Volunteers Newsletter — August 2018

Certificate of Volunteering

The Mayor of Stockport, Walter Brett, has awarded all of our TFSC

volunteers with a ‘Certificate of Thanks’ for their incredible voluntary

service and works to the charity (this has been included in your packs).

The charity is based in Stockport making this recognition from the Mayor

very poignant. Our volunteers are from all over the Greater Manchester

area and we are pleased to say the charity serves children in all ten

districts of Greater Manchester.

Since the formation and early days of the charity, TFSC has received

boundless support from people in Stockport. TFSC are extremely grateful

for the continued local support and we are very proud that the charity is based locally in Stockport.

It is in that spirit that the Mayor of Stockport recognises all of our volunteers’ astounding efforts and

selfless contribution which helps to improve the lives of so many of Greater Manchester’s most

vulnerable children and their families. Your efforts have made and continue to make a long-lasting

legacy for the future of Greater Manchester for generations to come

Trip Activity

The charity is delighted to inform you that since April this year our TFSC volunteer drivers have taken

450 children on 1600 trips to hospitals and clinics driving 33,900 miles in the process.

Continued charity contributions

We are delighted that Asda Eastlands chose to support TFSC as part of

their commitment to local community needs. The store raised funds through

the Asda Foundation Green Token Giving Programme where customers can

vote for one of three nominated charities and in the last round TFSC was

voted into first place!

Pictured to the left is Asda Community Champion Naomi, who has supported TFSC over the past year, presenting a cheque to Beverley. Naomi has ensured that promotional literature about the charity is available at the store – this includes information on becoming a volunteer driver.

Huge thanks to Naomi and the Asda customers who support us and

generously donate.

SAVE THE DATES

2018 AGM—Friday 21st SEPTEMBER 2018

The Annual General Meeting will be held in the Gledhill Suite on the third floor at Stockport Business & Innovation

Centre at Broadstone Mill at 1.30pm.

Christmas Party—Friday 7th DECEMBER 2018

We will return to Holdsworth Golf Course for this year’s TFSC volunteers Christmas dinner in the late afternoon on

Friday, more details to follow.

Volunteers Newsletter — August 2018

Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital

The Royal Manchester Children's Hospital is now part of the Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. It offers a range of specialities including oncology, haematology, bone marrow transplant, burns, genetics and orthopaedics. The hospital has 371 beds and with over 220,000 annual patient visits. Parking: The RMCH has reconfirmed their commitment to offering the TSFC volunteer drivers free

parking at the Hathersage Road multi-story car park.

In the Multi-story Car Park; when you arrive, take a parking ticket from the machine, park up at an

available space; when leaving take the ticket to the office on the ground floor and get it validated for a

free exit. You will need to have your TFSC ID.

You must ensure that you have your TFSC

identification badge with you.

Once volunteers have parked up they can access

the whole site by using the hospital’s small eco-

runabout bus service to get to the children’s

section, which is reasonably close by. This little

shuttle bus service regularly circulates around the

hospital site and is free to use this service has

been specifically designed to help people who

have mobility difficulties to move around the site.

Everett’s staff rest area: The hospital authorities have kindly offered volunteers access to the staff refectory which is situated very close to the children’s hospital. Here volunteers can purchase hot food (between 7am and 4pm), access vending machines, drinking water and the staff waiting lounge which has a TV.

Should any volunteer be interested in using this facility please let one of the

Transport Organisers know and a pass can be arranged which will allow access. Mobile Phone Network: Unfortunately, the hospital does have some problems with mobile phone signals – please be aware that you may not have a signal at certain points around the site and that you may need to move around or even off the site to get a network signal to contact the office or a family. Summer events at the RMCH site: Over the summer months the Royal Northern College of Music in collaboration with the hospital will present lunch time musical events which can be enjoyed while waiting for our families. Concerts are between

12.30pm to 1.30pm every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Don’t forget about Buengo—online charity shop!

Do you have any unwanted clothes, household or general items

cluttering up your homes – if you do why not sell it through Buengo and

donate the funds raised to TFSC.

Volunteers Newsletter — August 2018 Alder Hey Children’s Hospital

Annually the hospital cares for over 270,000 children, young people and their families and is a children’s research leader on medicines, infections, inflammation and oncology. The hospital see a child’s visit for treatment as a holistic experience and one which needs to include the family; mums, dads, brothers and sisters. They treat everything from common illnesses to highly complex and specialist conditions from the main hospital site in Liverpool and across community sites and clinics throughout the North West. The hospital is a:

A Centre of Excellence for cancer, as well as spinal, heart and brain conditions A Department of Health Centre for Head and Face Surgery A Centre of Excellence for Muscular Dystrophy and the first UK Centre of Excellence for

Childhood Lupus One of four national centres for childhood epilepsy surgery, a joint service with the Royal

Manchester Children’s Hospital A designated Children’s Major Trauma Centre

Alder Hey also has Europe’s only intra-operative 3-T MRI scanner which is a pioneering technology for neurosurgery, reducing repeat operations in 90% of cases.

Parking: Since the changes to specialist children’s service delivery, volunteers are taking children to this hospital more frequently; consequently the charity has negotiated free parking at the Alder Hey Hospital site. Passes have been arranged for TFSC volunteers who access the hospital regularly speak to the office if you require a pass.

Reminder

ALL volunteers will have recently received an updated Child Protection Policy booklet and Volunteer

Handbook, please ensure that you take the time to read the booklets and remind yourself of the charity’s

guidance on appropriate behaviours when transporting children and carers.

It is very important that families apply for trips through the official route through their referrer for their

transport to hospital. A reminder has recently been sent out to referrers that their families must be referred

via the recognised official routes and cannot self–refer by direct phone calls to the office or through

drivers.

TFSC staff—new titles:

Beverley Hoyle is now the Funding and Communications Manager. Laura Chidgey is now Office Manager.

Volunteers Newsletter — August 2018 Bee in the city—Manchester

Are you looking for interesting things to do this summer? Then why not go and see the ‘Bee in the

City’.

The city's proud emblem has had a colourful makeover, 101 of them to be exact, as part of the Bee in the

City trail. The public art spectacle will see brightly painted honeybee sculptures pop up all over the city

and surrounding suburbs this summer for visitors to admire, each featuring a unique design created by

local artists and community groups.

The event is being brought to the city by Wild in Art, whose founders were the creative force behind

2004's Cow Parade installation. The full Bee in the City trail and mini bee trail will run until Sunday

September 23rd 2018.

You can find out more information and get a location map of where you find the BEES at: www.visitmanchester.com/whats-on/bee-in-the-city-art-trail Institute of Advanced Motorists—RoadSmart

Our Founder, Sally Carroll, celebrated her 70th birthday with an IAM “RoadSmart” Mature Driver Review in Kent last month. Sally was first persuaded by a local TFSC volunteer driver to take her Institute for Advance motoring driving course in Altrincham 22 years ago, while she was Transport Organiser & Treasurer of the Charity. She said it was a really enjoyable experience through leafy Kent & was very relieved to pass her test with a certificate to prove it! If any other volunteers are interested in taking a IAM RoadSmart, you can use Sally’s friends and family 10% discount on all of their products and services. Get in touch with the office if you want to hear more.