Tameside Social Care and Health

Really Important Questions Conference

The eighth annual Really Important Questions Conference will be held at Dukinfield Town Hall on Tuesday 23 October 2007.

The conference is an opportunity for older people in Tameside to find out about social care and health services and have an influence on how they develop in the future.

Managers from a wide range of services in the council, health organisations and the voluntary sector will be at the conference to hear what people need.

This year, the conference will be focusing on how local services need to develop to make sure older people can continue to live happily and safely in their own homes and communities for as long as possible.

Guy Robertson, who is leading the Prevention and Well Being agenda for the Government's Care Services Improvement Agency (CSIP) has been invited to be the guest speaker. He will provide an interesting link to central government policy and some of the initiatives being tested out in other parts of the country.

Anyone who is 50+ and interested in local social care and health services is welcome.

Transport can be arranged for those who need it. Lunch and refreshments are provided. The conference runs from 9.30 am - 3.30pm.

Admission is free, but early advance booking is essential, as places fill up quickly.

Booking forms or more information is available from Heather Phillips on 0161 370 1179 / fax: 0161 370 118/ minicom: 0161 301 2490.

Opening doors for older people in Tameside

Following the successful launch of Tameside's Partnership for Older People Project, Opening Doors for Older People there has been an intensive assertive outreach and marketing campaign which has included contact with GP's, libraries, Patrollers, District Assemblies, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, Tameside and Pension Service Joint Team, Community Groups, Community Response Service, localised targeted work in Haughton Green and now also in the Smallshaw area of Ashton.

To date the project team have been successful in recruiting 32 volunteer CORA (Community Options for Remaining Active) Advisors and there has been 141 CORA visit enquiries made with the numbers rising each day.

However, we are continuously looking at ways to recruit more advisors and to reach older people who may benefit from our service.

If you know somebody who may benefit from this service, may be interested in becoming a volunteer CORA Advisor or would like more information on the project, you can contact a member of the POPPS Team at Ryecroft Hall, Manchester Road, Audenshaw, M34 5GJ or telephone 0161 370 1179.

Further information on the project, which includes the first of a new quarterly newsletters, is available on the new website at: www.tameside.gov.uk/popps and an electronic questionnaire can now be completed online at: www.tamesidecora.info.

DVD explains how to get help with social care

A new DVD explaining how to get help with social care from Tameside Council's Adult Services is now available. The film describes some of the help available for people to live independently at home and describes who to contact and where to go to obtain extra help from the council to cope with a hearing, sight or mobility problem.

The 12 minute DVD includes subtitles, British Sign Language and voiceovers in Urdu, Bangla and Gujarati so that it makes sense to as many people in Tameside as possible.

The DVD is available free for community groups to show at their meetings and for anyone to borrow from public libraries or from the Public Information Team.

To request a copy and further details contact 0161 370 1179.

A Valued Role

People in Tameside are being offered the chance to do their public duty and help make significant and far-reaching decisions as part of an important regional tribunal.

The Manchester North Valuation Tribunal may not be the most widely known group but it plays a vital role in the life of our borough and others.

The tribunal hears and makes decisions about appeals about business rates and council tax from people in Wigan, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale and Tameside.

The independent panel is currently looking for volunteers from Tameside to join its ranks and help make challenging decisions about such things as the level of council tax or business rate specific individuals should be paying.

Whilst the role is a voluntary one, the tribunal benefits from the support and advice of a full-time clerk. It also pays travelling and other out-of-pocket expenses.

You must be under 72 to become a member and can sit on the panel for six years.

Tribunal clerk Christopher Hynes said: "To be considered for this important and rewarding role you must be able to make common sense decisions in a completely impartial and unbiased way.

"You have to give up one week day a month to go to meetings or training sessions but it is an interesting and fulfilling role."

Anyone interested can contact tribunal clerk Christopher Hynes on 01204 523681 or e-mail vtbolton@vto.gsx.gov.uk

Education and Training

Tameside College

If you are leaving school next year come along and find out why Tameside College is one of the top colleges in the UK. There will be a chance for you to take part in demonstrations, competitions and activities and there is careers support and guidance on the night. You will find that Tameside College has a completely different atmosphere to school. You will be treated as an adult and offered a wide range of learning support services, and recreational and social activities. At the same time you will find Tameside College staff well qualified and caring and the college environment both safe and pleasant.

If you want to move on to study a vocational programme or undertake work-based training come along to our Open Day or contact our enquiry line on 0161 908 6789.

Ashton Sixth Form

We are offering some exciting new courses for adult learners at Ashton Sixth Form College this September.

ITQ - Is this qualification for me? "Yes, if you use IT in your day-to-day work and want to be able to prove your competence across a range of IT applications "

It is extremely flexible and adaptable - for example qualifications such as CLAIT and the ECDL can count towards your qualification.

Whether you are an employer, employee, self-employed. voluntary worker or currently seeking work, ITQ can open up a new world to improve skills relevant to the workplace and build up individual confidence and knowledge. You may even be entitled to free training.

If you would like more information please contact Lisa on 0161 666 8215.

Foundation Degree in Early Years - New

We are offering this higher education course in partnership with Leeds Metropolitan University, starting in January . It is a part-time course with a focus around work-based learning, within the context of education and care. It is delivered as one taught session per week, and independent directed study over 3 years. Please contact Nicky on 0161 666 8215 for a course leaflet and application form. Apply now . Come along to our open evening on 24 October 6-8pm to find out more about the course.

Do you want to help others learn?

Certificate in Learning Support Level 2 
Come along and find out how you can support learners in their English, Maths and ESOL classes.

Certificate in Adult Learning Support Literacy Specialist Level 3 
Are you in a learning support role and need to gain a qualification or thinking of a change of career?

Course starts in October 2007. For more details contact Lisa on 0161 666 8215.

Kip McGrath

Your local Kip McGrath Education Centre, Stalybridge, is now taking bookings for the new school year. Whether you are concerned about your child's progress in Maths or English, or you simply want to encourage and build confidence, a free assessment will help you decide the best way to support your child.

Children of all ages enjoy working in our safe, pleasant learning environment. Tutoring sessions are held after school and on Saturday mornings. There is a waiting room for parents and free parking close by.

Call Kay and Peter McKinney on 0161 304 0969 to arrange a free assessment and discover what we can offer your child.

Kumon Study Centre

Parents today are becoming more aware of the need to help their children who are struggling with subjects at school, such as Mathematics and English.

Kumon's after school programmes are designed to support children by providing individualised study material in both Maths and English which help to develop and master these transferable skills.

The Ashton-Under-Lyne Kumon after-school study centre has bee in existence for over 12 years. The centre runs from the Indian Community Centre, 103 Union Road in Ashton on Mondays and Wednesdays from 3.15 - 6.00 pm. Students who cannot attend on either day can be helped with an alternative correspondence course seeing their Instructor periodically.

The Ashton centre is one of 560 such centres with over 50,000 students around the country and over 4 million globally.

George Kolbusz, a Maths teacher who is the Instructor at Ashton says, "I am very happy with the opportunities being given to the children who currently attend the centre and I want to ensure that as many children in the area have access to the programmes we offer,"

"The Kumon programmes are very effective and I very much enjoy introducing them to local children."
George's Area Manager, Diane Floyd, added, "Kumon is not designed purely to teach Maths and English as an end in itself; it aims to develop the potential of each child by developing self-confidence. There is no failing in Kumon as each child works at its own carefully monitored level. The Kumon programmes extend from the basics of learning to count and read to A-level standard, through many thousands of finely calibrated worksheets in a logical, step-by-step manner. Students enjoy Kumon because they move on to the next topic only when they are ready - so they always get good marks in class."

"Ideally, students should attend the centre twice a week," says George "and they are also asked to complete a manageable amount of homework each day."

Kumon is not a ‘quick-fix', but a long-term individualised programme designed to complement and reinforce schoolwork. Originally devised nearly 50 years ago by a secondary Maths teacher, Toru Kumon, to help his own son, Kumon is now studied by over 4 million students around the world.

"Children enjoy Kumon because they see their own results clearly, work at their own pace and can feel part of a ‘club'," says George "Improvements in concentration and a structure around which good study habits may be developed are some of the other benefits of studying Kumon."

Kumon is suited to children of all ages and abilities, and is most popular with the 5 to 15 years' age range. Fees are £45 per month, per student, per subject, with a £15 enrolment fee (£85 per month for dual-subject students).

For further details, contact George Kolbusz on 01457 765 438, mob: 0797 7302404 or email: LongdendaleLad@talktalk.net. Or you may wish to drop in and find out more by collecting an Information pack.