Massive line-up of events for the Sefton Healthstart Festival (June 4-28)

SEFTON Residents can enjoy an exciting variety of events that are lined-up throughout June for the fifth Sefton Healthstart Festival.

From June 4-28 there’s a jam-packed programme of activities to suit all ages and abilities.

Kick-starting the festival off next Wednesday, June 4th, is an event for the older generation to enjoy. The Senior Health and Fitness Day is for ages 50 plus and gives people the chance to take part in free activities they probably wouldn’t otherwise dream of trying.

As well as indoor bowling, health walks and cycle rides, there will be yoga, T’ai Chi classes, reflexology, a spot of line dancing and a tea dance to round off the events. Throughout the day there will be healthy nibbles provided by Tesco, health screening by Healthworks and games to keep the mind active, courtesy of Southport College.

Encouraging people to come along, Stephanie Boote, Sefton’s Development Officer for Programmes, said:- “It’s a great day which provides an excellent opportunity for the 50 plus to get involved in activities they may never have tried before. Not only does the day provide immense health benefits, it also has social benefits because it is a good way to meet people and make friends.”

This year’s event is between 10am and 4pm, at Dunes Leisure Centre, Southport. But if you miss this event, another one just around the corner is the Walk for Health on Sunday, June 8th, starting 2pm at Hesketh Park, Southport.

If you would like more information on either event, contact Stephanie Boote on 0151 934 2377 or Healthstart on 0151 707 2566.

The Sefton Healthstart Festival is a joint initiative between Sefton Council, South Sefton Primary Care Trust and Southport and Formby PCT and is organised by Healthstart to promote healthier lifestyles and encourage physical activity in a fun environment. The festival’s main aim is to show that increasing exercise is one of the best ways to help combat cancer and coronary heart disease, the two main causes of premature death in Sefton. 

The main charity beneficiary this year is the British Heart Foundation.

Other events in the Festival programme are:-

Sports Excel – Throughout June
Activities for young people aged 12-24yrs.

Green Transport Commuter Challenge – 9-20 June
Leave your car at home and travel by healthier or more environmentally friendly methods and win prizes. Register as an individual or organisation.

Sefton Bike to Work Week – 16-20 June
Why not join in the national campaign and cycle to work this week?

Sefton Cycle Challenges – 18 Jun & 26 June
Five-mile leisure rides for all ages organised by Sefton MBC Travel Awareness and Road Safety Awareness Team.

Sefton Cycle Tour – 22 June
A leisurely 25-mile ride through Sefton’s countryside, that starts from Maghull Town Hall. 

Corporate Games – 26 June
Fun and unusual team challenges of a physical nature at Dunes Leisure Centre.

Kids Excel Fun Day – 28 June
Challenging activities for the youngsters.

NATIONAL BLITZ ON FALLS FROM HEIGHT

 

CONSTRUCTION sites across the UK will be inspected by the Health and Safety Executive during the first two weeks of June 2003 as part of a Europe-wide inspection-led campaign to reduce falls from height in construction. For the first time, this blitz will involve the co-ordinated action of all frontline construction inspectors during the two weeks.

Falls from height remain the single biggest cause of death, disability and injury in construction in Great Britain, accounting for almost half of all deaths and nearly a third of major injuries in 2001/2.

Kevin Myers, HSE Chief Inspector of Construction said, “Each year far too many construction workers die or suffer a major injury following a fall from height. Most of these incidents, and the personal loss and suffering they cause.”

The HSE national inspection blitz is part of ‘Don’t Fall for It’ - a European Union campaign on falls from height in construction. The European Commission’s Senior Labour Inspectors’ Committee has agreed to undertake this campaign on falls from height risks in the construction industry in 2003. The campaign features two inspection initiatives, the first in June and then in September. All member states will be participating in the campaign.

 

 

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£2 million project to develop new technologies for transforming waste

A NEW £2m waste management project, the first of its kind in the UK, is set to find new uses for waste products that cannot be recycled.

Envirolink Northwest, which runs the Transformation of Waste Products project, is being piloted across the three sectors of environment of technology in regions that generate the most waste.

Three companies from each sector are being evaluated over the next 12-15 months, with Envirolink working closely with UMIST to develop new technologies and processes.

The project will demonstrate that industrial waste, with the application of particular technologies, can be converted into a useful resource. 

And as well as helping to cut back on the amount of waste that goes to landfill sites, project director Ron Cockayne hopes the project will spawn new business opportunities within the Environmental Technologies & Services (ETS) sector.

He explains:- “A lot of companies have asked us what to do with waste that they can’t re-use. This project will hopefully answer that question and is very much the next step on from simply recycling waste products.

We are looking at ways in which waste can be added to other materials to make new products. This will mean developing new technologies, as well as refining existing ones, and that’s obviously good news for the northwest economy.”

The project is being funded by the North West Development Agency, and will also help to further raise the profile of the Northwest’s ETS companies. The sector is currently one of the fastest growing global markets and is already worth an estimated £365 billion.

Bill Greenhalgh, NWDA Environment Cluster Manager, said:- “Environmental technology makes an important contribution to the region’s economy, and the NWDA is committed to supporting this fast growing sector. This project will help companies develop sustainable solutions to the environmental challenges of our time, enabling the Northwest to remain at the forefront of Environmental Technologies and Services.”

£45 million boost for Merseyside

AN announcement by international biopharmaceutical company, Lilly, who intends to increase investment interest in Merseyside business operations in Speke, by a massive £45 million was welcomed earlier this week by the Northwest Development Agency.

The investment supported by a Regional Selective Assistance grant of £1.87 million from the NWDA will result in 25 new positions at the Speke plant, and 50 jobs for the local building industry during construction. 

The first instalment of the investment will be £28 million and will enable Lilly to expand its manufacturing capacity for Humatrope, a biotech product used to treat growth hormone deficiency. 

Linda Magee, NWDA Biotechnology Sector Director and Head of BioNow, aid, “This is great news for Merseyside. The Speke plant is currently the largest bulk biotechnology - manufacturing centre in the UK. This expansion demonstrates the Northwest remains a top location for global bioscience investment.” 

COUNCIL SERVICES CONTINUE TO IMPROVE IN LIVERPOOL

A REVIEW of services provided by Liverpool City Council shows that the majority are continuing to improve via a performance plan in their efforts to put Liverpool on the map for European city status. 

The plan sets out the council’s targets for the next three years setting the milestones that will take the council from its current middle position of “Fair” (Comprehensive Performance Assessment) to a top score of “Excellent” by 2006.

Council leader, Councillor Mike Storey, said:- “This plan confirms the Audit Commission’s view that Liverpool council is a fast improving council. It shows that we really are serious when we say that we are taking this city to European city status. It will demonstrate the facts that we are developing the momentum we need to take us to the top.

However, we are not hiding the fact that a number of performance indicators have not improved as we hoped and that we are still striving to improve in a number of areas. We are however, moving in the right direction as has been acknowledged by a number of independent organisations including IDEA, as well as the Audit Commission.”

Council Chief Executive David Henshaw said:- “The latest performance figures show the dramatic improvement of service quality continues, there are still major issues to be tackled and work is well under way in these areas.

The quality and accuracy of performance information is now also much improved – one of the early problems was just getting robust information.” 

Southport Reporter is a registered Trade Mark.   Copyright © Patrick Trollope 2003.