Welcome to the
Spring
2017
Focus Newsletter!
160th Anniversary Celebrations & The Wainwright Legacy
This year’s 160th Anniversary Celebrations started with a Volunteers Party on 4th February 2017.
The Wainwright family originated from a brewing family in Liverpool, which is where they made their money. Mary and her three brothers and sisters were Evangelical Christians and decided to help people with sight loss. In 1857 Mary formed the Society for Home Teaching for Blind People. If you were blind or partially sighted in the 19th century, there were no prospects. You were put in a workhouse if you had no family.
Mary sent teachers into the workhouses to teach blind people to read. It wasn’t Braille at that time, it was called “Moon” which is a raised alphabet system.It was agreed that it was not enough just to teach people to read, they needed work so Mary gathered many eminent men of the city, usually ex-mayors and their wives, to form a group who opened a shop in Bold Street to make matting, cane chair work, brushes, knitting, etc., as well as another shop in Bold Street to sell the goods they made. They expanded their work as in only four years they had 400 blind and partially sighted people on their books.
They started a fund, raising money by subscriptions and opened a workshop in Cornwallis Street in 1861, employing 79 people, 60 men and 19 women, paid piecework, working on the principle that because the men in charge of the factory were shipping men, if you were ten minutes late for work you had half a day’s wages docked. This was revoked on only one known occasion, during the Second World War, when a man walking to work had to detour due to a bomb being dropped in the road! The Echo created such an uproar that that his employers were forced to give him back his wages. The people employed in the workshops were not treated well, working very hard. The men used to have eat in the basement (with the rats). It was on the principle that if people couldn’t see where they were eating, it didn’t matter if rats were scurrying around. The women were kept away from the men in the workshops and if a couple married, this was done in secret or they would have been sacked from the workshops.
Mary died of cancer in 1863 and her niece took over the role of Chair of the Society and spent most of her life until she died in 1923, having started a school blind children in Devonshire Road but when she realised there was Wavertree School for the Blind and St Vincent’s School for the Blind who could do better than her school, Devonshire Road closed.
The schools had difficulty keeping servants, particularly cleaning ladies, who were very poorly paid. When they were short-staffed they got the older girls to do the dusting.
The youngest of the Wainwright brothers, Thomas, died quite young at only 39 but was a well-respected doctor in Everton for many years and was so well thought of that there is a plaque on the wall in St George’s Church to commemorate him.
In the 19th century blind people were very much maligned and abandoned just because they had a disability. People didn’t think that blind people could read, speak and have a mind of their own and be able to be taught.
Blind labour was used during the war, the workers being efficient and capable, but were sacked when the men returned from war as they were then surplus to requirements.
Our Chair – Frank McFarlane
Frank, our Chairman, said that this is a very exciting year, a huge celebration. We are organising several events to celebrate our 160th Anniversary. We have a Midsummer Ball on Saturday 17th June 2017 with entertainment of various kinds, star prizes, etc., and we want as many people as possible to attend.
Our volunteering activities have really taken off with a Volunteers Forum and a huge range of opportunities. We have great volunteers and Frank thanks them on behalf of the Board because we really depend on them. There has been an increase in volunteer recruitment around the Be Active service which helps people do a vast range of activities, getting people out and about and not being isolated.
We are hoping to do a Brad-a-Thon, 24 hour event later in the year, whereby people can come and have a go at various activities to see if they enjoy them. This will be greatly supported by our volunteers. Volunteers bring their own skills and expertise.
Our Board of Trustees are all volunteers. There have been some changes recently, with our ophthalmologist Bill Newman leaving the Board when he moved jobs to Manchester and can’t attend meetings but has agreed to be part of our informal advisory group of experts which we will build up, so we can call on advice on specific matters when required. We have a very stable Board which has a good ratio of visually impaired people and are lucky with the range of expertise of our Board members.
We have lost our Hon Treasurer and are looking for a replacement. If you know of anyone who might be interested, please let us know. Just contact Phil Longworth on 0151 221 0888.
We are planning to do a Memory Wall as part of this year’s anniversary celebrations. We want as many people as possible to recall their contact with the organisation as it will help to portray a picture of the impact and difference we have made in people’s lives. This doesn’t just apply to visually impaired people, also their families and friends.
Phil is hopeful we will be able to get some funding through the Heritage Lottery to be able to compile this into a record, possibly with portraits, an audio CD capturing key stories, etc. We’ve been successful in obtaining Freedom of the City and Phil is hopeful that in July we will be able to interview one of the former home teachers.
Frank is happy to talk to people – just contact reception on 0151 221 0888 and leave your details for Frank to call you back.
We Need Your Help!
Bradbury Fields has a Facebook page, currently with 700 likes. Ideally we want a lot more so need you to help us get those likes. If you are on Facebook but have not liked Bradbury Fields yet, just type into the search box “Bradbury Fields” and we’ll pop up. Our profile picture is of our logo, which is a sun rising. Please invite your friends to like Bradbury Fields.
If you are not a fan of Facebook and prefer Twitter, we have two Twitter accounts, these are @BradburyF and @Bradtheelephant , so if you go on to Twitter, search for either of these, follow us on Twitter and see what’s going on, you’ll find out all the latest news and information.
Angling Club for
Visually Impaired People
Christopher Grange and Bradbury Fields are working together on this project, which started last year and has gone from strength to strength. Mike Bailey explained that this started from an enquiry from a visually impaired service user who used to fish. A fishing group was then formed, made possible through partnerships with a lot of input from both service users and volunteers, as well as Liverpool City Council who have also been very supportive and have provided funding through the Physical Activity Sports Neighbourhood Development Team, who helped to supply ten starter kits consisting of rods, reels, chairs, umbrellas, tackle, etc. Many of the anglers had stopped fishing as they didn’t have the support needed, and had actually sold or given away their fishing equipment.
The group has visited local fishing areas in the Liverpool area. Fishing sessions are held on the third Wednesday of every month. St Helens Pilkington Angling Club have given us ten free memberships for the year. Liverpool City Council have offered free use of the parks, including Newsham Park and Sefton Park.
The fishing classes will be held at either the Bradbury Centre or Christopher Grange, on Wednesdays. The classes will be held indoors, looking at fishing tackle, etc. Volunteers will be available and it will be a nice learning environment. Everyone interested is more than welcome, whether you are experienced or a beginner! The fishing groups meet at the Bradbury Centre and are desperate for help with transport. There will be a small cost to the anglers, yet to be agreed.
For the Merseyside Visually Impaired Angling Club to be successful, we need volunteers.
The group are now in talks with Blind Veterans UK to have a fish-off in the summer on a sea fishing trip off the coast of Llandudno. There will also be a carp fish-off in the St Helens area.
Anyone interested in joining the fishing group should ring Jamal Abdullah at Bradbury Fields on 0151 221 0888 or Mike Bailey at Christopher Grange on 0151 220 2525.
Art
Creative Vision was a collaborative venture between Bradbury Fields and Christopher Grange, initially following a funding from Newham Care which has now come to an end, so the art group is now self-funded by the users and hosted at Christopher Grange.
The group is made up of visually impaired people but their friends and families are welcome to join them, sharing the appreciation of art whilst offering support and artistic inspiration. The group has expanded and another one has started, these taking place on Mondays and Tuesdays from 10.30am to 12.30pm. There are about six members per group to ensure that the arts tutor can offer individual attention.
The group is continuing to seek funding and to develop further and would like to start additional groups and offer additional forms of creative activity and therapy, aiming to open new opportunities and experiences for visually and sensory impaired people within the community.
Two volunteers who have joined the group recently have proved to be an invaluable asset and produce their own work alongside the members, giving inspiration to their fellow artists.
The group has recently been approached by Liverpool Lighthouse, based in St Domingo Vale, Oakfield Road, Anfield, who have offered the opportunity to exhibit some of their artwork. The proceeds of this will be shared with the artists and the rest of the money will be used to buy materials for the group.
If you are interested in finding out more about the service please contact either Mike Bailey or Karen at Christopher Grange on 0151 220 2525; or follow their progress on Twitter @Creativevrc1 or @Grangevrc.
Events
Don’t forget that our quiz meets every first Thursday of the month starting at 7.45pm. To confirm this event please call the Quizmaster, Frank on 07817 256245.
2017 is a special year for Bradbury Fields; it’s 160 years since we were founded in 1857 and on 5th April we launched a capital appeal to raise funds for new transport to support our services. We will be holding many events throughout the year. Here are the events that are confirmed to date.
June 17th our Midsummer Ball at the Titanic Hotel. Tickets are still available if you know anyone who would like to attend. Call Maria on 0151 221 0888.
Our Summer Fete is on Saturday 14th July.
An exciting fundraising event is going to be our Brad-a-thon, a full 24-hour event with all our groups and friends getting together to help raise funds for our capital appeal. More details will follow but if you have any friends or family that may want to take part in the groups including, walking, Zumba, fishing, yoga, swimming, choir, cycling and more please contact Amanda on the main Bradbury Fields number.
The Brad-a-thon is Sunday 16th - Monday 17th July. It would be amazing if you could also sponsor our service users who will be taking part.
Last year we held a very successful technology day. This year it will be held on 20th September, in The Garden Suite and the Marquee, bringing together assistive technology for people with a visual impairment and the ability to talk and try items out with the specialists.
We will again have marquee in the rear gardens and still have some dates available to hire. If you have a birthday, christening, anniversary or even looking to hold a fundraising event, this is a beautiful venue. For more information please call Amanda on 0151 221 0888.
If any of the listeners are past pupils of St Vincent’s, this year’s reunion is being held at the Bradbury Centre on 24th June. For more information of what’s going on call Mike Allen on 07930 444 656.
This year will we will be holding one Grand Draw; there will be more information and tickets in the next newsletter.
St Vincent’s School
John Patterson, Principal of St Vincent’s School, explained about the Sight Box, which is a physical box containing equipment which enables visually impaired children to play sports, such as a ball with a bell in it. The box also contains things developed by St Vincent’s, e.g., a running line developed with Loughborough University which was taken to Ethiopia to enable a child to run without a sighted guide. There are other things under development which the children are researching.
Sport enables you to access friendship groups, education in a different way. The concept of the box came from Rotary. The link comes from education in developing the ideas, the entrepreneurial learning that sits how the box is developed and sent around the world. Rotary are buying the boxes and has something similar called a Shelter Box which they send around the world to natural disasters. The first of these boxes went to Nepal recently, the second went to Sierra Leone with Jeremy Barnes from All Saints in Anfield, and the third has been sent to Pakistan.
St Vincent’s are working with Rotary to match funds schools who are working with them, raising funds for the boxes, and sending those boxes overseas so it’s a win-win situation, with St Vincent’s children working in inter-faith and inter-denominational activities being encouraged to be innovative and entrepreneurial in designing, but these ideas can really help children overseas also to develop businesses themselves.
There needs to be better teacher training, especially regarding visual impairment, and there is only Birmingham running that qualification at the moment. St Vincent’s have won the right, from the Department of Education, with Liverpool John Moores University, to write and deliver a brand new course which starts in September 2017 at St Vincent’s.
There’s an application called “tracked” which enables you to use your mobile phone to write music.
St Vincent’s choir sang at the Philharmonic in the Never Such Innocence Campaign which is the commemoration of the Great War. They sang Charlie Landsborough’s wonderful song, “Colour of the Wind”. It enabled them to get involved much more deeply in that project. They are now involved in researching that with the tracked to make it VI accessible and so the big cheeses are coming up from London, St Vincent’s are writing a piece using this so the children will be the leaders on how to use it for the VI community, but obviously the song they write is going to be commemorated as part of the Great War’s commemorations.
They are also working on Sales Force, and previously worked with Coding the Drone when they flew a drone across the school, attaching it to a word problem – the eradication of the black fly which makes lots of children blind around the world. Bill Gates wife, Belinda, was on the television and was saying what needs to happen in education, is for it to be attached to world problems, world issues and world solutions. St Vincent’s children are attaching their work using technology from their own minds attached to a world solution. So Mrs Belinda Gates, if you are listening ….
St Vincent’s were introduced to a guy called Tim Quinn by Sir Ken Dodd. Tim is a scouser and used to write Spiderman for Marvel Comics. He was invited to come in to do a comic. They gave him a general story on the children challenging the global issue of the black fly and what they do to come together. They wanted a story written connected with that and wove this into Sales Force and about the drone flying across the school. Tim came in and wrote a story – it’s absolutely hilarious! He came up with the idea to call it the Fab Four Thousand. Our children are the heroes! There are five children on the front cover and they are looking for the other three thousand plus heroes! The comic has been put on line; it’s on an associated website called Shenanigans and are involving literacy and numeracy and an audio version on their radio station. It’s to involve the children in mainstream with the comic. John Patterson is included in the comic and says he looks like something out of the bog land. He’s not a hero! He thought it was funny to see how both the children and Tim Quinn perceive him.
Energy Efficiency Smart Meters
Smart meters are there to put you in control of your energy. It’s not compulsory to have a smart meter if you don’t want one.