Gosforth Local - July/August 2020 Edition

July / August 2020 | Issue 9

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T KEEPAIL! LOC When you switch to green energy, we can save you money Just call

0191 580 6311

Tel: 0191 2715800

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Brian Burnie is ending his epic journey by walking the final leg of the 7,000-mile round-Britain charity walk with celebrities and supporters from Teeside to Whitley Bay. Once again, we would like to thank all of our contributors for their support.

As always, Gosforth Local magazine is your magazine, so if you have any suggestions, we would love to hear from you.

KEEP IT! LOCAL

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We would like to say a special thank you to Jennifer Storey for the wonderful insight into her world with children during the pandemic. Covid-19 is still in the forefront of everyone’s mind so our article on The History of the Pandemic is particularly relevant.

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This edition is the start of the community bias which reflects our commitment to our readers.

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Here at Gosforth Local magazine we are so pleased to be back in print after three months of lockdown.

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ello and welcome to the relaunch of Gosforth Local for July/August our new style bi-monthly magazine.

Inside this issue

July / August 2020 | Issue 9

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Dear Readers

KEEP IT LOCAL! When you switch to green energy, we can save you money Just call

0191 580 6311

Tel: 0191 2715800

History: The History of the Pandemic..................4 Local Business: Vibrant Thinking.............................6 Local Life: Looking up in Lockdown – How one mother is coping...................................10 Health: Get Moving for Mental Health.............12 Local Sites: Places to Go – Berwick-upon-Tweed............................................14/15 Puzzles: Tickle the old Grey matter....................16 Local Business: Geon Training................................17 Local Business: Inspired HR.......................................18 Supported Charity: Daft as a Brush....................22 Local Business: Stangate Stoves...........................24 Local Business: Richard Bird Funeral Services....26 Local Charity: Dragon Fly Cancer Trust............28 Recipe: Salmon and Corn Cakes.............................30 Eco Friendly: Avoiding Food Waste.....................31 Henry Hedgehog’s Puzzle Page.............................32 Local Charity: Conrades of Children Overseas (COCO)........................................34

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Help for You: Citizens advice Newcastle.........37 Puzzle Solutions..............................................................38 Useful Numbers...............................................................38 July / August 2020

3

HISTORY

The History of the Pandemic Catherine Rose

lthough our increased global mobility makes pandemics more likely, diseases have crossed country borders for centuries.

One of the earliest pandemics, the Justinian plague, began in 500 AD, spreading from Egypt into Palestine, the Byzantine Empire and then Europe. Similar to bubonic plague, it killed twenty-six per cent of the world’s population – around five hundred million – thwarting Roman Emperor Justinian’s plans to revitalise the Roman Empire.

from its rapidly fatal effects.

Another outbreak occurred during the Crimean War between 1853 and 1856. Nurse Florence Nightingale became famous at this time for her tireless efforts to improve unsanitary conditions.

1347 saw the first wave of the Black Death, a pneumonic form of bubonic plague – one of the most devastating pandemics in human history.

Originating in Asia, it is likely to have travelled along the Silk Route and then by ship into Europe.

It is believed, as with later outbreaks, that it was spread via fleas contaminated with the yersinia pestis bacteria.

The disease is estimated to have killed hundreds of millions of people worldwide and up to sixty per cent of the population in Europe.

Characterised by a fever and buboes, the Black Death could kill within hours. It lasted until 1352 and had huge economic and social repercussions.

A vaccine was created in 1885.

Smallpox, caused by the variola virus, is one of the most devastating diseases. Various outbreaks have occurred over the centuries, the earliest around 10,000 BC. During the twentieth century alone, smallpox was responsible for up to five hundred million deaths worldwide. It was declared by WHO to be eradicated in 1980.

COVOD-19 is not the first pandemic virus to have originated in animals. The Spanish flu, which struck worldwide during 1918/19, is believed to have started in birds.

Instances of bubonic plague returned over subsequent centuries. In 1665, the Great Plague of London killed twenty per cent of its population.

Although nicknamed the Spanish flu, it appeared in Kansas, America in 1918. Due to World War I, many European countries had news blackouts and initial reports came from Madrid, leading people to believe it had begun in Spain.

The term ‘quarantine’ was coined in Venice referring to a period of forty days – the optimum time necessary for the spread of an epidemic to be contained. Cities that implemented quarantines were found to be less affected by fast-transmitting diseases.

It was able to spread rapidly in the unsanitary and confined conditions of the trenches. Unlike regular flu, it targeted healthy young people and came at a time when populations had already been decimated.

Numerous cholera pandemics began in Russia in 1815. Acquired through contaminated water and food, the British Army unwittingly spread this serious bacterial illness across the British Empire and millions of people died 4 July / August 2020

This flu was particularly deadly, leading to severe bronchial pneumonia. It infected a third of the world’s population and resulted in around fifty to one hundred million deaths.

Today, we are better informed about the spread of disease, our lives are more sanitary and scientists can more easily predict outcomes and implement strategies that contain it. Stay safe and well.

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July / August 2020

5

LOCAL BUSINESS

Vibrant Thinking re you experiencing more employees requesting to work remotely on a permanent basis? Or office space being reduced?

Do you see a future of partially virtual teams with some of the team working in the office and some working remotely? Do you see a challenge in ensuring a sense of shared identity as a team with this form of hybrid team?

A sense of shared identity and shared understanding are critical to high performing teams. For those teams who are moving to a partially virtual model there will be challenges to overcome to ensure the team operates as a single team.

Imagine if, as a team leader, you had access on how to overcome these challenges, step by step, bite sized chunks of how to apply different ways of working and team building activities that are

integrated into the day-to-day of work so that your team thrives.

Vibrant Thinking has always taken a fresh approach to team building and continues to empower teams in a transformed workplace.

They work with you to identify the power with an individual and unleash the fun in work to create high performing teams.

Vibrant Thinking: Helping your team thrive.

Do you want your team to thrive?

Facing challenges with a partially virtual team?

T: 07788779711 W: www.vibrantthinking.co.uk E: info@vibrantthinking.co.uk Are you unsure how to set up a partially virtual team for success?

Vibrant Thinking can help and we o�er a free consultation to better understand the challenges you are facing.

“She understands the demands of business today and ensures that the work is focussed on solutions to the challenges”.

Kim Miljus - Global Media North East, Area Business Director “Lorna is a dynamic and focused individual that has a vison to work with companies and communities to support their ongoing learning & development through creative team building”. Nadia Scott – Geon 6 July / August 2020

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July / August 2020

7

LOCAL LIFE

Looking up in Lockdown

How one mother is coping warm hello to all the Gosforth Local readers. I’m Jen, or more commonly known as ‘Mummy’ to Lily Rose (4) and Thomas (18 months).

Jennifer Storey I am going to be sharing my experiences of parenting during the pandemic. From toilet roll shortages to sanitizer, masks and McDonald’s closures, life has taken many unexpected twists. Through good times, and the lockdown lows, I’ll be describing how I’ve navigated the restrictions with two little people in tow.

I have always loved being out and about. When my children were younger, I would go here there and everywhere with them both in a giant red double buggy. Hearing “You’ve got your hands full!” would be a regular occurrence. It was true, but my heart was even fuller.

I love raising my little family in our vibrant and exciting city. We were regulars at museums, libraries, and parks. We especially enjoyed trips to the coast, marvelling at the wonders of the aquarium. We were joined by the most wonderful friends and their children for playdates aplenty. And of course, we saw a lot more of the grandparents. When Lily started nursery, Thomas and I would continue many more adventures together. Climbing rainbow mountains at soft play, winding the bobbin at toddler groups, we rarely stayed home!

Life was the kind of ‘exhausted, haven’t washed my hair in a week, but wouldn’t change a thing’ type of bliss that comes with raising small children. But

10 July / August 2020

then life became a little strange. On the 23rd March, along with millions of others across the country, I sat with Thomas on my knee and watched anxiously as the PM announced that we were entering ‘lockdown’.

I admit my initial reaction was that it felt impossible. My free-range children climb the walls after just a day in the house never mind weeks on end. But, after an initial wobble, I decided to embrace it. I painted on my sunniest smile as I explained to the children what fun we were going to have. Our ‘days out’ would now consist of once a day exercise, and our much-loved playdates gone for the foreseeable future. I nervously awaited their reaction; Lily spoke first... “Can I have a snack?”

My talents as a spin doctor are clearly wasted!

Our first trip out, a wander down the bridle path, started out disastrously. Thomas wanted to run up to everybody we passed. The sticky palms and dribbly smiles which normally elicit countless ‘coos’, were now met by masks, averted eyes and hurried steps. In those early days it felt like, together with 6.3 million workers, friendliness had also been furloughed.

After wrestling an unimpressed toddler back into his buggy, whilst trying to remind Lily what social distancing meant, and that yes, it also included not licking people, we eventually managed to find a more secluded spot in a field. We spent half an hour running up and down an imaginary yellow brick road; arms outstretched, wind in our (freshly cut and not yet resembling a mop) hair. The open space felt good, maybe this lockdown malarkey wasn’t going to be so hard after all...

(To be continued)

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July / August 2020 11

HEALTH

Get Moving for Mental Health

depression, alleviating stress and even reducing pain and blood pressure.

uring the lockdown, with so little choice of things to do, it may well be that a walk round the block became part of your daily routine. That should have reminded you of the physical and mental benefits of fresh air and moving around.

But as lockdown eases, if you find you have reverted to form and even the very word ‘exercise’ makes you want to retreat to the sofa to binge-watch Netflix, we hear you!

It really doesn’t have to be a chore though. Any type of exercise is useful, as long as it suits you and you do enough of it. It should be something you enjoy or it will be hard to find the motivation to do it regularly.

As the saying goes: necessity is the mother of invention, and the last couple of months have been the perfect time for introducing exercise that doesn’t involve being in a gym. From martial arts in the garden, online yoga and cycling to just that brisk walk round the block.

Exercise to boost your mood Aerobic exercises, where your heart rate is elevated, have been shown to help depression.

They reduce your levels of cortisol (AKA the ‘stress hormone’). You could try jogging (using the Couch to 5K app to keep yourself motivated), a virtual exercise class or just dancing in your kitchen.

Exercise to ease anxiety Yoga and Pilates can have a direct impact on your nervous system, helping to calm it down and ease anxiety. Some studies have shown that yoga can also be beneficial for tackling 12 July / August 2020

According to a study by the University of Exeter, spending two hours a week in nature is good for both your mental and physical well-being. This could mean your local park, a field or even doing an outdoor circuits session in your garden.

Virtual exercise classes Joe Wicks runs weekday PE classes at 9am on his YouTube channel and you don’t need to have children to take part. If the family classes are too energetic, try some of his other workouts, such as the ones aimed at seniors.

Don’t fancy PE? You’ll find dance, martial arts and more online. The dance troupe Diversity teaches regular classes on www.20dv.co.uk. And you can take part in Oti Mabuse’s free dance classes on her YouTube channel whenever you want.

Exercising with a health condition If you’re worried that exercise might make an existing health condition worse, do speak to your GP. Finally, the NHS offers more than 20 instructor-led workouts at www.nhs.uk/conditions/nhs-fitnessstudio, starting from just 10 minutes long. There’s even a 30-minute workout using your sofa!

Keep motivated Make a note of how you feel before and after your workout. Try rating your anxiety and mood out of 10 and see whether the workout has had a positive effect.

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July / August 2020 13

LOCAL SITES

© svpro.co.uk

Places to Go – Berwick-upon-Tweed n the many occasions I have been to visit Berwick, I have always turned right out of the station to follow Castlegate into the town centre.

This time, I turned left over the railway, looking out for the 1937 Coronation Park on the left, through which runs a footpath downhill to the north bank of the River Tweed. I was walking the new three mile Tweed and Coast nature trail, supported by many local bodies and charitable foundations, and devised by the local U3A. There are fourteen information boards on the trail which runs through Berwick and Tweedmouth via the docks to Spittal beach so the path is part riverside, urban, industrial, dunes and seaside promenade. Spittal has a long and wide expanse of sandy beach, and is rather nicer than the name might imply. In the 1800s it was a popular spa. A similar trail about L. S. Lowry, the artist, is available.

of the boards. One told of the 2m long Pholiderpeton fossil – might have been useful for helping social distancing.

I passed through the ruins of Berwick Castle at low level and was impressed by the grandeur of the Royal Border Bridge, which was officially opened by Queen Victoria on 29th August 1850 on her way to Balmoral, a process which took only twelve minutes from her train arriving to continuing over the border, 2.5 miles further north. (It was a good day for rail openings: she had opened Newcastle Central station earlier the same day.) I continued into town under the 1928 Royal Tweed Bridge which relieved most of the traffic on the Berwick Old Bridge of 1633, which I crossed to Tweed© Alex Nelson

There is plenty of wildlife to see and the information boards are attractive and, notably, are changed for each season four times a year to keep the content relevant.

A simple idea, but I have not seen it done before in practice. The group organising the trail has just installed the summer versions 14 July / August 2020

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July / August 2020 15

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PUZZLES

Tickle

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3 words EXISTENCE JOHNNY ANDREW

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Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1-9, with no repetition.

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How many did you get right?

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Find your answers on page 38!

Quick Crossword

Across 1 Gripping hand tool with two hinged arms (6) 7 South American monkey with claws instead of nails (8) 8 Canton located in the centre of Switzerland, home to William Tell (3) 1 9 Succulent plant with a thick fleshy stem which typically bears spines (6) 10 Front part of a vessel or aircraft (4) 11 Agent which assists colonic 8 irrigation (5) 13 Ten-sided shape (7) 15 Place for young plants (7) 17 Strong, lightweight wood (5) 21 Female operatic star (4) 22 Neckband (6) 23 Mature female deer (3) 24 Summons to attend a court of law (8) 11 25 Gains points in a game (6)

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Down 1 Thick cushion used as a seat (6) 2 Hanging, tapering spike of frozen water (6) 3 English explorer said to have been saved by Pocahontas (5) 4 Cut of beef from the chest (7) 5 Fairground game of ring throwing (4-2) 6 Extremely poisonous, especially by bite or sting (8) 12 Name of the submarine in Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea (8) 14 Tall fern with coarse lobed fronds (7) 16 Crustaceans also known as Norway lobsters or Dublin Bay prawns (6) 18 Food store (6) 19 Mother superior (6) 20 Name that has been assumed temporarily (5)

General Knowledge Crossword

Across Down 1 Thick cushion used as a seat (6) 1 Gripping hand tool with when responding to adverts 16 July / August 2020 two hinged arms (6) Please mention Gosforth Local 2 Hanging, tapering spike of frozen water (6)

Training firm goes virtual in four weeks to give North East the edge on skills North East training company’s innovative approach to virtual training is helping get the region back to work during lockdown.

Businesses and jobseekers struggling with the coronavirus downturn are turning to Geon Training’s online expertise to help upskill staff working from home, re-train as healthcare key workers or get market-ready skills in key sectors.

By switching to virtual classrooms, Geon has recorded zero absences with all courses completed.

Co-founder and managing director Nadia Scott said: “Within four weeks of the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, we changed all of our recruitment and training processes and were running our first virtual online training from April 14. Due to this we have secured further funding contracts so we can continue to support local businesses and their employees as they phase back into work.

L to R – Chris Brown, Trevor Dudgeon and Nadia Scott (For social distancing – Trevor and Nadia are life partners) © The Bigger Picture

Geon also provides start-to-finish recruitment services through to fully flexible on-the-job training in the workplace and bespoke training programmes.

Many of its programmes are available on its website at www.geon.training via a partnership with The Skills Network.

Trevor, who is now financial director, said: “The best thing about the job is seeing learners build their skills and confidence to find a new employment role or further their career. We really give people opportunities in sectors they never dreamed they could work in.

“Part of what we do is also to help change mindset of employers by getting them to recruit from our cohort of trainees. This helps firms with their corporate social responsibility and gets people working who may never have had the opportunity.”

Director of Education Chris added: “We offer many fully funded Government courses covering a wide range sectors from management, administration and HR through to warehousing, distribution, construction, industrial, retail and healthcare.

And they work. Gone are the days when distance learning meant being sent an email once a week.

Our packages involve virtual classrooms, videos and interactive features which make learning enjoyable and it sticks.

t Anniversary Edition!

“COVID-19 has forced many people, businesses included, to be more inventive to overcome hurdles that just didn’t exist before. Technology has come to the forefront, which is why our online training is attracting so much attention.”

Geon Training specialises in fully funded, bespoke training programmes based around its sectors and continuously works with partners and clients to offer its learners local employment opportunities, as well as CV coaching and careers advice.

The company has also started to provide the TQUK Level 2 Award in Prevention and Control of Infection, a qualification that many employers are now insisting on candidates having due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Geon Training which Nadia started with fellow directors Trevor Dudgeon and Chris Brown in 2016, now has a growing £2.2 million national portfolio, including contracts with local colleges and national providers, satellite offices in Manchester and Sheffield, and a new training centre on Gateshead’s Team Valley.

“In the next ten years, I think Geon will be regarded as the best in the private training sector. I want companies to look at us for the support we are able to offer to ease much of their training and recruitment needs. Learners will be looking at Geon as the best provider to help them gain the qualifications they need to grow in their chosen sector and job role.”

T I P E E K AL! LOC

Contact: T: 0191 466 1024 E: training@geon.co.uk W: www.geon.training @Geon Training Ltd

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@Geontraining

July / August 2020 17

LOCAL BUSINESS

The road back to work, what do you need? uring lockdown here at Inspired HR we recognised that businesses were struggling, so decided to provide free guidance newsletter and templates on how to navigate the impact of COVID-19 and the CVJS Scheme (Furlough). We now recognise the next stage is going to be just as tough!

Are YOU ready?

We appreciate the need to support businesses and employees now more than ever. With this in mind, we are in a good position to advise on all employment matters, such as:

• Dealing with staff who are ‘vulnerable’ and shielding or who need support due to their personal circumstances with regard to discrimination law.

• Flexible working requests including, staggered shifts and home working.

• Preparing Line Managers to ensure successful outcomes and avoid claims.

So, if you would like a chat then get in touch and we will be the support that is there during your journey back to business.

• Returning to work from furlough, including staff who are reluctant/refusing to return.

Inspired HR are offering a FREE HR Risk Review & 30 minute follow up call

• Making sure your company’s Health and Safety processes meet COVID-19 standards, dealing with complaints and grievances.

If you need on-going support our PAYG packages start from only £15 and you only pay for the time you use.

• Redundancies, reorganisations and changing terms & conditions.

• Supporting businesses to take the right steps to help employees with their mental health.

18 July / August 2020

More information can be found on our website www.inspired-hr.co.uk/ and complete our Free HR Risk review or call our team on 0191 205 8020 or email: admin@inspired-hr.co.uk

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TECHNOLOGY

Make your outdoors great uly is time to embrace the great outdoors. If your hard work has the garden looking great, it’s time to enjoy the benefits with our gadgets for summer days and nights.

MUSIC One of our favourite pieces of outdoor technology is the wireless speaker, which can soundtrack anything from sunbathing to social events.

Sonos Move portable wireless speaker

You don’t need to spend a lot of money on a wireless Bluetooth speaker though. For example, Sony’s excellent SRS XB01 can be bagged for £19.99, runs for six hours between charges and is water-resistant.

If you can afford higher-end models you’ll get even better sound and smart features.

The Sonos Move may well be the best portable speaker in the world right now; it’s just a shame it costs £399.

LIGHTING Another favourite is outdoor lighting. There are two options: solar lighting Philips Hue that costs nothing to run outdoor smart and smart lighting that lights runs from a power socket. The former is available in many designs, from single posts to curtains of fairy lights, colour-changing flowers, security spotlights the temperature drops and decking lights – all you dramatically when the sun need is a reasonably sunny starts to go down. Instead of spot for the solar panel. a fairly wasteful gas-powered heater, an electric one with Smart lighting isn’t as cheap, halogen bulbs uses a lot less but it’s tons of fun. Philips’ energy and is much cheaper to excellent Hue lighting run, although you need to be continues to add new outdoor within reach of a plug socket ideas, with a range that now for them to work. includes spotlights and wall Unlike gas heaters, which lights as well as light strips and heat the air around them, floodlights designed to deliver electric heaters heat the more subtle ambient light. things they light up but Just like the indoor versions not the air in between: you you can choose from endless might find a smaller tabletop colours, create your own heater (from around £70) or lighting ‘recipes’ and set up a parasol-mounted heater automation that’ll trigger the (around £89) lights either at set times or keeps you when specific things happen, warmer such as the sun going down than a or you arriving home. It’s a fairly more powerful expensive option, however – big one that individual lights such as the you have Appear, Resonate and Lily lights to sit cost £129 each – and the lights’ further hub needs to be within range of away your Wi-Fi router. from.

HEAT Although the UK gets comfortably warm July days,

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Outsunny Parasol electric heater

July / August 2020 19

SUPERIOR SOLUTION

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Upon Tyne | Tyne & Wear | NE3 2EF o.co.uk

SUPPORTED CHARITY

‘Joint Celebration’ on 15th August 2020 - VJ Day 75 ounder, Brian Burnie is promoting the Daft as a Brush Charity nationwide by walking 7,000 miles around the entire coastline of Great Britain and Ireland in 3 years, with a converted double decker bus called ‘Bluebell’ as his home. On his return, the charity aims to create over 1,000,000 cancer patient journeys, nationwide.

Brian will have walked the equivalent from Torquay (where his walk was placed on hold due to C19 after 5,126 miles), back to the North East region in Teesside; that’s 1,182 miles by 15th August.

This has been achieved by walking circuits of his garden, then, as restrictions were lifted, the golf course next door and more recently further afield.

Brian Burnie – Whitley Bay

guest at the above event at Doxford Hall in 2006). Len was born in Sunderland in January 1920. He enlisted, initially in the Territorial Army, but with the outbreak of war, transferred to the 125th Anti-Tank Regiment of the Royal Artillery. He shipped out to Singapore in early 1942 but they were attacked at sea by the Japanese and had to abandon ship and make for Singapore, which was about to be attacked by the Japanese.

On being captured, he was held initially at Changi but eventually went upcountry to work on the Burma Railway on the River Kwai.

That will leave the last leg, from Middlesbrough to the Baltic in Gateshead.

He will walk this final 50 miles with supporters, friends and local celebrities in early September.

Before Brian sold all his possessions to create the cancer charity ‘Daft as a Brush’, he invited more than 2,000 War veterans and their families to his Northumbrian mansion to commemorate the anniversary of VJ Day in 2006. He’s hoping we can do something similar at Daft as a Brush in Gosforth.

We have a very special guest of honour, Mr Len Gibson (who was a 22 July / August 2020

Len Gibson 3rd from the left top row

Should you (the readers) have any friends or relatives associated with the above please contact Dave Harrison directly on dave.harrison@bluebellbus.org.uk T: 0191 28 55 999 Registered Charity Number: 1185836

Donate or fundraise here: https://bit.ly/3f8i0nI THANK YOU! Please mention Gosforth Local when responding to adverts

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LOCAL BUSINESS

Stangate Stoves e pride ourselves on being one of the leading specialists in stoves in the North East region.

We have been supplying wood burning stoves, multifuel stoves, gas stoves, gas fires and fireplaces in Newcastle upon Tyne and the North East to both homes and commercial properties since 2001. Our passion is working with our customers to supply and install the stove that perfectly meets their requirements in terms of technical specification, budget and design to match their lifestyle and surpass their expectations.

With over 80 displays, 32 live display stoves & fires in our 4,000 sq ft showroom.

We are in one of the region’s iconic buildings, the famous Glassworks Cone in Lemington.

Our aim is to provide a personal service, designed to meet your individual and specific needs and requirements, as well as advising on the practicalities. We want to speak to you personally so that we can assess what you require in order to help to ensure that you are supplied with the correct appliance.

With that in mind, you will be comforted to know that you will be speaking to the same personnel throughout the process.

We have a wide range of Eco-Design ready appliances ready for the new government legislation.

Give us a call – we would love to hear from you – Tel (0191) 267 7100

24 July / August 2020

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GOSFORTH LOCAL

WOOD BURNING, GAS AND ELECTRIC STOVES, FIRES, FIREPLACES & OUTDOOR BBQS

www.stanegatestoves.co.uk The Cone, The Old Glassworks, Lemington, Newcastle NE15 8SX Tel: 0191 2677100 Open Tues - Sat 9.30am - 5.00pm

To advertise please call 0779 229 0931 or email sales@gosforthlocal.co.uk

July / August 2020 25

LOCAL BUSINESS

Richard Bird Funeral Services ichard Bird Funeral Services of Gosforth are proud to have won an award for the most supportive funeral directors in the region. Founder and director, Richard Bird, says this was thanks in no small part to the fact that they offer a personal service twenty four hours a day, seven days a week.

I am heavily involved in the local community, providing sponsorship for Gosforth Empire Bowls Club and the City of Newcastle Golf Club.

I am also an ambassador for Darcey’s Dream (My siblings and I matter), a charity based in Newcastle which offers guidance and support for families after the loss of an infant.

Richard Bird Funeral Services are members of the National Society of Allied and Independent Funeral Directors (SAIF) upholding the highest standards in the profession. Other services offered are: · Prepaid funeral plans, starting at £1,800, giving your family peace of mind.

26 July / August 2020

· Funeral finance up to £7,000 over 48 months. · Headstones, memorial ‘ashes into glass’ jewellery and fingerprint jewellery. · If you have insurance in place your wishes can be kept on file until the time of need.

Whatever your query please don’t hesitate to get in touch and I will be on hand to help.

Richard Bird Funeral Services 57 Great North Road, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE3 2DQ Tel: 0191 511 1412 Email: mail@richardbirdfuneralservice.com www.richardbirdfuneralservice.com

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GOSFORTH LOCAL

To advertise please call 0779 229 0931 or email sales@gosforthlocal.co.uk

July / August 2020 27

GOSFORTH LOCAL

To advertise please call 0779 229 0931 or email sales@gosforthlocal.co.uk

July / August 2020 29

GOSFORTH LOCAL RECIPE

Salmon and Corn Cakes hese mini fish cakes can be served as a starter or as part of a summer buffet.

Alternatively, serve with new potatoes and salad for a tasty family supper.

Makes 12 Ready in 40 mins, plus chilling

Ingredients • 2 x 170g cans skinless and boneless pink salmon, drained • 400g fresh mashed potato • 200g sweetcorn, canned or frozen • 2 spring onions, finely chopped • Salt and freshly ground black pepper • 2 tbsp plain flour • 2 medium eggs, beaten

1. Place the salmon and

mashed potato in a large bowl and mix together with a fork. Add the sweetcorn and spring onions, season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper and thoroughly mix again.

2. Divide and shape the

mixture into about 12 small round patties.

Place on a tray lined with baking paper. Cover with cling film and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.

3. Dust each patty with

patties (in 2-3 batches) in hot oil for 2-3 mins on each side until golden brown.

Drain on kitchen paper.

4. Serve warm topped with

small dollops of soured cream and slices of smoked salmon.

Tip For a crispier finish, coat the egg-dipped fishcakes in fresh white or brown breadcrumbs before frying.

flour then dip into the beaten egg to lightly coat. Shallow fry the

• Vegetable oil for shallow frying To serve: • Soured cream and smoked salmon 30 July / August 2020

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ECO FRIENDLY

Avoiding Food Waste e’ve never had it so good with the continuous year-round availability of fresh food.

But it is so wasteful throwing food away just because it’s not supermarket fresh.

So what can you use past its sell-by date and how?

Vegetables: any veg good for roasting – peppers, courgettes, potatoes (including sweet potatoes), onions – don’t have to be crispy-fresh to still be edible. Roasted veg are excellent to go with a barbecue or as a colourful accompaniment to many meals.

And do an internet search for roasted vegetable lasagne; better than the meat version.

Fruit: lockdown made overripe bananas very popular for home-baking. But most summer fruits combined with apple or orange juice and liquidized make excellent smoothies and puddings and pies are fine with fruit that is past its best.

Bread: family favourite bread-and-butter pudding is better with slightly stale bread than fresh. Toast your leftover French stick and then chop into croutons to add to a salad.

Crisps and cake: 20-30 seconds in the microwave will remove the moisture that turned your crisps soggy or your cake dry.

Leftover dinners: one-pot meals such as chilli, lasagne, curry, casserole often have some left in the pot when all have had their fill. A home vacuum packer means individual portions are kept fresh for a few days longer and don’t get freezer burn if you decide to store for a later time.

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July / August 2020 31

Answers on page 38

LOCAL CHARITY

Comrades of Children Overseas (COCO) oin us on 19th September to walk 17 miles for brighter futures!

Join COCO on a 17.5 mile walk along the most spectacular and challenging section of Hadrian’s Wall from Greenhead to Chollerford, led by North East Guides. Take in the beautiful views of the Northumbrian countryside, pass historical Roman sites and finish it all with a well-earned pint!

If you think 17.5 miles may be a step too far, you can also choose to take on a shorter 10 mile or 4 mile section of the same route. You can sign up to take part in all three routes via our website or by emailing rosie@coco.org.uk Registration £25 Fundraising Target £200 all proceeds go to COCO to give brighter futures to children across the globe! (https://www.coco.org.uk/portfolio-view/walkthe-wall)

34 July / August 2020

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Gosforth Fundraising Group’s Virtual Coffee Morning

GOSFORTH LOCAL

Thanks to everyone who attended the CRUK virtual coffee morning on 17th June and for your generous donations. We raised £595 plus £106.25 in gift aid which was amazing!

Look out for the details of the next one in October!

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36 July / August 2020

Cancer Research UK is a registered charity in England and Wales (1089464), Scotland (SCO41666) and the Isle of Man (1103).

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HELP FOR YOU

Need to Save Money on Your Home Energy Bills?

Now I’m at home more, I am spending more on my gas and electric than I normally would. I know I should check out the best deals, but there are so many suppliers to choose from. How do I find the best option for me?”

You do have a choice in who you buy your gas and electricity from and how you pay for it. You can save a lot of money by shopping around, particularly if you have not changed your energy supplier for several years. You may even save money by moving to a cheaper deal with your current supplier.

A tariff is the amount you pay for your energy and it can vary depending on how you pay for your energy. For example, you can pay by quarterly bill, prepayment meter or direct debit. Many energy companies also offer online, fixed, capped, single and dual fuel tariffs.

What you need before you start: 1. The name of your suppliers and current tariffs.

2. How much energy you used in the last year.

3. Your postcode.

This information is on your bill, or you can contact your supplier and ask them for this information.

Once you have this information, you can shop around: Use the Citizens Advice price comparison website: https://energycompare.citizensadvice.org.uk/ You can also see our energy supplier ratings to compare the level of service offered by different energy suppliers.

How to change your tariff or supplier(s): If you are staying with your current supplier(s) but changing to a different payment option or tariff, your supplier will arrange the change. Simply get in touch with them and tell them what you want to do. They should then write to you confirming the details of your new contract.

How to switch to a new supplier.

1. Pay any outstanding bills. If you don’t do this, your existing supplier may block the transfer.

Cancel any direct debits or standing orders set up

to pay your existing supplier once you have paid your final bill (or get a refund if you are in credit).

2. Contact the supplier to agree a new energy deal. The process to transfer supply from one supplier to another should take around 3 weeks.

3. Check the contract. You have the right to see your contract. If you are not sent one automatically you should request it. Check it’s correct and check the date you are due to change supplier. You may have the right to cancel the contract within a 14-day cooling-off period, depending on how and where you agree to the contract.

4. Take a meter reading. Your new supplier will read the meter, or ask you to take a reading, around the time of changing supplier. The old supplier will use the meter reading to work out the final bill and the new supplier will use it to start the new account.

Key fact: If you get the Warm Home Discount as a discount on your electricity bill, it is worth checking whether you will still get this help if you switch.

If you want help to do any of this, we have a team of specialist energy advisers who can take you through every step. You can either phone them on 0370 145 1450, or email: powergrid@newcastlecab.org.uk More information: http://www.citizensadvice-newcastle.org.uk http://www.adviceguide.org.uk Tel: AdviceLine: 0300 3309055 Registered charity number 1135396

To advertise please call 0779 229 0931 or email sales@gosforthlocal.co.uk

July / August 2020 37

GOSFORTH LOCAL

Hospitals Quick Crossword Across: 1 Pliers, 7 Marmoset, 8 Uri, 9 Cactus, 10 Prow, 11 Enema, 13 Decagon, 15 Nursery, 17 Balsa, 21 Diva, 22 Collar, 23 Doe, 24 Subpoena, 25 Scores.

Down: 1 Pouffe, 2 Icicle, 3 Smith, 4 Brisket, 5 Hoop-la, 6 Venomous, 12 Nautilus, 14 Bracken, 16 Scampi, 18 Larder, 19 Abbess, 20 Alias.

Children’s Puzzle Page TORCH BACKPACK BINOCULARS TENT BARBECUE COMPASS

Pictogram 1. Life On Mars 2. Sex And The City 3. Line Of Duty

Sudoku

Freeman Hospital 0191 233 6161 Royal Victoria Infirmary 0191 233 6161 Queen Elizabeth 0191 482 0000 Bensham 0191 482 0000 Cramlington A&E 0344 811 8111 Wansbeck General 0344 811 8111 North Tyneside General Hospital 0344 811 8111

Walk in Centres

169 Ponteland Road NE5 3AE Leamington NE15 8RZ Westgate Road NE4 6BE

Doctors Surgeries

Gosforth Memorial Medical Centre 0191 285 1119 Regent Medical Centre 0191 223 6555 The Grove Medical Group 0191 213 2778 Rosewood Surgery 0191 213 2392 Broadway Medical Centre 0191 213 5005

Chemists

Asda Banks Pharmacy Boots Douglas Pharmacy/ Alphega Pharmacy J&J Whittaker Knights Meadows Mills Pharmacy Well Pharmacy

0191 285 2911 0191 285 5576 0191 284 4970 0191 285 2520 0191 285 3829

Gosforth 0191 277 4100 Children’s Quiz 0191 277 4100 Newcastle City

Community Centres

Great Park 0191 236 8196 Kingston Park 0191 286 9825 Fawdon 0191 285 2724

Police Northumbia Police: Non-Emergency 101 Emergency 999 Newcastle City Council

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0191 213 0933 0191 277 4100 0191 285 1141

Libraries

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All artwork created by Gosforth Local remains the property of Gosforth Local and therefore must not be used in any other media without permission, as this is a breach of copyright laws.

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