HIVE MINI-BUS GETS ‘ VANTASTIC ’ MAKE-OVER
RAF ASSOCIATION TACKLES LONELINESS WITH IT ’ S BEFRIENDING SERVICE
HIVE MINI-BUS GETS ‘ VANTASTIC ’ MAKE-OVER
RAF ASSOCIATION TACKLES LONELINESS WITH IT ’ S BEFRIENDING SERVICE
A minibus used by Wirral ’ s purpose-built youth facility , The Hive , to transport young people to events , sport tournaments and residential visits has been given a makeover thanks to West Wallasey Car & Van Hire .
Commercial vehicle leasing specialist , West Wallasey Car & Van Hire is a Founder Patron of The Hive and along with a number of other local businesses , makes a significant contribution to the youth zone ’ s annual running costs . Having supplied the minibus to The Hive last year , West Wallasey Car & Van Hire offered young people attending the youth zone the opportunity to spruce their van up by entering a livery design competition . Young people worked on their designs during art sessions at The Hive and , after a flood of entries was received , a winner and two runners-up were selected , with winning entrant 14-year-old Amy Simpson seeing her colourful design unveiled on the minibus . In recognition of their artistic talent , Paul Kenny , Director of West Wallasey Car & Van Hire presented prizes to Amy and runners-up , 9-year-old Evie Kershaw and 10-year-old Niamh Roberts . Amy received a brand-new push bike , giving her the chance to learn how to cycle for the first time . Evie and Niamh were presented with Amazon vouchers and West Wallasey Car & Van Hire goody packs
Stuart Barnes , Chief Executive of The Hive , Wirral Youth Zone said , “ We are immensely grateful to Paul and the whole of the West Wallasey Car & Van Hire team for engaging with our young people and encouraging them to showcase their creative talents , through this fantastic project . We can now hit the road in our new-look mini-bus , helping us to attract new members and transport our young people in style . We ’ ll be supporting our winner , Amy , to get to grips with cycling as soon as possible so that she can enjoy her fantastic prize .”
Paul Kenny added , “ We are very proud to be a founder patron of The Hive and we have been most impressed by the excellent work that has been achieved during the opening year . The young people of Wirral have really embraced the centre and their enthusiasm is a joy to see . We were extremely impressed by the creative talents and high standards of the design entries and choosing a winner was a tough decision . However , we felt that Amy ’ s design was outstanding and captured the ethos of The Hive . Well done to Amy , Evie and Niamh for their fantastic work !”
Members of the RAF community in Wirral , who are facing loneliness or isolation are urged to join the RAF Association ’ s befriending service . Research shows that issues with isolation are likely to affect some 170,000 RAF veterans , with 85,000 of them coping specifically with feelings of loneliness .
Feelings of isolation and loneliness can affect people of all ages and the befriending service , which runs across the UK , pairs volunteers with members of the RAF family in need of company . The results can be life changing ...
Mrs E was struggling to cope with her grief following the loss of her husband . Not wanting to be a burden to her family , she was becoming increasingly isolated . Since being paired with a befriender Mrs E can share her thoughts and feelings with them and describes her befriender as : “ a brick wall of support ”.
As the Association ’ s Director of Welfare and Policy , Rory O ’ Connor explains , the befriending service builds on the community feeling the RAF already offers : “ The befriending service alleviates loneliness and isolation by providing an opportunity for members of the RAF family and volunteers to forge enjoyable new friendships based on shared interests . The befriender will provide companionship and support to a member of the RAF family to ensure that they remain part of the community and feel socially connected to the wider RAF family .
“ We recognise that loneliness and isolation are having a significant impact on the health and wellbeing of an increasing number of the RAF family . Tragically , in the past 12 months there have been many instances when cases of loneliness have been brought to our attention too late . The first we knew of them was when we were approached for help in ensuring that these brave individuals were not buried without people there to honour their lives . There are thousands more in the same situation that we want to support .”
If you , or someone you know could benefit from being befriended , call 0800 018 2361 or visit rafa . org . uk / talk wirrallife . com 9