1

A magazine for A magazine for peoplepeople with with sight losssight loss..

Autumn 2012. Issue 23.

2

Cover: Olive and John Howard meet the Queen! See page 6

Editorial Team:

Editor: Vicky Kay.

Photos provided by:

Royal Blind Society, RNIB, John Howard, Jill Doidge, Institut Guttmann, Susan Warren and Caitlin Doherty.

Well what a few months we have had! The weather has been changeable from hot to dry to moist to soaking wet, and that’s all in the space of a week ready to start all over again the week after! As for here in the Support Project Office, Philip and committee members Ray and Margaret have been busy little bees preparing various funding bids to hopefully start once our current funding runs out in January, so *fingers crossed* we can continue the work we do here at Tameside Sight. Jill has been convincing us all that we need to have another party like our 10th anniversary party last year, and so has come up with the idea of a ‘Winter Fair’. Hear all ‘from the horse’s mouth’ on page 20. Glenis has been busy as always meeting new service users on home visits and promoting awareness of sight loss around the borough (and beyond!). And I have been asked to assist the committee to research funding bodies, solicitors and other officials we feel should be aware of our existence in relation to donations, legacies and fundraising.

In other news, it seems there are a lot of changes on the table at the moment regarding Government and Local Council services, so much so we are beginning to think it is personal! Libraries and Council Tax Benefits have been under consultation, not to mention other benefits nationally which are seeing changes and NHS changes still being debated. This edition of Eclipse talks about some of these possible changes, but our general

A Note from the Editor.

3

message is just to ‘watch this space’…

Also in this edition, we are feeling rather patriotic over the Jubilee and London 2012 Olympic and Paralympics, not to mention one of our service users actually meeting the Queen! We also have some other celebrations in the form of the Macular Society’s birthday and a retirement! We also have a newly titled running article called ‘The Review’ which will look at new technology in each issue, and of course some local events and campaigns thrown in for good measure… You may also notice an extra brochure in the envelope, this is a new one we have published about various social clubs in the area. We wanted you all to have one! Hope you find it useful, and enjoy the magazine!

Vicky Kay, Editor & Development Worker, Tameside Sight.

The Two Margaret’s’ Seaside Holiday.

In June two of our ladies, who met through the Trailblazers Walking Group, went to The Belmont Hotel in Llandudno for a week’s holiday. This hotel, owned by the Royal Blind Society, opened in 1972 and specialises in providing for guests with a visual impairment. The guest rooms have adaptations such as speaking clocks, large key-pad telephones and can be reached by talking lifts. The bedrooms, restaurant and lounge are furnished with good lighting and colour contrasts.

‘The Two Margarets’ had a wonderful time – they said that “the food, facilities and services were excellent and the staff were attentive and obliging.” In fact they are returning next summer! During their weeks stay the Diamond Jubilee was celebrated and a party was held where every guest was presented with a commemorative teaspoon!

‘The Two Margarets’ have thanked us for organising the holiday for them, and helping to plan the next!

Glenis Lee, Development Worker, Tameside Sight.

The Belmont

Hotel.

4

‘I’m not laughing’...

Ever felt humiliated, victimised or discriminated against because you are seen to be different? Ever felt that if you could just explain to people how it feels to be in that kind of situation they might be more considerate? Well, here’s your chance.

A new campaign called ‘I’m not laughing’ is to launch soon in Tameside and they are looking to find people with experiences of this, known officially as a ‘hate crime’.

Any incident where the perpetrator targets someone because they are disabled or are of a certain age; race; religion; sex; sexual orientation or gender identity is classed as a ‘hate crime’. It can take the form of anything from low level incidents such as intimidation, verbal abuse or insults; mid level incidents such as bullying, harassment, or offensive graffiti or letters; and high level incidents such as damage to property, physical assault or injury.

The ‘I’m not laughing’ campaign was initially launched in Bolton and is victim focused; telling the stories of being a victim of hate crime. The campaign brought about an awareness of hate incidents and how to report them, which left a powerful and long-lasting impact in Bolton for others to follow. Now the ‘Tameside Hate Incident Panel’ wants to follow a similar campaign here in Tameside…

They are looking for people from all communities who feel they will be able to support the campaign and they want to hear from people who have a story to tell about how they have been victimised and how it felt.

These stories can be as low level as being made to feel small and inadequate by someone’s off-hand comment, to something more serious. It may have been a one-off incident or been systematic abuse that has continued over a period of weeks, months or even years.

If you would like to get involved please contact Derin at Tameside 3rd Sector Coalition on 0161 339 4985.

5

The Review: Talking Freeview+ Box.

A few months ago Brian Mackenzie heard an advert for a Talking TV digibox on his weekly Talking News service. Brian, who is totally blind, has been listening to Talking News for many years. He was particularly interested in this product designed in conjunction with the RNIB.

The device is a Freeview digital TV receiver with a built in recorder, known as a ‘Freeview+’ digi-box and allows you to record up to 175 hours of TV or Radio programmes and then watch them later. Similar devices have been around for a while but this one is designed to be easy to use even if you cannot see the TV screen as all options and instructions are spoken.

Brian has been trying it out and has given us these comments about his experiences. Brian says:-

“I have been a regular user of Audio Description on my TV for some time and it has transformed my enjoyment of programmes. This new device takes me a step further so that I can record programmes and watch them later with the audio description. I like to watch documentaries and films and sometimes these are on at awkward times. I can use the recorder to pick them up and watch them when it is convenient.

I have found the new device easy to use once I became familiar with the remote control and the spoken programme guides. The voice is a pleasant clear female voice which identifies the menu options, channel names, programme titles and the times and summary details of each one. I can record up to 2 TV or radio programmes on different channels at the same time and set them to record a week in advance using the speaking guide. I can even set it up to record every episode of a particular programme series.

The instructions indicated that it was easy to use and you could do it all yourself but I did need a demonstration first

Talking digibox.

6

‘I met the Queen!’ Olive Howard, the mother of John Howard, who some may know through his work with Tameside Talking News, was lucky enough to accompany her son to the jubilee garden party held by the Queen at Buckingham Palace!

John had been invited through his work as a magistrate, and being only allowed a ‘plus 1’ there was naturally only one person he could choose without upsetting either of his daughters; his Mother! As a Registered Blind 93 year old lady she was at first not quite sure she would be able to manage the trip down to London, the event itself and the trip home again, but realising it was an opportunity of a lifetime, she decided to go and even bought a special outfit for the event. She says “I had a lovely outfit! A colour I’d never bought before, but I was quite pleased and everyone said it looked smart. I couldn’t see what it looked like but… I believe it’s purple, but it doesn’t look purple to me! ...I had to have a hat too. Nothing like I’ve ever worn before and I felt quite smart and presentable.”

On the day of the event they rose early and made their way to London by train. On arrival they went to the Magistrates building in Fitzroy Square where they had lunch before being collected by coach to take them off to the Palace.

It had been decided that the grounds would be too big for Olive to wander at any length, so she came in a wheelchair. This was quite useful as on their arrival at the Palace there

and a guide to the buttons on the remote control which are quite large and tactile. Tameside Sight helped me to order, install and learn how to use it.

Overall I have been very pleased with it and I am enjoying watching my favourite programmes whenever I want.”

The product is called ‘TVonics talking Freeview+ HD recorder – DTR-HD500’, has a 500GB Hard Drive which

equates to around 175 hours of recording time. It was £180 and is available from the RNIB shop.

Philip Singleton, Project Manager, Tameside Sight.

7

were huge queues for the 7,500 people that had been invited to the party to navigate, but people in wheelchairs could skip the queues via a special entrance! After having their passports and invitations checked they went through and were greeted by some Girl Guides who wanted to assist pushing the wheelchair. Olive says they were “a pack of Girl Guides from Southampton who had been given the honour of helping at the Garden Party”. She says: “reluctantly John said yes, he didn’t think a young lady should be pushing me whilst he was there, however she insisted”, and Olive thought that the young Girl Guide was “very pleasant”.

They strolled about the vast lawns and lake, listened to the two brass bands taking it in turns to play from either side of the gardens, and had cups of tea and cakes. After a while they wandered back to the Palace and with some assistance from the Girl Guides, climbed up the steps and were allowed to explore two large rooms within the Palace. Olive says “I strolled in and it was nice and quiet in there and we had a little chat with a young man who was on duty in the Palace”.

Eventually they returned to the gardens and people congregated along a pathway to welcome the Royal Family. Olive mentions that “the family came down the steps from the Palace – the steps we had just come down – and walked through chatting with people as they walked along”.

One of the young men who worked in the Palace came up to them and explained that the Queen would have a special audience with disabled guests at quarter past five in a particular area near the palace, so they went along and the Queen and the rest of the family came and chatted with most of the 20 or so people gathered there. The Queen said ‘Hello’ to Olive and John, asked how they were and if they

Olive and John outside the Magistrates

building.

8

were having a nice day, to which they replied ‘Yes we’ve had a lovely day thank you’.

Olive tells us more about meeting the Royal family: “The Duke of Edinburgh came up and was having a little fun with a man next to me and we were chatting there with The Duke of Edinburgh for some time and he challenged us to a little race with himself running and us going in the wheelchairs to an archway, but we didn’t take him up on it. At this time the Queen was just standing two or three yards away listening to the fun we were having there and smiling and seeming to enjoy the fun as well.”

Towards the end of the party the guests lined up again to wave off the Royal Family and again they chatted to most people along the line. After they had left, the party came to an end and Olive and John walked up the mall before they set off for their long journey home.

Olive says that it was a rather tiring day “but I certainly did not regret it. It was wonderful” and I think she would agree, a once in a lifetime experience!

The Queen (Left) Olive (in wheelchair central), John

(behind Olive) and The Duke of Edinburgh (Right).

9

Nystagmus Network Open Day.

Finding out what it’s like to have nystagmus is one of the reasons why people attend the Nystagmus Network Open Day; another is being able to talk about their own experience of having the complex eye condition.

For the first time Nystagmus Network (NN) is holding its annual Open Day in Manchester at the Mercure Piccadilly Hotel, on Saturday, 20 October 2012.

For most people the Open Day is the first time they will meet another person who has nystagmus, and whilst there will be talks by vision researchers and eye health professionals, for many the most important aspect is the exchange of experiences about the way that school, work and leisure activities are affected by having the condition.

Richard Wilson chairman of the NN, said: “We are so excited to be in Manchester this year for the first time. Each year we try to make the Open Day that little bit more exciting and this year we will be upping our game."

This year there is another first for NN: the “Open Day interactive warm-up”, where people are being encouraged to join the discussion on the charity’s Facebook page in advance of the Open Day. To join in the conversation search for ‘Nystagmus Network’ in Facebook and look for the one listed as a local business page.

Places for the open day cost £25 for members, £40 for non-members, and £10 for children, and can be booked by phone on 0845 634 2630 or 029 2045 4242; by email via info@nystagmusnet.org; or online at www.nnopenday2012.eventbrite.co.uk.

There will be a series of guest speakers and discussion sessions which will be announced as they are confirmed. For more information about the Nystagmus Network please contact the Information and Development manager John Sanders, on the above phone numbers, or email via john.sanders@nystagmusnet.org.

Steve McKay, Press Officer, Nystagmus Network.

10

We have a Mystery!

We’ve had four mystery parcels at the Project office; one addressed to Philip (but spelt with 2 ‘L’s), one to Glenis (but spelt with a ‘Y’) one to Vicky (but spelt

with an ‘I’) and another to Jill (But spelt with a ‘G’)!

Inside each individual parcel were some gifts for each staff member; a chocolate bar and socks each, then the girls got a different type of manicure set each while Philip got a set of precision screwdrivers. One other unique gift was included in each parcel, an iPhone charging station for Vicky, a flashing orb that plugs into your computer for Jill, a detail light that plugs into your computer for Philip and a rather posh candle for Glenis.

Despite the miss-spelling of each name it seems our mystery benefactor seems to know us all rather well (or at least they were good guesses on gifts!) Did they know us well enough to know that we love chocolate in this office? Had Vicky mentioned she owns an iPhone? Had he or she seen Philip bent over his desk trying to fix talking watches and liquid level indicators? Did they know that Jill likes all things glittery and sparkly?

Unfortunately there was no note within any of the parcels, so we don’t know who sent them or why!

From the parcel packaging we have gleamed that the parcels were sent in postcode area SK8, which is around Cheadle and not an area that Tameside Sight covers. Also the address labels were printed out onto blue paper and then taped onto each jiffy bag. The blue paper labels look familiar but no-one can quite work out why and where from.

The spelling mistakes could be someone trying to add a ‘red herring’ into the mix so we wouldn’t guess it was them or it could be that the person uses a computer and audio software to read and write and may never have themselves read the spelling of each name?

Perhaps there was a note that accidentally got forgotten when packing? Whatever it is, we are completely bemused

11

here at the office, but would just like to say thank you very much for our mysterious gifts, it was a touching thought (even if we’re not quite sure why we got them in the first place!) and someone clearly spent a bit of money, time and effort on it! Whoever it was, we’re most appreciative!

Jubilee Celebrations.

Sixty years ago the young Princess Elizabeth was crowned Queen. Her coronation in Westminster Abbey was the world’s first international event to be televised. It was a huge occasion celebrated all over the world with fireworks and parties. Sixty years later we are still celebrating!

The Audenshaw Blind Club held a special party with lots of food & drinks and the tables were all decorated with a red, white and blue theme with flags and party hats! This was greeted with jubilance and excitement from club members who said that they were made to feel like royalty! Guide Dogs Vanya and Freddie gave their seal of approval too!

Special thanks to the volunteers who made it such a special day with their effort and dedication!

Jean Price, Audenshaw Blind Club Volunteer.

Left and Middle: the party in full swing. Right: The buffet.

Send Us Your Stamps! We are now collecting stamps to raise funds for Tameside Sight. If you would like to collect stamps (anything except ‘Articles For The Blind’ stamps) then please cut them off the envelope close to the stamp (leaving approximately a

centimetre boarder – this is because they are sold by weight and they would otherwise ask us to go through them and individually cut them down!) Thank You!

12

“It is so very nice to be included, just like any other valued member of society. Somebody, somewhere knew that someone like me was going to go to see a film one day and made it possible for me to enjoy it. They built it for me. I belonged in the cinema along with everybody else. I was included. Put a price tag on that.”

Everyone’s talking about Audio Described (AD) cinema, but despite more and more films being available locally the uptake of it in Tameside seems to be quite low. Similar to the added audio description that can be turned on on TVs and some DVDs, AD cinema offers an additional description about what is happening on screen; clarifying visual aspects of a film that you may not be able to follow or make sense of without. All this added description is spoken to you via a discreet headset, meaning, unlike subtitles, you can go to the cinema with someone who does not need the additional commentary and they won’t get it.

But if you’re not convinced, here are some converts to the world of AD cinema to tell you their thoughts and experiences of it:

“Audio described cinema is wonderful, not just because it allows me to enjoy movies but to discuss them with sighted friends afterwards. Through cinema audio description, I have been able to follow up the recommendation of a friend who gushed about the beauty of the visuals in ‘Volver’. Conversely, I have been able to return the favour by plugging the striking images in ‘The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford’. It doesn't matter that I couldn't 'see' them – the description was so vivid that I can still imagine Brad Pitt shooting into the ice, causing a puff of smoke to rise, or Casey Affleck in a rocking chair. When accompanying sighted friends, I can enjoy the car chase in ‘Casino Royale’ and the decapitation by helicopter blade in 28 Weeks Later, relying on my memories of being a sighted gorehound!”

Not Tried AD Cinema Yet?

13

"I am 63 years old, have been blind for more than 30 years, and was always hearing from friends about the wonderful narrated movies being made these days that I may actually enjoy. So I tried it out with a sighted friend and have so far enjoyed ‘The King's Speech’, ‘True Grit’, ‘Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’ and some others. I went with two of my oldest friends who saw me smile, heard me chuckle and, importantly, asked my opinion on the events afterwards. For a change I was included in the conversation about the movie, which was most enjoyable. I have even been dragged along to Avatar with my grandchild, and whilst I couldn't experience the 3D effects like he could, I still enjoyed it a lot. I'm not totally blind, I can still make out giant blue figures on a big bright screen. So I can now appreciate and enjoy films again, revel in the majesty of film, be transported to times I thought long forgotten. Happy times."

“I remember when I was a young lad watching a movie with my mum. I noticed on a number of occasions my mum went quiet. I later learned that this was because the actors were getting up to naughties! Now of course all scenes of this nature are described (whoopee!). On a more serious note, having experienced audio description I now realise how much I have missed out on watching films. The ability to choose what I watch is liberating.”

If you would like to try an Audio Described film you can contact a service called ‘Your Local Cinema’ who will be able to tell you what is available in your area with AD. You can contact them via 0845 056 9824 (local rate) or online at www.yourlocalcinema.com/ad.

“Its also fantastic to have AD trailers too as a lot films nowadays have trailers with a short dialogue at the beginning then lots of banging, crashing & shouting then silence..! Which is really frustrating coz I can’t ask sighted friends to watch out for it and let me know coz they have no idea what I'm on about!!”

14

The Paralympic Story Comes Home.

In case anyone has been hiding in a cave, the Paralympics were held this year in London following the main Olympic Games. Despite the origins of the Paralympics being in Britain, this is the first time the country has ever won the right to host it, bringing it full circle back to where the concept was first invented.

1948 was the last time London had held the Olympic Games, which being only three years after World War II had ended, was known as the ‘Austerity Games’; athletes were allocated extra food rations to help build them up, and the wartime policy of ‘make do and mend’ was applied to venues and accommodation for the games. During this time the recent war was ever present within peoples’ minds, and even a speech from the then chairman of the British Olympic Council – Lord Burghley – at the opening ceremony mentioned the “worldwide struggle” and how London represented a “warm flame of hope for a better understanding in the world which has burned so low”.

Nearly a whole generation of young men had died or came back from the war wounded or traumatised and were now struggling to find a place in society. At this time a Doctor Ludwig Guttmann of Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Buckinghamshire was working with disabled British veterans with spinal cord injuries. He had a strong belief that sport could be applied as a method of therapy, both physical and psychological, in the form of building up both strength and self-respect.

Whipped up by the nations Olympic spirit, Dr. Guttmann organised an athletic event for these veterans which took place on the same day as the 1948 London Olympics’ Opening Ceremony. At the time it was only veterans with spinal cord damage who took part, all from Britain and only rival hospitals taking part, but it was deemed a huge success, and became a yearly event known as the ‘Stoke Mandeville Games’. In 1952, to celebrate the Olympic

15

Games in Helsinki, Finland, Guttmann organised for some Dutch veterans to take part alongside the British Veterans, making it the first international competition for disabled athletes. By the time the next Olympic Games took place in Rome, Italy, in 1960, the now formed ‘International Stoke Mandeville Games Federation’ managed to organise the games to take place a week

after the Olympics in Rome itself; being the first international games held abroad and at the venue of the Olympic Games. There were 23 countries who took part and 400 individual athletes, showing what a force of will was behind these games. However it was still only open to people with spinal injuries.

It was three Games later in 1976 when people with amputations and vision impairment were allowed to compete. This took place in Toronto, Canada two days after the Olympic Games finished in neighbouring Montreal, Canada. The proceeding games grew from strength to strength, becoming more inclusive of various disabilities and more countries taking part. However they were still not the games we know of today; they were still known as the Stoke Mandeville Games and aside from the 1960 Games in Rome and 1964 Games in Tokyo, they were not staged at the same venues as their cousin the Olympics.

Finally, 24 years ago it all came together at the 1988 Seoul Games in Korea. Here there was formal co-operation between the two games’ committees, and also the first time the term “Paralympic” was officially used. The Paralympics took place 13 days after the Olympics closed, with over 3,000 athletes taking part from 61 different countries.

Six Paralympic games later and London was the lucky host this year, with a massive 4,200 athletes taking part from 160 different countries. Finally the story of the Paralympic games has come full circle, back to where the inspiration of one Doctor helped so many athletes feel proud of their

Dr.Guttmann

16

We are in the middle of major changes in many local and national services and we wanted to remind you of some that may affect you over the next few months…

The library service in Tameside has been consulting with the public on the future of library services as financial cutbacks bite and some libraries are likely to close. Various options are being reviewed at the present time.

Another change that is likely is Council Tax Benefit which reduces the amount of Council Tax that some households have to pay. Councils nationally are looking at ways of reducing the number of households eligible. Tameside Council are currently consulting and drawing up proposals for a new scheme to save money for the government, with the potential of ‘ring fencing’ pensioners from any effects.

Nationally, the Welfare Reform Act came into effect in March and will result in changes to various benefits and how they are paid. These changes will come into effect over the next two years. You will begin to see information about ‘Universal Credits’ replacing the main means tested benefits for working age people. Personal Independence Payments will be introduced to replace Disability Living Allowance. Housing Benefit is a means tested benefit and is proposed to be reduced if you have a spare bedroom.

Watch out for more details in the local news and government announcements. If you feel strongly you can contact your councillors and MPs. Most of these changes will be introduced over the next two years.

Philip Singleton, Project Manager, Tameside Sight.

abilities and achievements despite their apparent limitations. As history rolls on there is a hope that the Paralympics will further go from strength to

strength; becoming as popular as the Olympics, and encouraging people to take up sports regardless of disabilities, conditions or injuries.

Changes Afoot...

17

Thank you for your votes!

In June Tameside Sight was told that it had been voted by the public to have a charity token box at the ASDA store in Ashton!

When a member of the public goes to the check-out they are given a green token. They can use

this to vote for which of the three charities there that month they would like ASDA to give money to. The charity with the most tokens after a month is awarded £200, with runners-up getting £50 each, all funded by the ASDA Foundation.

For a month we had our name on one of the charity boxes alongside ‘The Wooden Canal Boat Society’ and ‘Oxford Park Football Club’. Towards the end of the month it was a close run between ourselves and Oxford Park Football Club as to who had the most tokens, but after sorting out the tokens (clearing away rubbish and pennies that had also been posted into the boxes!) the tokens were weighed and it was discovered that Tameside Sight had won! By a whole 98grams, which is approximately 40 tokens – a ‘drop in the ocean’ compared to the total numbers collected!

ASDA’s Community Life Champion Anthony Sumner came along one Wednesday with an oversized cheque and a reporter to present us with £200, which was gratefully received by Chairman John Price, the staff at the Support Project and members of the Wednesday Club who also managed to get snapped with the large cheque!

We would like to say a big THANK YOU to all those who voted for us initially and those who used the green tokens to vote for us, and of course ASDA for having the scheme!

ASDA man Anthony Sumner presents

Tameside Sight with a cheque.

18

Blind Molly Retires.

Tameside Sight’s Walking Group was invited to join in the celebrations at a retirement party at The Elisabeth Svenden Trust for Children and Donkeys in Abbey Hey near Openshaw. The party was for Molly, who due to her failing eyesight was having to retire from active duty at the sanctuary. She had worked there for the last 6 years conducting therapeutic visits to nursing homes, schools, hospices and hospitals throughout the North West.

Sixteen members of the walking group took part, 10 of which were themselves vision impaired, and felt an affinity with Molly.

Retiring at age 22 may seem a bit young, until you realise that Molly is a donkey. Donkeys tend to live until they are around 25-35 years old, meaning Molly is entering her twilight years.

The Walking Group were allowed to meet her and some of her friends, watch a therapeutic session with some disabled children, and then we all met in the dining area to wish her farewell with a buffet and two cakes, one especially made for Molly to eat!

Molly was retiring to Devon, where a Donkey Sanctuary

The Walking Group with Molly at the Donkey Sanctuary.

19

Missing Out On Magazines?

David Whitten called in to the office recently and mentioned that he used to read the ‘Classic Rock’ magazine before his sight deteriorated. He was asking if the magazine was available in digital form that he could download to his computer which would then ‘speak’ the words of the text to him.

We spoke to the publishers and they said there wasn’t any such service but there was a service provided by ZINIO. This allows you to subscribe to a magazine of your choice for one or more issues. The whole magazine (text, pictures, adverts – the lot) can then be downloaded to your computer and displayed on the screen. The clever bit is the easy way of viewing the pages and zooming in to read with large text. David was very impressed with this and was able to flick through the pages and then read the pages he was interested in, without needing additional software to zoom or speak the text.

Subscriptions are available for a whole range of magazines of all types of interest. Prices are similar to the cover price in shops and the whole thing is easy to set up. This could be a good option for people who struggle to read small print but can use a computer and the internet. For more details give us a call or go online at www.zinio.com.

Philip Singleton, Project Manager, Tameside Sight.

there could deal with her special needs including on-site vets and padded stable to make sure she was safe and didn’t hurt herself. They have experience with other blind donkeys there and as Molly had never really built up a strong bond with any of the donkeys here, they were hoping she might find a good friend there instead.

The staff were very upset to see her go but they knew it was the best thing for her and because of the good work they do the Walking Group members donated a total of £100 to the sanctuary.

20

Jill Needs YOU!

As you may, or may not, remember – I love Christmas! I love it so much that I want to share it with you all! So, in the run up to Christmas I am organising a Winter Fair! It will be on Friday 16th November from 1pm-4pm, in conjunction with our Annual General Meeting. I’m excited already!

There will be lots of fun and festive things going on and I would really love for you all to come along!

I am planning to have lots of stalls including a cake stall, tombolas, winter warmers and some ‘win a prize’ games. Also some stalls selling gadgets and gizmos from companies who make such useful items for people with sight loss, ready for you to put on your wish list to Santa!

There will also be a big prize raffle and the chance to buy some Christmas gifts for your loved ones!

Now I need your help: I am looking for donations! We need:

Quality prizes for the raffle and tombola.

Bottles (of sauce, perfume, bubble bath, wine, magnums of champagne) for the bottle tombola.

Chocolate (single bars or big boxes – no half nibbled ones or Chocolate Brazils with the chocolate sucked off!)

Cakes of all shapes and sizes for the cake stall.

Knitting – scarves, hats, gloves or blankets for the Winter Warmers stall.

Volunteers – I need help to run the stalls, to make drinks and help people navigate around the fair.

Most of all I need you to come on the day! I speak to many of you on the phone so it’d be nice to meet you in person!

If you would like to come to the Winter Fair, but you have no transport – give me a ring on 0161 343 4090 and we’ll try to arrange transport for you!

I’ll be sending out invitations nearer to the time, but keep the date free in your diary! I really hope you can all come!

Jill Doidge, Christmas Queen! (Also known as Administrator),Tameside Sight.

21

In January Tameside Sight was approached by a national charity - The Challenge Network – which provides GCSE school students with opportunities to connect with their local communities and volunteer. This year the scheme reached Tameside and 60 students took part over Summer.

Tameside Sight agreed to be involved and the group agreed to do some practical work for the charity as well as raise some money. The first challenge was in July when 12 young people came with cameras, microphones and lots of enthusiasm to record short interviews with some of our service users who have some loss of sight. Two days running (Friday and Saturday) different people came in to talk to the young people about their lives, their sight, their experiences and how they use Tameside Sight services.

There were nerves on all sides but everyone soon got into the swing of it and some amazing, amusing and sometimes tear jerking experiences were being shared and recorded.

Everyone got lots of positive results out of it; from the young people, the interviewees, the committee and staff.

Jill’s cupcakes featured on both days and brought everyone together on what was a very enjoyable occasion with all ages bonding well. The comments will help us to improve the bids and proposals for further funding to keep the association going in these difficult times.

A second group of ‘Challenge’ young people came into the office for a short awareness and training course where they experienced different eye conditions and how these affect peoples lives. Then they tried guiding each other to practice the skills that had been shown. Terrifying!

So a big thank you to the ‘Challenge’ teams for their enthusiasm and a big thank you to all the people who agreed to come in and be interviewed. Working together in this way helps everyone to appreciate and understand each others differences and common ideals.

Philip Singleton, Project Manager, Tameside Sight.

Thank You For Your Help!

22

My work-experience experience!

As a pupil of Fairfield High School for girls, my peers and I were given the opportunity to take two weeks away from the everyday school routine and use the time to experience working life. For one of the weeks I had a placement at Tameside Sight. During the placement I had an insight into basic office work, e.g.

word processing, photocopying, filing and the understanding of how everyone in the office had different roles. However, I felt that learning about how people live with sight loss was much more valuable than the average office-based work.

I really enjoyed being part of the walking group; I met interesting people who were willing to tell their stories about their eye condition and how they currently manage with the help of Tameside Sight. I also had the chance to be present during a home visit and meet others that came into the office with sight impairments, making me realise that there are so many eye conditions that can affect people differently and of all ages. On the last day I was taken to Tameside Hospital where Tameside Sight staff conducted training to promote awareness of issues surrounding sight loss to graduating nurses.

Reflecting on my experience it has been valuable to understand the many different eye conditions, and how governmental support given is decided by what people are registered as; whether ‘blind’ or ‘partially sighted’.

It is heart-warming to know that Tameside Sight is there with open arms to give help and support to anyone who needs it regardless of whether they are registered or at what level. They also try to help build people’s confidence that may have been affected as they lost their eyesight.

I would just like to say a big thank-you to Philip, Glenis, Vicky and Jill. I had a great time during my work experience and learnt so much. I am sure I am also talking on behalf of your clients when I say that your service is very valuable.

Caitlin Doherty, Student, Fairfield High School.

Caitlin

23

I was particularly excited to get an invitation to “Tea for MD”; the 25th Anniversary Party for the Macular Disease Society from May Bradford who runs the Tameside branch of the Macular Group. I type up the minutes for the Tameside Macular Group and I’d been reading interesting snippets about the tea party for some time, hoping for an invite! May knew how much I like parties after attending Tameside Sight’s Support Project’s 10th Anniversary last year and also knew that I enjoy making cupcakes, so she asked me to make some for their tea party – which I was delighted to do!

They chose a perfect day for the tea party, Wednesday 18th July was the first properly sunny day we had after all those weeks of rain! We arrived at Stamford Street Methodist Hall at 2pm and found the hall beautifully decorated with union flags, a bring and buy stall, a tombola, lovely ladies making hot drinks and Alfie and his Songsters (featuring our very own ex cover girl Sheila Crumley!) keeping the guests entertained.

We took our seats and May spoke a few words about the 25th Anniversary of the Macular Disease Society, then we were delightfully entertained by Alfie on his keyboard and the Songsters beautiful singing and dancing! When the singers took a breather there was a surge of people hurrying to get drinks, cupcakes and scones with fresh cream and strawberries, and more people went to spend money on the ‘bring and buy’ and the tombola stalls (I won a lovely pot plant!). Then May called us back to order and gave me the great honour of asking little old me to cut their 25th Birthday Cake!! After the cake cutting there was more music from Alfie and the Songsters and more dancing!

It was a truly lovely afternoon, Glenis, Philip and I really enjoyed ourselves – especially joining in the march around the hall while the Songsters sang “Consider Yourself”!

Jill Doidge, Administrator, Tameside Sight.

Tea for MD.

24

Please remember Tameside Sight when you make your will.

This local charity works for all visually impaired people in Tameside - serving the Community for 37 years.

4 Wellington Parade, Dukinfield SK16 4LE

Committee contact number: 0161 330 7778 Charity No: 504063

Published by: Tameside Sight,

3 Wellington Parade, Dukinfield, Cheshire. SK16 4LE

Community Support Office

Tel: 0161 343 4090 / 6903

Online contact points: office@tamesidesight.org.uk www.tamesidesight.org.uk www.facebook.com/tba.blind www.twitter.com/tamesidesight Printed by: P.D. Print, Hyde.

Scooter for sale!

Mr E Harrop of Stalybridge, has very kindly offered his mobility scooter to us with the monies from the sale being donated to Tameside Sight.

The scooter is a Sapphire L.S. – maximum weight of the user is 150 kilograms / 330lbs. It travels up to 4 miles per hour, has a range of 19 miles before re-charging and has a ground clearance of 3 inches.

A new scooter of this kind would cost around £1200, but this one was a demonstration model and cost £850. It is in excellent condition and has been well looked after by its owner!

For offers and enquires please contact us on the usual numbers. We very much appreciate Mr & Mrs Harrop’s generous offer.

Glenis Lee, Development Worker, Tameside Sight.