratford on Avon or Cromer. Cromer won the show of hands vote by a narrow margin.

Age UK Lincoln and South Lincolnshire

Speakers from the above organisation attended to update the group on services available

The first speaker told us about the "I forget" project which is about memory loss, not only dementia. This service provides, information, practical and emotional support., working with GP surgeries for referrals.
An advisor stays with you throughout the process and can help with aids and equipment, a care and support plan, personalised care, source home care or care homes.

They also support the carer and family members. The second speaker talked about energy advice, including practical advice such as turning lights out in rooms not being used, turn thermostat down 1 degree, use of smart meters. He also added that if you are thinking of changing suppliers for financial reasons start with your existing supplier.

Also suggested websites such as Money Saving Expert and Energy Saving Trust.com

Donation

A generous donation of £1000 was also made to the group by a member in memory of his late mother who had also attended regularly.

IT Training

Further to our last meeting with Lincs Digital, a number of members were interested in additional training for using on line services such as shopping and banking.
This training was held at The Meadows Spalding and hopefully those attending are now more secure in their knowledge of online safety