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Hero hits road for hospice

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On his bike – Andy Barker raised £2,467 during his bike rides to the hospice

St Giles Hopice fundraising champion looks to rally support

A hospice hero who cycled 1,000 miles in one month to support St Giles is calling on people to join the Cycle Autumn bike ride this September.

Andy Barker, aged 67, cycled to the hospice and back from his Burton home every day in June (2021), raising £2,467 including Gift Aid. He also donated 100 hours throughout the month as a volunteer to support patients and their families.

Now he is encouraging people of all ages and abilities to sign up for the popular bike ride on Sunday, September 5, to help raise funds for the hospice which gave his wife “excellent” end of life care.

Andy said: “Cycle Autumn is a great event for people of all abilities. You get the keen cyclists taking part who can compete and get their exercise while raising funds for St Giles, but you don’t have to be Tour de France quality. I first did Cycle St Giles three years ago with my sister-in-law. I hadn’t used my bike much at the time – I just jumped in the saddle and took part. 

“I was a volunteer steward at Cycle Spring this year and it was great to see all the families and casual cyclists, as well as more experienced riders, just having fun and raising funds while having a good day out.”

Andy started fundraising for St Giles after his wife Belinda, 55, died of cancer at the hospice in November 2015. She had previously received day therapies as an outpatient and had been having Hospice at Home support until her condition worsened and she was admitted as an inpatient.

Andy with Belinda and the riders taking part in this year’s event

He said: “Belinda was in St Giles for 10 days before she passed away and our children and I were able to visit. Belinda had excellent care at St Giles, you really could not fault it. Everyone at the hospice did everything they could for her.

“I then had bereavement support from the team at St Giles, which I found really helpful. My children were also offered support – we all really appreciated the help on offer to us, it was excellent,” he added. “If you reach the point where you need hospice care then you really couldn’t ask for more – you couldn’t get better care anywhere else. The facilities at St Giles are second to none and if you’d rather receive support at home then St Giles will help with that as well.”

This year Cycle Autumn will begin and end at the Whittington hospice with different routes exclusive to the autumn event. Start times are staggered from 7.30am. Riders can choose from four different distances – a 26-mile route for all riders aged 10 and over, a 50-mile route, a 75-mile route and a 100-mile challenge for keen and experienced riders.

Zoe Wright, Events Manager at St Giles Hospice said: “Andy Barker is a fantastic supporter of St Giles Hospice who has really gone above and beyond the call of duty to help us. We hope his words will inspire many more cyclists of all ages to take part in Cycle Autumn.

“We like to give our cyclists a variety of routes that cater for all abilities, and all of our routes take you through the beautiful Staffordshire countryside. We make cycling simple – all you have to do is turn up, follow the signs and enjoy yourself!

“We are absolutely delighted that Cycle Autumn is back, as the event is one of our largest fundraisers of the year – in 2019 it raised a fantastic £43,650.  The COVID-19 pandemic forced us to temporarily close our shops and cancel our fundraising events in 2020 and early 2021, so this September we really need our community to take to their saddles and pedal to raise pounds for St Giles Hospice.”

Entry to Cycle Autumn is £35 with tickets available until midday on Thursday 2nd September. 

The event will retain a number of COVID-19 measures, including staggered start times and maximum group bookings of six people, for the safety, health and wellbeing of all supporters, volunteers and staff.

For further information visit www.stgileshospice.com/cycleautumn email fundraising@stgileshospice.com or call the fundraising office on 01543 432538.

Patients come from across the hospice’s catchment area, which ranges from Ashby-de-la-Zouch and Atherstone in the east, to Cannock in the west – and from Burton and Uttoxeter in the north, to Sutton Coldfield and Coleshill in the south.

Care is offered at the hospice’s centres in Whittington and Sutton Coldfield and in patients’ own homes across the region.

St Giles spends over £10 million a year providing its specialist services and with little more than a third of this funded by the Government, the registered charity relies heavily on donations and income generation from the local community.

News

Splash of colour for new restaurant

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These colourful pictures show the inside of Sutton Coldfield’s newest restaurant which has open-end in Mere Green.

The new Thai tapas-style restaurant, Giggling Squid, took over from a former Italian restaurant in Mulberry Walk, and opened to the public on July 26 and is already proving popular with its novel cuisine.

The Giggling Squid chain, began in the basement of a fishmerman’s cottage in Brighton in 2002 and has grown since then, operating at 38 venues across the UK.

News

Big thank-you to charity fundraisers

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Support is appreciated. St Giles Hospice Ward Sister Ruth Abell marks the achievemen

St Giles summer raffle raises £87,000

St Giles Hospice has thanked people in the community for their generous support after its summer raffle raised more than £87,000 – one of its best-ever totals.

The money raised will be used to support the care of patients and their families living with a terminal illness.

Elinor Eustace, Income Generation Director at St Giles Hospice, said: “Once again our dedicated supporters have overwhelmed us with their kindness by playing our summer raffle and making additional donations on top of their ticket purchases.

“We’ve never needed our community more than we have done over the last 18 months. They have really stepped up with their amazing support, at a time when everyone has also been coping with the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We had to temporarily close our charity shops and cancel our fundraising events during the lockdowns so our raffles have become more vital than ever in supporting our care services. The £87,000 raised will help to ensure that St Giles can be there for our patients in the local community and their families when they need us the most.”

Claire Barton and her sister Melanie Floyd, from Lichfield, helped St Giles to promote this summer’s raffle to thank the hospice for looking after their father David ‘Chas’ Chandler.

Musician Chas was supported for at home for six months by the St Giles community nurse team before he was admitted to the hospice for end of life care in November 2019.

Claire said: “We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who supported the summer raffle this year. Your generosity will make a huge difference to local patients and their families at a time when they need the hospice’s support the most.

“At any moment you could find out that a family member or a friend needs the care of St Giles and we want to ensure that it is there in future for families like ours.”

Prizes in this year’s summer raffle included a jackpot of £8,000, a second prize of £2,000 and other cash prizes.

The £8,000 jackpot prize winner, Miss M from Lichfield, who has chosen to remain anonymous, said: “I felt completely overwhelmed when I received a call from St Giles to tell me I had won first prize in the raffle! I was speechless. How unexpected and what an incredible thing to happen from supporting the charity in a small way. 

“Donations I have made to the hospice came through knowing a very special person whose amazing spirit lives on through many. Thank you for all that you do St Giles.”

The other top five prize winners came from Burton, Sutton Coldfield, Tamworth and Swadlincote.

St Giles runs two raffles each year in addition to the weekly lottery, providing vital income for the hospice. It costs more than £10 million to provide the care St Giles offers every year and the hospice needs to raise £850,000 each month to keep its services going.

For more information about St Giles Hospice and the expert care it provides, please visit www.stgileshospice.com

Business, News

Lidl Store to support food charities

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Nearly there. The new Lidl store at Mere Green will give surplus food to charities

Special offers for opening week

Lidl GB has confirmed that its new supermarket in Mere Green, Sutton Coldfield, will provide surplus food for local food banks after the store opens this Thursday, August 5.

The new store will be providing surplus produce and customer donations to local charities, including Sutton Coldfield United Reformed Church and Hope Food who run food banks to help those in need, as well as Help to Make Tummies Full, who redistribute surplus food to prevent local children from going hungry.

This is delivered through Lidl’s Feed it Back scheme, which is run in partnership with Neighbourly and connects Lidl stores up and down the country with local charities, foodbanks, community cafes and kitchens, putting quality food surplus to good use every day.

The store has also said that it recommends the wearing of face coverings and will provide hand sanitisation for the foreseeable future.

During the first week of opening customers will be able to find exclusive deals and offers on selected products including a Tri Scooter with LED wheels (£8.99) on opening day, a Foot Spa Medisana (£9.99) the following day and a Record Player Dual (£44.99) on Saturday 7 August.

Part of the company’s ongoing £1.3bn expansion and regeneration plans across Great Britain for 2021 and 2022, the store will create around 40 new jobs for the local community. 

The new electric car charging station at Lidl

The store, which will provide electric car charging stations, said opening times will be between 8am – 10pm Monday to Saturday, and 10am – 4pm on Sunday, delivering Lidl’s offering of fresh, quality and great value produce. 

As well as being fitted with solar panels to help power the store, the supermarket will also have facilities such as an 1325m² sales area, an instore bakery, customer toilet and 124 car parking spaces, including 2 electric vehicle charging spaces.

Lidl GB’s Regional Head of Property, Rachel Hargreaves, commented: “We would like to thank all those who have played a part in bringing this new Lidl store to Mere Green.

“It is fantastic that we are able to continue our investment in Birmingham, enabling even more of the local community access to our multi-award winning products. We are delighted to be able to create more jobs and investment opportunities in the area and look forward to welcoming everyone to our new store.”

Business, Food and Drink, News

Opening date for store

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The new store nears completion and will feature a rapid charging point in the car park

Lidl announces August 5 opening

Discount grocer Lidl has confirmed that its new store in Mere Green will open on August 5. The German-owned giant will provide competition for Sainsbury’s, Marks & Spencer and Poundland in the area.

A new Aldi is also planned for the former Waitrose on Belwell Lane.

Around 40 jobs, both full and part-time, will be created at the new Sutton Coldfield store and the news comes after a new Thai tapas style restaurant, the Giggling Squid, opened this week (July 26).

Workers are rushing to complete inside of the store and the car park will see the first rapid electric car charging point on the car park.

A Lidl spokesman said: “Once opened, the store will create around 40 full and part time jobs for the local area and we look forward to delivering our fresh, quality and affordable produce to the local community.”

The new supermarket is on the site of the former industrial premises in Mere Green Road, which has lain derelict for more than 10 years.

The store has not met with universal approval with fears of traffic chaos.

It does seem inevitable there will be a big increase in traffic on the busy stretch of road, with Mulberry Walk fully open with gym, shops, bars and restaurants. With a busy garage also at Mere Green island, it looks like delays will be on the way.

The Giggling Squid has opened with discounted prices for a limited time. For booking info, visit the new website at https://www.gigglingsquid.com/restaurant/mere-green/

Business, News

Hokey Cokey for hospitality in Sutton

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It’s becoming a bit like the hokey cokey for hospitality venues in Sutton Coldfield. They’re in, they’re out, then they’re back in again and who knows, maybe out again?

The Butlers Arms on Lichfield Road only reopened last weekend after the pub closed due to Covid-19 and The Bracebridge in Sutton Park was also forced to close its doors until July 24 for the same reason.

Now another popular venue, the Farmhouse Bistro at the Mitchell Centre on Weeford Road, has been forced to close and in another development, Mocha Coffee Lounge in Streetly has done the same.

A message on the Farmhouse Bistro website made this announcement: “We regret that the Bistro is now closed for a few days due to enforced staff isolation. We thank you for your understanding and look forward to seeing you again soon. Watch this space for an announcement on reopening”

The Mocha Lounge also added a similar message on Facebook.

It would appear that this is going to be a running theme. There are reports that a popular hospitality venue in Sutton Coldfield has told staff, via a memo, that if they attend a nightclub, they should not return to work for at least three days to try and prevent infections.

News, Schools

Red letter day on climate change

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Wednesday 21st July, 2021

Andrew Mitchell talks to pupils at Hill West Primary, watched by headteacher Dr Beth Clarke

MP visits after children write to PM

Sutton Coldfield youngsters have taken their concerns over climate change to the very top of the UK Government.

Year 5 children at Hill West Primary School felt so strongly about the issues, that they wrote to the Prime Minister, asking him to uphold his responsibilities as a Duty Bearer to take positive action to support the rights of children around the world.

The school has since received a letter of thanks from Number 10 Downing Street.

As a result, pupils and staff welcomed Sutton Coldfield MP Andrew Mitchell to the school in response to children’s handwritten letters to Boris Johnson.

Mr Mitchell visited the school after he passed on the letters – which focused on climate change and the impact on children’s rights globally – to Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

The MP joined pupils and staff at the school on Friday 16 July to talk about a range of topics, including the UNICEF Outright campaign, which looks at how climate change can impact negatively on children’s rights, and supports children to voice their views.

The letters were initially sent to Mr Mitchell, as he is both their constituency MP and also has a strong record of campaigning for the rights of people around the world, with pupils asking him if he would consider forwarding them to the Prime Minister.

Acting deputy headteacher, Rhian Warrack said: “We were thrilled to learn that Mr Mitchell did support the rights of the children at Hill West to express their views and opinions, and to have their voices listened to, as he forwarded their letters to the Prime Minister in early July.

Acting deputy headteacher, Rhian Warrack, right, next to Andrew Mitchell and headteacher Dr Clarke and pupils from year 5,

“We were absolutely delighted to then be contacted by Mr Mitchell, asking if he could come to Hill West and meet some of the children who had written letters, and we welcomed him in school on a beautiful sunny afternoon.”

Hill West Primary School, part of the Arthur Terry Learning Partnership, is working towards the UNICEF Rights Respecting School Gold Award. Mr Mitchell spoke to the children about a range of subjects, sharing some of his experience of supporting human rights during his career.

The children asked insightful questions on matters including climate change and how Mr Mitchell has been supporting those living in poverty in the UK, especially during the pandemic. Pupils also asked how the MP and the government are supporting children’s right to a high quality education now and moving forwards after COVID.

The children were interested in why and how Mr Mitchell became a Member of Parliament. They heard about the work he has been doing to try and prevent the government from reducing the International Development Budget, and his decision to keep Sutton Park open during the pandemic.

Dr Warrack added: “The children relished their opportunity to express their views and feelings in all matters affecting them to their Member of Parliament and to have Mr Mitchell take them seriously. They are also extremely grateful for his support in putting their views forward to our Prime Minister and sincerely hope that they are taken seriously by Boris Johnson, as they have been by Mr Mitchell, so that they can have a positive impact on children’s rights, both here in Sutton Coldfield, the UK, and around the world.”

Mr Mitchell said: “It was wonderful to meet the pupils and staff at Hill West and to learn more about their work with UNICEF’s ‘Rights Respecting Schools’ and ‘Outright’ campaigns. I was very impressed with their letters – huge congratulations to the children for all their hard work and tenacity. These future citizens care about the rights of all children globally and are empowered to instigate change by using their collective voice.

“The pupils are politically and environmentally aware, so it was an excellent opportunity to talk to them about politics, the world they live in and the issues that impact them and others across the world. There is no doubt that we have some young leaders in our midst.”

Lifestyle, News

Pedal power for hospice

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David Batchelor (front left) and Stuart Payne (front right) with members of the team
FUNDRAISERS HIT THE ROAD FOR 210-MILE CYCLE RIDE TO SUPPORT ST GILES

Fifteen fundraising cyclists have raised £16,000 to be split between St Giles Hospice and three other charities in an epic three-day bike ride through the heart of England.

The riders all work for Wills & Trusts Wealth Management Group, which organised the trip to support its charitable foundation.

Wills & Trusts Chief Operating Officer, Stuart Payne, from Sutton Coldfield, took part in the 210-mile ride and has a personal connection to St Giles Hospice as his father-in-law, John Simpson, received end-of-life care at St Giles Hospice in 2018.

He said: “The care my late father-in-law received at St Giles was just tremendous – I cannot praise the team there highly enough, whether it is for the way they looked after him in his last days or the support they offered to the rest of the family. They have such a wonderful bedside manner.

“We all know how hard charities have been hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, so supporting hospice care along the way seemed like a great way to make a difference on our cycling challenge. 

“We came up with the idea of the bike ride as things opened up again after lockdown. For the past year our Wills & Trusts team has been forced to work from home due to Government guidance, so this cycle trip seemed like a great way to bring everyone back together and get the team bonding again.”

The team’s route took them from the company’s office in Ashby-de-la-Zouch to its head office in Thame, near Oxford, visiting its other offices along the way on a route through Henley-in-Arden, Moreton-in-Marsh and Winchester. 

The money raised will be split between St Giles Hospice, Florence Nightingale Hospice in Aylesbury, Helen & Douglas House Children’s Hospice in Oxford and Winchester Hospice, four hospices based near the company’s offices.

Wills & Trusts Wealth Management Group founder David Batchelor said: “In our business we help families to plan for the future, whether it’s planning for retirement or passing money down. We help people to prepare for all of the different journeys through life and inevitably hospice care is a part of some of those journeys, so raising money to support our local hospices made perfect sense to us.

“Our team included both serious riders and people who had not been out on a bike until six weeks ago, and their dedication and determination has been matched by the generosity of our supporters and donors who have helped us to race past our £10,000 target and raise this fantastic total.”

St Giles Hospice Income Generation Director, Elinor Eustace, said: “We are so grateful to the team at Wills & Trusts Wealth Management Group for their amazing fundraising effort, which will help to support the care we offer to patients and their families living with a terminal illness.

“Their dedication and hard work are truly an inspiration to us at a time when we have never needed our community more, following 18 months when we have had to close our shops and cancel fundraising events due to the pandemic. If any other businesses would be interested in helping St Giles then we’d be delighted to hear from them.”

For more information about St Giles Hospice and the expert care it provides, please visit www.stgileshospice.com

News

Jobs boost with double opening

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Restaurant and store to open in Mere Green

With the hospitality industry still struggling with closures due to Covid infections, there will be a double opening to lift the gloom in the next couple of weeks with a new store and restaurant creating jobs in Mere Green.

Discount grocer Lidl has confirmed that around 40 jobs, both full and part-time, will be created at its new Sutton Coldfield store when it finally opens at the end of this month and a new Thai tapas style restaurant, the Giggling Squid, opens its doors next week.

Workers are busy working on the inside of the store, with completion set to be imminent while the finishing touches are being put to the Giggling Squid venue prior to its opening on Mulberry Walk.

A Lidl spokesman said: “Once opened, the store will create around 40 full and part time jobs for the local area and we look forward to delivering our fresh, quality and affordable produce to the local community.”

The Giggling Squid is opening with celebratory offers. Bookings are now open and diners will be notified the moment bookings go live for the opening week which includes a celebratory 50 per cent off all meals. For booking info, visit the new website at https://www.gigglingsquid.com/restaurant/mere-green/

News, Opinion

Covid closures a sign of things to come

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The Butlers Arms was temporarily close because of a Covid-19 infection
The Bracebridge in Sutton Park has closed its doors temporarily

COMMENT: We are facing chaos over reopening as cases surge and businesses shut down

As pubs are forced to close their doors again in Sutton Coldfield because of Covid-19 infections, there’s a sense of deja vu as so-called ‘Freedom Day’ looming large.

Last summer’s reckless early reopening of venues and the ridiculous ‘eat out to help out’ scheme should have served as a warning. This was followed by the autumn lockdown and the botched Christmas messaging which led to the catastrophic January and February death toll.

Yet again, this blundering government is leading us down a path to who knows where, as infections rocket.

At the time of writing this there were nearly 50,000 daily infections of the killer disease across the country.

The Butlers Arms on Lichfield Road had to close after a member of staff contracted the virus and reopened on July 16. The Bracebridge in Sutton Park has been forced to temporarily close and will reopen on July 24. It has informed the public on Facebook and with notices posted in the park itself.

The sign announcing The Bracebridge closure

A statement from the Butlers Arms said: “Unfortunately, we were made aware last night that one of our team members has tested positive for Covid-19. Thankfully, they are not seriously unwell.

“We have made the decision to close temporarily with immediate effect for the safety or our team and our guests.

“So far, no other members of the team have been told to self-isolate by NHS Test & Trace but we have decided to close as a precaution.”

You don’t have to be an epidemiologist to figure out they are just the first of many more to come as the virus runs amok throughout the population. Nearby Lichfield has already experienced several pub closures.

This commentator agrees that the country should continue with the gradual reopening, but opinion polls show that people are unhappy with the lifting of all measures and support continuing with face covering and the social distancing, whether it be two metres or ‘one metre plus.’

Sadly, those fears are being dismissed with ridiculous comments from government ministers about being on your own on long journeys on a train where you can take your face covering off and ‘expecting’ people to wear masks.

That might be OK for travelling first class back to your leafy constituency in Middle England, but doesn’t address the reality of the dangers of travel for the general public. Or the fact that many workers in hospitality could be in a constant on/off employment state without the necessary financial help to see them through this continuing nightmare.

Not to mention the actual businesses, like these venues, who have been clobbered hardest by the effects of the pandemic, with many forced to close permanently, while others teeter on the edge. They have the dilemma of self policing, balancing making a living against keeping customers and staff safe.

A reply to a my letter of concern about premature relaxation of all rules to local MP Andrew Mitchell received a reply which trotted out the same tired out lines.

I don’t often agree with Mr Mitchell, but admire his stance on foreign aid, in this case though we are miles apart.

In his reply, he said: “It is clear that we will need to learn to live with Covid and as Chris Whitty and others have outlined, continuing the restrictions beyond July 19 is unlikely to reduce the number of Covid deaths and could potentially lead to a worse peak in the winter months.”

Chris Whitty’s body language implied something else. England’s chief medical officer has warned that Covid hospitalisations were doubling every three weeks and could hit “scary numbers” in future.

Mr Mitchell continued: “Ultimately, although these are not easy decisions to make, I believe that we are now in a position where we can use our own judgement and common sense and I support this approach rather than continuing legal diktat.”

In other words, ‘it’s not our fault guv, blame the public for not using common sense.’ Unbelievable.

With the exception of the furlough scheme, the handling of the pandemic has been catastrophic, but one thing I think we can all agree on is that this is a long way from over.

Bill McCarthy