Join the NHS Foundation Trust Involvement Bank!
North-Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust are looking for local people who can give a little time to join the Involvement Bank and help by:
- Taking part in visits and inspections
- Attending meetings, workshops and events
- Providing feedback and stories based on your treatment
- Designing surveys
- Taking part in research projects
- Designing patient pathway and quality improvement projects
- Supporting staff recruitment
- Developing training for staff
- Sharing ideas on how we could improve our services
To register to join the Involvement Bank, please download, complete, and submit the following registration form to the address cited at the bottom.
Pension Credit Week of Action
Hundreds of thousands of pensioners are being urged to apply for a benefit that could be worth on average £3,900 per year as DWP has launched a campaign to increase Pension Credit take-up.
With as many as 880,000 pensioners missing out, the Pension Credit Week of Action aims to spread awareness and increase claims for Pension Credit, which from this year will also automatically passport eligible pensioners to receive the Winter Fuel Payment.
Joining forces with charities, broadcasters, Local Authorities, and a range of partners, the campaign will tackle myths that may prevent people applying, for instance having a small private pension, savings or owning their own home.
Families, friends and neighbours are being encouraged to reach out to retired family members to encourage them to check their eligibility and apply. The last possible date to make a successful backdated claim to receive the Winter Fuel Payment is 21 December.
Applications for Pension Credit can be made on the How to Claim page on GOV.UK or over the phone by calling 0800 99 1234 (Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm).
There is also a Pension Credit toolkit to help spread the campaign message to your audiences.
To read the press release, please click HERE
Prince’s Trust 12-week Team Training Program
The Prince’s Trust Education Training Collective is currently recruiting young people aged 16-25 for their upcoming 12-week team program, which starts on the 23rd September. This course, which will be ran both in Stockton from Stockton Riverside College and in Middlesbrough from the Breckon Hill Community Centre, will ultimately result in the individual in attendance being afforded a Prince’s Trust Certificate in Employment, Teamwork, and Community Skills.
For a full breakdown of how the course is ran, please see below:
Week 1: Induction week
This week is about introducing the students to one another by promoting them to engage in team building exercises and learning about what transferable skills they have such as communication, problem solving, tolerance and working with others. We also include initial BKSB assessments to make sure that our students are put on the correct level for their qualification. This way we are able to create SMART targets and action plans for the students to work towards and achieve.
Week 2: Residential
This week includes doing outdoor activities on a large scale. This week is about promoting team building and problem-solving skills through a structured learning experience away from the local community in residential accommodation. The aim of this week is to help our students build their confidence and to become a leader in some of the activities that the facility will provide. This week away is of no cost to the young people and food plus transport and accommodation is provided for them.
Week 3-6: Community project
The first week is allocated to the students to plan for their project, which has been identified in the local community by the Team itself. The project is then carried out in weeks 5-6 and allows the Team to responsibility for a task and gives them a sense of ownership of their achievements. This project usually includes (decorating, renovation, etc), and it may include skills training where possible and encourages them to build links with their community and other agencies. The community project is an ideal opportunity for young people to create evidence towards their qualification.
Week 7: Next Steps
Next steps week is the opportunity to work on life skills and consider what options there might be after the course. Time is spent carrying out job searches, mock interviews and creating personal CVs. Career guidance and employment options focused on with support from NCS and local colleges.
Week 8 and 9: Individual Work placements
The individual work placements gives the individuals a chance to gain experience of a workplace. The placement is agreed with the individual and they are able to make an informed, supported choice as to the type of work placement they require. The Team Leader will support them throughout their placement with regular contact and regular visits with their base. It is an opportunity for the young people to develop their transferable skills and an invaluable work ethic.
Week 10-11: Final Team Challenge
This the Team’s chance to take on a challenge involving taking responsibility for or interacting with another group of people from their community. Past examples have included organising day trips or events for the elderly, those with special educational needs, or other disabilities. The planning and execution is carried out by the young people and utilises many of the skills and experiences that they may have acquired in the past weeks.
Week 12: Presentation and review
The final week of the Programme culminates in the presentation to an invited audience to promote what the young people have achieved over the past twelve weeks. This week also provides an opportunity to review all the learning that has taken place and to complete the Individual Learning Records which go forward to be assessed for the Certificate in Employment, Teamwork and Community Skills. The Presentation is an opportunity to award the Certificates achieved by the young people in front of an invited audience.
To view the brochure of the Stockton-based course, please click HERE
To view the brochure of the Middlesbrough-based course, please click HERE
To view the Prince’s Trust brochure for further information, please click HERE
Blossom North-East “Wellness Warrior” Workshops
Blossom North-East’s funding to deliver ‘Wellness Warrior’ workshops to volunteer and community groups in Stockton-on-Tees is ending in December 2024 but there is still time to book!
These bespoke sessions discuss wellbeing strategies to understand stress management, emotional regulation and dis-regulation, improved self-resilience and learned optimism tools which are taken from Emotional Intelligence and Positive Psychology research and delivered in a down-to-earth and relatable way. They deliver their 1 hour sessions either in-person or online via Teams or Zoom using PowerPoint.
So far they have delivered wellness workshops to volunteer and community groups for many organisations in Stockton including:
Home Start Teesside
North Tees Hospital NHS Trust
Sprouts Community Food Charity
Hand in Hand Care
Catalyst Stockton
PCP – Stockton Community Wellbeing Champions
Red Balloons
Family Action
And many more!
They have had some excellent feedback from participants who have found their sessions very thought-provoking and useful.
For more information, or to book YOUR place onto one of these fantastic workshops, please contact Michelle@blossom-ne.co.uk
To view the full flyer, please click HERE
NHS Travel and Health Cost Support COULD be available to you!
Did you know that you could be eligible for help with travel and health costs if you receive certain benefits?
For more information on whether you could be in receipt of travel costs, and how to go about pursuing these if you are eligible, please click HERE to view the flyer. To view the outpatient travel claim form evidence required checklist, please click HERE.
For more information on whether you could be in receipt of health costs, and how to go about pursuing these if you are eligible, please click HERE to view the flyer.
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