Author: Bridie Finnan

As 2022 came to a close, hundreds of people and scores of businesses across Sefton demonstrated their kindness and community spirit by contributing to the Mayor’s Christmas Toy Appeal.

Many families in Sefton were anxious about Christmas this year, especially due to cost of living pressures but thanks to the incredibly generous support of individuals and organisations across the Borough, children did not miss out on the special magic of the festive season.

Hundreds of pounds was raised through online donations so that volunteers could purchase gifts for children of all ages. Businesses donated thousands of pounds worth of toys as well as hosting drop off points for their staff and Cllrs donated thousands of pounds to our fund.

The generosity of the Sefton community shone through this year with many families worried about Christmas themselves but still making a donation to the appeal.

Thousands of items, ranging from giant teddy bears to junior science kits and scooters to toiletries were also donated meaning over 500 families received gifts to open on Christmas Day.

Cllr Clare Louise Carragher, the Mayor of Sefton, said:

“I have been blown away by the sheer amount of donations we have seen for our Toy Appeal. When times are tough, our community really pulls together and this year has been our best Toy Appeal yet!

I want to give a personal thank you to everyone who donated to our appeal, every single donation made this year has gone some way to ensuring no child went without a gift this Christmas.”

The Mayor of Sefton is writing personal letters of thanks to those across Sefton who went the extra mile to support the initiative and gave time, money and energy to give our campaign a boost.

Our ‘12 Days of Community’ campaign shone a spotlight on those businesses, community groups and people who played a big role in the success of our Toy Appeal this year and without the donations from across a community the Toy Appeal wouldn’t be the fantastic initiative it is.

Cllr Carragher added:

“For many of our families across Sefton, Christmas can be a time of real pressure and hardship and the incredible gestures of kindness and self-sacrifice from people right across our Borough has been inspiring.”

Active Sefton is inviting residents with an interest in sports and fitness to apply for it’s ground-breaking instructor training programme.

Aspiring Instructors is a 12 week course targeted at Sefton residents over the age of 18 and designed to help get people into a new career within the sports and fitness industry.

Developed by Sefton Council, it will help to improve skills and employability for residents across the borough.

Set to begin in January 2023, the ‘life-changing’ programme will combine a mix of coaching and work placement with attendees’ receiving nationally recognised qualifications on completion of the course.

A series of open recruitment mornings will take place in November for anyone interested in the scheme.

The sessions will be held at Sefton Community Learning Service on Cambridge Road, Seaforth, on November 22nd, 24th and 28^th.

Cllr Ian Moncur, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, said: “Aspiring Instructors has proved very popular in previous years, with many attendees qualifying as Outdoor Activities Instructors, Fitness Instructors and Lifeguards.

 

“This is a brilliant opportunity for anybody who is looking for a career in health and fitness and who in the future will have the skills to promote health and wellbeing across the borough.”

 

Cllr Marion Atkinson, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Skills, added: “This is a fantastic programme that has helped Sefton residents to learn new skills, increase employability, socialise and get active.

 

“Despite the financial challenges the council is facing we remain committed and use every opportunity we can to build resilient communities and this is one of the examples of how we are doing it.

 

“I urge anyone interested in a career in sport and fitness to get in touch and book a place on one of our open days.”

 

To find out more about the course or to register for our recruitment sessions, please email active.sports@sefton.gov.uk or call 0151 288 6286

Last week, Sefton Council launched one of its flagship initiatives to improve Children’s Services for children, young people and families.

The Social Work Academy is a new, innovative approach to supported learning and talent development; the aim is for Sefton to ‘grow its own talent’ and produce confident, high quality practitioners.

Through the Academy, the Council will be able to provide the right support for Newly Qualified Social Workers and give them the right environment to grow into exceptional practitioners with a deep understanding of the barriers and problems families face in Sefton. They will have protected caseloads and a high level of managerial support to allow their practice to flourish.

A rolling programme of recruitment aims to see our Academy always filled with fresh new talent from all stages of the social work career, we welcome applications from recent graduates, social workers who may have taken a career break or ex social workers who wish to regain their registration in a supported environment   

As our new recruits go through their Assessed and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE), they will be managed by experienced team managers who will develop their practice through reflective supervision and modelling of practice. Practice Assessors will ensure the Newly Qualified Social Workers meet the required standards. They will also receive clinical support around emotional resilience that will help prevent the recognised social work phenomenon of burn-out, sickness and early retirement by enabling them to manage the stress and pressure of the profession.

The first 3 months will focus on building a solid base of learning including theories of practice, relationship building and learning key process and systems. The next 9 months will focus on building the confidence of our ASYE’s to handle increasingly complex situations and finding the best outcomes for children, young people and families. They will get the chance to slowly specialise in a team they feel best suits their passions and hopefully go on to join our permanent workforce.

Martin Birch, Sefton Council’s Director of Children’s Services said:

“Providing the right support, protection and consistency that delivers better experiences and outcomes for Sefton’s children, young people and their families starts with our own workforce.

“We are determined to make sure that Social Workers at all levels in our Children’s Social Care teams are being equipped to do their jobs to the highest standards from the moment they join us.

“I was delighted to welcome 23 new recruits last week who are at the beginning of an exciting journey- this is just the start and we’re so pleased you have chosen Sefton as the place to make a difference!”

 

Cllr Mhairi Doyle MBE, Cabinet Member for Children’s Social Care, said:

“Creating an Academy where our social work teams can learn and grow in confidence is a key part of our Improvement Journey.

“We face unprecedented demand for our services but we remain absolutely committed to tackling the issues raised by our recent Ofsted rating. The Social Work Academy is a crucial part of tackling these two key issues and will give us a resilient, confident, high quality  workforce for the future.”

You can apply to our Social Work Academy at https://seftonmakeadifference.jgp.co.uk/

Sefton Council is taking part in a Liverpool City Region wide initiative to help toddlers and newborn babies to build their brains and increase development thanks to a brand new initiative – Look, Say, Sing, Play!

The Local Authority’s Libraries teams have been working closely with the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) and 1^st Steps Nursery in Waterloo to actively encourage parents and carers to further bond and support their children during the early key development stages of their life.

The Look, Say, Sing, Play campaign promotes simplified positive interactions which parents and carers can do with their newborns and toddlers to not only help build attachments but also build healthy brains!

Sefton Council’s Libraries & Early Years teams have been working hard in recent weeks to help drive the Look Say Sing Play campaign with a series of storytime sessions ahead of the Look, Say, Sing, Play week this week where all Local Authorities have been sharing tips, resources and videos on social media.

During these storytime sessions, families received a free resources bag that includes bubbles, an activity card, flashing key ring and further reading materials.

Cllr Diane Roscoe, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Education, said:

“It’s great to be working closely with nurseries around Sefton to encourage the Look, Say, Sing, Play initiative.

“The 1st Steps Nursery in Waterloo have recently delivered a Look Say Sing Play session and the parental feedback was incredibly positive, with parents and carers especially appreciative of the free resource bag to continue the activities at home. It’s so important that initiatives like these reach all parents in Sefton.”

“Our Early Years settings have played a crucial role in delivering important messages about positive bonding and development for our young minds and our libraries have been excellent in spreading the word too- a fantastic team effort!”

 

To find out more about the scheme and download resource packs, please visit https://www.sefton.gov.uk/social-care-and-health/children-and-young-people/look-say-sing-play/