News reports located on this page = 4.

Let's change the story around loneliness in the UK this Silver Sunday

THE Sandpipers, our respite holiday centre in Southport have informed u that they are:- "celebrating Silver Sunday, a national day of celebration that recognises the value of older generations in making a real difference to their local communities" on 6 October 2019.

In a press release the local charity said that:- "Many of us will work for most of our lives and will be able to appreciate the importance of having a routine and feeling valued for the contributions that we make to our society. It is understandable then that as people enter retirement, they can become increasingly cut off from society and feel that they are no longer playing an active part in their communities. The number of over 50's experiencing loneliness is set to reach 2 million by 2025 compared to the 1.4 million in 2016; an increase of 49% over just 10 years. That's why I'd like to tell your readers how volunteering can be a great way to combat isolation whilst making a huge difference to worthy causes, just like our own, all across the UK. I work for Revitalise, an amazing national charity that creates holidays for disabled people and carers at Sandpipers, our respite holiday centre in Southport. We are proud to run the largest residential volunteering programme of any UK charity, welcoming thousands of volunteers of all ages to volunteer their time with our charity each year. Our volunteers are our magic ingredient because they volunteer something priceless, their experience. They help to create the great holiday spirit and welcoming atmosphere that our guests love all year round, and they are able to guide and support some of our younger volunteers. And, no matter what their motivation for spending time with us, there is always the opportunity to meet some great people, make new friends and make a difference to the lives of the disabled people and carers that we support."

If you would like to find out more about Revitalise or if you're interested in becoming a volunteer please visit:- Revitalise.Org.UK or call our volunteer team on:-- 0303 303 0163.

Suicide Prevention Champion is Volunteer of the Year - North West Charity Awards 2019

SUICIDE prevention charity champion, Carl Wales from Rainhill, Merseyside, has been named Volunteer of the Year in the North West Charity Awards 2019. Since the sad loss of his son Rowan to suicide in 2016 Carl has dedicated himself to volunteering and raising vital funds for national charity PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide, as part of Rowan's legacy. It can be daunting to talk about a tough subject such as suicide. As a passionate champion for the charity, Carl has worked relentlessly to tackle the stigma around suicide, delivering awareness sessions to hundreds of people across the country, mostly onsite within Wates Group where he is a Business Safety, Health and Environment Manager.

Said Ged Flynn, PAPYRUS chief executive:- "It was very moving to see Carl receive this award, recognising his commitment to transforming his personal tragedy into hope for so many others. I am always moved when parents bereaved by suicide do this for the benefit of many other young people. A huge vote of thanks to Carl for all he does in the name of PAPYRUS across the North West and beyond."

Ever modest, Carl said receiving the award was a huge surprise. "I felt sure other volunteers were more deserving. However I feel a deep sense of pride and appreciation at being recognised this way. It makes everything I do in Rowan's memory as a volunteer for PAPYRUS truly worthwhile. It gives me the strength and determination to carry on raising awareness and offering whatever support I can."

PAPYRUS gained further awards including Fundraising Team of the Year. Chief Executive Ged Flynn was highly commended as Best Director of the Year and other highly commended accolades were for Best Digital / Social Media of the Year and Best Charity of the Year.

If you are a young person at risk of suicide or are worried about a young person at risk of suicide you can call the:- PAPYRUS HOPELINEUK on:- 0800 068 4141. The line are open from:-

► Monday to Friday from 9:00am to 10:00pm.

► Weekends from 2:00pm to 10:00pm.

► Bank Holidays from 2:00pm to 10:00pm.

Also for more information about the UK Charity PAPYRUS and the prevention of young suicide, visit:- PAPYRUS-UK.Org.

74% of North West trades people haven't been paid for a job

A whopping 74% of trades people in the North West, including builders, plumbers, heating engineers and gardeners, have suffered from a client refusing to settle the bill for completed work. That compares to just 23% of customers in the Region who say they have been fleeced by rogue tradesmen, according to a poll of 2,500 adults by online marketplace Rated People. 46% of workmen in the North West say they have had clients who refused to pay a single penny for a completed job. Whether intentional or as a result of misunderstandings concerning the project, the average tradesperson in the UK loses 20% of their annual earnings to issues with customers, costing them an average of just under ₤7,500. 64% of them even had to sue in order to get their money. Rated People has partnered with Shieldpay to launch an industry leading Protected Payments service. A great alternative way to pay, that fully verifies the identity of both parties and builds trust between a homeowner and tradesperson. The homeowner's money is held securely by Shieldpay but is visible to both the homeowner and tradesperson. Only when both parties are happy the work's been completed as agreed is the money released to the tradesperson. Across the whole of the UK, the paving, gardening and plumbing trades are most affected by payment refusals. 96% paving trades people have had this problem, followed by 77% of gardeners and 76% of plumbers. Heating, paving and plumbing trades have suffered the highest losses, while those in the roofing trade have been fleeced the least.

Average loss of earnings per trade career:-

► Heating = ₤11,014.

► Paving = ₤9,262.

► Plumbing = ₤8,733.

► Decorating = ₤8,599.

► Gardening = ₤8,123.

► Building = ₤8,012.

► Roofing = ₤6,909.

The 2,000 British homeowners surveyed said builders were the tradesmen they had been ripped off by most (27%), followed by plumbers (23%), decorators (22%) and gardeners (19%). 56% of these rip offs were in the form of what they considered to be poor quality work. Hence 60% of Brits saying they'd use a service that allows them to pay into a holding vault where the money will only be released to the tradesperson once the customer's satisfied with the work.

The 500 trades people surveyed were most likely to disagree with their clients on price (49%), quality of work (48%) and timings (37%). London's tradesmen have experienced clients refusing to pay the most with 81% saying this has happened more than once. The average London tradesman has lost 23% of their annual earnings because of rogue clients, averaging over ₤8,700. Londoners are also the most likely to have felt short changed by a tradesperson (32% verses a national average of 24%), followed by people who live in the North East (31%), and to have unfinished DIY jobs in their homes (47% verses a national average of 37%).

Celia Francis, CEO of Rated People says:- "Most trades people and homeowners out there are decent, honest and fair. But there are exceptions on both sides and this can create a barrier of mistrust, which makes it harder for great home improvement work to get done. Protected Payments will help break down that barrier by offering more security around payments and giving peace of mind to both homeowners and trades people."

Peter Janes, CEO and Founder of Shieldpay says:- "Homeowners and trades people enjoy real peace of mind with Protected Payments. No longer having to rely on riskier cash payments or bank transfers, homeowners have more control over their money and trades people are reassured that the funds are there to pay them for their work. All with the added benefit that both parties are protected from fraudsters. Secure payments are set to revolutionise the home improvement market and ensure better outcomes for all."

Research methodology:- An online survey was conducted by Atomik Research among 2,001 adults and 500 trades people aged 18+ from the UK. The research fieldwork took place on 9, 12 August, 2019. Atomik Research is an independent creative market research agency that employs MRS-certified researchers and abides to MRS code.

Freshers challenged to solve biggest problem facing British high street

1st year students at Edge Hill University have been set the tricky task of solving a problem faced by some of the best minds in business as high street closures continue. Hundreds of Business School students have been exploring Ormskirk this week as part of an exercise designed to inspire thought on what makes a successful high street business as a record number of chain stores across the country are closing. According to recent figures released by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the 1st ½ of 2019 saw a record net 1,234 stores disappear from Britain's top 500 high streets, with retailers and leisure operators continuing restructuring activity and services increasingly moving online. PwC also recorded a total of 2,868 store closures, equivalent to 16 per day and the most for 5 years. Kim Cassidy, Professor of Services Marketing, presented this stark reality to the students while setting the assignment brief and explained that the high street crisis had cost tens of thousands of jobs. She said:- "As these figures confirm, the high street is still facing huge problems in attracting footfall, so what better place to start with this year's intake of business students. The growth of online shopping and the rise of a convenience culture has led to a large number of vacant units and declining visitor numbers in many Town Centers. Although Ormskirk is a relatively prosperous town in the UK, with a distinctive 'market town' profile, it has also felt the impact of some of these changes in consumer behaviour. I wanted to challenge the students to see if they could think outside the box and come up with any fresh ideas on how to tackle the problem, more specifically how to keep Ormskirk open for business."

The teams were encouraged to move away from traditional retail and towards experiences, community attractions and activities, including health and wellbeing. Sitting on the judging panel were business leaders:- Kate Pierce, Principal Economic Regeneration Officer for West Lancashire Council; Greville Kelly, director at Groundwork Cheshire; retail consultant Vicki Powell; John Mercer, Associate Director of Edge Hill University's Business School; Lynn Radcliffe, Cultural Commissioning Manager at Warrington Borough Council; and Dave Mutch, Chairman of Ormskirk Community Partnership.

The winning project was Ormesfest, which saw the fictional:- 'Great Ormskirk Experience' museum initiate a variety of festivals throughout the year to celebrate the Town's culture and history. Kim added:- "The task was designed in line with the Business School's mission to develop highly skilled and well qualified graduates with outstanding business acumen, but I hope the students also enjoyed the exercise and getting to know their community in Ormskirk."