Local businesses support Southport FC as club aims for play off places

LOCAL businesses are showing their support for Southport Football Club as they take advantage of a special offer to take up advertising boards around the pitch. Several firms now have their names in pride of place for all to see at Haig Avenue. It's thanks to a deal that secures their presence next season, plus being in place the rest of this season free. The Sandgrounders are hoping for an exciting end to 2022/23, aiming to make the most of their games in hand and 10 remaining Home fixtures to make up ground on the play off places.  Companies have been striking deals with Steven Brown, the former Southport FC Commercial Director who has just returned to the club on an interim basis having spent the past 2 years as General Manager at Oldham Athletic.

Steven said:- "I am delighted to be back at Southport! The club had a really tough couple of years during the Covid pandemic and are now busy trying to rebuild and increase their ability to be competitive both on and off the pitch. We want to generate more income to give the club a better budget for players. There is huge support for Southport among the business community in this Region and we are grateful for the fantastic backing we are enjoying from a number of local companies, whose names our supporters will now recognise around the ground. In the past few days we have signed up firms including: Ripples bathrooms, Southport Funeral Care, Riley's Removals, Community Care Direct and Athena Healthcare. We have also seen other companies renew their existing sponsorships with us, including: Karen Potter The Estate Agent, Ambient Lighting, BDT Autos, Overland Batteries and Stand Up For Southport. We are offering anyone interested the opportunity to get the rest of this season for free in addition to paying for next season with this proposal. It's a superb offer. We are offering companies the chance to pay over 12 months, interest free. We are also providing businesses with the option to add matchday hospitality to their packages. They can take up anything from perimeter boards to matchday programme adverts, player sponsorship, matchday sponsorship and more. We are really pleased that Pinetree Garden Maintenance has just signed up as our new shorts sponsor, having already sponsored our Popular Terrace Stand."

Steven is enjoying being back at Haig Avenue, having previously worked at clubs including:- Oldham Athletic, Blackpool and Morecambe.

Steven added:- "There are 10 Home games left this season and lots still to play for. We are not far off the play offs if we can win our games in hand and put a good run together between now and the end of the season. The aim is to try and get back into the National League. We have had some really good crowds at Haig Avenue recently cheering us on and making a real difference; we had over 1,300 supporters for the Fylde and Curzon Ashton matches. Hopefully that can continue!"

For more details please email: Steve.Brown@SouthportFC.Net or call:- 07809489370. 
 

Further SEND School consultation begins

PARENTS and other stakeholders can now have their say on more plans to increase the number of places in Liverpool's special Schools.  In December, cabinet gave its approval to consult on proposals which will see more School places for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). 2 consultations closed last week on plans to create satellite sites for Bank View and Palmerston Schools. A 3rd statutory consultation has now been launched into a new proposal seeking to establish a satellite for Millstead Primary School, at a former School site, located on Naylorsfield Drive. Under the proposal, the former School buildings will be refurbished, initially creating places for 40 pupils and the satellite will have the same Head Teacher and governing body as Millstead Primary. If the proposal is agreed the satellite will be ready for the 2023/24 School year.

Cllr Tomas Logan, cabinet member for education and skills, said:- "The proposals for a Millstead satellite will initially create 40 further place for children with severe needs, places which are desperately needed for the next School year. The plans we have for our special Schools will not only create enough places for the next academic year but will also ensure that we are well positioned to increase places for future years. I'd also like to thank everyone who has taken the time to share their feedback during the Palmerston and Bank View consultations which is now being assessed by the team."

The Millstead consultation will end on 23 March and full details can be found on the Council's consultation webpage.  Special Schools in Liverpool are under considerable pressure. The City has seen a 46% increase in pupils with education and health care plans since 2019. The rise in numbers means that sometimes children are placed in out of city Schools or in Schools in the independent non-maintained sector.
 

'I'm an energy expert' looks at the 4 common energy saving tips that don't actually work

AS the UK prepares itself for yet another spell of cold weather, an energy expert has revealed 4 common energy-saving myths that don't actually work. With the price of energy still high and the cost of living crisis ongoing, homeowners are looking to stay warm, but without breaking the bank. However, not every energy and money-saving hack is effective, and ElectricalDirect, the specialist retailer of electrical products, has myth busted some of the most popular mistaken beliefs.

1) Tin foil behind radiators... It is a trick that has been passed around for many years; the idea of making radiators more effective by placing tin foil behind them, and not letting heat escape needlessly into cavity walls. However, if your cavity walls are already adequately insulated, putting tin foil behind your radiators will have little to no effect on your energy bills, as the cavity wall insulation is already there to keep heat in. Even if tin foil was placed behind radiators installed on uninsulated cavity walls, the radiator will still need to be powered for the same period of time for it to have the desired effect, so any benefit is still miniscule in these circumstances.

2) Turning water heaters off when not in use... This 1 makes sense in theory; if the appliance is turned off, then it cannot use any energy. However, turning your boilers and water heaters on and off will result in the tank needing to be reheated over and over again whenever you need hot water. Instead, the more efficient way to ensure that you always have hot water when you need it, is to invest in a high quality insulating jacket for your water heater, so you can heat up your tank to the desired temperature and keep it there for most of the day, possibly all day.

3) Using your thermostat at a higher temperature for shorter periods of time... Following a similar logic to the previous energy saving myth, many believe that cranking your thermostat up to its very limit for a short period of time will conserve energy. The purpose of a thermostat is to keep a room at a steady desired temperature; therefore, it does not matter how much quicker the room heats up, it will take the same amount of time to level out back to the desired pre-determined temperature, while still using the same amount of energy. It is recommended to only using your central heating when you are at home, and if you already have a smart heating system or are looking in to investing in one, you can set your central heating to turn on before you get home, so that by the time you arrive, the house will be at the perfect temperature.

4) Painting radiators black... This myth is again based on half truths; it is true that black and dark coloured materials and objects absorb heat faster than white or lighter ones. However, this is only the case with heat that is generated through light, so even though painting your radiators black might bring a certain aesthetic flair to your décor, it will do absolutely nothing to reduce your energy bills. Separating fact from fiction when it comes to energy saving is important to ensure that cutting down on energy bills is not only effective, but simple too.

For expert advice on how to actually save money on your energy bills, visit:- ElectricalDirect.Co.UK.