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New Amateur Investor Blog Launched

no@spam.com (Chief Editor) — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 23:00:00 UTC

A new website has been launched to record the trials and tribulations of an Amateur Investor.

www.amateurinvestor.co.uk is written by a real-life amateur investor who invests their own money in FTSE stocks and shares, unit trusts, fixed rate savings accounts, PIBS, corporate bonds and ETFs.

The blog is aimed at other amateur investors would like to compare their own investing experiences with amateur investors across the country.

Car park to close for relining works

no@spam.com (Chief Editor) — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 23:00:00 UTC

Herefordshire Council is advising motorists that the Broad Street car park in Leominster will be closed on Sunday, September 11, so relining works can be carried out.

This date has been chosen to minimise disruption to commuters who use this popular car park during weekdays.

Herefordshire Council apologises for any inconvenience and thanks motorists for their co-operation by not parking on the car park for this day.

Five candidates nominated to stand in Hereford and South Herefordshire parliamentary election

no@spam.com (Chief Editor) — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 23:00:00 UTC

Five people have been nominated to stand in the Hereford and South Herefordshire parliamentary constituency for the general election which takes place on Thursday, May 6.

The candidates are:

Sarah Jane Carr – Liberal Democrats
Jesse Norman – The Conservative Party Candidate
John Oliver – British National Party
Philippa Louise Roberts – The Labour Party Candidate
Valentine James Smith – UK Independence Party (UKIP)

Residents who have chosen to vote by post should receive their ballot papers in the next week or so as the council is aiming to send out postal votes by Monday, April 26 at the latest.

Residents who have chosen to vote by proxy - this means they have appointed someone to vote on their behalf – have until 5pm on Tuesday, April 27, to return their completed application form to the electoral registration team based at Hereford Town Hall.

The application form can be found on the council’s website and is available from Info shops and libraries. Applicants may need to have their application vouched for, depending on the reasons.

If someone is unable to get to the polling station due to a medical emergency that has arisen after the normal deadline, they can apply to vote by proxy up to 5pm on the day of the election.

Six candidates nominated to stand in North Herefordshire parliamentary election

no@spam.com (Chief Editor) — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 23:00:00 UTC

Six people have been nominated to stand in the North Herefordshire parliamentary constituency for the general election which takes place on Thursday, May 6.

The candidates are:

Lucy Ann Hurds – Liberal Democrats
John King - Independent
Felicity Mary Norman – Green Party
Jonathan Paul Oakton – United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP)
Neil Sabharwal – The Labour Party Candidate
Bill Wiggin – The Conservative Party Candidate

South Wye Girls help grant magical wishes

no@spam.com (Chief Editor) — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 23:00:00 UTC

Girls in South Wye Hereford have raised nearly £200 to help grant magical wishes to children and young people fighting life-threatening illnesses.

The girls’ group was set up by Herefordshire Council’s youth service and meets on a weekly basis at Hinton Community Centre. Every term the group gather together with the council’s youth workers to agree a programme of activities. Cooking, drama, arts and crafts, volunteering, outdoor education, days out and fundraising are all on offer amongst other things and on this occasion, the girls decided to hold a bag packing fundraising event at the Tesco Store in Belmont. In just two hours they raised nearly £200 from members of the public for the Make-A-Wish Foundation UK. The young people decided on this particular charity as they wanted to help children and young people who may be a similar age to themselves.

Sarah Melia, Herefordshire Council youth worker, said: “The girls worked really hard to plan the event, and make sure all went smoothly on the night. Many thanks to all the generous shoppers who supported them and a big thank you to Tescos for letting them hold the fundraising activity in their store.

Raising funds for other young people is a great way to bring young people together and put something back into society. They learn a whole range of skills in organising such events, totting up the cash and arranging donations to the charity of their choice.”

“We have a great group of young women aged 11-19, who are great fun and are always coming up with new and exciting ideas.”

The Girls’ Group meets on a weekly basis from 6:30-9:00pm at Hinton Community Centre and new members are most welcome. Just turn up or ring Sarah Melia for details on 01432 383376 or 07792 880199.

Creative cooking with local food in Herefordshire

no@spam.com (Chief Editor) — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 23:00:00 UTC

The twelfth annual Flavours of Herefordshire awards scheme has been launched - giving the county's best chefs, restaurateurs, publicans, accommodation providers and food producers another chance to “get creative with local food”.

Flavours of Herefordshire is one of the longest-running schemes in the UK, recognising and rewarding the use-and-promotion of local produce.

And the full list of categories for the 2010 Flavours of Herefordshire competition is now featured at www.visitherefordshire.co.uk.

As well as being one of the longest-running, the scheme is also one of the very best examples of how an area of Britain can celebrate its regional flavours.

"The award scheme recognises quality and excellence in the marketing and use of the local food and drink that is served here in the county, and how that distinctiveness is promoted to the wider public," said Jane Lewis, of VisitHerefordshire.

"The annual highlight is the Food Festival, in October, where – as well as creating an incredible showcase for the very best food and drink in the county – we also celebrate our Flavours of Herefordshire award winners at a gala presentation evening on the eve of the Festival.”

As such, the 12th annual Flavours of Herefordshire competition will this year reach its conclusion on Friday, October 23, when popular TV chefs “The Hairy Bikers” will be the guests of honour at the prize-giving dinner.

Awards in ten separate categories are up-for-grabs in this year’s Flavours of Herefordshire competition which sees the appearance of a prize for the county’s best cider and perry producer for the first time.

Also new for 2010 will be an award for best co-operative venture (aimed at showing the benefits to be derived from individual small businesses working together); and the naming of a “Herefordshire food champion”, with nominations being invited from the residents and visitors to Herefordshire.

Copies the current Flavours of Herefordshire Food Festival leaflet can be obtained free of charge by telephoning 01432 260621.

For full details, visit www.visitherefordshire.co.uk

NHS Herefordshire trials new security system for its lone workers

no@spam.com (Chief Editor) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 23:00:00 UTC

NHS Herefordshire has begun a trial of new security devices designed to help protect its “lone workers” – staff who work on their own in the community such as district nurses and health visitors.

The new system allows NHS staff to signal discreetly for assistance should they feel vulnerable or distressed when working alone – for example due to aggression from patients or their relatives.

Wendy Huxley Marko, head of corporate risk at NHS Herefordshire said: “It should be noted that such incidents are extremely rare in the county and staff already have safe systems of work in place to ensure that others are always aware of their whereabouts and work schedule. However, we do not want to be complacent and feel that it is beneficial to test these new devices to see if they provide our staff with additional security”.

As part of a national initiative from the Department of Health, personal security alarms are made available for NHS lone workers to monitor and record incidents where they feel their safety is threatened in any way. The devices are able to track a staff member’s location via a postcode, and should an incident occur the alarm is raised with a national call centre, who can locate the individual via a GPS-style system. The call centre staff are specially trained to handle the calls, including being able to recognise when an alarm has been raised by accident. Where appropriate, the emergency services can be contacted and sent to the location.

The training for nominated staff began in Herefordshire in January 2010 and the new devices went live as soon as training was completed.

Resignations leave two Herefordshire Council seats up for grabs

no@spam.com (Chief Editor) — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 23:00:00 UTC

Residents of two Herefordshire wards could have more than just an MP to elect at the forthcoming general election on Thursday, May 6.

Following the resignation of two Herefordshire Council councillors – Cllr Rees Mills and Cllr Kay Swinburne – voters in the Hope End and Ledbury wards will also be voting for a new councillor to represent them locally if the two seats are contested.

Polling stations will be open from 7am to 10pm on May 6 and the result will be announced at the count which will take place at the leisure centre on Holmer Road on the evening of the election.

Voters are reminded that the deadline for new applications to vote by post, or to change existing postal or proxy arrangements, should reach the electoral registration officer based at the Town Hall in St Owen Street, Hereford by 5pm on Tuesday, April 20.

New applications to vote by proxy must be received at the Town Hall by 5pm on Tuesday, April 27.

Snap up a discounted compost bin

no@spam.com (Chief Editor) — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 23:00:00 UTC

Herefordshire Council and Worcestershire County Council are once again offering residents the chance to get discounted compost bins delivered direct to their front door.

The home compost bin scheme is back for the new season and prices remain the same as last year.

On offer is a choice of a green or black bin from £12 for a 220 litre compost bin (£7 + £5 delivery) or £15 for a 330 litre compost bin (£10 + £5 delivery). Residents can get a second bin half price and when ordering more than one bin residents only pay one £5 delivery charge.

A wider range of compost bins are also available plus wormeries and Bokashi systems and composting accessories to help people to continue composting or try it for the first time.

Composting provides a free source of nutrients to help the garden grow and it also prevents waste going to landfill. As the weather starts to improve, householders will have more garden waste, such as grass cuttings. Garden waste can be mixed with other ingredients e.g. egg boxes, scrunched up paper and vegetable peelings, to create excellent compost.

Councillor John Jarvis, Herefordshire Council’s cabinet member for environment and strategic housing, said: "The new compost bins are good news for residents. We hope that we can continue to promote home composting and encourage those people not already composting to do so.

“We will also continue to provide further support to those already keen on reducing their household waste, especially through the new recycling scheme which has seen the amount of materials being recycled treble in just a few months of operation,” he added.

Bins can be ordered online by visiting http://hw.getcomposting.com or by calling 0844 571 4444.

Herefordshire’s childminder network given thumbs up for top standards

no@spam.com (Chief Editor) — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 23:00:00 UTC

Herefordshire has some of the best childminders in the country. The local childminder network run by Herefordshire Council has just been given the thumbs up by the National Childminding Association (NCMA) for a further three years.

Childminders work in their own homes, providing care and education for children of all ages, from very young babies to teenagers. By law, all childminders who care for children under the age of eight must be registered with Ofsted and subjected to regular inspections in the same way that nurseries and pre-schools are.

A childminding network is a group of registered childminders supported by a network co-ordinator who is employed to manage the childminders and work with parents and local organisations that use the network’s services.

To become part of Herefordshire Council’s network, childminders have to go through the National Childminding Association’s quality assurance scheme Children Come First. The scheme involves learning about children’s development, the importance of learning through play and how this can be stimulated to give children the best possible start in life.

Once accredited, network childminders can offer parents and carers foundation stage education, providing them with flexible choices over where they access their nursery education fund entitlement.

Herefordshire’s network and the way it is managed is inspected by the Nation Childminding Association (NCMA) who visit every three years to make sure the standards remain constant in the network for reaccreditation. The network has just been given the thumbs up for a further three years; the NCMA assessor reported that Herefordshire’s childminder network is strong and delivers a high quality service to the childminders, children and families of Herefordshire. The assessor also noted that links have been established and developed with the county’s nine children’s centres, and that services provided are professional and developed specifically to meet the needs of local families.

Councillor Jenny Hyde, cabinet member for children’s services, said: “Herefordshire Council’s childminder network is growing from strength to strength. We now have 35 members and as more people than ever before want to become childminders, many from professional backgrounds, we anticipate the network will continue to grow.

“We are clearly delighted that the network has been reaccredited. By making sure we have a strong professional body of childminders in Herefordshire, we are able to provide parents and carers with choice.

“Looking after very young children is becoming a career option for many as learning and development during the early years becomes more widely understood. Three of the county’s childminders have gone through a system of training and support to turn them into early years professionals and are able to provide support to other childminders as a result.

“As children grow and develop, we find that many parents and carers continue to employ their childminders. They build up long lasting relationships with the children they look after staying with them as they grow from babies to young adults needing help with homework at secondary school.”