Hello newsletter
Winter 2016 edition
We are a charity that helps people living with sight loss
and a range of other disabilities to achieve their
ambitions and go beyond expectations.
Henshaws, 10 Duke Street, Liverpool L1 5AS
Phone: 0151 708 7055
Visit: henshaws.org.uk
Contents
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Welcome
Henshaws Stories
Groups’ Updates
Timetable
Community Services News
Fundraising Updates
Other News, Services and Useful
Numbers
Hello and welcome to the winter 2016 edition of
Henshaws ‘Hello’ Newsletter
We hope you had a wonderful Christmas break, and welcome to
2017! In this edition of ‘Hello’, you’ll read about the latest
news and updates from our Community Services team, including
our award winning ‘Pathway to Independence’ and new handy
Life Hacks series. You can also find out what our Liverpool
Friendship Matters groups have been up to over the last few
months, including our children and families’ festive trip to
Farmer Ted's Farm Park in December.
You’ll hear from Sylvia, who kindly shared her story on Charles
Bonnet Syndrome in the magazine ‘Chat’, which is distributed
to over 320,000 people UK wide, and did a fantastic job in
raising the profile of a little-known condition.
We hope you enjoy reading our round off to 2016, and I look
forward to sharing more of Henshaws’ news and stories with you
throughout 2017.
Robert Cooper, Director of Services, North West and North
East
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Henshaws Stories
Sylvia Wood
We are very grateful to one of our
Manchester group members, Sylvia
Wood, for speaking out about her
experience of Charles Bonnet
Syndrome in a recent edition of ‘Chat
Magazine’ (15th September) to raise
awareness about the condition.
Sylvia, who was registered blind in
2012, describes her experience. “I was at home when I suddenly
saw 10 children sitting on my living room floor. What on earth?
I spluttered, blinking frantically. The image disappeared & I
knew what I’d seen wasn’t real - it was like my mind was
playing tricks on me. Over the next few months it kept
happening; the images would last for seconds then disappear
when I blinked. I worried that I might be going senile, but I was
too scared to mention anything to my husband or my GP.”
It was only when Sylvia heard a friend at Henshaws talking
about a similar experience that she discovered she had Charles
Bonnet Syndrome, a condition that can be caused by the brain’s
reaction to vision loss. “There’s no cure, but I was just so
relieved I wasn’t going mad,” Sylvia says. “Now I’m learning to
live with my hallucinations, but when I first started seeing
things it was terrifying - that’s why I’m telling my story. I hope
I can help other people experiencing symptoms like mine.
Hallucinations might just be your eyes playing tricks, so please
don’t suffer in silence, fearing the worst.”
If you would like information, support or advice about
Charles Bonnet Syndrome, please get in touch with our First
Step team on 0161 872 1234.
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Groups’ Updates
A look back at 2016 Liverpool Henshaws
2016 saw the introduction of some new and exciting groups and
programmes such as; Well-Fit, Zumba, Core Strength, Baking
Group, Healthy Kitchen Skills, Memory Sessions and not
forgetting - the addition of Scurry Club. Our groups have
enjoyed these new additions greatly, and here are some of their
words on how they found the groups:
Healthy Kitchen Skills:
“This course has made me more adventurous. I used to cook the
same thing over and over again. I have now started buying lots
of different things, and trying new things.”
Well-Fit:
“I feel good after
coming along, I feel
more motivated to do
more.” “It’s fun and
suits my abilities and
needs.”
Memory Sessions:
“I was apprehensive
at first, but I have
really enjoyed it!”
Supper club is still going strong with theme nights such as
Chinese, Greek, Caribbean, Mexican, French, best of British, a
BBQ evening, and then finishing off 2016 with the Christmas
party where we were treated to some live entertainment!
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And not forgetting all our regular groups - History Group, Music
Group, Creative Writing, Braille, Core Strength, Yoga, Social
Group and daytime Lunch group. We would like to thank you all
for your on-going support and for all our volunteers who help to
run these groups.
We’ve had some fantastic
trips and social activities
recently, including visiting
Blitz Hill, Palm House,
Shiverpool, the Tate
Exhibition, a tour of the
Maritime Museum, and the
Putting on the Glitz
exhibition.
It was wonderful to finish the year with the Adelphi Christmas
party for all our adult service users, and the children’s
Christmas party at Farmer Ted’s Farm Park. One new parent
joined us at Farmer Ted’s and had this to say:
“This was our first ever visit to Farmer Ted’s and with it being
Christmas it was just magical! There were lots to see and to do
and families were catered for brilliantly. We thoroughly enjoyed
going through the winter wonderland and seeing Santa. We have
an amazing family photo which we will treasure forever.
There were lots of animals to see and the sensory feedback for
my son being visually impaired was great. Thank you so much
for giving us this opportunity to have a family day out and enjoy
the experience together.”
2017 holds even more fantastic groups and programmes that we
hope you will show support and come along and take part in.
Read on to see what’s new at Henshaws this year!
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Upcoming groups and events
New Walking Group
Improve your fitness, get some fresh air, enjoy
some beautiful scenery and make new friends at our
Walking Group! Our new group will meet every Wednesday,
meeting at Henshaws (10 Duke Street, Liverpool) before we set
off. This group is free, and there’s no need to book – just turn
up for 11.30am.
Rest stops will be available throughout the routes, and if you
require one-to-one assistance please bring a guide along with
you. For further information, get in touch on 0151 707 7055.
New Culture Group
Are you interested in the culture Liverpool has to
offer? Our new Culture Group will be visiting
many interesting places in Liverpool such as
the Liver Building, the Beatles Museum, Town
Hall, Liverpool Anglican Cathedral, Museum of
Liverpool and the Chinese Community Hall.
The group meets on the first Friday of every month starting on
Friday 3rd February at 11am, meeting at Henshaws (10 Duke
Street, Liverpool) first. Carers are welcome if one-to-one help is
needed, as we are unable to provide assistance. For further
information, get in touch with Adele, Kerry or Hannah on 0151
707 7055.
Music and Pizza Day - Monday, 20th
February 2017
Come and join us for a fun and exciting
day of music and pizza making!
Henshaws and Action for Blind People
will be working together to bring this
exciting opportunity for children and
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young people aged 8-17 at our Liverpool Centre (10 Duke
Street).
Activities will include:
 DJ workshop
 Making delicious pizza
 Eating delicious pizza!
 A beat box band session
Get in touch with Sophie on 0151 708 7055 to register your
interest or email [email protected].
Henshaws Merseyside Timetable
Monday
Yoga
Touch Typing
History Group
Lunch Club
Well Fit!
(Fortnightly)
(Fortnightly)
Time
1100 – 1200
1300 – 1500
1300 – 1500
1300 – 1500
1630 – 1800
£
£5.00
Free
Free
£5.00
£5.00
Tuesday
Music Club
Tech Talk
(Monthly)
Creative Writing (Fortnightly)
1000 – 1200 Free
1000 – 1200 Free
1345 – 1545 Free
Wednesday
Braille Group
Supper Club
Scurry Club
Walking Group
(Weekly
(Monthly)
(Monthly)
(Weekly)
1030 – 1200
1600 – 1800
1600 - 1900
1130 - 1300
Thursday
Social Group
PSS Group
(Fortnightly)
(Monthly)
1200 – 1400 TBC
1330 – 1530 Free
6
Free
£8.00
£7.00
Free
Friday
IT drop in
Core Strength
Culture Club
(Monthly)
1000 – 1600
1400 – 1500 £5.00
1100 – 1430 Free
To find out more about any of the groups and courses we have
running at our Liverpool centre, get in touch on 0151 708 7055
or visit https://henshaws.org.uk/courses-merseyside.
Arts and Culture
Audio Described Events: January – March 2017
The following list has been compiled from information provided
by Anne Hornsby of Minds Eye Professional Description Service,
The Lowry and Vocaleyes. Most theatre performances include a
touch-tour about an hour before the performance and you can
check with the Box Office or Mind’s Eye for details. You can also
check ticket prices (including concessions) and book your seats
and headsets in advance through the Box Office. NB/ Most
theatres offer special prices to blind and visually impaired
people, so please enquire; the telephone numbers are at the
end of the listings.
January 2017
16 7:30pm Billy Elliot
26 7:30pm Educating Rita
Palace Theatre
Bolton Octagon
February
16 7:30pm Gaslight
24 7:30pm Funny Girl
Oldham Coliseum
Palace Theatre
March
6 5pm
Ashes
9 7:30pm Fiddler on the Roof
11 2pm
Cinderella (Opera North)
Bolton Octagon
Liverpool Everyman
The Lowry
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Useful telephone numbers:
Mind's Eye
01204 522481 or 07889 232438
Bolton Octagon Theatre
01204 520661
HOME
0161 200 1500
Liverpool Empire Theatre
0844 871 7677
Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse
0151 709 4776
Oldham Coliseum Theatre
0161 624 1731
Palace Theatre & Opera House, Manchester 0161 245 6605
Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester
0845 450 4808
The Lowry
0843 208 6000
The Lowry Galleries
0161 876 2057
VocalEyes
0207 375 1043
Community Services News
Staff changes
In 2016 we had a few staff changes and sadly we saw Sara
Deegan and Paul Ryan move on to pastures new. We would like
to pause and take the opportunity to thank them for all their
hard work at Henshaws Liverpool.
We have had two new members of staff who we would like to
introduce to you;
Caroline Waring If you’ve been to our centre this month
you might already have met Caroline,
who is our new Community Services
Administrator in Liverpool.
Caroline works 21 hours a week and
joined the Liverpool team at the start
on 2017. She has a lovely bubble
personality and has already fitted into
our team well!
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Sophie Thompson –
Sophie is our new enablement officer
for children and young people. Since
starting in July, Sophie has been
bringing the ‘I Can Do It!’ course to
Merseyside as well as being involved
in other fun activities with Children
and Families.
Sophie first came to Henshaws last
year as a sessional worker whilst
studying towards her degree in
Mathematics and Education Studies.
After graduating this summer, she took on her new role!
In her free time - Sophie loves making music, mixing on her
decks and going to gigs.
Conquering Digital Accessibility for Disabled People – new
eBook chapter
We’ve released the latest chapter of our eBook ‘step-by-step
guides to living with disabilities’ - our free, practical guide
which is written for and by people living with disabilities.
Chapter 4 features finding and using digital devices which can
support visually impaired people within their working and dayto-day lives, and shares our volunteer Tom’s own personal tips.
If you’d like a copy of our book in Word or PDF, you can either
visit henshaws.org.uk/ebook to download your free copy, or ask
a member of staff.
Henshaws Life Hacks
At Henshaws, our ultimate goal is to create an ‘accessible
community’, where anyone with a visual impairment and their
caring network of family and friends can access support and
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knowledge to provide them with the opportunity to be the best
they can be and go beyond expectations.
You might have heard about our Life Hacks which we’ve started
sharing this year. Our short videos and eBook share different
'tips, tricks and tech', covering everything from managing money
to getting around in the garden, with the aim of helping those
living with sight loss lead a more independent life.
In 'Hello', we’ve started sharing any great tips we get and in this
edition, Trefor Jones from Todmorden shares this top tip: when
baking a pie, you can tell when the crust is done using a colour
reader. Before it’s cooked, the reader will say the pastry is
‘light yellow’ and, when you think it’s ready, check again with
the colour reader - it should now say ‘dark yellow’. A great tip
for the perfect pastry, especially when you’re baking pies this
cold winter season!
If you have a life hack that works well for you, get in touch at
[email protected], so we can share your useful tip with
others. If you’d like to see more of our Life Hacks, you can
check out 52 other 'tricks, tips & tech' as well as our short
videos at henshaws.org.uk/lifehacks.
Our Pathway to Independence is award winning
We're very pleased to be able to announce that in October, our
team won a national award at the UK Visionary conference for
their Pathway to Independence delivery model.
The annual Visionary conference shares best practice to
improve the quality of service provided to people with sight loss
across the UK, and our Pathway to Independence model won
‘Best Example of Service Delivery’. Fiona, Helen, Mark and Rob
were there to receive the award, and even demonstrated our
new Life Hacks videos and some of our ‘I Can Do It’ activities.
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Last year, our ‘Pathway to Independence’ model trained 607
people, supported 935 new people and provided, on average,
402 people with new friendship opportunities every month. Well
done to everyone involved!
Fundraising Updates
Christmas Raffle
Thank you so much for all your help in selling raffle tickets for
this year’s Christmas raffle. In total, we sold 4,704 tickets which
is absolutely great! All the money raised from the tickets has
gone towards our Friendship Matters groups, and the lucky
winners are on the website at henshaws.org.uk/news.
Lottery
Henshaws lottery has had a £25,000 winner!
Aliesha from Yorkshire won the jackpot after
playing since just November. Aliesha's great
Grandma worked for Henshaws, and she
described why she initially played the lottery:
"The lottery is really worth signing up for, I only played to
support the charity, I never thought I'd win! It feels nice to give
back to such a great cause, it's so worthwhile!"
Don't forget, you can play the lottery from just £1 per week,
with money going towards our life-changing support. You can
sign-up online at henshaws.org.uk/lottery, or if you want to find
out more, contact our fundraising team on 0161 786 3656 or
email Holly at [email protected].
Henshaws awards 2017 – nominations are now open
Within the Henshaws community, there are lots of people who
achieve more than they can imagine each year. This is your
chance to recognise their achievements by nominating them for
one of our seven categories 11
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




Gillian Lawrence Award
Technology Award
Friendship Matters Award
Henshaws Young Person of the Year (under 12)
Henshaws Young Person of the Year (12-25)
Volunteer of the Year
Visual impaired Friendly Business of the Year
You can find out more about each category and nominate online
at henshaws.org.uk/news/henshaws-awards-2017, or ask for a
form from a member of staff. The deadline for nominations is
Friday 7th April 2017.
We would love to get as many nominations as possible, so please
spread the word! Please contact the fundraising team if you
need any more information at 0161 786 3656, or email Holly at
[email protected].
Other News, Services and Useful Numbers
Stay well this winter
Henshaws is supporting the 2016/17 NHS 'Stay Well This Winter'
campaign. The NHS have shared their five top tips to keep well:
(1) Make sure you get your 'flu jab
The 'flu jab is free for those aged 65 or over, those having
a long-term health condition, children aged 2, 3 or 4, or
are in school years 1, 2 or 3; it may also be available if
you’re someone’s main carer. Speak to your GP or
pharmacist, or visit nhs.uk/getflujab.
(2) Keep your home at 18°C (65°F) or higher if you can.
Keeping warm over the winter months can help to
prevent colds, 'flu and more serious health problems.
Make sure you wrap up and keep the windows closed.
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(3) Take advantage of financial schemes and discounts to
help you pay for heating.
You can make sure you’re receiving all the help you’re
entitled to at www.gov.uk/phe/keep-warm.
(4) Visit your local pharmacist as soon as you start to feel
unwell with the symptoms of a winter illness.
At the first sign of a respiratory winter illness, or even if
it’s just a cough or cold, get advice from your
pharmacist, before it gets more serious. The sooner you
get advice from a pharmacist the better!
(5) Look out for other people who may need a bit of extra
help over the winter.
Try and keep in touch with friends, neighbours and family
and ask if they need any practical help, or if they’re
feeling under the weather. Make sure they can get a
supply of food and any prescription medicines before the
Christmas holidays start and if bad weather is forecast.
For more information and advice about staying well this winter,
visit www.nhs.uk/staywell.
Tips on how to improve energy in your home
Henshaws have started to work with NEA action for warm homes
to promote energy efficiency and help prevent fuel poverty. We
have some top tips from the NEA on improving the energy
efficiency of your home –
 Insulating your loft or insulating your walls can save you up
to £250 a year.
 Draught-proofing your home – closing curtains, using
insulation strips on windows and doors, fitting covers to
your front door’s keyholes and letterbox; and using underlay with carpets can all make a big difference to the
warmth of your home.
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 There can be help available to install energy saving
measures in your home. The Energy Company Obligation
(ECO) can provide a range of ‘free’ insulation, heating and
other measures to some low-income and vulnerable households. Other schemes are also available in some areas. For
more information contact the Energy Saving Advice Service
on 0300 123 1234.
 ‘Register for Priority’ services benefits include:
o Providing important communications in Braille, large
print or audio CD
o Gas safety checks for appliances
o Meter reading services
o Special controls and adaptions for controlling heating
and assistance if there’s a power outage
o Free password scheme.
 Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) also offer priority
services for customers who are dependent on electricity for
home medical care; have a chronic illness or short-term
medical condition; are disabled; have special communication needs; or receive a state pension. Contact your
gas/electricity suppliers, and distribution network operator
for more information and to register. Details of your distribution network operator can be found on your electricity
bill.
The Holman Prize
Do you have an ambitious project or idea? The LightHouse for
the Blind and Visually Impaired in San Francisco have announced
'The Holman Prize' - an annual set of awards for up to $25,000!
This is open to anyone with a visual impairment aged 18+, and
from any country.
The Holman Prize funds travel, activism, scholarship, craft,
sport, art, nature and much more — you are encouraged to
think outside the box. The closing date for applications is
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Tuesday 28th February. Find out more about ‘The Holman Prize’
and how to apply at www.holmanprize.org.
Get involved
If you think your family or friends would be interested in
hearing about our services, volunteering at Henshaws, or taking
part in our weekly lottery – please get in touch! Our First Step
team is here on 0161 872 1234 to offer any advice, support or
information about our services. We’re always looking for
volunteers and ambassadors, so please contact our fundraising
team on 0161 876 3656 or email [email protected].
and of course, help us spread the word!
Once you have read or listened to our newsletter, please pass it
on to a friend or family member, or you could enquire at your
local community centre, doctor’s surgery, church or library to
see if you could leave it there for others to read or listen to.
We also have leaflets and posters, explaining who we are and
what we do – maybe you could ask about leaving some of these
as well as the newsletter; you can get a supply of these by
calling us on 0161 872 1234.
Remember, the more people know about us and support us, the
more support we can offer visually impaired people, so please
do all you can to help us get the word out.
Disclaimer
Although every attempt is made to ensure that the information
contained within this newsletter is timely and accurate,
Henshaws cannot be held responsible for any information
herein. This newsletter is provided for information purposes
only and is not intended to be either legally binding or
contractual in nature.
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