Tuesday 27th January 2015 marked the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi death camp Auschwitz. The liberation of the camp has become a date in the calendars of many communities at which we stop and reflect about the death, destruction and inhumanity in our recent past. For Julia Kinch, a member of Touchstone’s WY-FI Team, this date has a deeply personal meaning. This is her story. The
Touchstone’s Community Support Team (CST) works with people with severe and enduring mental health problems – many of whom have not been able to access support from other services. Using an assertive outreach approach, they meet with clients, helping them to recognise their own strengths and to use those strengths to set and achieve goals based on their own aspirations. The team provides 7 day a week support and seeks to develop a collaborative, trusting
Touchstone is passionate about involving service users in all aspects of service delivery and planning. We work together and we celebrate together. Roderic Morgan (Service User Consultant) reflects on the annual service user party in December last year. The Touchstone Christmas Party for 2014 was held at the Sheepscar Club in Chapeltown on the evening of 18th December 2014. When I arrived around 6.30pm, preparations were being made and
Amrit Kaur from the Sikh Elders Service introduces the Winter Warmth scheme and shares some advice on staying warm and well as the weather gets colder... Cold homes and dark winter months have a significant impact on people's health. One of the best ways of keeping yourself well during winter is to stay warm. Staying warm over the colder months is a good preventative measure against colds, flu or
Emma Goldsack from the housing team shares some advice on dealing with a tricky time of year... Hi Everyone! As Christmas approaches, it is important to be aware that not everyone will be in a position to celebrate this year. In a world where we can find ourselves quite cut off from others there can be an increasing feeling of loneliness for vulnerable groups of people – when you
Did you know that 5th December is celebrated world-wide as the International Volunteer Day? Each year, millions of people around the world volunteer their time and skills to help make the world a better place. Volunteering not only helps improve the lives of others but also has a profound positive effect on the lives of people who give their time. If you haven’t volunteered yet but think you may wish
What is the 16 Days of Action Campaign? One in three women worldwide face abuse, violence and rape everyday. In no country of the world are women free from this fear and terror. In the UK, at the time of writing, one in four women experience domestic violence during their lifetime. 25th November to 10th December 2014 The 16 Days Campaign is an international campaign that started in 1991.
Every year from the 25th November (International Day to End Violence Against Women) till the 10th December (Human Rights Day) groups around the world campaign to highlight the high incidence of violence aimed at women and girls and encourage everyone to take a part of the responsibility for stopping it. Touchstone wants to stand alongside all those others, to offer support to victims and to those who want to
Fiona Venner, director of Leeds Survivor Led Crisis Service, writes about dealing with the effects of shorter days and longer nights... When the clocks go back many of us may feel the urge to retreat under our duvets. For around two million people in the UK who suffer with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), coping with the winter months is a real challenge. SAD is a form of depression that
Wedenesday 5th November is National Stress Awareness Day. Sally from Touchstone's IAPT service offers some advice for coping with everyday stress. Stress affects everybody, but high levels of stress can affect our ability to cope with the demands that come up in life. So, it’s important that we try to look after ourselves by taking steps to manage our stress levels! It can be easy to feel overwhelmed if