5 minute read
a charity this winter
OU increases support for Ukrainian refugees
Insights into Ukrainian culture and language are the subject of a free online course for people housing, caring for or working with Ukrainians in the UK.
The course has been developed by The Open University in Milton Keynes for UK residents hosting refugees and service providers working with people who have arrived from Ukraine.
Hosted on the OU’s OpenLearn platform, learners on the course have a chance to chat in the forums provided, to find out more about supporting Ukraine’s struggle and other Ukrainerelated topics.
The OU has also translated into Ukrainian its package of free online resources for Ukrainian refugees in the UK including courses from English language to articles on writing a CV.
“We applaud the efforts taken by The Open University in attempting to equip externally displaced Ukrainian people with skills and knowledge that would make their stay in the UK easier,” said Dmytro Zavgorodniy, director general for the Directorate for Digital Transformation at the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine.
Previously, the OU announced a package of support for Ukraine including:
n Fee waivers for existing
students from Ukraine in the 2021/22 academic year;
n A total 12 scholarships
totalling £240,000, complete with study starter pack and
access to careers and employability services;
n Potential job roles
posted on the dedicated sites for refugees jobs4ukr.com and Talent
Beyond Boundaries;
n A commitment to
continue working with partners including
Milton Keynes Council, the Department for Education and the Home Office on delivering support for refugees arriving in the UK, as well as supporting the
Ukrainian HE sector, their academics and students.
“So many people in the UK have reached out and opened their homes to people fleeing from the war in Ukraine,” says Dr Mirjam Hauck, director of the OU’s Open Centre for Languages and Cultures.
The course includes modules on Ukraine’s history, geography, its education and healthcare systems and ethnic and religious diversity.
OU vice-chancellor Professor Tim Blackman,
inset, said: “As the
appalling situation in Ukraine and the plight of those whose lives have been upended due to the conflict sadly continues, the OU is further enhancing our package of support.
Now here’s a ‘soup-er’ way to help the homeless...
YMCA MK has launched a soup recipe book as part of a brand new fundraising campaign. Featuring 24 recipes, the book is a collection of soups gathered from restaurants, businesses and community groups from across Milton Keynes.
It is the traditional winter warmer and a dish that, because of soup kitchens, has strong association with the homeless whom the YMCA helps, providing a hot, tasty, nutritious and low-cost meal. The book, sponsored by Milton Keynes-based food manufacturer Cranswick Foods, will be available to buy in HomeGround Café at the YMCA campus and on the YMCA MK website as well at a number of pop-up events planned in the run-up to Christmas.
Cranswick Foods’ sponsorship means that all the proceeds go directly to YMCA. The book costs £5.
“We believe a business as large as ours in the centre of Milton Keynes has a responsibility to give back to the community,” said Cranswick Foods’ HR manager Rachel Tudhope. “Our partnership with YMCA MK enables us to make a positive impact on our community. We are really excited to support YMCA on this exciting new project.”
Contributors include Paris House restaurant in Woburn, the Namji takeaway in Wolverton, commercial vehicle maker Scania, Milton Keynes College and the Warbler on the Wharf pub restaurant at Campbell Park marina.
A group of YMCA residents worked with chefs at Milton Keynes College’s catering school to create a Spiced Butternut Squash and Carrot Soup recipe. And a worker in the YMCA MK’s HomeGround café has created a beetroot and horseradish soup that is included in the book.
It is cheap to make, nourishing and colourful - in the current cost of living crisis, use red cabbage in the soup if you do not have much beetroot in order to make the soup even more affordable, said the charity.
YMCA MK is calling on businesses and the wider community to support its initiative by buying a copy of the book, by hosting a soup supper or by inviting friends around to make a soup from the book and raise money for the charity.
n For more details, visit https://mkymca.com/getinvolved/soupfest-mk/
Cyclists scale the Alpine heights for hospice
Seven days, 650 miles… and £58,000 raised for Willen Hospice.
A group of 31 cyclists rode to the challenge to cycle from Paris to Nice on the French Riviera, enjoying the picturesque Maurienne Valley through the French Alps before tackling three unforgiving Tour de France climbs; Col de SaintJean, Col du Galibier and Col du Telegraphe.
And some of those cyclists are pictured, left, at a thank-you event hosted by the hospice to confirm the amount raised and to raise a glass to their efforts.
“This was a fantastic challenge which really pushed and rewarded the cyclists,” said Willen Hospice’s Challenges fundraiser Dawn Clark, who was part of the support crew on the cycle ride. “Not only should they be proud of themselves for conquering the Paris to Nice ride but they should also be incredibly proud of the amount they managed to raise for Willen Hospice.”
The money is a valuable boost to the hospice’s work providing specialist, compassionate care for people affected by a life-limiting illness. Ms Clark also thanked the support crew and the ride sponsors Incentive Smart, hireful, Corley Cycles, Marcus Jordan, Workwear Pro Direct, VizionWealth and Dawson Group. Willen Hospice needs to raise £5.9 million a year and relies on local community support for much of those funds.
The charity’s next challenge is a trek to Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania in January. Find out more at www. willen-hospice.org.uk/Kilimanjaro.
