Elderly
West Yorkshire Healthier Together – a new website for families launches (Mon 27th)
The West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership (WY HCP) has launched a new website that provides consistent, accurate and trustworthy healthcare advice to parents, carers, young people, and professionals.
West Yorkshire Healthier Together is a free website developed by local healthcare professionals to help parents and carers keep their children safe and healthy. It has a wide range of information and is available by visiting www.wyhealthiertogether.nhs.uk
The WY HCP has ensured the online advice compliments local advice given across health and care services. Information has been reviewed by local paediatricians, GPs, community pharmacists, health visitors and other professionals across the region to ensure it is the most current, and up to date information available.
The Healthier Together programme first originated in Wessex and its successful approach adapted and launched in other parts of the country. The benefits of local developments mean links and information about local services and resources have been made available.
It also offers practical advice on whether a child should go to nursery or school if unwell, along with advice on keeping children safe, well and in good general health.
Victoria Hemming, Consultant Paediatrician, Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust and WY Healthier Together Clinical Lead said “Clinical expertise from a wide range of professionals across the area has made development of the West Yorkshire Healthier Together website possible. It’s designed to be a helpful and practical tool for parents and carers. It provides advice on common childhood illnesses, including when and where to go for help. There is also advice on keeping children safe and healthy. The website will continue to be developed with new topics added. We are particularly looking forward to working with young people to develop pages relevant for them.”
Sayma Mirza, Associate Director for Children, Young People and Families at WY HCP said “I am delighted to see the launch of our West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership ‘Healthier Together’ website which is going to be a valuable resource for children, young people, families, carers and health and care professionals. We aim to continue the development of the site in co-production with our Youth Collective and health and care professionals. This is great news for our local communities and workforce. Families across the area are very much encouraged to visit www.wyhealthiertogether.nhs.uk”
Tim Ryley, Chief Executive Officer at Leeds Clinical Commissioning Group and a Senior Responsible Officer for the Children, Young People and Families Programme at WY HCP said “It is with enormous thanks to all the health and care professionals that have come together in recent months to make the launch of West Yorkshire Healthier Together possible. Please do visit and make it a go-to for local and trusted online health advice and information for your family”.
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!
VitaMinds – a free and confidential NHS service
Vita Health Group works in partnership with the NHS to provide mental wellbeing services to support local residents in various districts throughout the UK. Known as IAPT (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies).
VitaMinds is a talking therapy service designed to support individuals by providing the tools needed to get things back on track. It’s a free service. We offer a range of short-term psychological therapies to adults 18-years and over, who live and are registered with a GP in Calderdale.
We all experience times when we feel like we can’t cope, sometimes this can start to affect our everyday lives and prevent us from doing the things we normally do.
Depression affects around 22% of men and 28% of women aged 65 years and over, yet it is estimated that 85% of older people with depression receive no help at all from the NHS. “This figure doubles in the presence of physical illness and trebles in hospitals and care homes”. In relation to those who don’t access support, this could also be enhanced with “People aged 65+ have an overall recovery rate of 64% following treatment, compared to 51% of adults aged 18-64.”
If you are suffering from depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, excessive worry or low mood, then VitaMinds can help.
VitaMinds works in partnership with the NHS to provide talking therapy services, known as IAPT (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies) and we can provide advice and guidance on the best options for you.
How we can help
We aim to help improve the mental wellbeing of people suffering from:
- Depression
- Low mood due to a physical condition (such as diabetes or pain)
- Excessive Worry or Anxiety
- Excessive worry about your health
- Panic Attacks
- Sleep Problems
- Stress
- Phobia(s)
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
- Experience of a traumatic event
Start now by using our digital referral assistant. This will guide you through some questions and take up to 15 mins. Call us on 0333 0153 494 during these hours 8am – 8pm Monday to Friday 9am – 12.30pm Saturday.
Calderdale Forum 50 Plus – Next meeting June 20th
Calderdale Forum 50 Plus meets bi-monthly to provide a voice for older people in Calderdale and an opportunity for everyone in Calderdale to contribute their views, tell us about their work or raise issues of concern.
Our next meeting is on Monday 20 June at 10.30am at The Shay Stadium in Halifax and is expected to last around one and a half hours.
If you live or work in Calderdale and have an interest in the lives of older people, we warmly invite you to attend. We’d like to hear about your issues and concerns. This will help to give direction to our website, newsletter and surveys.
If you are part of a community group serving older people – come along and tell us about your activities.
To join our next meeting, RSVP info@calderdaleforum50plus.com
GGT: The Great Get Together at Crow Wood Park July 3rd!
It’s on! The Great Get Together at Crow Wood Park on Sunday 3rd July!
Join this family friendly free event for a fun day out, full of many activities with something for everybody!
Take part in our fundraising races, the 2.5K fun run or the 10K Burner! These events have an entry fee starting from £6. Proceedings go to Bolton Brow PFA, one of the partner organisations producing the GGT.
A wide selection of food and drink will be on offer (including a barbeque, sandwiches, cakes, cream teas, coffee, cake and ice cream). Alternatively, bring your own picnic to the park – there’s plenty of grass!
The Great Get Together movement is inspired by the Jo Cox Foundation’s aim of bringing communities together. Our event is all about encouraging people to share and enjoy a relaxed day out in one of the loveliest parks in Calderdale.
- FREE ENTRY
- Games for young and old, the chance to try new sports
- A grand prize raffle
- Cake competition
- Music all day
- A great range of stalls and other attractions
- 2.5 km Fun Run – £6 entry fee
- 10 km Burner Run – £6 entry fee
- Lots to join in with (or simply watch and enjoy!)
For more information find us on Facebook, email crowwoodggt@yahoo.com or call Chris on 01422 706373 or 07884 966756.
Safeguarding Week 20-24th June events
The Safeguarding Children Partnership, Safeguarding Adult Board and Calderdale organisations present Safeguarding Week 2022 to raise awareness about safeguarding children and adults and the importance that safeguarding is everyone’s business.
This virtual Safeguarding Week 2022 Programme provides a varied offer that includes live online learning sessions, live chats, pre-recorded videos, webinars, and podcasts, as well as useful links to research reports and other; all aimed at practitioners, managers, and members of the public.
The majority of the sessions have a Teams or Zoom link included. To attend those sessions please block time out in your own calendar at then on the date log onto the session via the link included.
Where there is a requirement to book onto the sessions an email will be included, please email that person and they will advise next steps.
Next Companionship Cafe Dates in Elland Morrisons – Next June 14th
Home Instead has partnered with Morrison’s supermarket in Elland to hold companionship cafés for older people in our community.
Our first event in May was very successful and we have now scheduled 4 more dates – our next café is on Tuesday 14 June at 10am.
Staff from Home Instead and Morrison’s are on hand to ensure the event goes smoothly and free tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided, as well as a raffle and a quiz.
If you would like to know more, contact me on 01422 292424 or email Julie.ingham@homeinstead.co.uk
Venue: Morrison’s Cafe in Elland, Morrisons, 4 Jubilee Way, Halifax HX5 9DT
Future Companionship Cafe Dates:
12 July, 9th August, 13th September
From Calderdale Big Band Tea Dance May 14th
On Saturday 14th May 2022, we held our Calderdale Big Band Tea Dance Event at Arden Road Social Club. The purpose of the event was to bring people together who had experienced social isolation and loneliness over the last few years of the pandemic and to relive a classic 1940’s event.
This was an opportunity for people to socialise, dust off them old dancing shoes and have a good time. Coming together through musical nostalgia, the event offered the chance to forget about the worries, struggles and challenges we have all faced in recent years. Instead, everyone was able to experience a sense of normality as our community came together.
The event started at 1.15pm with people from across Calderdale arriving with their families, friends, and carers. Everyone was seated with the help of volunteers and staff, who then provided teas and coffees as everyone began to mingle.
Live music was performed by 18 members of the Calderdale Big Band who played a variety of songs and tracks from the 1940’s through the event. We were very happy to have our friends from Active Rainbow (Sophie, Eve, and Heidi) come along dressed in traditional 1940’s attire and deliver a live dance sequence for everyone to follow. This brought many people up from their chairs to join the dance instructors on the dance floor. This was a chance for people to shake them shoulders, show them jazz hands and have a great time dancing front of stage.
Midway through the event, afternoon tea was served by staff and volunteers which consisted of a selection of sandwiches, cakes and other nibbles. Whilst everyone was eating, our very own Rachel Swaby (Communities Programme Manager at North Halifax Partnership) introduced Staying Well. Rachel explained more about the service and presented the Staying Well Awards film on a projector screen for everyone to watch.
Once the film had finished, the Calderdale Big Band took to the stage and resumed playing their second set of songs. This brought more people to the dance floor, to enjoy another round of great hits from the 1940’s. The dance instructors led another live dance set for everyone to follow. As the event came to a close at 4.30pm, everyone left with beaming smiles, full stomachs, new friendships, and possibly slightly sore feet from all that dancing! The general feel of the event was very positive with lots of amazing feedback:
“It has made my weekend!”
“Wonderful event, thanks for organising it!”
“Keep doing what you’re doing!”
We want to take this opportunity to thank the Calderdale Big Band, Active Rainbow, NPT Team One (local PSCO’s in Calderdale), Ebonnie and James from Archway Project & Arden Road Social Club and their volunteers, our fellow Staying Well workers and North Halifax Partnership for funding the event.
For more pictures, visit Big Band Tea Dance on Staying Well
We’re featured in the Halifax Courier!
Find out what else is happening at Staying Well!
Pension Credit top up to help with living Costs
Do you or a family member get a State Pension? An estimated £6.8 million of unclaimed Pension Credit is unclaimed in Calderdale*. We want to encourage every one of State Pension age to check their eligibility, even if they don’t think they need any additional support.
Even if you own your own home or have some savings, it’s worth checking to see if you’re entitled to Pension Credit – you might be surprised! If you get Pension Credit you could get help with heating bills, housing costs and free NHS dental care and if you get Pension credit and you are over 75, you could get a free TV licence.
Check online: gov.uk/pension-credit or if you need help call 01422 288005
Watch this video to find out more.
*Estimate based on latest published figures obtained from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). One in three people eligible for Pension Credit currently do not claim it.
First Companionship Cafe in Morrisons Elland May 10th
We attended the first ever meeting of the Compassion Cafe run by Home Instead at the Elland Morrisons cafe.
It was a good turnout, enjoying several interesting conversations, amusing quick games, a short but demanding trivia quiz, all in a cozy atmosphere with plenty of tea and coffee and of course biscuits!
If this sounds like something you would like to take part in, keep an eye out for the next Companionship cafe scheduled for early June, exact date to be confirmed.
Our Café is open to older people – whether on their own or with a family member, friend or companion but not exclusive. It is ideal for any older person who is looking for more opportunities to get out, enjoy some conversation and meet new people.
These cafes will be run on a monthly basis. Next cafe will be in June, stay tuned for the exact date.
We look forward to seeing you in our next meeting!
Also if you know which musical the song “Love Changes Everything” is from…
Calderdale Lower Valley blog 