Clubs and Community: Writers group raised cash for hospice cause

Writers raise more than £1,000 for hospice

Tring Writers Circle has raised £1,060 for Rennie Grove Hospice Care through the sale of their first anthology of short stories, Flights of Fancy.

The group has presented Louise Hewitt, community fundraiser for Rennie Grove, with a cheque for the money raised.

The book was published in November last year to celebrate National Short Story Week. It has now sold out with help from the Iain Rennie charity shops and Fancy That in Tring, Waterstones and Dar Papillon in Berkhamsted, and the Wilstone community shop.

With the production costs covered by sponsorship from Baxter & Lindley Financial Services, John Lambert car sales of Tring and Slighty Mad Studios of London, all proceeds were donated to the charity.

Flights of Fancy contains 23 stories by 14 writers in a range of styles and genres and has an introduction by Ian Skillicorn, founder and director of National Short Story Week.

The anthology can be ordered from Amazon.

New members interested in any form of writing are always welcome at the writers circle.

Caring jobs available

Home Instead Senior Care, which provides care to people in their own homes in Hemel Hempstead and Chilterns has announced the creation of 90 new jobs for the year ahead in a major recruitment drive.

The need to employ more carers in the local area is a reflection of a national trend which is a result of the ageing population. A recent report from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills has identified the need to recruit over half a million carers by 2022. The report also listed caring as one of the careers of the future.

Jeremy Lane of Home Instead said: “We are receiving more and more calls from local people and family members looking for home care, and our business has grown significantly as a result.

“We consider our fantastic caregivers as everyday superheroes; they are everyday people doing extraordinary work. Whether they are providing companionship care, preparing meals, or helping with daily living routines, they are making a difference to the lives of the elderly.

“For people with no prior experience, we provide a full training programme so anyone who is interested in a rewarding career in the growing sector should get in touch. It is the unique and high-quality, personal service that has allowed us to grow so quickly and create these jobs in the local area.”

For more information see www.homeinstead.co.uk/hemelhempstead or call 01442 233599.

Herts MPs applaud young people

The just launched 2015 Young People of the Year marks the 10th year of ‘YOPEYs’ in the whole of Hertfordshire.

Founder Tony Gearing started the first YOPEY in 2004 and in 2010 he merged all the Hertfordshire YOPEYs into one county-wide competition and has repeated this every year since.

To mark the 10th year many of the county’s MPs have praised the movement which now involves thousands of young people across a dozen counties of England, London and the whole of Scotland.

Sir Oliver Heald, MP for North East Hertfordshire, said: “I attended the first YOPEY awards in Royston and I congratulate the scheme on its 10th anniversary.

“It has been an excellent initiative to celebrate the good qualities and selflessness of so many young people. We all need a pat on the back from time to time and this is a way of recognising young people’s achievements.”

Mike Penning, MP for Hemel Hempstead and Minister of State at the Home Office and Ministry of Justice, said: “One of the best parts of my job is that I get to meet so many people over the course of an average week and without doubt one of the highlights is meeting so many young people. I am immensely proud of our young people, so many of whom give and help others – not just out of duty, but because they enjoy it.

“I am delighted that YOPEY is celebrating its 10th anniversary. So often, the positive efforts of young people go unrewarded as the press so frequently focuses on the negatives.

“The YOPEY organisation does incredible work to counter that and I am honoured to be associated it. Great work!”

2015 will be the first year two Hertfordshire young people will be made Young People of the Year. A senior YOPEY, aged 18-25, will win £500, and a junior YOPEY, aged 10-17, will win £300. There will also be several runners-up prizes each worth £100. All the prizes will include money for the young people to invest in their good causes plus money to treat themselves.

It will also be the first time that a joint awards ceremony will be held with another county. The young people of Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire will come together for a single awards ceremony at a venue near the border between the two counties.

Entries close on April 30 and nominations can be made online at yopey.org or post an SAE to Woodfarm Cottage, Bury Road, Stradishall, Newmarket CB8 8YN, for a paper form.

Volunteers needed to lead health walks

Hertfordshire County Council’s country management service is looking for new volunteers to lead health walks in the Dacorum area.

Volunteer leaders are needed to support the programme of walks at Gadebridge Park and across the rest of the region including Little Hay, Berkhamsted, Tring and Grovehill.

Leading health walks is a great way to volunteer time while keeping fit and active. By leading walks volunteers can help others to reap the health benefits of taking regular physical exercise and boost their wellbeing.

Volunteers do not have to commit to being on rota for every walk, as little as once a month can give supprt to the local team.

For those who don’t want to lead, there are other roles as a backmarker and in the middle. It is flexible, fun and rewarding.

All leaders receive free, nationally certified, walk leader training and become part of a network of over 200 leaders across the county.

Two leader training days are planned in Abbots Langley very soon, call to reserve your space.

To find out more and book a place visit www.hertfordshirehealthwalks.org, or email [email protected] or call 01992 588433.