If you have little or no insulation in your home, up to 40p in every £1 of heat you pay for could be escaping before you feel warm. Loft and cavity wall insulation is a cost-effective way of reducing heating bills. The cost of loft and cavity wall insulation is subsidised by the energy utility companies and in addition to this the Vale of White Horse District Council offers a grant of up to £100 to further reduce the cost. Those who are over the age of 70 or who are in receipt of certain benefits may be entitled to free loft insulation (restrictions apply).

To save you time finding the best deal, the Vale of White Horse District Council has teamed up with Cocoon. This comparison service offers local residents estimates from at least two approved insulation installers. Plus the estimates include both the discount from the energy utility companies and £50 off the cost of loft insulation and £50 off the cost of cavity wall insulation from the Vale of White Horse District Council. For more information, visit www.cocoonyourhome.co.uk or call 0800 80 48 777

“Hold a Fish and Chip Supper to help spinal cord injured people live full and independent lives.”

Great British Fish and Chip Supper – Friday 21^st May 2010

Want to do something different? Want to raise money where you live or work? Want to eat Fish and Chips, while raising money for charity? Hold a fish and chip supper on Friday 21^st May 2010 whilst raising awareness of spinal cord injury and supporting SIA’s information and support services.

You can hold a fish and chip supper in your own home, at work or hold a larger supper at your local community centre.

SIA will provide a fundraising pack containing hints and tips, recipes, invitations and donation envelopes. By inviting 7 friends and asking them to donate an additional £5.00 means you will raise at least £35.00 from your supper but we will also give you additional fundraising ideas to raise even more money for SIA.

Last year we had over 80 suppers taking part in England and Wales. In 2010 we want to double that figure and ensure we can provide more support to spinal cord injured people.

The money raised from the suppers will help the Spinal Injuries Association offer support to individuals who become paralysed and their families, from the moment a spinal injury occurs, and for the rest of their lives by providing services and publications which enable and encourage paralysed people to lead independent lives.

Every year in the UK over 1,000 people experience a spinal cord injury and there are an estimated 40,000 spinal cord injured people in the UK alone.

Community Fundraising Officer, Elizabeth Wright, says, “The Fish and Chip Supper is a wonderful opportunity for a great evening with friends and family. We are also encouraging people who work to hold a Fish and Chip Lunch in their work places to raise even more funds. You may be even a local community group wanting to run a fun evening with your group.

Be a part of something special and make a real difference to help spinal cord injured people gain access to the information and support they need to enable them to live full and independent lives.”

For more information or request a fundraising pack call Elizabeth Wright on 0845 678 6633 xtn 229 or email fishandchips@spinal.co.uk or visit www.spinal.co.uk

www.pactcharity.org

There is a recognised shortage of 10,000 Foster Carers in the UK. PACT, founded in 1911, is also known as the Oxford Diocesan Council for Social Work inc. We are a registered charity working to improve life chances for children. The focus of our work is within Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire and aims to build and strengthen families.

We are an approved Adoption and Fostering Agency. We have a history of finding safe, loving families for children in care. Here are a few facts about Fostering:

1. Did you know you don’t have to be married to become a Foster Carer?
2. You don’t have to have children already although you do need to have experience of caring for children.
3. Did you know you get paid a Fostering Allowance of £335.70 a week to be a Foster Carer which is tax free and won’t affect any other benefits?
4. Most of the children who need fostering are known as ‘hard to place’ children, they will usually be 8+ years of age.

Fostering is a hard but very rewarding job. If you think you might have what it takes to become a Permanent Foster Carer or you want to find out more then contact PACT now on 0800 731 1845 e-mail fostering@pactcharity.org

I’m pleased (and relieved) to announce that all tickets for the Alan Ayckbourn play on 18 March are now sold. Arrangements for travel and distribution of the tickets will be decided much nearer the date.

And what are we doing in June or July? Shall we risk another open-air performance? Does anyone have any details? Otherwise the Committee will find something!

Do let me know if you wish to be added to or removed from the mailing list.

Malcolm Wright 850705

malcolmwright@f2s.com

Brodie Miller aged 11, who lives in Chilton Road started playing Badminton when she was 8 years old, it all started when she was lucky enough to train locally with Graham Wells who is a very keen junior coach.  With Graham’s help Brodie progressed quickly and was then able to train with the ex-Olympic Badminton team manager Paul Whetnall in Winchester, and has subsequently worked with many great coaches at a variety of locations.  Currently she trains at Milton Keynes, Winchester and Hounslow and plays at Compton.
Brodie is the current Essex and Berkshire U12 champion and is now involved in playing all of the Badminton England national gold tournaments.  The first of these was held at Milton Keynes in September where Brodie reached the semis in the singles and mixed doubles and along with her partner Joshwey Bong won the girls doubles.
Brodie has just achieved a major milestone having recently represented England as part of an U13 team in Denmark where she lost to the eventual winner in the quarterfinals of the singles and was runner-up in the mixed doubles.

As well as her badminton, Brodie is also a keen member of Abingdon Amblers and regularly runs for them in a range of events and has also been selected for the Berkshire U14 Netball County Academy (she attends a Berkshire school).
A short message from Brodie to anyone keen to make similar progress - You will need a lot of enthusiasm, commitment and dedication and you will also need to eat well and give up about 5 hours of your time each week for practice and play.  As both the training and the tournaments require so much travelling you will often have to do your homework in the car whilst being driven around by super and equally dedicated parents.

Good Luck Brodie, keep us informed of your future progress.