Doors open on new children’s home

A BRAND new home for youngsters with emotional and behavioural difficulties has opened in Liverpool.  The Laurel Children’s Home in Wavertree provides five places for young people aged 11 to 16 whose parents are unable to care for them.  It is part of the council’s drive to make sure that young people are cared for within the city rather than being placed in provision outside of Liverpool, away from relatives and friends.  The home has undergone a £60k makeover that includes a comfortable, welcoming environment, spacious rooms, individual bedrooms, a computer study and a large garden.  The city council’s executive member for care and safeguarding, Councillor Ron Gould, said:- “This is a fantastic new facility which gives children the stability and security they need in a warm and welcoming environment.  The facilities are absolutely first class and will make sure our young people are given the support they need to develop into happy, achieving adults.  Staff at the new Laurel Children’s Home are doing valuable work to help improve life for our most vulnerable youngsters.”  Staff will carry out a range of specialist work with the young people, under the government-led Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), which promotes the mental health and psychological wellbeing of young people.  They will benefit from high quality, therapeutic work to help them overcome their difficulties and meet their educational, health and social needs.  Laurel Children’s Home takes to three the number of homes in the city which specialise in therapeutic work for children and young people with behavioural and emotional difficulties. 

UPDATE FROM TRADING STANDARDS:- "Your Rights...  Do you know them?"

THE 'Cancellation of Contracts Made in a Consumer's Home or Place of Work etc.  Regulations 2008' came into force on 1 October 2008 and will now:-

· Replace the current UK Regulations i.e.  the Consumer Protection (Cancellation of Contracts Concluded away from Business Premises) Regulations 1987;

· Extend the cooling-off period and right to cancel under the Regulations to certain contracts made during a solicited visit by a trader;

· Set the threshold at which the Regulations apply at a total payment value of £35 for contracts made as a result of either unsolicited or solicited visits by traders;

· Set the cooling off period at 7 calendar days both for contracts made as a result of unsolicited visits by traders and for contracts made as a result of solicited visits by traders;

· Make clear that the cooling off period starts on the day of receipt of a notice of the right to cancel from a trader;

· Require that the notice of the right to cancel be prominently displayed in the same document, where the contract is completed wholly or partly in writing;

· Require that the consumer must record his agreement in writing to performance of certain specified contracts beginning before the end of the cooling off period if that is what the parties propose;

· Require that where a consumer has agreed to performance of a specified contract beginning before the end of the cooling off period, the trader must include in the notice of the right to cancel, a statement that payment may be required to be made if the contract is subsequently cancelled;

· Provide that failure to include such a statement (as required in the paragraph above) in the notice of the right to cancel will constitute an offence, at level 5 of the standard scale, relating to failure to provide notice of the right to cancel;

· Extend the scope of the Regulations to apply to extensions, conservatories, patios, and driveways; and

· Provide for the automatic cancellation of a related credit agreement where a cancellation notice which cancels a contract for goods or services is served on a trader.o

Salvation Army band in global £1 million record deal

THE Salvation Army, Britain’s best-known charitable organisation, have signed an exclusive £1 million deal with Universal Music, the world’s leading record company and musical home of Eminem, Amy Winehouse, Duffy, The Killers and Take That.

The Salvation Army is one of the largest providers of social welfare provision in the UK after the government, and at this time of economic uncertainty its work in communities and with socially excluded people living on the edge of society will become even more vital.

The International Staff Band (ISB) of The Salvation Army, the crème de la crème of Salvation Army brass bands, have recorded the first album in the deal, which will go on sale on 24 November 2008.

The ISB hopes that the initiative will propel Christmas fundraising to new levels with this major record label collaboration, in order to help the vital work that The Salvation Army does with the homeless, families and people suffering from addictions every day of the year and particularly at Christmas time.

The Salvation Army will receive an initial undisclosed donation from the record company, but it is hoped that over the course of the record deal they will raise up to £1 million which will go towards its work in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.

Universal are delighted to have signed ‘the world’s ultimate buskers’.  James Morrison, Badly Drawn Boy and G4 have all famously tried their hand at it, but the image of a Salvation Army band busking on a wintry December day brings a smile to everyone as they do their Christmas shopping.

Dickon Stainer, Managing Director of Universal Classics and Jazz, says:- “At a time when lives are being turned upside down, people need something to rely on.  The sound of The Salvation Army gives comfort to people when times are tough, as they are now.  We hope that this record will help expand the reach of their traditional fund-raising.”

Major David Hinton, The Salvation Army’s Secretary for Business Administration, welcomed the ground-breaking initiative.  “This is a really exciting project which we hope will not only raise money but will also help to raise awareness of the needs of the people with whom we work.  These are uncertain times and we anticipate increasing numbers of people in need as a result of the current and on-going economic climate.  We are so grateful to the public without whom we would be unable to sustain much of what we do.

The Salvation Army has a wonderful musical tradition and history and The International Staff Band are a group of highly talented and committed Salvation Army musicians who have dedicated their talents to God, love to make music whether it is traditional or contemporary.

We hope the Universal album will bring hope and cheer into many lives – the listeners and those who will benefit from the proceeds!”

Dr Stephen Cobb, Director of The Salvation Army’s Music Ministries Unit and Conductor of the International Staff Band, said:- “Some of the music was a little different to our usual repertoire, but very enjoyable to play. 

It was a real pleasure for us to work with the Universal team and to produce what we believe will be an album that will inspire listeners!”

The album, entitled ‘Together’, features a collection of secular and religious tracks from ‘Nessun Dorma’, ‘You Raise me Up’ and ‘Going Home’ (the Hovis theme) to ‘Make me a Channel of Your Peace’ and the Christmas favourite ‘In the Bleak Midwinter’.