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NEWS FROM THE RUSHCLIFFE 50+ FORUM

admin — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 13:44:22 +0000

By Alan Wain
If you attended Rushcliffe 50+ Forum’s Christmas Festival at the West Bridgford Community Hall, you will recall spending an enjoyable and informative afternoon with just 18 shopping days left before Christmas Day. Apart from things associated with the festive season, the event did have an underlying theme of
‘Stay Active, Stay Safe, Stay Warm’.
The first talk of the afternoon was by PC Mark Hallam, a policeman whose long service has included 10 years as beat manager for the West Bridgford town centre. Mark’s talk on ‘Crime Prevention’
provided useful advice on reducing your risk of house burglary. He warned that many door-to-door sales people eye-up your property with a view to returning later to burgle your house. The police now have the power to arrest duster sellers who do not have a pedlar’s licence. Joy Parsons followed her talk on tai chi with a demonstration of movement. This was synchronised to a background of oriental music. Attendees then had the opportunity to practise Qigong (similar exercise movements to tai chi but simpler to learn). Information and advice were available from stalls which included:
- Move and Mingle – local country walks led by volunteers
- Rushcliffe BC – healthy eating, energy efficiency, community safety
- Nottinghamshire County Council – information prescription
- Disability Living Centre
- Neighbourhood Watch
- Parkwood Leisure Ltd
The afternoon concluded with a mix of carols and Christmas songs led by St Cecilia’s Singers. The next Open Forum will be held on Tuesday 10th April from 2.00-4.30pm at St Paul’s Church Hall, Boundary Road, West Bridgford (post code: NG2 7DB). Admission is free.

NEWS FROM RUSHCLIFFE 50+ FORUM

admin — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 09:25:07 +0000

By Alan Wain
The inaugural meeting of the Forum (originally known as Rushcliffe Older People’s Forum) was held in Cotgrave in 2004. Each year thereafter the Forum has organised four Open Forums, presenting information on a variety of themes including health, leisure, safety, security and finance.
During this year (2010-2011) a total of 17 organisations have attended the events with information stalls and/or to give talks. These included Principia/Primary Care Trust, Disability Living Centre (Nottinghamshire), Parkwood Leisure, Community Safety (Rushcliffe Borough Council), Nottinghamshire Police, West Bridgford Neighbourhood Watch Group, Trading Standards (Nottinghamshire County Council) and AgeUK
In addition to the normal business of the recent2011 AGM, the theme for the afternoon was ‘Money Matters’. Proceedings began with an informative talk by a professional will-writer on Wills. The talk presented in straightforward language things to consider when having a will drawn up. Explanations were given regarding some of the terms which are or may be involved, for instance discretionary gift trusts, reserve beneficiaries, memorandum of wishes, legacies, court of protection and lasting power
of attorney.”
The secretary gave the second talk of the afternoon, entitled ‘Money Matters’. As an introduction to the subject of money, attendees were reminded about some of the terms for money used now or in the past (before decimalisation), for example spondulicks, lucre, joey and bunce. For the effective management of money it helps to set and work to a budget. Reference was made to cashflow. Tips on reducing expenditure included taking advantage of two-for-one offers, car-sharing, using the Internet comparative sites before making purchases. The next Open Forum takes place on Friday 2nd September from 2.00-4.30pm and St Paul’s Church Hall on Boundary Road in West Bridgford (NG2 7DB).

UPDATE FROM THE RUSHCLIFFE 50+ FORUM

admin — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 15:34:00 +0000

By Alan Wain
The last open forum of 2010 was the Christmas Festival held in St Luke’s Church Hall in West Bridgford. It was the fourth open forum of the year with ‘Thought for Food’ as its theme. The first talk of the afternoon was on food safety and was delivered by Adam Smith (Environmental Health – Rushcliffe Borough Council). Adam quickly warmed to his subject and an attentive audience were guided through the types and symptoms of food poisoning, and presented with the amazing statistic that there are over 850,000 cases of food poisoning in the UK every year, campylobacter being the most common.
Advice was given as regards food handling, storage and cooking. Foods with a ‘use-by’ date, eg. pork pies and dairy products, must not be eaten after that date, Whereas foods labelled with a ‘best before date’ may be safe after the date on the product, if stored correctly. Adam’s advice, however, was to always stick to the date. Anyone wishing to check on the results of health inspections of a particular café, restaurant or fast food establishment should refer to scoresonthedoors.org.uk
Jane Coleman gave an interesting and informative talk about Meals at Home Service (previously known as Meals on Wheels), administered and subsidised by Nottinghamshire County Council. It is a massive operation involving the preparation of 5,000 and delivery of nearly 3,000 meals per day. The wide-range of meals available caters, amongst others, for diabetics, vegetarians, those with gluten allergy, ethnic minorities. They contain no additives or preservatives.
Meals are delivered hot or frozen dependant on the individual’s needs. Currently, a main course plus sweet costs £3 to £3.20. Further details may be obtained by telephoning 01623 490 015. Attendees were given the opportunity to sample a hot meal brought along by Jane and colleague, Gary. In keeping with Christmas, the Forum served mince pies and mulled wine.
A usual feature of the open forums is the information stalls, which this time included Age UK (this replaces Age Concern and Help the Aged), Healthy Eating, Environmental Health, Meals at Home Service.
The Forum’s first Open Forum of 2011 is to be held on Friday 1st April from 2.00pm until 4.30pm at Edwalton Church Hall, Vicarage Green, Edwalton (post code: NG12 4AP). Admission is free.

NEWS FROM RUSHCLIFFE 50+ FORUM

admin — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 19:30:39 +0000

Gamston Community Hall was the venue for the Rushcliffe 50+ Forum’s sixth Annual General Meeting.The programme which followed the AGM had been influenced by the fact that the next week was to be the National Falls Week.
The first talk of the afternoon, titled “Falls, Trips and Slips,” was delivered by Kate Robertson, who is the Falls Clinical Specialist in Principia. Amazingly there are more than 400 reasons why seniors might fall over.
Those with osteoporosis who fall are likely to suffer broken bones – for people aged over 50 one in two females have osteoporosis and as many as one in five men. Some of the reasons for falls were highlighted, including, low blood pressure, poor balance (can be caused by bunged-up ears), medication, not looking, rushing.
Kate informed attendees that people who have a concern about falls may refer themselves to the community rehabilitation team based at Lings Bar Hospital (0115 8462470). Statistically, anyone who has had a fall is likely to have another fall. It was stressed that it is important to keep the bones and muscles strong by regular exercise and healthy eating.
Kate introduced Kris Gregory, who is Health and Fitness co-ordinator at Parkwood Leisure. Kris gave an outline of the activities that are available for 50+ groups, saying that anyone wishing to see what facilities and activities are available at a centre can have a guided tour by asking at the reception desk.
At the Rushcliffe Leisure Centre in West Bridgford, there are in excess of 50 sessions (Nifty Fifties), consisting of aerobics, body conditioning, fitness suite, table tennis and swimming. The cost is currently £3.80 for all or any of the activities.
There is an “Exercise for Health” scheme, which needs GP referral. As regards costs of the various activities there are concessionary rates for the over 60’s. There are two months left for a free swim for the over 60’s, funded by the Swimming Association.
A comedy playlet was staged by Jigsaw, a charitable organisation from Mansfield. Falls, Trips and Slips to avoid were conveyed to an attentive audience in a conversation between an accident-prone Maureen and her companion, ‘arold.
As is usual at the events organised by the Forum, there was plenty of information available from the stalls, which included:

Deaf and Visual Impairment Team (Notts County Council)
Disabilities Living Centre (Notts)
Falls, Trips and Slips (Lings Bar)
Home Alarm Service (Rushcliffe Borough Council)
Principia / NHS Nottinghamshire County (Primary Care Trust)
Parkwood Leisure

The Forum’s next event will be held on Friday 17th September from 2pm until 4.30pm at Edwalton Church Hall, Vicarage Green, Edwalton. Further details will be published in the Local News and on posters.

NEWS FROM RUSHCLIFFE 50+ FORUM

admin — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 21:13:36 +0000

St Luke’s Church Hall in West Bridgford was the venue for the 50+ Forum’s Christmas Festival. It was the fourth open forum of the year. A highlight of the afternoon was an entertaining and informative talk on microwave cooking by Jackie and Viv, nutrition assistants from Notts Community Health. The witty dialogue was accompanied by a practical microwave demonstration of how to convert Christmas day leftovers into a tasty meal for boxing day. Healthy eating information for attendees was available to take away and this included general information on microwave cooking and microwaving a chicken and a Christmas pudding.
An opportunity for some creative art was provided by Linda Cox of Rushcliffe Play Forum, following her demonstration of how melted wax crayons can be used to produce pictures and abstract designs. Attendees enjoyed a session of Christmas carols and songs led by the Rev. Mark Fraser and accompanied on the keyboard by Wendy Westhoff.
A usual feature of the open forums is the information stalls, which this time included Age Concern, Energy Saving Trust and Notts Community Health. The Forum’s first Open Forum of 2010 is to be held on Tuesday 6th April from 2.00-4.30pm at St Paul’s Church Hall, Boundary Road, West Bridgford, Nottingham, NG2 7DB. Admission free.

NEWS FROM RUSHCLIFFE 50+ FORUM

admin — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 12:43:49 +0000

Rushcliffe 50+ Forum returned to Edwalton for the third Open Forum of the year and the subject ‘Money’ was the theme chosen for the event. The first talks of the afternoon were by Independent Financial Advisors (IFAs), Grenville Lunn and Chris Stephens. They explained in clear terms how an IFA can help with financial problems and give guidance on investments.
Sally Marshall of Nottinghamshire County Council gave a brief introduction to the subject of ‘Benefits’ and followed that with a one-to-one session answering people’s specific queries.
Jackie and Viv, nutrition assistants from Notts Community Health, addressed the subject of eating healthily on a tight budget by giving a practical demonstration of how to make a low-cost nutritious stew. Not only was the stew nutritious, it was delicious.
The speakers had all brought along a wealth of published information for attendees to take away. In addition Rushcliffe Borough Council had an information stall on benefits and energy saving.