Maidstone Mobility Team Newsletter Autumn 2014 Dear all, we're half way through the year and already we've achieved so much! 11 new partnerships are in place, our branches have already brought in £15k more than this time last year, and 35 new volunteers have joined us this year in various roles including My Guide, speaker co-ordinators and boarder coordinator (Anita Knott). It was also fantastic to see so many volunteers join us for a BBQ during Volunteers Week. We have been busy trying to influence local town planners in Maidstone, Eastbourne and Ashford to build accessible town centres. We’ve continued to confront service providers who still refuse guide dog owners access, and we have trained 80 people on My Geraint Evans, Guide Level 1 which teaches people how to safely Mobility Team guide visually impaired people. Manager, enjoying volunteers’ BBQ on This is just a small selection of activities happening in 6 June. the team at the moment and I hope you'll enjoy the Autumn edition of our newsletter. Geraint Evans, Mobility Team Manager In This Issue ƒ ƒ ƒ ƒ ƒ ƒ News – Updates from the team Services – Service User Representative Volunteering – Volunteer Voices and how you can help Fundraising – Some fantastic fundraising news Campaigning – Engagement and campaigns updates What’s on – Dogs Unite and save the dates Guide Dogs Maidstone Mobility Team, 6 James Whatman Court, Turkey Mill, Ashford Road, Maidstone ME14 5SS Tel: 0845 372 7422 email: maidstone@guidedogs.org.uk website: www.guidedogs.org.uk/maidstone News Updates From The Mobility Team We would like to introduce Emily, our new support worker. Emily comes to us from mote park vets where she was a trainee veterinary nurse. This is perfect as her time will be divided between supporting Susan and Vicky our dog care and welfare advisers and office support. On 13 September Emily will be doing a sponsored wing walk for Guide Dogs. Wing walking is where a person is strapped to the top wing of a vintage biplane, and swept through the skies at speeds of up to 135mph! If you would like to sponsor Emily in her dare devil stunt you can do so by going to her just giving page at www.justgiving.com/emwingwalk Access issues Please remember if you have any kind of access issue we want to hear about it. You can report it by calling the office on 0845 372 7422. An access issue could be anything: being refused a service such as a taxi ride, problems with a bus driver or refusal in to commercial premises such as shops and restaurants. Information for guide dog owners Please remember that if you are in a situation where your dog will not be working for more than 30 minutes, to remove your dog’s harness to ensure that your dog is comfortable. Follow and like Guide Dogs at: facebook.com/GuideDogs @guidedogs Guide Dogs Maidstone Mobility Team, 6 James Whatman Court, Turkey Mill, Ashford Road, Maidstone ME14 5SS Tel: 0845 372 7422 email: maidstone@guidedogs.org.uk website: www.guidedogs.org.uk/maidstone News Updates From The Mobility Team We are now issuing new ID Cards, which require a passport sized photo of you and your guide dog individually. The new Identity cards identify the owner and their dog as a Registered Assistance Dog Partnership. The new identification booklet is full of helpful information regarding the Equality Act 2010 and outlines the importance of 'accessibility' for all service users. We would like to get an ID Booklet out to you as soon as possible, so please send an individual photo of yourself and an individual photo of your guide dog to Simone.davis@guidedogs.org.uk or alternatively send them to our local office at: Unit 6 James Whatman court, Maidstone, Kent, ME14 5SS We now have several My Guide service users getting out and about with the help of our trained volunteers on routes they previously haven’t had the confidence to take. We are always in need of My Guide volunteers, especially in Brighton , Medway and Canterbury areas. For training dates or if you would like to know how to get involved please email me (details below). A stunning location and enthusiastic group resulted in a fantastic training session in July as 13 �Friends’ of Rochester Cathedral took part in sighted guide training. The Cathedral is working hard to make their attraction as accessible and interactive as possible and can now provide a confident sighted guiding service for all blind and partially sighted visitors. This is just one example of how we are working with local organisations to improve access and assistance. If you know of somewhere that could benefit from sighted guide training do get in touch – cassandra.moss@guidedogs.org.uk The service has got off to a good start but this is only the beginning – please keep spreading the word and getting people involved! – Cassi Moss Guide Dogs Maidstone Mobility Team, 6 James Whatman Court, Turkey Mill, Ashford Road, Maidstone ME14 5SS Tel: 0845 372 7422 email: maidstone@guidedogs.org.uk website: www.guidedogs.org.uk/maidstone Our Services Service Delivery Service delivery continues to be busy and we've done a bit of juggling with dogs over recent months Our target for partnerships this year is 35, and as at the end of June, we had qualified 11. We had hoped to have trained a few more people by this point, but interestingly, the majority of service users this year have either required or requested training at home. It's great to be able to respond to client needs whenever we can, but just means that the rolling domiciliary courses have skewed the numbers a little. Sadly, a couple of dogs that we had in advanced training didn't progress, but thank you to our volunteer boarders who took such good care of them for us. However, we've been able to source some extra dogs from other teams and we're all confident that we'll have a positive and productive Autumn and Winter, with noses to the grindstone! The team has received a number of enquiries from children and young people, one of these following our Family Experience Day in April. Our Senior Practitioner Kirsty Jackson is helping us hugely as we take these youngsters through the process and hopefully, they'll progress to either our guide dog or buddy dog waiting list soon. If you have questions regarding any aspect of service delivery, don't hesitate to call Veronica at the office. Update From Alison May, Service User Representative Some of you will soon be receiving information about the free-to-join membership scheme, “Friends of Guide Dogs”, available to service users and anyone with a significant sight loss. Benefits include discounts with some of the companies supporting Guide Dogs, a member’s community online forum and opportunities to help influence the future of Guide Dogs. More information can be found at guidedogs.org.uk/friends A reminder about the Blue Cross pet bereavement and support service for anyone who has lost their working/retired guide dog, puppy, buddy dog etc. Free phone 0800 096 6606. Please let me have feedback if you have used this service. Alison May with Peter Barker from Tunbridge Wells We’re very excited about the line-up for our Variety Show on 21 March, 2015, consisting of professional and semi-professional acts, some of whom are guide dog owners. Tickets on sale from the Hazlitt Theatre from December 2014 – more details soon, but do put the date in your diary! Alison May - Mobility Team Service User Representative 01304 853477 Alison.may@guidedogs.org.uk Volunteering Volunteer Voices The Volunteer Voices group met on 3 July. We were pleased to see a number of new faces around the table in response to the open invite in the last newsletter. The next meeting is at our Turkey Mill office on Thursday 30 October at 10am for a 10.30am start – do let Ruth Howard, volunteering consultant, know if you’d like to come along or to be put in touch with your representative(s) on the group. Given the timing of the meeting, we can guess that we’ll be asked to review how this year’s Guide Dogs Week has gone. Volunteer Voices can only be a truly effective forum for communication and feedback between volunteers and staff if you tell us what you think by coming along or contacting your reps. A good time was had by all at our Volunteers Week Thank You Barbecue on 6 June – it was a splendid early summer’s day for enjoying good company and chat as well as a scrumptious lunch. Thanks Geraint, Jen and Cassi for flipping the burgers so beautifully! Volunteer Hot Spots All branches would welcome more support from guide dog owners and puppy walkers. If you don’t know who your branch contacts are, get in touch with Ruth or Kate and we’ll give you details. We’d also like more boarders for advanced training dogs around Maidstone, more drivers and My Guide volunteers. Most people volunteer because someone asked them, so please help by asking your friends, family, neighbours and work colleagues to think about giving us some of their time. Guide Dogs Maidstone Mobility Team, 6 James Whatman Court, Turkey Mill, Ashford Road, Maidstone ME14 5SS Tel: 0845 372 7422 email: maidstone@guidedogs.org.uk website: www.guidedogs.org.uk/maidstone Fundraising Stand Out for Guide Dogs Week: 4 – 12 October 2014 Back by popular demand with the high-viz yellow colour, the theme for Guide Dogs Week will be “Stand Out for Guide Dogs!” Guide Dogs will be asking all branches and the great british public to join us and organise their own “Stand Out” event, be it a coffee morning with friends or a quiz night, to organising a dress in yellow day at work/school. We would love to have you “Stand Out!” with us. Log on to guidedogs.org.uk for more details and to see what is going on near you, visit guidedogs.org.uk/Maidstone An Amazing Year Of Fundraising At Chart Hills Golf Club, Biddenden. From April 2013 for one calendar year, Jane Brise, Ladies Captain and Tim Brise, Men's Captain at Chart Hills Golf Club Biddenden supported Guide Dogs. Jane and Tim organised a range of fundraising events at the Club and raised a staggering £14,200. Both Jane and Tim have decided to name two guide dog puppies, one to be called Annabelle (Bella) and the other Frank. Community fundraiser, Kate Hunter says “In my twenty years working in charity, I have never known a golf club to raise such a staggering total. Jane and Tim worked tirelessly during their year of captaincy but they recognise that without the support and generosity of the members and the management of Chart Hills, this gift to Guide Dogs would not have been possible. Guide Dogs wish to thank Jane and Tim and everyone at Chart Hills for their very generous support” Fundraising And Information About Guide Dogs For School One important web address for our speakers as well as, teachers and club leaders is guidedogs.org.uk/schools. There you will find a wealth of resources to download and use in talks and in class. So far this year, Invicta School Maidstone, Dartford Grammar for Boys, Senacre school in Maidstone, Beacon Academy in Crowborough & Fulston Manor School in Sittingbourne have named or sponsored a puppy Kate Hunter receiving the staggering £14,200 cheque from members of Chart Hills Golf Club. Guide Dogs Maidstone Mobility Team, 6 James Whatman Court, Turkey Mill, Ashford Road, Maidstone ME14 5SS Tel: 0845 372 7422 email: maidstone@guidedogs.org.uk website: www.guidedogs.org.uk/maidstone Campaigning Hello everyone, it’s been a few months since I came back from maternity leave and although being a mum to a very active toddler keeps me busy I feel like I’ve now got my feet back under the table. We have been busy since the last newsletter attending a number of events, including the opening of an accessible park in Brighton called The Level, The Kent Police open weekend and the Kent County Show in July. The Kent Police open weekend was a huge success, raising £1016. This is fantastic, as we were there to raise awareness of Guide Dogs and visual impairment, and not to fundraise. We’re also working closely with The Kent Association for the Blind, Eastbourne Blind Society and East Sussex Association for the Blind, to present a united front when it comes to shared space schemes. In the coming months I hope to be working closely with the Kent Police to put in place a Service Level Agreement so officers know the procedure to follow when a guide dog is attacked or police come in to contact with a guide dog and their owner. Talking Buses 81% of buses in the UK still do not have audio visual next stop and final destination announcement systems that are essential for people with sight loss, many of whom rely on buses as their only means of transport. Guide Dogs is calling on the Government to ensure all new buses are fitted with audio visual, as recommended by the Transport Select Committee group of MPs. Rachael, Cassi, Zoe, Hetal and Simone with officers at the Kent Police open weekend. Dog Attacks A recently passed law makes an attack on an assistance dog an aggravated offence with a sentence of up to three years in prison in England, Scotland and Wales. Micro chipping is already compulsory in Northern Ireland and will be compulsory in Wales by 2015 and England by 2016. The Scottish Government is currently consulting on whether micro chipping will be compulsory in Scotland. Guide Dogs Maidstone Mobility Team, 6 James Whatman Court, Turkey Mill, Ashford Road, Maidstone ME14 5SS Tel: 0845 372 7422 email: maidstone@guidedogs.org.uk website: www.guidedogs.org.uk/maidstone Events What's On Dogs Unite! Sponsored Dog Walk at Leeds Castle, 11am on 5 October To celebrate Guide Dogs Week, Maidstone Mobility Team will be staging a Dogs Unite! A beautiful three-mile sponsored dog walk in the grounds of Leeds Castle followed by a hot drink and BBQ. Walk starts/finishes from the Upper Parkland field, off Burberry Lane, Leeds Village (follow direction signs on day as access is not via the main entrance to Leeds Castle). Entry fee is £5 per person. You can download sponsorship forms, register and get further details at www.guidedogs.org.uk/dogs-unite or contact Kate Hunter, community fundraiser on 0774 701 8959 or kate.hunter@guidedogs.org.uk Guide Dogs Week 4 – 12 October 2014 Back by popular demand, the theme will be �Stand Out for Guide Dogs!’ We’ll be asking the great British public to join us and organise their own �Stand Out’ events - a coffee morning, a quiz night, a �dress in yellow’ day. Everyone can �Stand Out’ with us. More details at guidedogs.org.uk Volunteers’ Christmas Get Together Saturday 29 November at Grove Green Community Hall, Grovewood Drive, Weavering, Kent, ME14 5BT from 11am – 2pm Mulled wine and mince pies will be provided. All volunteers warmly invited – RSVP to Ruth on 0845 372 7422 or 07717 880504 by 21 November Registered charity in England and Wales (209617) and in Scotland (SCO38979) Guide Dogs Maidstone Mobility Team, 6 James Whatman Court, Turkey Mill, Ashford Road, Maidstone ME14 5SS Tel: 0845 372 7422 email: maidstone@guidedogs.org.uk website: www.guidedogs.org.uk/maidstone
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