Steps for Stephanie - Our Christmas Collection

Introducing Stephanie Stewart

As Stephanie’s mum I have decided to start a charity for her called ‘Steps for Stephanie’. The aim of the charity is to raise funds to enable Stephanie to have access to aids that will make her more independent and give her a better quality of life. As a mum I worry about who will care for Stephanie if her parents are not around.

In May 2008 Stephanie collapsed at home and was rushed to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital her heart had stopped beating and she had to be shocked to restart her heart, and suffered a loss of oxygen to the brain (a stroke). Strokes are the major cause of childhood deaths in Britain.

Stephanie was transferred to the Intensive Care Unit at Bristol Children’s Hospital where she was put on a ventilator. She was found to have an undetected hole in the heart as well as a condition called Arhythmogenic Right Ventricular Dysplasia. This basically means her heart does not beat regularly and will at times stop for short periods. No one quite has the last piece to the jigsaw as to why this happened.

I remember clearly one Sunday morning a consultant telling us that this was as good as we could hope for, and the feeling of blame, grief and despair that washed over us. However as we now know Stephanie is a fighter, and coupled with the excellent care she received she fought back. After many operations including repair of the hole in the heart, tracheotomy and the fitting of an internal cardiac defibrillator Stephanie started to make slow progress.

In late September 2008 Stephanie was moved to the Barbara Russell Unit at Frenchay Hospital for rehabilitation. This is a specialist unit for children with neurological problems and each child has a personalised programme of rehabilitation. Stephanie goes to school in the mornings, followed by Speech and Language Therapy (this has enabled her to learn to swallow again and she can now managed three liquidised meals a day. After that comes Physiotherapy sessions, where Stephanie learns to re-build herself to help with balancing etc.

We are all hoping that she will be discharged in January 2010. We would very much like her to be granted a place at St Rose’s School in Stroud, which has a warm family feeling to it and we believe will be of great benefit to her.

Our first fundraiser is a Quiz Night in Leonard Stanley which has amazingly sold out, and a Barn Dance is planned for June next year hopefully in the Cheltenham area. I am also in training for the Bristol and Stroud Half Marathons.

Louise Cooper

November - Highbury Day Centre

The Day Centre continues to meet at Highbury every Thursday and Friday. We think of it as “our” day centre and are glad to feel that the staff and clients are part of our church family.

We like to collect for them during November so that money raised can be used towards their Christmas festivities and to buy presents for the clients. It is now unfeasible to go out for a meal due to the frailty of most of the people who come to the centre.

In the past transport had been a problem, since volunteer drivers need to be aware of the importance of reminding clients to lock their doors and pick up their handbags, but now the use of a community transport minibus means that clients are collected by a member of staff and driver, offering a much more personal service. The current consistency of staff adds to the stability and continuity for the clients.

Day Centres are rarely used now solely to give elderly people social contact and most of the clientele have dementia and therefore a high level of dependency. Attendance at a Day Centre gives their carers respite as well as offering social support. Clients usually arrive between 9.30 and 10.00am and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee. There are various activities during the morning. Lunch is an important opportunity for social interaction as well as a good meal.

During the afternoons there may be games as well as other group activities. A relaxation corner has a fish tank and aromatherapy, and the offer of a manicure. Tea or coffee with biscuits are offered again at 2.30pm and people usually leave between 3.00 and 3.50pm.

As part of our family the Day Centre have enjoyed Harvest celebration. As usual there will be Christmas services whilst the Day Centre is open, and it is lovely for anyone who is free to join with the clients and their carers for these celebrations.

If you would like to offer help to the Day Centre please contact the manager Ruth Pearce on 01242 581713.

Cotswold Downs Group - Friends of Daniella

Jenny King set up the Cotswold Downs Syndrome support group in memory of her daughter, Daniella, who died before her fourth birthday.

When Daniella was born there was no group available to people in Cheltenham and the Cotswolds. Jenny says, “You are a bit shell-shocked when you’re first told you have a child with Downs Syndrome. You don’t really know what the future will bring, and it’s helpful to meet other parents in a similar situation. Parents realise the potential their children have. They realise there is light at the end of the tunnel and that they can grow to have a fulfilling life”.

The group had eight members when it was set up in 2004 but now supports 38 families in the area, with regular social and fundraising events. Parents are able to meet and learn from each other because they are experiencing the same thing. “It’s knowing that you’re not out there on your own. It’s just bouncing ideas off each other, and knowing where to go for information”.

A siblings group is valuable for its peer support and understanding to the other children in a family.

The group raises about £1,000 per year to fund its social activities and is hoping to raise £18,000 for members to go on holiday next year. The trip would be to a facility on Exmoor run by the Calvert Trust which enables people with disabilities, together with their families and friends, to take part in outdoor adventure activities. Charitable status has been applied for, and to achieve this they need to show that they have raised, or have monies pledged for £5,000. “As a charity we will be aiming to expand our support for children with Downs Syndrome, working alongside the relevant services to provide appropriate support for them”.

If anyone would like to make a donation beyond our collections in church, cheques should be made payable to ‘The Cotswold Downs Group’ and sent c/o Jenny King, 1 Rowan Way, Up Hatherley, GL51 3YF.

September - County Community Projects

We are used to supporting County Community Projects with our donations of tinned and dried foods for which they are very grateful. They thought we would like this insight into another aspect of their work whilst we are remembering them this month.

One of CCP’s most heavily used services is that of the Appropriate Adult. Each year, we answer more than 500 calls to accompany juveniles held in police custody when their parents cannot, or will not, attend. The service, staffed entirely by trained volunteers, operates 365 days per year between 8.00am and 11.00pm at locations across Gloucestershire. The role of the Appropriate Adult is to monitor the rights and welfare of young people, some of whom can be as young as 11 or 12, whilst they are held in custody. The service is also available to vulnerable adults who may have mental health or learning difficulties and may not fully understand the reasons behind their arrest.

John Evison, a CCP Appropriate Adult volunteer who is “retiring” to spend more time with his grandchildren after almost 12 years on the role, recounts some memories from his time with CCP.

“I joined CCP as a volunteer in the autumn of 1997. It has always been rewarding to know that, at the very least, your presence enabled the custody procedure to be completed as quickly as possible, allowing the juvenile to be released and returned home. You always hoped to be able to say something which may have helped the juvenile to change the direction of their life. Every call, of course, is different. You never know what to expect and the following cases remain in my memory to illustrate that.”

“Once, I was asked to accompany a juvenile member of a notorious Gloucestershire gang while he was driven around Oxfordshire by the police, having agreed to cooperate by identifying ‘high society’ homes at which he had kept watch while the gang broke in and stole valuable artefacts.”

“On another occasion, a juvenile was reported to the police by a local shopkeeper for stealing a pot noodle and a packet of crisps, valued at £1.50, on his way home from school. He found himself arrested and locked in a cell, thereby involving two policemen, a solicitor, a member of the Crown Prosecution Service, and me, for several hours.”

“Finally, I have seen that our Police and Criminal Evidence Act offers offending juveniles, other offenders with mental health issues and learning difficulties, and people with an inadequate command of the English language, a fair hearing and treatment whilst in custody. I am proud to have been associated with that through CCP.”

For further information on becoming an Appropriate Adult volunteer, or to book a “Seeing is Believing” tour of our main services, contact CCP on 01242 228999, or visit our website at www.ccprojects.org.uk

August's Charity - National Star College - Star Appeal

National Star College at Ullenwood was founded in 1967 as an independent specialist college offering educational opportunities to young adults with a range of disabling conditions. Over the years we have given our students the opportunity to take control of their lives and achieve a degree of independence and personal fulfillment which they and their families could not have thought possible.

Over the last 40 years the National Star College has achieved great things, but now we are faced with new challenges. The survival of premature babies with long term disabilities, acquired brain injuries through accident or illness and the opportunity for education that new technology can offer means that our students needs are more complex and diverse than ever before. Our facilities are now outdated and ill equipped to cope with the considerable and intensive demands of this changing population.

To address these issues a five-phased development plan has been developed. Through a combination of new buildings, conversion and refurbishments, we are making significant improvements to therapies, nursing and support facilities, teaching spaces, and social and welfare spaces, together with the provision of residential accommodation that will enable students to access education and develop their life-skills within supported small groups of students.

To turn these plans into a reality we need to raise £15.4 million and this is being raised through a capital appeal – the ‘Star Appeal’. The development work began in 2006. As a charity we have always depended upon support of individual donors, trusts, business and the wider community. Every penny does count and any donations or fundraising you can do will make a difference to the lives of our students.

Thank you to Highbury Congregational Church for supporting the Star Appeal.

To find out more please contact the Caroline Annfield, Community Fundraiser on 01242 524478 or go to www.natstar.ac.uk

July's Charity - Langley House Trust

Langley House Trust is a charity specialising in providing residential resettlement services for the marginalised and disadvantaged, including ex-offenders and those at risk of offending. The Knole is Langley House Trust’s project in Cheltenham, which provides accommodation together with support and care for 14 men who would otherwise be homeless. They have sent us this update of their work.

“Over the past year we have had several residents successfully move-on to independent living provided by local housing providers in Tewkesbury and the Cotswold area. One resident stating that he knew he would have got into trouble if it had not been for the support he received from his key worker and staff at the Knole.

Other residents stay at the Knole for longer periods due to their care needs or support to deal with the issues which led to their previous offending behaviour. They are involved in a programme of activities aimed at developing life skills to deal with independent living.

We have had great success in finding opportunities for resident’s to engage in volunteering, two at a charity shop, one in the kitchen of a local care home and another engaging in group garden work. This brings new skills and social interaction for the residents and helps them gain self worth; it also gives them an external interest and contributes towards the community.

Residents have monthly trips which have included a steam train ride, a visit to the Black County Museum, Lydney Docks and Taurus Crafts. Other activities have included art session every Thursday; this has enabled four residents to be part of the Cheltenham Arts Festival, Open Studios, exhibiting their work across the road in St Mark’s Church. All four residents have sold a piece of art work. Not only have Art sessions been offered but also Craft activities, which have proved equally popular and have included, tie dying, transfer printing, mosaic tile mirror frames and mug painting.

Another activity to engage the residents and boost their self esteem is a drama group. They have performed a few short simple sketches including ‘Hello’, ‘Have you seen him?’ and ‘Pass it on’ – the Trust were so impressed with the powerful impact of the play they were asked to perform in front of Princess Ann at the launch of the Trust’s Annual review which was a fantastic once in a lifetime experience.

The Knole residents and staff are very grateful for the prayer support and gifts that the local churches give every year to our cause.”

See Langley House Trust

June's Charity - Listening Post Counselling

Listening Post is a Christian Counselling Service, which is available to anyone over 18 regardless of their religion, race, gender or sexual orientation. The work aims to help the client gain a perspective that will enable them to move towards a solution to their problems that they find acceptable. 

The service relies on donations and there are no fixed charges. There is an expectation that a realistic contribution will be made but no one is refused help because they cannot afford to make a donation. Trained volunteers do most of the work but there is also a need for a regular income for salaries, rent, heat, light and administration costs. It is a matter of great concern that there is a projected deficit of £16,000 for the coming year. A 10% increase in rent for the Gloucester premises has already been made and it is likely that there will be a considerable increase in Cheltenham when the current lease ends next February. The recession has meant a huge increase in clients who are effected by financial problems which runs alongside a decrease in client and other donations.

In the past two years there has been a significant rise in the number of people self-referring who have severe mental health problems. These people are often unable to engage in one to one counselling and the Cheltenham Centre has been exploring other ways to help. A small grant has been made by Cheltenham Health and Wellbeing Partnership which has enabled a five month pilot study to research and run a 10 session group in problem solving and anxiety management for clients with enduring mental health problems. This work will start in July.

Contact details: Tel 01242 256060 or 01452 383820

   Email: lpostcounselling@tesco.net  

Internet: www.listeningpost.org.uk

 

Financial generosity is essential to enable the good work of this local charity to continue. Listening Post also welcomes our individual and church prayer support both for its organisation and its clients.