Welcome to “Sunday Snippets” a weekly feature from birkenhead.news. It is a round-up of our most popular good news stories from the last seven days. Click on each story to read the full article.
‘A Mersey Christmas’ – Merseyside poets release free Christmas anthology
A brand new anthology of Christmas poems has been launched as a Facebook project.
‘A Mersey Christmas’ features work by local poets who frequent the spoken word poetry circuits around Birkenhead and Liverpool, and is available to read free.
Curated by Wirral poets Barry Woods and Michelle Wright the collection is their fourth creative writing project and a Christmas gift to the people of the region.
Care home staff elf themselves to raise money for Alzheimers
Staff at Caldy Manor Care Home in Caldy swapped their uniforms for costumes on National Elf Day in an effort to raise funds to help people living with dementia.
Launched by the Alzheimer’s Society and delivered direct from the North Pole, Elf Day was created to sprinkle some festive cheer on fundraising towards finding a cure for dementia. From stripy socks to head-to-toe elf outfits, anything goes – there’s snow better way to raise money to help beat dementia.
On the day, residents and staff at Caldy Manor were able to enjoy elf-themed games including best-dressed elf competition and an Elf Treasure Hunt.
Wirral Council to use high-tech smart cameras in fight against fly-tippers
Wirral Council has turned to a high-tech solution to help with investigations into incidents such as fly-tipping.
A new partnership with technology firm, iDefigo, means that the council now has access to cutting edge, wireless camera equipment that can be deployed in minutes to potential hotspots to gather quality evidence of criminality.
Wirral has deployed CCTV surveillance equipment before in its efforts to build cases against suspected fly-tippers, but success has been limited, primarily due to the nature of the equipment being used.
Construction firm helps Rock Ferry Salvation Army toy appeal
Sovini Construction has supported The Salvation Army children’s Christmas present appeal by donating a sleigh full of toys.
The Bootle based construction firm went the extra mile this festive season to ensure £1,000 worth of presents were donated to the children’s toy appeal. Sovini Construction, partnered with their sub-contractors and architects to donate new toys and gifts for children who might not otherwise receive a Christmas present. In addition, Smyths toy store in Brombourgh also kindly gifted toys for the donation.
The Salvation Army is a registered charity, which has been fighting against social inequality and transforming lives for over 150 years. They work at the heart of their communities.
Clatterbridge Hospital COVID-19 Vaccination Centre marks 1 year anniversary
This week marked the first anniversary of the COVID-19 Vaccination Centre at Clatterbridge Hospital and the national COVID-19 vaccination programme.
Staff have delivered over 122,000 COVID-19 vaccinations at the centre over the past year and are continuing to make a vital contribution to the rollout of the vaccine for the Wirral community.
They had the opportunity to reflect on all their hard work and special cakes were made to mark the anniversary.
Wirral Leisure introduces new weight management programme
A targeted weight management programme invites locals to embark on a life-changing health and wellbeing journey.
Wirral Leisure’s brand-new weight management programme, which kicked off earlier this month, offers eligible residents; a six-week course on nutrition and wellness, opportunities for free low impact exercise and information on healthy eating – alongside 12 weeks of free access to leisure centre gyms and swimming pools.
The council-run programme will be delivered by a friendly and experienced team, seeking to empower people to make positive lifestyle changes. The programme will be available across all Wirral’s leisure centres and wards.
Wirral resident and CFO of Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service receives OBE
Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service has announced the news that Chief Fire Officer (CFO), Phil Garrigan has received his OBE (Order of the British Empire) from HRH The Prince of Wales during the investiture ceremony held at Windsor Castle.
The Queen’s Birthday Honours, normally awarded in June, have been delayed due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, which is one of the reasons why he has been recognised.
Phil, who now lives in Wirral having grown up in Maghull, (where he attended St George’s Primary School before going on to Maricourt High School) joined Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service in 1990 – working in some of Merseyside’s most vulnerable and deprived communities. With this he brings a strong community focus to the Service, recognising the unique position of trust and respect in which the Fire & Rescue Service is held.
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Tap or click to follow birkenhead.news on Twitter Wirral Hospice St John’s Christmas Tree collection dates released
From Friday 14 January, 2022, and for a busy few days afterwards, a small army of Wirral Hospice St John’s staff and volunteers, eager to work off their festive feasting, will be buzzing all around Wirral picking up used real Christmas trees from outside people’s homes and businesses.
Around thirty large vans, many of which have been lent to the hospice, are sent everywhere around Wirral. One person will take the wheel and navigate a pre-planned postcode route, while one or two crew members, will pick up the tree from each address and load it onto the back of the van.
All volunteers will have gloves, a liberal supply of hand sanitiser and masks ready if they need to converse with a homeowner and, of course, everyone will be working outdoors.
Festive season bus, rail, tunnels, and ferry services announced
A round up of transport information is now available, with Merseytravel confirming that it will be running its annual, special network of free bus services on Christmas Day between around 12 noon and 6pm, covering most hospital routes.
The Mersey Tunnels Tolls will also be free, as usual, between 10pm on Christmas Eve and 6am on Boxing Day.
Travellers are being urged to plan ahead and check timetables, so they don’t get caught out as some services finish earlier than usual at this time of year, particularly on Christmas Eve.
BBC’s Sally Nugent hosts Carols and Candles for Claire House
BBC Breakfast presenter Sally Nugent hosted Claire House Children’s Hospice’s Carols and Candles event at Christ Church in Port Sunlight on Tuesday 7 December.
The TV presenter and journalist joined Claire House families, supporters and volunteers for the charity’s annual Christmas event, which is an intimate evening of festive readings and carols performed by candlelight. The traditional carols were performed by the Vale of Clwyd Singers from North Wales and the event marked the start of the festive season for Claire House.
The event raised £6,800, enabling Claire House to continue to be there for local families this Christmas.
Renowned poetry project comes to New Brighton
The Floral Pavilion Theatre is joining forces with inspirational poet, James McInerney, on a mental health awareness project which uses James’ verse to promote well-being and awareness messages to theatre visitors.
James, a Northampton poet and author of five books in the UK, started the Poetry Project in 2018 initially displaying his poems on the information boards across the London Underground network. The project has now grown to include sites in the UK including, Australia, America and beyond.
The Floral Pavilion will be displaying a board in the foyer of the theatre with a series of poems from James. Changing around every two weeks, theatre bosses hope that visitors to the venue will pause, enjoy and take time out to reflect on the poems and their themes.
Social supermarket opens in Oxton
If you have not come across Break the Mould before, it is a Wirral-based non-profit organisation founded in 2019.
Its mission is to create real opportunities for young people through sport and education, as well as support the wider community with a variety of projects.
One of those projects for the wider community is the provision of social supermarkets in Wirral. There is already one in Noctorum and Friday 10 December was the official opening of their store in Oxton Village. The idea of the social supermarkets is to prevent food waste and to provide a service for local people. The supermarket is not means-tested and is open to all.
Fine Tranmere performance earns a win at Exeter
Tranmere played well against a tough Exeter side this afternoon to grab themselves a well earned and deserved three points.
Elliott Nevitt scored the only goal to give Tranmere a 1-0 League Two win at St James Park, with a cracking turn from inside the box to the bottom right corner of the Grecians’s net.
Tranmere came out in top gear for the second half. An early attempt from Josh Hawkes saw his shot saved by Exeter keeper Cam Dawson.
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