Barnstondale on the move with a brand new Vauxhall Astra Sport

BARNTONDALE, an inclusive Activity Centre based in the heart of rural Wirral, has recently been donated an Astra Sports Tourer from Vauxhall's Grace and Favour Fleet. The car is for any transport needs the centre has, allowing Barnstondale to put the money it would have used on transport towards causes that directly benefit visitors from within the local community. Barnstondale is a registered charity. Whilst fortunate that visitor fees cover overhead costs, it relies heavily on donations and fundraising to pay for maintenance and improvement work. This new Astra is the third vehicle Barnstondale has received from Vauxhall since 2011, when the company held an employee competition looking for local charities to support. Since then the cars have been assessed each year and renewed based on the amount of travelling and work done by the charity.

Commented Cherie Denton, Community Relations Officer at Vauxhall:- "It is important to Vauxhall that we work closely with our local community and having the opportunity to support local charities is just one of the ways we do this. Barnstondale Activity Centre provides an inspirational environment to help young people develop essential life skills, which will set them up for the future. We are pleased to be able to help."

Commented Heidi Hughes, Business Director at Barnstondale:- "At Barnstondale we provide activities that cater to every visitor's needs and abilities. When school's visit, we want to make sure all schoolchildren can come; regardless of their financial situation. So that no one misses out, we have an allocation of money that is earmarked specifically to pay for children whose parents may not be able to afford their child's visit otherwise. Thanks to Vauxhall's donation, and the saving that we are making on transport costs, we are able to ensure even more children from Merseyside are able to enjoy coming to Barnstondale. This kind of help is invaluable and we appreciate Vauxhall's ongoing support."

Barnstondale offers an all encompassing activity experience, whatever the needs or physical ability of visitors. As well as being an overnight getaway destination with three large, American style log cabins, Barnstondale also hosts many groups, schools and charity organisations from across Merseyside, for away days and activity weekends. As a registered charity Barnstondale raises money to help fund places for children who would never be able to afford to visit otherwise. This allows them to experience the activities on offer such as climbing, abseiling and team building exercises.  For more information visit:- barnstondale.org or call Heidi Hughes, Business Director at Barnstondale on:- 0151 648 1412.

Young volunteers set to transform Liverpool empty homes

UP to 50 young people from Merseyside will learn building and construction skills through refurbishing 10 empty homes, as part of a new scheme from the national youth charity Ambition and delivery partner Cospa. The ambitious initiative involves professional tradespeople mentoring local young people in a range of building and renovation skills. Young people will be supported to gain vocational accreditations, with access to further training, work placement and apprenticeship opportunities with local employers beyond the project. Once renovated, the Toxteth properties will be managed by Granby 4 Streets Community Land Trust and returned to the community for use as affordable housing.  Helen Marshall, Chief Executive, Ambition commented:- “Strengthening communities and developing young people's skills is at the heart of this new project, which seeks to find an innovative solution to the prevalence of empty homes and high youth unemployment in the North West.”  The scheme is funded by the Department of Communities and Local Government and Nationwide Trust. There are more than 114,000 empty homes in the North West. Work on the derelict Victorian properties began last month and is due to be completed in March 2015.

Warning issued following bogus Police steal from Elderly

MERSEYSIDE Police are appealing for elderly and vulnerable people across Merseyside to be on their guard after a series of incidents in St Helens. The incidents relate to men posing as Police Officers have called people on the telephone and asked them to withdraw cash from their bank accounts. During the 1st, on Tuesday, 2 December 2014, a woman in her 70s, from St Helens, was called on the phone by a man who said he was a Detective Constable from Hammersmith Police. He told her someone had tried to get access to her bank account and she needed to draw the rest of the money out so that it could be checked for fingerprints! The woman went to her bank and drew out a substantial amount of cash. She took it home and almost immediately the phone rang again and the same man said there was a courier at the door to collect the money. When the victim opened the door, a man who's described as Asian was stood outside. He said he was a courier acting for the Police and took the money away. A similar incident happened the next day, in which a woman in her 80s, from Clock Face was targeted. The offender again claimed to be from Hammersmith Police and told the woman to get a taxi to the bank. The woman did this, but luckily the bank were concerned about her and only gave her £2500. When she arrived home the Offender called again and told her a courier was waiting to collect the money. When she opened the door, again a man described as Asian was waiting to take the money away. 2 other incidents have happened where a man posing as an Officer has called people and said there may be a problem with their accounts. In each case the person became suspicious and refused to give any details or hand over any money. There have been similar offences across the Country over recent months, including in the West Midlands and London, and officers from Merseyside Police are working with other forces as part of an investigation into all these incidents. Officers have also visited banks across St Helens and are working closely with them to help prevent this sort of crime. Superintendent Louise Harrison said:- "All these offences are very similar and we believe they are all linked. I would like to reassure people that incidents like these are comparatively rare but when they do happen they can have a big effect on the victims. Offenders are usually very plausible and can pose as a range of officials, not just police officers. However, any genuine official would never call people over the phone and ask them to withdraw money from a bank account. If anyone does, never give out any personal details and never hand anything over. We are also working with the banks and I know their staff are on the look out for suspicious transactions or anyone who they believe may be the target of offences such as these. The offenders are extremely cunning and tell victims not to divulge why they want the money. Being alert and getting to the bottom of these reasons could stop them becoming victims." Merseyside Police is also issuing the following crime prevention advice in relation to people who call at your door, including any people posing as officials. Also if you get contacted and a caller claims to be from the Police he/she should have a warrant card and this can be checked by calling Merseyside Police on:- 101.  If the caller leaves and you are still unsure about their credibility, write down the details of the person and the registration number and type and colour of vehicle if you know it and contact us on:- 101.  Anyone with information about these incidents can call detectives in St Helens CID on:- 0151 777 6013 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on:- 0800 555 111.

Survey will help set anti crime priorities

LIVERPOOL residents are being asked to identify what crime, disorder and anti social behaviour they are most concerned about. Citysafe, the community safety partnership, is carrying out a survey which will help them set their priorities in tackling these issues over 2015. The survey can be found online.  It should take no more than 10 minutes to complete.  The questionnaire is completely confidential and your details will remain anonymous.  Councillor Emily Spurrell, Mayoral Lead on Community Safety, said:- “We want to know what is important to our residents about crime and anti social behaviour to help us shape our community safety actions in the future.  Local people's views are very important in identifying priorities so I would encourage as many people as possible to take part in the survey.”   The survey will remain open until Tuesday, 23 December 2014.  The Citysafe partnership is made up of a number of agencies including Liverpool City Council; Merseyside Police; Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service; National Probation Service Merseyside; Merseyside Community Rehabilitation Company; Liverpool's Clinical Commissioning Group; Registered Providers; the universities; local businesses and representatives of the voluntary sector.