Armagh Locality Planning Group: Feel Good Armagh

Friday 9th and Saturday 10th June saw 2 massively successful events to showcase support services in the Armagh locality area. 

On Friday 9th June, 66 services hosted information stalls to highlight support for all ages in the Armagh area.   The event was held at City of Armagh Hotel and funded through Ark and Tringle Housing along with Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon Council. 

 

On Saturday 10th June a youth event was held at the EA Youth Service’s Epicentre Youth Centre and open to the 11+ age group. Around 170 young people took part in a wide variety of activities ranging from Arts & Crafts and African Drumming to Boxercise and Dungeons and Dragons.  A total of 22 activities were offered along with free pizza, fruit kebabs and refreshments.  The event was a joint effort from 11 member services of Armagh Locality Planning Group and funded by CYPSP, CiNI, SHSCT and ABC Council.

Both events were agreed at a previous meeting of Armagh LPG to highlight the support services available for all ages in Armagh with a particular emphasis on activities for children and young people.

SHSCT Step 2 Drug & Alcohol Service

PHA commissions a Step 2 Alcohol and Drugs Service for adults 18+ years across the Southern Trust area. It replaces the previous ‘Step 2’ service that was provided by Southern HSC Trust.

The Step 2 service offers intervention for adults who drink alcohol at hazardous or harmful levels (scoring 16-19 or 20+ on AUDIT) and adults with harmful drug use. The level of use can be indicated on the referral form or assessed by the Step 2 service.

A second component of the new Step 2 service is the provision of support for family members in their own right, whether or not their relative is accessing treatment for their use of alcohol or drugs.

All service details, including referral forms for individuals and for family members, are online at Alcohol and Drugs support for people in Southern HSC area.

Self referrals are accepted however I encourage you to refer people for whom this valuable service can provide professional patient centred support to meet their needs. The Step 2 service also provides interpreting support for those who require it while accessing the service. Consent is required from the patient and the referral form should be submitted with as much detail as known at the time of referral.

Should you wish to discuss the Step 2 service or signpost patients you can;

Email: step2Partnership@dunlewey.org or Telephone: 07591 834 468 (Katrina)

The Southern Area Drug and Alcohol Service Directory can be accessed here (https://drugsandalcoholni.info/the-ni-dacts/sdact/)

Should your practice wish to learn more about services available locally, you can contact our Connections team by emailing connections@sdact.info

Cancer Focus – Vaping – The Facts Training

A number of E-cigarette/Vaping Information sessions for professionals in healthcare, social care, education, youth work and others have been arranged for 2023 funded by the PHA and delivered by Cancer Focus NI.

Further information has been included in the Vaping – The Facts training dates poster below. This training will be provided via face to face sessions across various venues in Northern Ireland.

Note: There are currently dates available in June and additional dates will follow in due course

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Level 5 Leadership for Children’s Care Learning & Development (Management) – SERC

South Eastern Regional College (Lisburn, Newtownards and Downpatrick Campus) are currently recruiting for the next cohort of Level 5 Leadership for Children’s Care Learning and Development (Management) students through the Higher Level Apprenticeship programme, beginning in September.

This qualification provides learners with the skills and knowledge needed to manage practice and lead others in children’s care, learning and development. It confers occupational competence to work in a management role within a regulated Early Years setting.

There is no cost to the employer or the student for tuition, registration and examination fees (subject to approval from the Department for the Economy), however Higher Level Apprentices should be paid for their hours in college as part of the programme.

General Entry Requirements:

  • Level 3 Children’s Care Learning and Development OR Health qualification.
  • Working at a Deputy or Managerial level in a Regulated Early Years setting or have access to managerial duties at least 1 day per week in a Regulated Early Years setting.
  • English GCSE/Essential Skills is preferred as desired criteria however, each candidate will be assessed on their own merit.

Eligibility Criteria:

To be eligible a person must, as a minimum, meet each of the
following criteria:

  1. be a new employee in, or about to take up a permanent remunerative employment offer, or an existing employee moving to a new job role that requires a substantial amount of learning and skills development commensurate to the apprenticeship pathway.
  2. be employed by a company with a base in Northern Ireland, have a contract of employment in place, be contracted to work a minimum of 21 hours per week (which includes day
    release/off-the-job directed training)*** with one employer, and in receipt of the appropriate wage (National Minimum Wage guidelines NOT the apprenticeship rate).

Apprentices cannot be self-employed or in a job role where their wages are covered by any public funds.

*** (which includes day release/off-the-job directed training) – Higher Level Apprentices should be paid for their hours in college as part of the programme, even if those hours are outside of their normal working day.

To apply for this course or if you would like any further information on the course content and eligibility, please contact:

David Gore, Apprenticeship Development Manager Email: dgore@serc.ac.uk

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Infant Mental Health Week 2023 (12-18 June)

Today marks the beginning of Infant Mental Health Week. This year’s theme, Bonding Before Birth focuses on pregnancy, and how what happens during this time can impact a baby’s future mental health and well-being.

Practitioners from services and disciplines across the statutory, voluntary and community sector in the Southern Trust area have produced a series of short videos for parents/parents to be and those working to support families relating to the theme of Infant Mental Health Week. A sample of videos will be highlighted across Southern Trust Social Media platforms throughout this week.

All videos can be viewed through the following link https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8WVc2H7O1ASo1A6u-hFZZqKIWGoITZ69 

Download Flyer

A regional online half day event for practitioners relating to the theme of Infant Mental Health Week will take place on Thursday 12th October and the keynote speakers are Sally Hogg and Suzanne Zeedyke.

More information to follow. If you would like to register interest, please contact Paula Carson Lewis at The National Children’s Bureau. pcarson-lewis@ncb.org.uk