Volunteering. The mere thought of spending a day working for no money was enough to make my friends gasp in horror. When I mentioned the 8.30am start they thought I’d finally lost my mind.
I was one of the first to arrive – dragging myself out of bed in the wee small hours of Sunday morning in a very un-student-like way.
On the way down we listened to our leader, Nick, getting us very lost – “well, rally-car drivers don’t have to navigate” – and large lists of health and safety regulations were passed around. I am pleased to say that we spent the rest of the day blissfully disregarding them.
The Make a Difference (MAD) day had been organised in conjunction with the National Trust. We were to go to Hod Hill, a local iron-age fort, and help with clearing trees that could damage the site. Sounds simple enough, doesn't it? Wrong. After shaming myself with my inability to climb a stile without the help of three people, I spent the day hanging onto a tree with one hand and my bow-saw with the other in a desperate attempt not to slide back down, possibly taking my own arm off in the process. Then, of course, someone else would sneak up behind me and cut down all the trees I’d used to climb up the slope with in the first place!
But, moaning aside, who says being a volunteer is boring? And why is it that people seem completely unable to do anything without a cash incentive? Yes there was the constant danger of sliding down a hill whilst carrying various sharp implements, but we had a laugh whilst doing it.
You don’t have to run halfway around the world, travel to deepest Africa or recycle 10 million bottles to do your bit for humanity. Most volunteers give a little over an hour a week or a day a month – the majority of us will spend more time watching television – and it all makes a difference. It's people like these that give you a little bit more faith in humanity. Nick summed up the experience perfectly – “I may not get any money, but that doesn’t mean I don’t get paid”.
Tuesday, 27 January 2009
Thursday, 22 January 2009
Court Report
A man described by Judge John Harrow as a “danger to the public” has been sentenced to 2 ½ years imprisonment.
Carl Anthony Stanley left Lacey Hiscock, a 29 year-old nursery nurse, needing twenty-five stitches in her face after hitting her with a glass in Yates’ Wine Lodge, Poole, on 12th December 2008.
The defendant pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm without intent at Bournemouth Magistrates Court on 15th December 2008, but was sent to Crown Court for sentencing.
The incident happened after the claimant saw Mr Stanley arguing with one of her friends and threw her drink over him, said Stuart Ellacott, prosecuting.
Mr Ellacott then described how the defendant lashed out with his left-hand, in which he was holding his glass, striking Miss Hiscock in the side of the face.
The victim is still suffering from psychological damage because of the attack.
Mr Stanley was ejected from the club by the DJ, but later returned and was arrested by police.
He was on licence from prison until 16th January 2010, having been sentenced to 6 years imprisonment in 2004 after stabbing two men with a pen-knife during a fight on Poole Quay.
Mr Stanley’s defence lawyer, Emma Southern, told the court how the defendant is trying to address his drink problem and returned to the scene of the incident because he knew he had acted wrongfully.
Judge Harrow said, “Drink is your downfall, but it is no excuse for your behaviour - you smashed her in the face with a glass without justification.”
Carl Anthony Stanley left Lacey Hiscock, a 29 year-old nursery nurse, needing twenty-five stitches in her face after hitting her with a glass in Yates’ Wine Lodge, Poole, on 12th December 2008.
The defendant pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm without intent at Bournemouth Magistrates Court on 15th December 2008, but was sent to Crown Court for sentencing.
The incident happened after the claimant saw Mr Stanley arguing with one of her friends and threw her drink over him, said Stuart Ellacott, prosecuting.
Mr Ellacott then described how the defendant lashed out with his left-hand, in which he was holding his glass, striking Miss Hiscock in the side of the face.
The victim is still suffering from psychological damage because of the attack.
Mr Stanley was ejected from the club by the DJ, but later returned and was arrested by police.
He was on licence from prison until 16th January 2010, having been sentenced to 6 years imprisonment in 2004 after stabbing two men with a pen-knife during a fight on Poole Quay.
Mr Stanley’s defence lawyer, Emma Southern, told the court how the defendant is trying to address his drink problem and returned to the scene of the incident because he knew he had acted wrongfully.
Judge Harrow said, “Drink is your downfall, but it is no excuse for your behaviour - you smashed her in the face with a glass without justification.”
Vox Pops
By Emily Fisher and Jenny Ross
The Bank of England has announced that £1.8 trillion has been lost by financial firms around the world as a result of the credit crunch. The global recession is now threatening 1.2 million UK homeowners as house prices drop below that of their mortgage. The chairman of online estate agency, first4sale.com said, “the housing market is severely depressed at the moment because of the lack of money supply and I’ve noticed the same symptoms in the international market. I can only see an improvement in the situation when the banks start lending again“.
Heather Atkins, 45 from Southbourne said “I’ve rung my mortgage, gas and electricity companies to organise my payment as I cannot afford to pay them all off in the same month.”
Many families will be hit hard by the slump in the housing market; Amanda Mallett, a mother- of- two from Wokingham in Berkshire expressed worried about the price of her mortgage.
The unemployment rates have increased with up to 1.7 million out of work in 2008, causing many UK citizens to fear for their job security.
John Grantham, 42 from Christchurch said, “I think my job could be at risk as there will be more competition. I work for the council. The commercial sector has been the worst affected so far but it may have a knock-on effect”.
In contrast, another council worker, Sam Oliver, 20, of Edge Park, Bournemouth said, “no I’m not affected at all because I’ve just started a new job, I would have been affected in my old job though.”
Jobseekers, however, are starting to feel the pressure. Bournemouth University students Bryony Gilbert and Megan Boyes said, “there are no jobs anywhere. We’ve asked in every store in town but nobody is recruiting.”
With winter approaching, charities such as Help the Aged are setting up schemes to aid the elderly, for example by providing free loft insulation to cut down their energy bills.
Mrs Morris, 81, from Christchurch said, “the pensions haven’t changed yet but the bills have doubled. The government should help pensioners pay for their fuel bill; the current fuel allowance is nowhere near enough. I don’t worry about the bills until they come in and I realise I can’t afford them. Heating’s essential!”
Sheila Smith, a 53 year-old assistant-shop-manager, agrees with her, “food prices and utility bills have gone up, but my wages haven’t. At least I haven’t lost my job, though.”
For those in the tourist industry it is hard to say as they’ve not yet had a full season; Tom, a bouncy castle owner from Boscombe, said “we had a tough summer but that was probably due to the weather.”
The Bank of England has announced that £1.8 trillion has been lost by financial firms around the world as a result of the credit crunch. The global recession is now threatening 1.2 million UK homeowners as house prices drop below that of their mortgage. The chairman of online estate agency, first4sale.com said, “the housing market is severely depressed at the moment because of the lack of money supply and I’ve noticed the same symptoms in the international market. I can only see an improvement in the situation when the banks start lending again“.
Heather Atkins, 45 from Southbourne said “I’ve rung my mortgage, gas and electricity companies to organise my payment as I cannot afford to pay them all off in the same month.”
Many families will be hit hard by the slump in the housing market; Amanda Mallett, a mother- of- two from Wokingham in Berkshire expressed worried about the price of her mortgage.
The unemployment rates have increased with up to 1.7 million out of work in 2008, causing many UK citizens to fear for their job security.
John Grantham, 42 from Christchurch said, “I think my job could be at risk as there will be more competition. I work for the council. The commercial sector has been the worst affected so far but it may have a knock-on effect”.
In contrast, another council worker, Sam Oliver, 20, of Edge Park, Bournemouth said, “no I’m not affected at all because I’ve just started a new job, I would have been affected in my old job though.”
Jobseekers, however, are starting to feel the pressure. Bournemouth University students Bryony Gilbert and Megan Boyes said, “there are no jobs anywhere. We’ve asked in every store in town but nobody is recruiting.”
With winter approaching, charities such as Help the Aged are setting up schemes to aid the elderly, for example by providing free loft insulation to cut down their energy bills.
Mrs Morris, 81, from Christchurch said, “the pensions haven’t changed yet but the bills have doubled. The government should help pensioners pay for their fuel bill; the current fuel allowance is nowhere near enough. I don’t worry about the bills until they come in and I realise I can’t afford them. Heating’s essential!”
Sheila Smith, a 53 year-old assistant-shop-manager, agrees with her, “food prices and utility bills have gone up, but my wages haven’t. At least I haven’t lost my job, though.”
For those in the tourist industry it is hard to say as they’ve not yet had a full season; Tom, a bouncy castle owner from Boscombe, said “we had a tough summer but that was probably due to the weather.”
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
