Town solicitors’ offer can support St Giles Hospice in ‘Make Your Will Fortnight’

Sutton Coldfield people will be able to get their Wills expertly written in return for a donation to St Giles Hospice in a campaign supported by local solicitors this month (October).

Enoch Evans and Woollastons Solicitors in the town are taking part in ‘Make Your Will Fortnight’, which is being run by the hospice between 18th-31st October, 2021.

During those two weeks, the solicitors will donate their time and expertise for free to help clients make a new Will or update their existing Will. All clients have to do is make a suggested minimum donation to St Giles Hospice of £100 for a Simple Will or £150 for a Mirror Will (a pair of Wills for couples who want to mirror each other’s wishes).

Wills typically cost £150-£250 for a single Will and even more for a Mirror Will, so ‘Make Your Will Fortnight’ offers people the chance to write or update their Wills for less while supporting their local hospice.

Enoch Evans, are based at 5 Emmanuel Court, 2 Mill Street, Sutton Coldfield, B72 1TJ. (Tel: 0121 355 2336).

Woollastons Solicitors, are based at 331 Jockey Road, Boldmere, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, B73 5XE. (Tel: 0121 355 5516) and 64 Walsall Road, Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, B74 4QY. (Tel: 0121 308 4030).

All of the donations from the campaign will help fund care for local people living with a terminal illness and their families.

Elinor Eustace, Income Generation Director at St Giles Hospice, said: “Have you been meaning to write your Will but keep putting it off? We are here to make things easy for you. 

“By having your Will written in return for a donation to St Giles you can save yourself money and have the peace of mind of knowing that you are protecting the future of your loved ones – while protecting the future of your local hospice as well. 

“Writing a Will ensures that your family know what your wishes are, about your plans for your belongings and about funeral arrangements if you choose to include them. It can spare your loved ones from having to make important or complicated decisions at a distressing time.

“We’re immensely grateful to all of the solicitors who take part in ‘Make Your Will Fortnight’ for their support and expertise. Appointments are limited and are on a first come, first served basis, so please get in touch soon to make sure you don’t miss out.”

Anyone wanting to take part in the scheme should call the participating solicitor of their choice and quote ‘St Giles Hospice’ when they make their appointment.

Michael Lillywhite, Director, of Jennings Perks Solicitors, one of the firms taking part in the scheme, said: “When I was approached about participating in St Giles Hospice’s ‘Make Your Will Fortnight’, there was no hesitation on my part to lend my assistance.

“Having witnessed first-hand the brilliant work that they undertake and the services that they provide during horrendous times in people’s lives, I cannot speak highly enough of the charity and would actively encourage anyone thinking about making their Will to use this opportunity to make a donation to the charity to ensure that their work can continue.”

For more information about St Giles Hospice’s ‘Make Your Will Fortnight’, or to take part in the scheme, please visit www.stgileshospice.com/makeyourwill

Fundraisers in abseil challenge for St Giles Hospice

Adventurers with a head for heights can enjoy a bird’s eye view of Birmingham as they raise money for St Giles Hospice on an abseil challenge next month.

Fundraisers will be descending more than 100ft down the seven-story Green Man Wall on the Custard Factory building in Digbeth on Saturday, 9th October.

Next month’s event will be the second St Giles Hospice abseil at the Custard Factory, following the successful launch of the charity challenge in November 2019. 

After a year when the hospice’s fundraising events had to be cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s abseil will go ahead in accordance with current Government guidelines.

Claire Barton, 47, from Lichfield, took part in the 2019 St Giles abseil fundraiser while her father David ‘Chas’ Chandler was receiving end of life care at the hospice.

Musician Chas had been supported at home for six months by the St Giles community nurse team after being diagnosed with a brain tumour, before being admitted to the hospice in his final days.

Claire said: “I’m absolutely terrified of heights but when I was standing there at the top I thought: ‘I’m so scared, but I’m doing this for my Dad.’

“My husband took a photo and we sent it to my Dad, and my Mum sent a photo back of my Dad doing a thumbs-up when she told him I’d done it. Even now, I feel so happy that I did it and could tell my Dad about it, rather than waiting until later when he had passed away. We were able to raise nearly £1,500 for St Giles.

“I never dreamed that our family would need St Giles, but we would never have made it through Dad’s illness without them and I want it to stay there for the people who are going to need it in the future.”

Chloe Herbert, Head of Fundraising at St Giles Hospice, said: “We’re thrilled to be running our abseil challenge again and we’d like to invite intrepid supporters to join us to turn the Green Man Wall orange as we descend one of the tallest buildings in Birmingham. You don’t need any training or special skills – just bring your bravery!

“You’ll enjoy unique views of Selfridges, the Bullring and the Birmingham skyline and your fundraising will make a big difference to local people, and their families, living with a terminal illness.

“Invite your friends and family along to take part or to cheer you on and you can all join in the celebrations afterwards. Not only will this adrenaline-fueled charity challenge take you to new heights for St Giles, but local businesses will be offering a range of different discounts to our brave participants to make your day extra special.”

Entry to the event is £25, with a minimum sponsorship target of £75. The Green Man Wall is a short 13-minute walk from Birmingham New Street train station and 11 minutes from Birmingham Moor Street and there are two car parks nearby.

For further information visit www.stgileshospice.com/abseil contact the fundraising team on 01543 432538, or email fundraising@stgileshospice.com.

Real ale lovers will soon be in for a treat when a new micropub opens in Sutton Coldfield.

The Ale Hub will open in Mere Green, based at the former premises of Garner Canning Solicitors on Hill Village Road. It will be open from midday to 11pm seven days a week.

The tiny new pub, sandwiched between a general store and an barbers shop, will offer another option for tipplers in the area, offering a range of traditional real ales together with various gins and other drinks.

It will add more variation to the already vibrant food and drink scene in Mere Green.

The firm already runs micropub in Dickens Heath, Shirley and Worcester and says it prides itself on being a family-run business.

It says its goal is to revitalise the local pub scene and provide the community with a choice of refreshing and well-kept beverages in a relaxed and friendly environment.

Birmingham City Council has approved the planning application submitted by the company with various conditions attached.

A plan submitted to the council shows the ground floor will have a bar area, cellar and around a dozen tables, with toilet facilities on the first floor.

There will be no TVs, electronic games or food, apart from bar snacks like crisps and nuts and the firm says it will concentrate on making the premises customer friendly. There will be one full-time manager with three other part time staff.

In a statement to Birmingham City Council planning department, The Ale Hub said: “We are looking to operate a micropub out of the premises which will have a focus on being a pleasant friendly space for the local community.

“There will be no TVs or loud music as it is a traditional micropub that is focused on listening to its customers, mainly serving cask and craft ales, promoting conversation and shunning all forms of electronic entertainment. We will also offer a range of gins as well as other drinks.

We will not serve meals, only pub snacks such as crisps and nuts

“We will look to recruit locally which will remove the need for our staff to require parking spaces as the majority of our staff at our other micropubs live within walking distance.”