Family of Ventsislav Marginov pay tribute

THE family of Ventsislav Marginov, who died aged 51, following a disturbance, in Southport, on Saturday, 1 June 2019, have paid tribute to him. Mr Marginov, a Bulgarian national who was a well known resident in Southport, was taken to Hospital after being assaulted in Southport's Town Center, on Lord Street. He sadly later died in Hospital, on Tuesday, 4 June 2019, from his injuries.

The statement reads:- "Ventsislav was a much loved member of our family and will be very deeply missed by us all. He was a hard working, loyal and generous husband, son and father. His parents, who are both in their 70's and still live in Bulgaria, are absolutely devastated by his death. His mother came to visit him a few weeks ago and had no idea that it would be the last time she would see him alive. We are all struggling to come to terms with the senseless manner in which Ventsislav died. We would like to thank everyone for their thoughts and kind wishes and we would ask that everyone respects our privacy at this difficult time."

James Peter Gelling, from Southport, was charged with manslaughter, on Wednesday, 5 June 2019, in connection to this incident. Gelling, was then remanded into custody and is due to appear at Liverpool Crown Court, on Tuesday, 2 July 2019.

Merseyside Police Officers continue to appeal for anyone with information about the incident to contact them via calling the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously, on:- 0800 555 111 using the crime reference:- '19100282822.'

Older people's charity in need of volunteers

OLDER people's charity, Independent Age, is in urgent need of enthusiastic people to sign up as volunteers and help older people feel less lonely. The charity's Friendship services have already helped thousands of older people who are lonely, and it is now looking to recruit more volunteers in Merseyside to build on this success. 1 in 5 older people in the UK are in contact with friends, family and neighbours less than once a week, while for 1 in 10, it's less than once a month. In addition to this, around 40% of older people say the television is their main form of company. By joining the team and volunteering with Independent Age, Merseyside residents can help make a difference.

There are many different ways to volunteer with Independent Age, no matter how much time people can spare. Volunteer opportunities are open to anyone over the age of 18 and to people of all backgrounds, with a recruitment process to ensure suitability for the role. Volunteers provide vital companionship for older people who are lonely, enabling them to feel more connected to their local community. Right now in Merseyside the charity is particularly keen for local people to apply to spend about an hour once a week or once a fortnight meeting up with an older person for a chat.

Jeanette Bates, Head of Wellbeing at Independent Age, adds:- "Volunteers are invaluable to the older people that we support. We hear from so many volunteers and older people who have had their lives changed for the better by the experience. Chronic loneliness can be really damaging to a person's health, so with the help of Merseyside residents, we hope to help make loneliness a thing of the past."

To find out where volunteering opportunities are available to help end loneliness among older people, visit:- IndependentAge.Org or by calling them on:- 0800 319 6789.

43% of parents in Liverpool say families aren't emotionally close anymore

66% of parents believe that sharing stories is less valued than in the past. The main reasons stated being entertainment and social media replacing storytelling, according to 52% of parents, from Liverpool. While 43% parents said they don't think families are emotionally close anymore.  The research of 1,000 parents of children aged under 14 was commissioned by parenting website and found that 74% of UK parents wished they had made more of an effort to learn about their parents' and grandparents' histories. This may be why 77% say that they are keen to share their family history and 78% have passed down stories about family members to their own children. The research also revealed that when we do share we are most likely to turn to the Mother figures in our lives for advice on relationships, anything spiritual and health matters. Whereas Dads are second in line and most likely to be called on for financial advice. 41% of parents said sharing family history and KinBox is a new online magazine where parents can share their experiences and advice on bringing up children. It features stories from around the world.

Safwan Hak, founder of parenting website, says:- "Sharing experiences is such an important part of life, for relationship building and for our mental health. It's devastating to think that external influences like social media are taking precedence over essential family communication."

Safwan and his co-founder, journalist Paul Connolly, devised KinBox with the aim of creating a platform for parents to share stories and read about other people's experiences as they embark on their parenting journey and beyond. Safwan said:- "Before my Dad died, he and I would take long walks and sit in coffee shops and he would tell me his stories and give me advice about my family and kids and I thought here is a man with great advice. But you would never see this kind of advice in a magazine; there's no forum for normal people with extraordinary stories or advice and so I decided to start a website where anyone can submit their story or advice and our trained editors would polish it and put it out. We want to savour and spread our families' stories and to laugh and cry at life's special moments."

30 years on from privatisation shows United Utilities water boss trousered more than ₤2 million in 2018 alone

THE boss of United Utilities pocketed almost ₤14 million in salary, bonuses, pensions and other benefits over the past 6 years. 30 years on from privatisation; amid spiralling bills and massive leaks; United Utilities fat cats trousered ₤2,075,000 in 2018 alone; a 34% increase on 2013. The figures come from a joint investigation into their company accounts by GMB and Corporate Watch revealed at GMB's Congress in Brighton this week. They are released as part of GMB's 'Take Back The Tap' campaign to bring England's privatised water industry back into public ownership. While water bosses pocketed these eye-watering sums, consumer water bills in England and Wales have increased by 40% above inflation since privatisation in 1989 according to a report by the National Audit Office. Tim Roache, GMB General Secretary, said:- "30 years on from Margaret Thatcher's privatisation of water it's clear this ideological experiment is a complete flop. Customers are forking out millions to private water's top brass through their ever increasing bills, while billions of gallons are wasted every year and we get whacked by hosepipe bans in the summer. I'm not sure how much more evidence is needed to show that this is just not working. It's time to Take Back the Tap - water is a natural monopoly, that every home, family and individual needs, it should be in public hands not used for shareholder profit."