Age Friendly Nottingham Bulletin May 2015

with family, friends and colleagues. Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.

Welcome to the May 2015 Edition of our Age Friendly Nottingham bulletin featuring brief articles on local and national news, events and information that relate to people aged 50+ in the city. We hope that you will share it widely  through your networks, encouraging others to sign up to receive future copies and contribute to the content.  If you or an organisation you represent would like an item included in future editions please email healthandwellbeing@nottinghamcity.gov.uk.

Age Friendly Nottingham (AFN) aims to make Nottingham a great place to grow old.  It’s important that we all enjoy our later life and part of that is being actively engaged with other age groups and our local areas.  Older people are already the bedrock of civil society but we could do so much more.  Our families, neighbours and communities need us and we need to remain connected in later life.  To help that happen, we all need to end the ageism that hinders the contributions that older people can and do make. International Older People’s Day is held annually on 1 October and in 2015 AFN would like to celebrate contributions of those older people in the city who are breaking the stereotypical image of ageing or making a real difference to the lives of others.  To let us know of a 50+ champion in the city please email healthandwellbeing@nottinghamcity.gov.uk. Councillor Eunice Campbell Nottingham's Older Citizens' Champion

Activities

Tasty Tuesdays - Free Community Meal

A free community meal is available at 6.00 pm every Tuesday at Thomas Helwys Baptist Church, Church Street Nottingham NG7 1SJ. For more information telephone 0115 9588590 or email manager@dunkirkandlenton.co.uk

Table tennis for older people

Ping! Nottingham is a public ping pong festival which sees table tennis tables popping up in unusual and remarkable places for all ages to enjoy for free. It will be launched at a fun event on 24th June at Smithy Row in Nottingham City Centre.

Dance and Gentle Exercise at Nottingham Playhouse Running every Wednesday until 8 July 2015 - join a fun, lively and friendly dance session for those aged 60+ who want to learn new skills, keep active and meet new people. Sessions are run by local dance artist Karla Henry, as part of Playhouse Golden Age. No previous experience needed!  Courses are £6 a session but subsidies are available - contact Rebecca rebeccaj@nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk or the Box Office on 0115 941 9419.

Free cycle rides across Nottingham

Nottingham City Council in partnership with British Cycling are launching a summer of free cycle rides. The rides which are free and suitable for all ages are categorised into 3 levels, easy, steady and challenging.

Best Foot Forward Walk Leader reaches 10 year milestone Best Foot Forward (BFF) is a programme of guided health walks across Nottingham - open to everyone aged 14+ and completely free. Each walk has at least one trained walk leader to welcome and guide individuals. This year, Age UK Notts volunteer Colin Fry (opposite) is celebrating leading BFF walks for ten years. Motivating yourself to go on a walk alone can sometimes be very difficult so the BFF walk leaders kindly donate their time to help local people get out and about and make walking a group activity. Many walkers have seen their health and new friendships formed. Walks take place whatever the weather and there is no need to pre-book so you can just turn up to whichever walks and dates you wish to attend. To find out more visit the web site or call 0115 841 4473.

Information and Services

Centrelink – free bus service around Nottingham City Centre

If you find you struggle to walk across the city centre, there is a free bus service that links Victoria Centre, Old Market Square and Broadmarsh Centre.  Centrelink operates Monday to Saturday, every 10 minutes from 7am to 7pm. (Please note that there is no service on Sundays and Bank Holiday Mondays.)

Meals at Home: much more than food Not only do Nottingham City Council's Meals at Home deliver prepared hot or frozen meals directly to your home, they also provide a friendly face and a helping hand.  All dietary requirements can be catered for and a tasty variety of different religious and cultural cuisines are availabe in addition to traditional dishes. For menus and further information contact the team on 0115 8761847 or mealsathome@nottinghamcity.gov.uk

The VISAL toolkit for older people with sight loss

The VISAL toolkit is designed to enable older people to participate actively and have a voice in their local communities – giving organisations the means to reach out to an often isolated and hard to reach group of people in society. The toolkit offers a step-by-step guide to planning, organising and delivering a VISAL programme to help a group of older people with sight loss to gain confidence and skills. The method outlined in the toolkit has been refined by the project partners over a two-year period and is the result of a European-wide collaboration. The shared feedback from this cross-cultural interaction adds value to the toolkit. RNIB has also produced a short video which tells you more about the toolkit at http://youtu.be/vVfXhjf-Dhs

Free Tax Training Videos

Tax Help for Older People have launched a new web page that provides valuable information and consultancy to ‘not for profit’ frontline workers who come into contact with older clients that need help dealing with personal taxation.  The page includes four videos on the key areas of taxation for older people which can be used to provide tax training for your staff on

• General Tax Awareness
• Underpayments
• Retirement – The Tax Implications
• Bereavement

DWP offers over 55s a free pension statement

The DWP has extended the State Pension statement service, meaning that now everyone over the age of 55 can get a free estimate. It also provides helpful information explaining how this position may change with further NI contributions or credits.

Electrical safety in the home: A guide for older people and their relatives

Electrical Safety First has produced a free leaflet which includes tips and advice for anyone concerned about safety in their own home or that of a relative/friend.

Nottingham City Homes 10 year Anniversary Fund To mark NCH's 10th anniversary, they have created a 10 Year Anniversary Fund. The fund is there for tenants' and residents' associations as well as wider community groups to fund activities, events and projects.  Small grants of up to £250 are available for street parties, community picnics, community clean up events and similar.  Larger awards up to £10,000 are also available for projects with a longer lasting impact.

Can you help a family member or friend gain digital skills?

The overwhelming majority (85%) of older people aged 55 and over who use the internet say their life has changed for the better by being online - and 45% say they now can’t imagine their life without it.  A recent survey revealed the growing number of older people online who are benefitting - saving money and feeling it has brought them closer to family and friends, but many older people don’t use the internet because they lack basic digital skills.  Digitalskills.com has free resources to help you share the benefits of using basic digital technologies with a friend, neighbour or family member get started and overcome their fears. 

Mailing and Telephone Scams

Unsolicited letters and telephone calls are an annoyance to many people but you can cut down on the amount of unwanted letters and telephone calls that you receive.
Unwanted mail?  The MPS is a free service enabling you to choose the mail you wish to receive. Unwanted sales or marketing telephone calls?  The TPS is a free service enabling you to reduce these calls.

How’s your heart today? If you’re aged between 40 and 74 you’re entitled to a free NHS Heart Check-Up which can assess your risk of developing heart disease, kidney disease, stroke and diabetes.  Contact your GP or pharmacist about a Heart Check-Up.

East Midlands Research into Ageing Network (EMRAN)

EMRAN has been established ‘to facilitate collaborative applied research in to ageing and older people’.  Through events and other media they discuss relevant ageing themes within research.  Anyone from any background is welcome to join.  If you would like to find out more, please contact emran@nottingham.ac.uk. 

Dementia

Your help is needed

Notts County FC Football in the Community have applied to Aviva Community Fund for £25,000 in order to extend and expand the services of their Early Onset Dementia Multi-sports project at Portland Centre in the Meadows.  They have been shortlisted but need your help to get the most votes.  

Voting is free and closes on 31 May.  All you have to do is go to https://community-fund.aviva.co.uk/voting/project/view/3311/ and register.  You are able to vote 10 times for the project and it takes less than two minutes.

Dementia Awareness Week 2015 will take place from 17-23 May

Over a third of people over 65 will develop dementia. The word dementia describes a set of symptoms that may include memory loss and difficulties with thinking, problem-solving or language. Dementia is caused when the brain is damaged by diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease or a series of strokes.  

Creating a Dementia Friendly Workplace: a practical guide for employers

As the workforce ages and the number of people retiring at a later age increases, the number of people living with dementia while they are in work is set to rise.  This has implications for employers, who are beginning to recognise that dementia is becoming an increasingly big issue for their organisation and their staff. This guide developed by the Alzheimer's Society is a good resource.

Dementia Friends training

Public Health England and the Alzheimer’s Society have launched a Dementia Friends training campaign to raise awareness about dementia.  The training is quick - you just need to watch a short online video - and provides you with a greater understanding about dementia, including tips to help people with the illness.

Dementia resources in your local library

Nottingham Libraries offer "memory packs" which are a collection of books and other materials designed to help people at various stages of memory loss. These packs include picture books, photographs, jigsaws and other resources that can be shared by people living with dementia and their carers, friends and family. The packs are designed to stimulate memories and encourage sharing memories. The themes of the packs include holidays, the home, specific decades, sport etc. The packs are available for people to borrow free of charge from Nottingham Libraries.

Dementia friendly days out

Care UK has published Good to Go: a guide to dementia friendly days out. It is aimed at transforming the experiences of those caring for loved ones living with dementia and provides information to overcoming the challenges of getting out and about. This book shows how important it is for those living with dementia - and their carers - to get out and about; it explains how to plan trips and how to make the most out of every outing.

For more information on Age Friendly Nottingham go to http://www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk/afn

 or email Sharan Jones on sharan.jones@nottinghamcity.gov.uk