Contact Help for Medway families affected by Autism and ADHD
Help for Medway families affected by Autism and ADHD
Family Action has launched Small Steps, a new 12-month pilot service in Medway, offering specialist and early support for children with suspected or diagnosed Autism (also known as ASC) and ADHD.
The service launches today, Wednesday, 14 April.
Small Steps provides early support, both practical and emotional, that is individually tailored for families where a child or young person is displaying concerning behaviour, or where they receive a diagnosis of ASC or ADHD. The service offers support pre diagnosis so families can get the right advice and direction from the beginning.
Small Steps works closely with health professionals, education settings and the local authority to enhance what is available to families. It offers information workshops, specialised parenting groups, and can provide parents with a Project Worker or a Volunteer Befriender who will offer home visits and 1:1 support within the family home. Volunteer Befrienders can support families to access social activities, attend medical appointments and offer a listening ear.
The service also offers drop-in parent support groups, education transition groups and support to access local services and the opportunity to meet other families in similar situations.
Providing support to families when they need it most
Cllr David Brake, Medway Council’s Portfolio Holder covering Public Health, said: “I am very pleased that we are working with Family Action to offer a variety of support for families with children or young people with suspected or diagnosed Autism and ADHD. The new service will provide individual practical and emotional support to families when they need it the most. I would encourage residents to find out more about the support available.”
Anyone who needs Autism and ADHD support is urged to get in touch
Sue Crabb, Family Action’s Operational Manager for Medway said: “It can be very difficult for families facing the challenges that Autism and ADHD can bring. They can often feel isolated and may not know where to turn to for help. Family Action has a long history of family support and SENDIAS services and has a wealth of knowledge and expertise in this field. Small Steps is here to offer practical and emotional support and we urge anyone who needs that support to get in touch.”
Basingstoke funding scheme launched to reduce fuel poverty and carbon emissions
Help is at hand for Basingstoke and Deane residents in fuel poverty living in cold homes and struggling to pay their energy bills.
Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council is offering up to £10,000 of government grant funding to low income households to provide energy-efficient home improvements. These include solar panel systems, park home insulation, solid wall insulation and low carbon heating systems, such as air source heat pumps.
Residents in rented homes are also eligible, with funding for 66% of the cost of improvements, up to £5,000, with their landlords contributing the remaining third.
This funding is through the government’s Green Homes Grant Local Authority Delivery scheme. The borough council is working with partners, led by Portsmouth City Council and managed by AgilityEco, to deliver the energy-saving measures and reduce local fuel poverty.
The council’s Executive Director of Residents’ Services Rebecca Emmett said: “This scheme supports residents on low incomes who are living in the least efficient properties in the borough to save energy and money. It will not only tackle fuel poverty by helping reduce energy bills, but the improvements at these homes will also help to reduce carbon emissions. This supports our council’s Climate Change and Air Quality Strategy which aims to achieve a carbon-free borough by 2030.”
If you have a household income of less than £30,000 then this scheme is a great opportunity. Applications are open now and funding will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis, with measures to be installed by September 2021. For more information and to apply visit <span>www.warmerhomes.org.uk/insulation.
The council is expecting further funding to be made available in our area as part of the next phase of this scheme in order to help even more of our residents.
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Essex help for local businesses to grow internationally with a free programme
SEED (South East Export Development) is a free programme of support available to local businesses wanting to increase their international activity.
The SEED project is funded by SELEP (the South East Local Enterprise Partnership) will support Essex businesses with economic recovery, by identifying opportunities and gaining sales within international markets.
SEED will also provide small businesses from Essex, East Sussex, Kent and Medway with key opportunities to get into overseas markets and make key connections within international markets.
The SEED programme commences in April 2021 and will consist of the following virtual activities:
• Online 1-2-1 export readiness meetings with an International Trade or Business Advisor, to ensure you are “export-ready”.
• Virtual group export & trade mission training sessions with tailored advice for your business, regarding regulations and exporting procedures relevant to target markets.
• Virtual trade missions whereby you will have the opportunity to meet with and present your business to in-market contacts.
The initial programmes list of target markets are as follows:
• Food & Drink – US, Hong Kong, Ireland
• Life Sciences – SE Asia, Middle East
• Digital & Creative – US, Canada
Who can take part in the SEED programme?
This free programme of support is available to SELEP-based companies, operating in Essex, Medway, Kent and East Sussex, with ambition to increase international activity.
The project will support businesses from the following industry sectors with export potential:
• Health & Life Sciences (including medical devices/technology, (e-)health, pharma, diagnostics)
• Food & Drink (including manufacturers, processing, suppliers to the industry, e.g. packaging).
• Digital & Creative (including software solutions, apps, web services)
Reasons to join the programme
• Free online 1-2-1 and group training sessions, to ensure you are “export ready,” with input from market experts- such as the Department for International Trade and the Chambers of Commerce.
• Access to unique export opportunities to enable you to grow your business internationally.
• Connect with distributors, buyers and valuable contacts in several international markets.
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__Find out more on the SEED Project: ____
Please email: [email protected] from Essex County Council’s Economic Development Team, for further details.
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Thanet Council launches new Additional Restrictions Grant scheme
Local businesses will be able to access further grant funding from Monday 12 April as Thanet District Council launches its new Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG) scheme.
How much will the new grants be? Indicative funding for the scheme is £751,971, which is less than previously allocated to Thanet. The scheme is also open to businesses that have not previously received an ARG so grants for the new scheme have been calculated as follows:
Business rates category
New ARG
Not rated
£700
Rateable Value below £15,000
£700
Rateable Value £15,000 – £51,000
£1,050
Rateable Value over £51,000
£1,575
The above sums will not be paid out until the Government has issued final guidance, due in the week commencing 19 April. This is because new requirements may be added to the scheme, meaning additional information will be required. It is hoped that payment grants for this new ARG scheme can be made from Monday 26 April 2021.
Tim Willis, Deputy Chief Executive, said: “To date, we have successfully administered over £80 million in financial support for local businesses in the form of grants and rate relief, and this will continue to rise over the coming months.
“We deliberately set a wide scope for our original Additional Restrictions Grant scheme to support as many businesses as possible and to get payments made when it was most needed. Once again, we are launching this new scheme ahead of final Government guidance so we have everything in place ready to pay businesses as soon as we possibly can.
“All applications will be processed in order of when they are received, and we encourage businesses to apply as soon as possible to avoid missing out.”
What do businesses have to do? Businesses who have already proven eligibility for an ARG are being emailed directly. The Government has stipulated that certain information must be provided and this goes beyond what was requested previously. A form with a number of questions has therefore been created and, where possible, the council has pre-populated it with information supplied on the previous application to avoid businesses having to re-enter it.
The deadline for completing the form is midnight on Wednesday 28 April. All relevant questions must be answered, and there will be no flexibility regarding the deadline.
Hospitality, accommodation, leisure and personal care businesses that have not applied for an ARG previously can apply via the Council’s website until midnight on Wednesday 28 April 2021.
Please note that this funding is additional to Restart Grants so any business that is eligible for a Restart Grant is not eligible for an ARG.
Existing ARG scheme Businesses who previously received ARG funding will automatically receive an additional £100 top-up payment. This is possible due to a small amount of original funding remaining
Businesses do not need to take any action to receive this amount. Payments will be made by 16 April, into the same bank account as previous ARG payments and will take a few working days before they appear.
Additional advice for businesses For more information and details of other business support available:
