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A GREAT SPACE FOR
HOSPITALITY
Report by Colin Trollope.
ON Friday 9 March 2007 we went into space, a great space, not
by rocket or shuttle, but by car! It was a special morning at
Britain’s biggest Cathedral, the Liverpool Anglican Cathedral, where
we were shown their latest initiative for the Cathedral’s visitors,
the Visitors’ Centre. As one walks into the building it is like
stepping into the BBC’s Doctor Who’s Tardis in size and space. The
size is astounding, a real Great Space. The Director of Hospitality,
Mrs Eryl Parry, the Mersey Partnership’s Director, Martin King, and
the Bishop of Liverpool, the Right Reverent James Jones welcomed us
media types.
We were told that, as part of the Cathedral’s contribution towards
the ’08 City of Culture, the Great Space idea was conceived and
created. The special Great Space Tour consisted of a 10-minute
panoramic film presentation, an audio talk on the Nave Bridge as
part of an interactive discovery journey round the Cathedral, an
optional visit to the Embroidery Gallery, and, if desired, a visit
to the top of the Tower. It is an exciting tour, which has been
created for the young and old of any Faith. There are guides on
duty, some of whom can speak foreign languages. There are also guide
leaflets printed in several languages.
I was very impressed by the film. It showed, in a very clever and
easy to follow way, the history of the Cathedral’s growth from its
conception to today, through the use of archive photographs, audio
interviews, music and a background commentary. The Bishop said that
it was the best advertisement of Liverpool that he’d ever seen or
heard. The Bishop also made a point of the fact that not only do the
Roman Catholic Cathedral and the Anglican Cathedral work together,
but they also have free entrance to their Cathedrals. Many of their
activities are done jointly.
I then did the remaining twelve interactive audio stations each
consisting of several very comfortable headphones supplying
information and music. They are for adults and for children to use.
Each of the tour stations are marked clearly on a leaflet’s plan
which has full details of cost, timings and facilities as well as
how to reach the Cathedral. I t is obtainable from the Cathedral,
telephone 01517027284, from Mondays to Fridays, 9am to 5pm, where
you can also obtain information and make group bookings.
From the top of the Tower you have an exhilarating and wonderful
view across Liverpool and over the River Mersey. There are also
captivating views of the Wirral, the Pennines and the Welsh
Mountains. It is 331 feet (101 meters) high with lifts to almost the
top, with 108 steps to complete the ascent. On the way down, a visit
to the Embroidery Gallery, which has a stunning collection of
Edwardian and Victorian embroidery, is well worth while.
There is so much to see and do. There is the massive space
stretching from the Well to the High Altar and many other spaces
alongside and beneath which are well worth exploring. There are
ample toilets and two refreshment places, the Mezzanine Café Bar and
the Refectory, by the shop. Car parking is available in the grounds
and there is an interesting graveyard come park in the quarry by the
side of the Cathedral. This Cathedral and its grounds are well worth
visiting and spending almost a day in.
Tip:- Take a pair binoculars, or opera glasses with you to look
at the ceiling, organ pipes and especially the windows.
The Great Space can be an inspiring day out for you, for a family,
for a group. Go on, give it a go, and tell them you read all about
it on this online newspaper. |
Letters To Editor:- “Death of choice for pregnant women!”
“NEXT year, the Nursing and Midwifery Council is going to make
professional indemnity insurance compulsory for all registered
health professionals, including midwives. This means that it will
become illegal to practice as a midwife without insurance.
This sounds on the surface entirely reasonable – after all, you
wouldn’t drive a car without insurance – in fact, you might be
surprised to find that this is not the case already. However the big
difference is that, while midwives employed by the NHS are insured
via the NHS Litigation Authority, there is simply no insurance
available for independent midwives. The government knows this. It’s
like them saying that it is illegal to drive a car without
insurance, but there are no companies who provide it. Unless we are
successful in fighting this proposed change in legislation,
practising independent midwifery will become illegal, and in all
probability independent midwives will disappear.
This is not because of huge claims against independent midwives –
far from it. In fact the issue arose because of two claims against
uninsured private dentists!, but there will be major ramifications
for women and midwives if this change in legislation goes through.
Childbirth and insurance do not sit well together. Birth is unique
in that occasional poor outcomes are expected, blame is often hard
to prove and yet insurance payouts run into millions of pounds
because life-long caring is taken into account. Insurance companies
are not altruistic; they are in insurance to make profit and there
is no profit in childbirth. Even if all independent midwives put
money in a pot there would not be enough to cover the pay-out for
one baby with cerebral palsy.
Does this affect you? It does if you:-
• simply want to know who will be your midwife when you go into
labour and have the opportunity to develop a relationship with them
prior to the birth
• are thinking of having an independent midwife for your first baby
• are pregnant with twins or a breech baby or wanting a normal birth
after caesarean section; in which case an independent midwife is
often the only choice for a normal approach to this kind of birth
• have had a difficult time with your first baby and are thinking of
having an independent midwife for your second
• have already had an independent midwifery care and assume that you
can have it again
• have a daughter who will want have babies of her own someday and
want to protect her choices
• simply believe in a woman’s right to choose the maternity care she
needs
If independent midwifery disappears then these choices will
disappear overnight.
Independent midwives may be small in number, but what they stand for
are two vital principles: choice for women in birth to be attended
by a midwife they have chosen, and choice for midwifery to be
practiced in the way midwives and women choose. The NHS does not
provide this.
If this proposal goes through it will mean that the only maternity
care available to women will be dictated by the cash-strapped NHS
and the insurance companies.
Independent midwives need all the help they can if they are to fight
this proposed change or find a way in which they can get affordable
insurance.
If we do nothing it will mean the end of independent midwifery in
the UK.” Siobhan Taylor, Cambridge Independent Midwives.
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