Disability
Carers Rights Day Event November 25 with Making Space
The event is taking place on Friday 25th November 10am-12.30pm at Brighouse Central Methodist Church. The event is a market place information and advice session and our theme is planning for the future.
We will have stalls from solicitors, funeral directors, home care providers, gateway to care and much more.
Carers can access both refreshments and a warm lunch on the day.
Carers do not need to book.
We would also welcome professionals to attend.
For more information please contact the Carers Wellbeing Service on 01422 363101
Become a virtual volunteer for Luv2MeetU
There is an exciting new opportunity to become a virtual volunteer for Luv2MeetU working with our Virtual Coordinator Kit to run an innovative and comprehensive service for our adults with learning disabilities and /or autism.
Can you run a drama workshop, music event, gaming session or quiz on-line? Or another workshop/event with your own unique skills and interests?
Here at Luv2MeetU, Kit is developing a full and varied programme of virtual events for our club members to access nationwide. They go on round the world tours, sing their hearts out at karaoke and have discussion groups to name but a few! There will also be workshops to provide learning and life skills such as first aid and on-line safety.
Could you give one slot a week or month to run your own virtual activity to provide the people we support with an ever growing rich and varied on-line experience? It is especially important and invaluable to those struggling with anxiety, mobility issues or illness for example. It gives them a chance to still join in a social setting, communicate and to feel part of a community.
About you
You just need to be confident, organised, able to communicate well and be patient and understanding. Some knowledge of adults with learning disabilities and/or autism would be helpful but not essential. To be able to have fun!
As a volunteer you will receive training, free DBS, expenses paid and invaluable experience and skills to add to your CV. You will meet other volunteers and become part of a nation-wide team of volunteers helping our club members to access social events, reach their potential and to feel included, an incredibly rewarding experience.
All our events are designed to be all inclusive as we are working with adults with special needs so a volunteer with a disability requirement should not have an issue. If there was we would accommodate this straight away and work with the volunteer to resolve any issues.
All volunteers would have support from our community coordinator and volunteer coordinator, emergency numbers and details. They would have links to other volunteers to share ideas, experiences, problems.
About Luv2meetU
Luv2meetU is a Community Interest Company (CIC), run by and for people with learning disabilities and or autism. Our main aim is to ensure that everything we do is about providing better opportunities and activities for our club members in response to their needs and wishes.
Luv2MeetU works with adults with learning disabilities and /or autism. We run events and workshops that provide our club members with social activities, new experiences and learning opportunities. Examples of previous events include climbing, bowling, alpaca trekking and a relationship workshop. There is a community coordinator that you would be working with, either helping them on events which would allow greater numbers or running your own event, with a friend maybe, taking a group to the cinema or for a meal out for example. We want to give our adults an enriched and varied life whilst promoting independence, learning and well-being.
We are looking for volunteers to either help our community coordinator on events or run their own events, after training, with the adults that we support. You could sign up with a friend or family member, train together and then take our club members to the cinema, meal out or bowling once a month or how ever often you had time for. Design your own event, liaise with the coordinator who will write it into the next flyer and provide all the details you need. Expenses are paid, you’d be doing something hugely rewarding, giving an invaluable service to the community and enriching your own experiences and CV.
Health Challenges and Living with Disability beyond Covid-19
The event may be held in Todmorden but we will be promoting our research across Calderdale – by including community groups and other potential allies who are based in Todmorden, Hebden Royd, Halifax and other areas of Calderdale.
Register here : Community research event:
Health challenges and disability beyond Covid-19 Tickets
Download Flyer here (PDF)
In the first half of the meeting we will be going through the 7 headings of our research findings about Disability and Health – as we did previously with our on-line meeting in April. This includes Professional Support, Voluntary Sector Support, Friends and Family, Personal Care, Family Carers, Getting Out and about, Friends and Community, Disability Rights and Access.
In the second half of the meeting, we will be discussing our recommendations in an open forum. These themes include Listening to and involving local citizens more in local decision-making, tackling inequalities and upholding the rights of disabled people. We welcome your ideas or suggestions on how we can follow-up our initial research in practical ways.
What we’ve learned from the Community Get Together at Hove Edge Bowling Club
On Tuesday 13th of September, Staying Well and Focus4Hope, arranged an event at Hove Edge bowling club. The aim of the event was to provide information to local residents of Hipperholme and Hove Edge on services are locally available to help them lead a healthier and happier life.
On the day the following groups and services attended; Hipperhome Christ Church, Memory Lane Cafe, Active Calderdale, Better Living Service, Invictus Wellbeing, Calderdale Dementia Hub, Vita Minds, Cromwell Bottom Wildlife group and our very own NHP Neighbourhood team and Sure Start Children’s centres.
All these organisations offer fantastic opportunities to meet others, gain support around dementia, move more indoors and out, access emotional wellbeing services, achieve a healthier weight, access excursions and other local events. Many of those we endeavour to publish in our online blogs to which you can sign up to.
We enjoyed refreshments and cakes. Focus4Hope delighted us with their culinary skills providing delicious hot food of Vegetarian Chili and Sausage casserole, Crust and Crumb offered delicious woodfired pizzas made on the day.
As well as valuable networking, we had a unique opportunity to listen to a talk from West Yorkshire Police about personal safety at home, out & about and current scams. The event concluded with a meditation session from Tai Chi Tigers, concentrating on breathing and gentle stretching exercises.
The Hipperholme and Hove Edge residents who came, gave our Staying Well workers very positive feedback, saying they enjoyed the day, as well as encouraging requests for more such events in the future. People signed up for various services and there was active interest in taking up Tai Chi, while West Yorkshire Police received numerous requests for home safety visits following their talk on crime prevention.
Thank you to all for your contribution into making this event a success and thank you to all who visited.
For more information on the services available, please find links to the participating organisations below.
Hipperholme Christ Church 21
Brighouse Rd, Hipperholme, Halifax HX3 8EA
Vita Health Group – Calderdale
Cromwell Bottom Wildlife group
North Halifax Partnership (NHP)
Tai Chi Tigers
Seated Exercise at Hipperholme Christ Church every Tuesday
Active Rainbow come to Hipperholme Christ Church every Tuesday morning to offer seated exercise sessions!
This is a very friendly class and we always finish off the session with a chat and cuppa. Everyone welcome 
Sessions cost £4 per person and run every Tuesday at Christ Church Hipperholme (cross road) at 9.45am.
Hipperholme Christ Church: 21 Brighouse Rd, Hipperholme, Halifax HX3 8EA
Safeguarding for Designated Leads 26th July
You are invited to this seminar on Tuesday 26th of July between 10am to 12.30pm.
This session, aimed at staff and Trustees of nonprofit organisations who have responsibilities for overseeing safeguarding, is designed to enable you to understand your safeguarding responsibilities and practical things you can put in place to protect children, young people and adults at risk that your organisation works with.
An interactive session, with plenty of time to ask questions, the aim is to empower and reassure those in positions of authority around your responsibilities.Please note this session is IN PERSON
Venue: Resource Centre, Hall Street, Halifax, HX1 5AYTo book your place please email: info@vsialliance.org.uk
Home Instead : Local home care company is top 2.51% in the region
Home Instead Calderdale has received a prestigious award by a national reviews website, having been named one of the top 20 home care companies in Yorkshire and Humberside and in the top 3% of home care companies in the region. They have made it onto the impressive list out of 796 home care companies and this is the fourth time they have won this award.
The award is based on the home care company’s reviews on homecare.co.uk, the UK’s top home care reviews site considered to be the ‘TripAdvisor for home care’. The reviews are given by people that Home Instead cares for, plus their loved ones. Home Instead Calderdale made it to the exclusive list thanks to its impressively high review score of 9.9.
One heart-warming review from a family member of a client, appearing on homecare.co.uk, is as follows: “The carers were lovely and looked after my mum very well. We really appreciate the efforts made to have the minimum number of staff on the care rota, and to have a primary carer, so that personal relationships and trust were formed. This really made a difference and it made it a very personal service. All the staff were friendly, helpful and professional and we felt that they genuinely cared. Thank you so much.”
Naomi Lanigan, Registered Manager of Home Instead Calderdale, said: “We are delighted to receive this award again. The positive reviews we receive are down to the dedication, commitment and genuine care taken by our fantastic Care Professionals and our office team. We spend a lot of time making sure our clients are happy and working with families to tailor our service to their loved ones needs.”
Amanda Hopkins, reviews manager of homecare.co.uk, said: “Top quality home care is crucial as it enables people to continue living in their own homes and maintain their independence, with their home care worker often becoming their friend and companion.
“The past two years have been particularly hard for disabled and older people, as many were forced to self-isolate to protect themselves from Covid, with care workers playing a vital role in keeping them mentally and physically well.
“Our reviews are by those who receive home care as well as their family and friends. This helps others to search for the right care provider, where compassion, trust and empathy are at the heart of their care.”
“Home Instead Calderdale has shown it provides care of the highest quality and we would like to congratulate it on being one of the top home care providers in Yorkshire and Humberside”
Home Instead Calderdale provides a wide range of care services, including personal care, including help with dressing and bathing, dementia care and companionship care.
The company is looking for caring people to join its team and become a Care Professional. New recruits don’t necessarily need previous sector experience; the most important attributes are a kind heart and the desire to make a difference.
For more information on Home Instead’s care or career opportunities, please call 01422 292424 or visit www.homeinstead.co.uk/calderdale/.
Join ACDAF and discuss inclusive Commuting and Green Spaces access
The Accessible Calderdale Disability Access Forum (ACDAF) is a user led group of people with pan disabilities and who live in Calderdale. It is a very diverse group with ages ranging from 20-92 years!
We represent learning disabilities, sensory impairment, physical disabilities and neurodiverse conditions. We listen to our members lived experiences and everyday challenges and bring partners and stakeholders together with our members to look at how access and inclusion can be improved.
We are very keen to work in co production and we work in collaboration with with the local authority, West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA), Canal and River Trust, Northern Rail and design teams/architects.
We meet online and occasionally face to face at an accessible venue in Halifax.
We have focus groups on Transport, countryside and green spaces, tourism and health and wellbeing.
Members can be as involved as they choose but everyone has an equal voice to raise awareness of issues affecting their lives in regards to access and inclusion.
If you would like a membership form or to find out more about our friendly group please contact Lorri 07596 707795 lorraine@visitsunlimited.org.uk
Join the Healthy Minds Volunteer Team!
Charities in the voluntary sector are facing more and more challenging times, and we need our incredible volunteers now more than ever.We have THREE different volunteering opportunities at Healthy Minds, one of them could be right up your street!💭 Befriending Volunteer for our Like Minds Peer Support Project, supporting a peer to improve their mental health.💭 Walk Leaders for our Walks for Wellbeing programme💭 Volunteers for our Time Out project for children and young people, helping to deliver mental health education workshops in schools.Interested? Please pop Cath an email or call/text:cath@healthymindscalderdale.co.uk07960 972685
Become a Volunteer for Healthy Minds!
NHS Trusts recruiting in Mental Health, Learning Disability and Autism
NHS Trusts in West Yorkshire are recruiting people to a range of roles in Mental Health, Learning Disability and Autism
West Yorkshire Mental Health NHS Collaborative Recruitment Day
(Register : vfairs.com)
30 June 2022 11am – 7pm
Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust, Leeds & Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and the South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust have announced they will be jointly delivering a virtual careers fair. The event is being supported by the West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership and a wide range of external partners who work in the field of mental health, learning disabilities and autism.
The free online event will be delivered on 30 June 2022 11am – 7pm.
Job seekers and volunteer applicants can register here: West Yorkshire Mental Health NHS Collaborative Recruitment Day (vfairs.com).
The event will provide people looking for jobs and volunteering roles with and exciting opportunity to:
- find out about the wide range of jobs on offer
- hear directly from Trust staff about what it is like to work in mental health, autism and learning disability roles
- apply on the day for jobs and volunteering roles.
People can attend the event conveniently from any location as it will be accessible through mobile devices.
There will be a range of current open positions available through the virtual career fair, including both clinical and non-clinical roles, at a range of salary levels. The event programme also includes seminars, aimed at the graduate and college leavers audience.
Interested candidates, or those who know of potential candidates are also invited to register for the event and refer other professionals within this space.
Rob Webster, CEO-Designate, West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership commented:
“I am pleased we are supporting this event and encouraging people to work in three fantastic local organisations. We recognise that in the post Covid-19 pandemic climate, people are looking for opportunities to change and progress their careers and the NHS offers a multitude of roles and opportunities. West Yorkshire is also a vibrant and diverse area to live and work. Whether starting your career or seeking to lead in our system, there is something for everyone.
Greg Moores, Chief People Officer, South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust commented:
“This event is a fantastic opportunity for us to reach and recruit people who would like to work in the interesting and rewarding field of mental health, autism and learning disabilities. As people continue to work remotely, the virtual fair is a convenient way for job seekers to find out more about available roles.”
Muhammad Younas, CEO of vFairs commented:
“We are very happy to supply the technology that will help drive meaningful work that supports the community in West Yorkshire. We look forward to seeing all the wonderful outcomes that this event produces. If your organisation is interested in working with us, please visit: www.vfairs.com ”
Calderdale Lower Valley blog 