LivingINBL October 2016 | Page 14

DERBY BARRACKS FLETCHER STREET , BOLTON BL3 6NF

Brit ’ s unsavoury cleaning habits

It seems we ’ re a nation of grubby home owners who will go to any lengths to hide spills , stains and unsavoury cleaning habits , with 1 in 3 Brits admitting they ’ d be ashamed if friends and family found out how little cleaning they actually do , according to research . A study of 2,000 people conducted by home cleaning specialists BISSELL ® revealed that 11 per cent of people only clean when they ’ re expecting visitors , while an embarrassed two thirds of Brits confess to moving furniture to hide stains on their carpets . 22 per cent of people say visitors to their home are to blame for the mess , and they might be right . 1 in 3 of us admits to spilling a drink on a friend ’ s carpet and not telling them , with 18 per cent actively hiding the evidence . 28 per cent confess to having walked mud through someone else ’ s home and playing ignorant . Unsurprisingly , drink spillages are the most common cause of stains with 50 per cent of people having tea , coffee and red wine stains in their carpets . But , you may want to think twice before walking barefoot across the carpet of a pet owner – a shocking 19 per cent of people have dirty patches in the carpets caused by pet urine . In fact , 7 out of 10 people are living with stained carpets but it seems we just can ’ t be bothered to clean up . More than 1 in 10 never clean carpets – the same number say they feel they can live with carpet stains and just hope general wear and tear will help the stain to blend in . Alexandra Carr from BISSELL UK comments : “ We all lead such busy lives it ’ s no wonder our carpets bear the brunt . Homes should be places where we enjoy living ; muddy boots , family pets and accidental spillages are just a part of this . Luckily common stains are easier to tackle than many people think and deep cleaning carpets regularly keeps floor surfaces hygienically clean and looking great .” 5 most common carpet stains : 1 - Soft drinks . 2 - General dirt . 3 - Alcoholic drinks . 4 - Food stains . 5 - Pet urine

Emmaus Communities are a unique way of dealing with homelessness

Emmaus Communities are a unique way of dealing with homelessness . Homelessness , by definition , means not having a home . Many people , literally , have no roof over their head and sleep ' rough ' on the street , in a doorway , at the back of a shop , or even on night buses . But in these difficult financial times much more homelessness is hidden – young people ' sofa surfing ' - constantly on the move ; people squatting in very poor or derelict housing ; whole families living in a friends spare room . For some homeless people the local authority has a statutory obligation or duty of care to provide somewhere to stay . But for those who slip through the net there is no choice but to continue to live rough or seek help from charities , night shelters and soup kitchens . As a homeless charity , Emmaus is unique in that it provides a home , work and a family in the safe environment of a community , for as long as it takes for an individual to turn their life around and return to what we all know to be ' normal living '. Companions , for that ' s what we call people who live in our Communities , are valued for who they are today - not what they have been in the past . The social enterprise operated by every Emmaus Community revolves around recycling - collecting and recycling items people no longer want . The enterprise generates an income that allows us to be self sustainable , not a drain on society or dependant on others whilst providing real work for Companions that call the Community their home . Obviously the return on investment , in terms of people and the change to the lives of homeless individuals is huge - However , so is the social return on investment ( SROI ), for every £ 1.00 earned by an Emmaus Community there is a SROI of £ 11.00 and thus a real saving of millions of pounds in waste reduction , benefits and welfare , NHS and the justice system - to name but a few ! We now have a lovely café serving homemade soups , light lunches and cakes , and beautiful hanging baskets for sale in the summer .
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DERBY BARRACKS FLETCHER STREET , BOLTON BL3 6NF
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