Leicestershire ProHelp is a network of professional firms offering free professional advice and strategic support for one-off projects for the voluntary and community sector.

Member firms include solicitors, website developers, graphic designers, marketing consultants, accountants, architects, IT experts, and surveyors who commit to offering support free of charge each year on a range of projects.

For more information and application pack please contact Katharine Lightbown, Community Development Coordinator, at Leicestershire Cares: 0116 275 6469 or katharine@leicestershirecares.co.uk

The Patient and Public Involvement Forum for Leicestershire Partnership Trust, working for mental health, comprises of un-paid volunteers and concerns itself with mental health and learning disability services within Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.
The Forum values its role as ‘critical friend’ of Leicestershire Partnership Trust, as it is independent of the NHS, and would like to see continual improvement in services offered to patients and the public.

The Forum holds meetings throughout Leicestershire and Rutland, some of which are public meetings (some in John Storer House), and has the power to conduct surveys, inspections of services and service providers throughout the County.

Please keep a look out for posters and announcements in the local press for our public meetings, and please do come along.
For further details of Leicestershire Partnership Forum working for mental health, please contact Jon on 0116 273 6506, or j.davis@carersfederation.co.uk
By Jon Davis

The purpose of the Community Development Forum is to bring together community workers, community representatives and people who have an interest in community development issues to share information and best practice.

Membership is drawn from a wide range of organisations working in Charnwood.
Meetings are topic focused, with speakers and presentations from agencies and projects. Meetings are usually held in locations around the Borough every three months, and include an information-sharing slot and the opportunity for people to network over lunch.

The next Charnwood Community Development Forum will be on the topic Learning in the Community, on Thursday 14 September, 10.30am with lunch at 1pm, at the Moira Centre, Moira Street, Loughborough.

If you would like to be included on the Forum’s mailing list and receive invites to the meetings, please contact: Vicci Barrett on 01509 631787 or vicci.barrett@
charnwoodcvs.org.uk

The Market Place in Loughborough will resound to the sound of energetic drummers over lunchtime for World Mental Health Day which this year is on Tuesday October 10th. This will be entertaining and remind us all of the importance of mental health in our lives and what we can do to keep as mentally fit as possible.

I have no idea what the weather will be doing by the time you are reading this, but at the moment it is still scorching hot. It becomes very difficult to manage the project at times like this as our first responsibility is to our volunteers. Adults with learning difficulties can be particularly vulnerable in extreme weather conditions and it is up to us to keep them safe and as comfortable as possible. The solution so far has been to forgo digging and the like and hold numerous training sessions in the shade of the oak tree. It is in fact a great opportunity to go over good health and safety practices, gardening techniques and tool identification, also to update our tool inventory.

Specialist Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) are a comprehensive range of services available within the local community, which provide help and treatment to children and young people who are experiencing mental health problems, disorders and illnesses.

The voluntary sector plays a vital part in the provision of services to children, young people and their families - and to ensure that the voluntary sector is kept up to date with Specialist CAMHS processes, periodic information events throughout the City and the County are held. At these events, referral processes, children and young people’s mental health and the services within CAMHS are discussed. For more information about these free events, please contact the Primary Mental Health Team on 0116 225 2918.

In my role as a CAMHS community development worker for Black and Minority Ethnic communities, I work alongside the Primary Mental Health Team at community events around the City and the County. We have information stands that highlight relevant services/issues for particular communities, and much of our information is in the process of being translated, so as to be able to address the stigma of mental health across all communities. We also try to provide information packs in relevant languages for parents and carers, highlighting local services, as well as information on how they can help their child with issues such as bullying, etc.

If you are holding an event, please contact me on 0116 295 4139/ 07919 690793 to see how we can work together.

by Rachana Vyas

From October 2006 age discrimination will be unlawful in employment and vocational training.

One of our roles as a CVS is to hold up-to-date information on local organisations and, with your consent, to share this with people and agencies who might want to know more about your services and activities. In order to lobby for and represent the interests of the sector we also want to build up an accurate picture of the local voluntary and community sector.

All the organisations currently on our database will shortly be receiving a letter and questionnaire asking for this information - please take the time to complete this and return it in the freepost envelope provided. The mailing will also include information about membership of Charnwood CVS and an invitation to renew your membership. If you don’t understand any part of the form or would like help to complete it, or if you have any questions about membership, please get in touch with Janet Walker on 01509 631750.

From the 1st of October Leicestershire County and Rutland Primary Care Trust (PCT) will be formed.

Catherine Griffiths has been named Chief Executive for the new PCT and John Grant, current Melton Rutland and Harborough PCT Chair, will be the new Chairman.

Initially Catherine will be based temporarily at Lakeside House, the former Strategic Health Authority headquarters in Leicester, until there is agreement on the new PCT headquarters.

If you are interested in receiving updates on involvement of the Voluntary and Community Sector with Health and Social Care, please contact Sallianne Thomas 01509 631785 or sallianne.thomas@charnwoodcvs.org.uk

Choose and Book is a new emerging NHS service, that will eventually be available to all patients, that allows you to choose your hospital or clinic and book an appointment with a specialist.

When you and your GP agree that you need an appointment with a specialist, Choose and Book – a computer resource available to GPs - shows which hospitals or clinics are available for your treatment. You will be able to choose from at least four hospitals or clinics and you will also be able to choose the date and time of your appointment.

If you know where and when you would like to be seen, you can, if there’s availability, book your appointment there and then, before you leave the surgery. Or you can take an appointment request letter away with you and book your appointment later.

For more information on Choose and Book contact PALS on 01509 564444