|
Ability Borders February 2023 Newsletter
|
|
|
Your newsletter for disabilities
and long-term conditions across the Scottish Borders
|
|
|
Welcome to the latest edition of our newsletter! This month we are sharing news of our upcoming meetings and events, details of some of the local support groups in our area and the latest cost of living support payments coming from the Government throughout 2023.
|
|
|
|
Our purpose is to:
- Inform disabled people or those living with a long-term condition about services available throughout the Scottish Borders and to help them have an independent life.
- Co-produce a Borders-wide organisation involving disabled people themselves, their families and carers.
- Influence policy and services that will help them with their quality of life and to help improve information and services
|
|
|
Ability Borders Upcoming Meetings and Events
|
|
|
Next Physical Disability Strategy Group meeting: Wednesday, 1st March 2023 from 10.30am until 12 noon.
At this meeting we intend to continue work on the review of the Physical Disability Strategy for the first half of the meeting and the second half will be updates. There will be a lot to get through but we would love to see you there! The meeting will take place online via Microsoft Teams and to be sent the link to join, please, drop an email to: dean@abilityborders.org.uk
|
|
|
We have been asked by Jeremy Balfour MSP to meet with him to feedback on access issues across the Borders and, to that end, we are hosting an online meeting with him on Friday, 3rd of March from 10.30am. If you have a particular interest in access, please, consider joining us. More details can be obtained by dropping an email to dean@abilityborders.org.uk
|
|
|
We are delighted to announce that Health Improvement Scotland will be conducting further Voices Scotland Training with us. This training has proved highly popular and enjoyable with our members and groups before so there has been an appetite for more. Topics which can be covered are Effective Public Involvement, Structure of the NHS, Working Effectively Together, Communicating Effectively and Making the Case for Change, so this is highly interesting and relevant training delivered an an informal and accessible way. We are at the stage on pinning down dates with Sarah Cox of HIS, with Wednesday, 3rd of May penciled in as the first possible session. Watch this space for more details to come soon!
|
|
|
Save the Date! Wednesday, 31st of May will see us hold an information sharing day event in partnership with the Borders Older People's Forum. The venue will be St Boswells Village Hall and we will have stands from a host of different organisations both local and national. Refreshments will be provided. More details to follow.
|
|
Scottish Borders Council have gathered together a list of warm spaces which you can find on their website searching by locality across the region. From village halls to libraries, from community centres to churches, there are a host of spaces opening to provide a warm welcome and a cosy, sociable venue for their local communities. Head to the SBC website to find out where your nearest warm space is to be found:
https://www.scotborders.gov.uk/directory/93/warm_spaces
|
|
|
Disability Equality Scotland, Oban Access Panel, Sight Scotland and Sight Scotland Veterans have all come together to call on the Scottish Government to introduce legislation requiring businesses and retailers to provide braille labels on food items. While this would make shopping, cooking and organising food cupboards much easier for those living with sight impairment it has to be remembered that those who have food allergies are particularly at risk from this oversight. A petition has been raised which will be handed in to the Scottish Government. At present things are rather hit and miss in this country: EU legislation has meant that pharmaceutical companies have been increasingly required to include braille on the packaging of medicines, but as far as food is concerned it is only the Co-Op that has led the way until now with basic information being provided in braille on their own brand goods.
|
|
|
Further Cost of Living Support
|
|
|
Cost of Living Payments 2023 to 2024
The Government has announced that further cost of living payments will be made between spring 2023 and spring 2024. These payments are:
- £301 for people on an eligible low income benefit, to be paid during spring 2023
- £150 for people on an eligible disability benefit, to be paid during summer 2023
- £300 for people on an eligible low income benefit, to be paid during autumn 2023
- £300 for pensioner households, to be paid during winter 2023 to 2024
- £299 for people on an eligible low income benefit, to be paid in spring 2024
Further guidance will be published when more details have been announced, including the qualifying dates.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/millions-of-low-income-households-to-get-new-cost-of-living-payments-from-spring-2023
|
|
|
Borders Parkinson's Support Group
|
|
|
|
On the last Monday of every month, the local Parkinson's Support group meets in the Borders General Hospital Chaplaincy Centre from 2pm until 4pm. Meetings are open to anyone living with the condition, their family members, carers or anyone with a particular interest in the condition. No need to book, please feel free to just turn up; you will be made very welcome. Upcoming meeting will take place on Monday, 27th of February.
|
|
|
Local Libraries Get Digital!
|
|
|
Library services in the Borders have never been so accessible to all, with digital services available from LIVE Borders! Once you join the library service you can access services such as Connect and Collect where you can reserve a book from the extensive online catalogue and collect it from a library near you. The Mobile Library service is back out on the road serving towns and villages across our region and you can get more information about that by following the link below. BorrowBox gives you access to thousands of eBooks and Audio Books and then there's PressReader which shares more than 7000 of the world's top magazines and newspapers as soon as they hit the shelves and this can be accessed digitally all from the comfort of your own home!
To find out more about the library services offered across the Borders, please, check out:
https://www.liveborders.org.uk/home/our-libraries/libraries/
|
|
|
When Did You Last Drink Your Bones?
|
|
|
As ancient as the hills and renowned as the go-to healer to tempt the appetite after an infection, bone broth is something that our grannies would have sworn by and their grannies before them. Now hailed as a 'superfood', what did generations gone by know that science is now showing us to be true about this wonder broth?
On analysis, bone broth has been found to provide a host of vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, amino acids and collagen. It is made by the very long, slow simmering of bones and connective tissues and, while that doesn't sound too appetising, the result is a flavoursome, healthful stock that can be used in cooking or heated for a warming drink. Nutrients vary depending on the type of bones used, but as the bones gently simmer over 24 hours or so, they release their goodness in an easily absorbable form. Bone broth has gut-healing properties shown to protect and repair the mucosal lining of the digestive tract and it has anti-inflammatory components that can bring about benefits for joint health as well. Sleep is not left out of the equation as bone broth contains small amounts of the amino acid glycine which can help improve the quality of our sleep.
If you have a slow-cooker you can try making bone broth at home, you just need water, bones and a little vinegar (adding vegetables and herbs will improve the flavour and nutritional content but they are optional) but there are a number of companies making high-quality bone broth that is readily available to order online. Ideally, you want to look for grass-fed beef for more healthy omegas.
|
|
|
Versus Arthritis - Let's Move for Surgery
|
|
|
Many people living with arthritis have been left waiting much longer for joint replacement surgery as COVID has taken its toll on waiting lists. To offer somewhere to turn for the right advice and support, Versus Arthritis has developed a Let's Move for Surgery Toolkit that is suitable for anyone at any point on their joint replacement journey. The toolkit includes follow-along exercise videos together with the personal stories of those who been through the joint replacement process. Each Wednesday at 12noon, a new video will be posted on the charity's Facebook page so you can watch along in real time or you can access the videos here at your own convenience:
https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/exercising-with-arthritis/lets-move-for-surgery-toolkit/?utm_source=Webpage&utm_medium=Facebook&utm_campaign=Promotion&utm_content=Let%27s%20Move%20For%20Surgery&utm_term=Let%27s%20Move%20For%20Surgery&fbclid=IwAR21rl5L2p5z6DxcnjWQ9Cq12V5kBzUnFQSeU81cbFTOapjodmorCG5rFEI
|
|
|
Scottish Borders Bipolar Support
|
|
|
Bipolar Scotland offer an online support group for those living with the condition here in the Borders. Meetings of the group take place on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of every month from 7pm. For more details or to join, please, head to:
https://bipolarscotland.org.uk/self-help-groups/
|
|
|
Local Arthritis Support Group
|
|
|
|
We are lucky enough to have a very vibrant local support group right here in the Borders for those living with arthritis, their families, carers and friends. Meeting online on the first Saturday of each month, the group has a diverse programme of speakers as well as coffee and catch-up support sessions from 10.45am until 12.30pm. Saturday, 4th of March will see speakers Gloria Andersson and Nora Vintila discuss whether or not Count Dracula was fact or fiction! Saturday, 1st of April, the group is delighted to be joined by Deborah Alsina, MBE, the Chief Executive of Versus Arthritis who will be talking about her plans and vision for the charity. If you would like to join in, or to be sent more information about the group, please, drop an email to: info@scottishbordersversusarthritis.org
|
|
|
VoiceAbility - Supporting People with a Disability
|
|
|
|
In January 2022, The Scottish Government announced a £20 million investment over the course of four years to provide a free independent advocacy service to support disabled people to access the benefits administered by Social Security Scotland.
Since the service has been up and running, it has helped 550 disabled people to access Social Security Scotland's service.
The service is independent of the Scottish Government and Social Security Scotland. It is delivered by VoiceAbility, a charity with 40 years’ experience of delivering independent advocacy services.
It is available to people with a disability who may need extra support. This could include people with a sensory disability, mental health condition or learning disability. The service is also available to parents or carers who need support to access benefits for a child.
Advocacy is available throughout the whole of the process for seeking support, from the point of application, through to any request for redetermination and appeals.
The service enables disabled people to be more involved in the processes and decisions which affect them and advocates will provide the most appropriate form of support to each individual based on their circumstances.
People can access this support by contacting VoiceAbility directly for free on 0300 303 1660 or by visiting https://www.voiceability.org/
Alternatively, they can ask Social Security Scotland to refer them by calling 0800 182 2222.
|
|
|
Local Alzheimer Scotland Activities and Events
|
|
|
Our local Alzheimer Scotland Branch has a full programme of activities and events from regular walking groups, to memory cafes at various geographical locations around the Borders. Their Community Groups and Cafes are there to be enjoyed by anyone living with dementia, their family and friends. If you would like to know more about what is going on locally, please visit the weblink below or telephone 01573 400324 or drop an email to: Borders@alzscot.org
https://www.alzscot.org/living-with-dementia/getting-support/find-support-near-you/borders-dementia-resource-centre
|
|
|
Come to Ability Borders for Free Sims for Calls, Texts and Data!
|
|
|
|
|
|
