Email edition of the Guardian Gazette for November 09
Providing services, information and activities to residents of Merton
who have a visual impairment.
Contents;
We start off with a plea for your support.
100 Club Winners
Forthcoming Events
Lunch Club – every Thursday from 12.30 p.m. onwards - £4 per head
MertonVision Advisory Community Group – Tuesday 8 December at 7 pm at MertonVision
Christmas Lunch - Thursday 17 December at 12.30 - £8 per head
Macular Disease Support Group – third Monday of the month
Burns Night - Friday 29 January 2009 at 7.30 pm - £10 per head
Christmas cards and calendars for sale
FIGHT AGAINST BLINDNESS – FAB
Accessible and Flexible Computer Training and help into Employment for adults who have a visual
impairment
Give the gift of music this Christmas
Oakhouse Foods
Raffle Prizes Required
R.I.P.
Merton Talking Newspaper
Dates for your diary 2009/10
2010
Happy Christmas
May we take this opportunity to wish you all a good Christmas and a
healthy and happy 2010. Our special thanks are due to all the volunteers
who help us with so many things during the year, we couldn’t do it without
you.
Thank you to all of you who have supported us throughout this year, for
your many letters of encouragement, donations and gifts: all of this is
much appreciated.
The Centre will be closed from mid-day on Thursday 24 December and
will reopen again on Monday 4 January at 9 am. We look forward to
seeing many of you during the next 12 months.
In this issue you will find items on 100 Club Winners, Forthcoming Events,
Christmas cards for sale, Fight Against Blindness, I.T. Training for over
18’s who are unemployed, a Gift of Music, Raffle Prizes required,
Oakhouse Foods, RIP, message from MTN and Dates for your Diary.
We start off with a plea for your support.
We want you to tell us if you have difficulty getting information from health
providers (GP, hospitals etc) in the format of your choice? Do your
appointment letters arrive in standard print? Do you have to rely on other
people to read your personal health information because it is not in large
print? Did you know that you can ask for large print or Braille for example?
Have you asked for Braille and been refused?
We would like to tell health providers that they should be providing you
with information that you can read. But to do this we need help from youplease contact Fran with any instances of you having to rely on other
people to read your personal health letters/results. And especially if you
have asked for information in your format and been refused.
We plan to hold a meeting with heath providers and the PCT early next
year- and we can’t do this without your stories and how you have been
affected. Contact Fran on 0208 540 5446 or fran.hibbert@mertonvision.org.uk
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100 Club Winners
October
1st prize
2nd Prize
No
No
November
1st prize
2nd Prize
Bonus Prize
No 102 Derek Raven
No 11 Margaret Jones
No 111 Sandy Gray
1 Jim Roger
£27.50
4 Queenie Jeyasinham £11.00
2
£27.50
£11.00
£50.00
The cost is £12 per year, there is a draw every month and the more
members we have the bigger the prizes. There is also a chance of
winning a bonus prize of £50 twice a year, and a Christmas bonus of
£100. If you would like to join just give us a ring on 8540 5446.
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Forthcoming Events
Lunch Club – every Thursday from 12.30 p.m. onwards - £4 per head
This has been a very successful venture and continues to grow. If you
would like a two course meal cooked on the premises then why not join us
on a Thursday. Transport is available for those who need it. It is
important that you let us know if you are coming so that we can buy
enough food for the day and also that we can put your name on the
transport list if you require it.
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MertonVision Advisory Community Group – Tuesday 8 December at
7 pm at MertonVision
MertonVision Community Advisory Group is the place for you to air your
views! You are welcome to just turn up, or phone us for more details.
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Christmas Lunch - Thursday 17 December at 12.30 - £8 per head
We have very few places left for this, so if you would like to come you will
need to let us know in the next week. When you do book, please
remember to let us know if you are a vegetarian.
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Macular Disease Support Group – third Monday of the month
10 a.m. –12 p.m.
There will be no meeting in December, so the group will resume on
Monday 18 January and every third Monday of the month thereafter.
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Burns Night - Friday 29 January 2009 at 7.30 pm - £10 per head
Come and join us again to celebrate Burns Night and feast on haggis,
neeps and tatties. We will have an alternative menu of sausages or
vegetarian sausages for those who do not eat Haggis.
Book early to avoid disappointment as places are limited. The cost is £10
per head and transport available at £4.80 return Journey.
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Christmas cards and calendars for sale
There is still time to buy your Christmas cards and calendars, so if you
would like to order, just phone in, or better still, come in to see us.
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FIGHT AGAINST BLINDNESS – FAB
FAB (Fight Against Blindness) is a charity working in Cambridge,
East Anglia and London to support and help find a cure for people with the
hereditary eye disease Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP). A key objective of the
charity is to help those with RP to obtain genetic testing so they know
what type of RP they have as treatments become available.
The disease can severely impact the life choices of those with RP
because they and their families have to make decisions about education,
choice of career, place of residence, reproductive choices etc. Those
affected may not know the type of RP they have, how it involves their
families, for example if it has been passed on to their children and they
may have no information on genetic testing and research. One of the
most effective approaches is genetic testing because it gives information
about the disease and how it relates to the family. However, genetic
testing for RP is not always or consistently funded by the NHS and
although some NHS approved tests are available, those seeking to be
tested may need to fund themselves.
This is where FAB can help. They can directly pay for genetic tests to be
carried out. If you, or anyone, you know would like to find out how to
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obtain genetic testing or has been refused funding for genetic testing
please contact 01763 208045. Email info@fabrp.co.uk
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Accessible and Flexible Computer Training and help into
Employment for adults who have a visual impairment
U CAN DO I.T. is pleased to announce the start of a new two year
Computer and Employment Training project: Transition to Work
The aim of the project is to provide:
One to one computer training sessions from a team of tutors to gain either
a Level 1 or Level 2 ITQ. An ITQ is the National Vocational Qualification
for IT Users which shows competence in the use of IT in the workplace. It
is split into units and you have to produce evidence to pass each unit
(there is no test).
One to One and Group Employment Skills to help build confidence and
achieve realistic goals with Royal London Society for the Blind (RLSB).
RLSB will provide assessments and support sessions to help you into
employment (which will include writing a CV and application letters,
confidence building, access to relevant job search sources)
This will mean visiting their offices to attend meetings and workshops.
To be eligible to take part in this project you must fit the following criteria:





Be Visually Impaired/Blind
Be over 16
Be unemployed
Live in Greater London
Be prepared to put in a lot of hard work – the ITQ’s will require a lot
of home study and commitment
 Be prepared to travel to the RLSB, Charles House,
375 Kensington High Street, London W14 8QH
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This project is part funded by the European Union through the European
Social Fund and is co-financed by the Learning and Skills Council
For further details please contact the admin team on 020 7730 7766.
Fax 020 7730 6822 or Email admin@uca
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Give the gift of music this Christmas
Are you thinking about learning how to play the guitar? If so, the Royal
National College for the Blind have produced an audio guitar instruction
pack and tactile guitar for people with a visual impairment. This pack will
give you all the instruction you need to learn to play the guitar right from
the beginning, no experience is required.
If you would like to know more please contact the Royal National College
direct on 01432 376 391.
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Oakhouse Foods
Oakhouse Foods provide a frozen food home delivery service, but they
have now introduced a grocery and home wear service. They can deliver
anything from your frozen dinner, to coffee, toilet tissue, kitchen items,
walking sticks and much much more.
You can contact them via the website or by calling them direct on you can
phone them direct for a catalogue, or if you know want you want to buy,
they will take your order over the phone. Their telephone number is
01189 756 565. The website address is www.oakhousefoods.co.uk if you
would prefer to order that way.
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Raffle Prizes Required
If any of you have unwanted gifts or would like to donate any items for
raffle prizes, just drop them in to us or we can collect if they are on our
round of transport.
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R.I.P.
It is with regret that we announce the deaths of,
Dennis White, Daisy Carey, Daisy Ashley and Doreen Child
To their family and friends we offer our sincere condolences and thank
you for your donations in lieu of funeral flowers.
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Merton Talking Newspaper
Did you know that you can receive news from the local Guardian and Post
newspapers on tape, free of charge!?
Merton Talking Newspaper record a tape every week with local news on
one side and a magazine on the other.
Merton Talking Newspaper is looking for volunteers to help produce the
magazine, please contact them directly.
If you would like further information or would like to order a weekly copy,
please contact Merton Talking Newspaper direct on 8544 0551.
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Dates for your diary 2009/10
Friday 4 December
Term ends
Tuesday 8 December
Focus Group Meeting
Thursday 17 December
Christmas lunch at MertonVision
Thursday 24 December
Centre close half day
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2010
Monday 4 January
Monday 11 January
Friday 29 January
Centre reopens after Christmas
Term commences
Burns Night
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Monday 15 February
Thursday 18 February
Friday 26 February
Half term week
VIassist equipment exhibition
Campaigning Day with RNIB & LINk
Friday 26 March
Term ends
Friday 2 April
Monday 4 April
Monday 19 April
Good Friday
Easter Monday
Term commences
Monday 3 May
Monday 31 May
Monday 31 May
Friday 4 July
May Day
Late Spring Bank Holiday
Half term week
Term ends
Low Vision Clinic is held on the first Tuesday of the month by appointment
only.
Citizens Advice Bureau is held every Wednesday fortnight by appointment
only.
The Gazette is produced in large print, braille, tape, e-mail and DAISY for
members, friends, supporters and volunteers of MertonVision. If you
require further information on any of the items in the newsletter, or if you
no longer wish to receive newsletters, please contact us here at:MertonVision, The Guardian Centre, 67 Clarendon Road, Colliers Wood,
London SW19 2DX Tel No 020 8540 5446 or visit our website
www.mertonvision.org.uk
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