January 2009 Archives

Thank 2008 for optimism in the year ahead

Posted by on January 2, 2009 3:05 PM

Share with me optimism for 2009 by looking back with gratitude to positive outcomes in 2008. Overall, I can say last year was a good year, despite some setbacks, and I'd like to say a big thank you to everyone who has helped me in all of my business initiatives.

I can even look back on an unsuccessful business venture which failed, as I learnt so much about running a business. This "business failure" trait, shared by many highly successful entrepreneurs, bodes well for the future as I am now more experienced in understanding the pitfalls.

Perhaps others reading this running a struggling business can take something positive from my message and also look ahead more optimistically.

My philosophy on life, which I also apply in my business activities, is "Give and You Shall Get". As a result, it was a great honour for me to be short listed for the Person of the Year Award at the RADAR People of the Year Human Rights Awards event in December.

I was nominated for my "out of comfort zone" charity challenges and efforts to promote a better and more accessible life for disabled people.

The charity highlight this year was my Humber Parasail Challenge in July, which so far has raised over ÃÂ£1800 for The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation. The great man, who is fighting cancer for the fifth time, has already raised over ÃÂ£1 million in under 9 months to establish a cancer research centre on Tyneside. Click here to see a video, some photos and find out more about this event, which was a great thrill for me.

My disability highlight of the year was appearing on the BBC Politics Show reviewing accessibility in Newcastle. The film report showed there is still a lot to do to improve access in the World and to make the Disability Discrimination Act legislation more effective. You can see the film report and read more about the issues by clicking here. I'd then invite you to sign my e-petition asking the Government to amend the Act by enforcing a simple adjustment that every business can afford to implement by clicking here.

The year is ending with my WheelchairSteve business having more clarity on its direction for 2009 and beyond. This is to work with schools offering a positive attitude message to children of all ages through talks, coaching and events.

It has been my pleasure over the last 3 months to have worked in a special school for disabled children in South Shields on the Young Enterprise Scheme, where children learn in a practical way about setting up and running a business venture.

The kids at the school, who have a varying range of disabilities, so far have made money from a number of Halloween and Christmas related activities, but I'd like to pick out just one for special mention.

A fifteen year old boy (who, unfortunately, I don't have permission to name and publicly praise at this time) made money for their business "Something Bizarre" by wrapping Christmas presents. He did one for me and the quality of his work was excellent - much better than I could have done myself. This boy has no right hand at all and only short "stumps" for fingers on his left hand. He saw this as no barrier to him succeeding. I think this demonstrates a fantastically positive "can do" message, don't you agree?

I'm a fellow disabled person who has also come through special school education over 40 years ago. I'm inspired by his achievement, which has helped me define my mission for the future. This is to encourage and work with disabled people to build on their strengths and leverage the value they offer to society. I hope you will lend your support to me in the years ahead to support my aims.

This also highlights the Government's initiative to help people on Incapacity Benefit to focus on what they can do rather than what they can't when it comes to gaining meaningful employment, so hopefully this will help me benefit from grant funding to support my business ventures.

Finally, my key message for 2009 is "Put an ACE in Your Life". In support of my social enterprise initiative to help disabled children leaving full time education to financially gain from their skills, WheelchairSteve Ltd will be offering keynote speeches and training to business organisations and schools with this ACE message - Appreciate, Communicate and Educate.

Find out more at www.wheelchairsteve.com.

Best wishes for 2009.

add or read comments (0)

Shareholders won't be only ones seething at Bellway bonuses

Posted by on January 5, 2009 2:18 PM

THERE will be plenty of red faces at Newcastle housebuilder Bellway today after the decision by the Association of British Insurers to issue its most serious warning to the company amid concern over the size of the bonuses being paid to its directors.

Continue reading "Shareholders won't be only ones seething at Bellway bonuses" »

add or read comments (0)

Future Gazing

Posted by Julian christopher on January 6, 2009 1:06 PM

They say the immediacy of the Internet is everything. Well, I've found something even more immediate - the insistent squawks of a new baby, who, along with her big brother and sister, kept me rather occupied through much of 2008, and a tad too occupied to keep up with this blog. Apologies to you, my loyal reader, for the lack of recent posts - I'll try to do better this year.

Not much been going on since I last posted, really - just little stuff like the election of the US's first black President, Team GB outstripping the Aussies at the Beijing Olympics (the words "GB outstripping the Aussies" are always a pleasure to write in any context), the Second Going of the Tyneside Messiah, the sad disappearance of Woolies from the high street, and the collapse of the global economy. Karl Marx - sorry, yes, you were right after all.

In the media world, it's been a similarly quiet time. I vaguely recall something about Jonathan Brand and Russell Sachs upsetting a chap called Andrew Ross a while ago, but that's about it - like I said, I have been rather busy...

So what does 2009 hold in the media, aside from a Doctor Who who's still young enough to make it as a CBeebies presenter if he doesn't enjoy being a Time Lord?

Continue reading "Future Gazing" »

add or read comments (0)

Count the Cost of Inaccessible Premises

Posted by on January 7, 2009 9:58 AM

I'd like to highlight the first company I've encountered in 2009 who has lost business due to being inaccessible. I won't name them, as you may choose to look at your organisation and say "That Could Be Me"!

WheelchairSteve Ltd , my company which helps businesses benefit from being more accessible for disabled people and others with special access needs, e.g. elderly people, are members of a regional networking group called DCM - Dual Concept Marketing. In addition to the kind of thing traditional networking organisations do, DCM members collaborate on projects for mutual benefit.

One such project which is being developed involves offering a residential weekend retreat for members of the public at a venue in the region.

A potential venue was identified and we were ready to make progress to booking what would be the first of several of these events throughout 2009 and beyond, when we learnt - THEY DON'T HAVE FACILIITIES FOR DISABLED PEOPLE!

So instead of taking thousands of pounds at each of these events, surely critical income in a time of financial crisis, inaccessibility has cost this organisation business.

The lesson here is take a look at your business and think if you could be missing out on not having accessible faciities for disabled people.

And remember, not everyone is in a wheelchair, so major structural changes, which I regularly find is what every business expects to have to make, are not always necessary. It's about thinking outside the box, which is what wheelchairsteve.com is all about helping you do.

add or read comments (0)

A thin slice of hope

Posted by Andrew Mernin on January 8, 2009 10:18 AM

SOMEWHERE within the clouds of gloom emanating from the high street yesterday was at least a glimmer of positive news.

Continue reading "A thin slice of hope" »

add or read comments (0)

Nissan move is a huge blow

Tags:
Nissan

Posted by on January 8, 2009 3:45 PM

Today's decision by Nissan to make around 1,200 of its Sunderland workforce redundant is a real blow to the North East but, sadly, it comes as little surprise.

Continue reading "Nissan move is a huge blow" »

add or read comments (0)

Kitted up for Kilimanjaro

Posted by on January 8, 2009 4:49 PM

The Christmas break certainly managed to sidetrack me from my well planned fitness regime. I flew out to visit my brother and his wife in the Middle East who I hadn't seen in over a year.

The first few days started out ok with 60 lengths in the pool followed by some sea kayaking, however as with most people during the festive period, I was easily tempted into over indulging on food and drink!

Now with only 4 weeks to go the nerves have kicked in, which is no bad thing as it means I haven't been sleeping very well and therefore up early enough to go to the gym before work! Life and sleep managed to take over during the Christmas holidays.

Neil and I have visited our local outdoor clothing store a few times this week to make ourselves feel even more prepared! Tiso is just a stone's throw from our office so we've ambled up to Grainger Street most lunch times. After probably freaking the manager out a bit with the frequency of our visits, we got chatting to him about the sort of gear we need for Kilimanjaro.

I told him about Shared Interest Foundation and our aim of raising ÃÂ£10,000 (we have ÃÂ£6,620 to date) to train 10 businesses in Swaziland, to enable them to trade their way out of poverty and earn a fair living.

A big thanks to Tiso's manager for his response. We are now proud owners of two full hiking kits and a wealth of knowledge on how to tackle the climb.

Surely having the right tools for the job will help soften the dent that Christmas made on our training schedule?!

We are proud to fly the flag for any other north east companies who are able to offer their support!

If you are interested in either corporate or personal sponsorship please contact me at andrea.wilkinson@shared-interest.com or telephone 0191 233 9129 or visit my just giving site http://www.justgiving.com/andreawilkinson-kilimanjaro

add or read comments (0)

Go Slowly, Good Posture, Grab a Goat

Posted by on January 9, 2009 4:28 PM

These are just a few of the tips I have stumbled across for the great climb of Kilimanjaro.
Here are a few more pearls of wisdom that I think are my personal favourites:

1. Traditional Maasai wisdom is to carry a goat to keep warm. (I would like to suggest that Neil carries the goat in his bag!)
-- Jackson Lesooyia, Maasai guide

2. If your feet are cold, put on a hat. (I'm really not sure how this works!)

3. Good posture while climbing allows 40% more oxygen into the lungs. (This makes sense although especially for people who plan on salsa dancing up the mountain!)
-- Judy Rainey, a former dancer

4. To save energy use rocks and any bumps on the path to step on and rock forward with as an added propellant.
-- Alisa Rekow, fellow climber (I'm thinking that this might be slightly dangerous as we will be at 19,000ft, tired and may have a long way to fall if this technique goes wrong!)

5. Eat more than usual for a couple weeks before the climb to stretch your stomach so you can absorb more fuel during the climb for those extra needs. (Excellent, that'll be my Christmas indulgence put to good use!)

6. Go slowly - "Pole Pole" as they say in Swahili! This is also very important during your first days of climbing. Even if you feel well, slow down and enjoy the scenery. (Sounds like a great plan to me!)

7. If you are taking a porter, take a day bag for your lunch etc. And avoid eating meat that is cooked for you on the mountain. I avoided it; others did not and got quite ill. I also took extra bottled water - you can buy it on the mountain, but it is very expensive. (Anonymous!)

add or read comments (0)

Accessible Justice

Tags:
Northern Rock

Posted by on January 14, 2009 8:00 PM

I've spent the first half of this week attending the Northern Rock judicial review at the Royal Courts of Justice in London. I don't intend to comment on any aspect of the case here. However, as a speaker myself, it's been a pleasure to witness first hand the very impressive, often humorous, oratory skills of Lord David Pannick, Michael Beloff QC and Thomas de la Mare who were submitting what appeared, to me, to be a very convincing case for the institutional and small shareholder claimants to get fair compensation for the Government taking their shares when Northern Rock was nationalised in February last year. The case continues, as they say!

With my accessibility specialist hat on, I thought it would be appropriate to review the visit from a different perspective, having been to not only the Royal Courts of Justice, but also the Houses of Parliament, where on Monday afternoon, shareholders and supporters lobbied North East MPs, who were urged to support their constituents who are shareholders and lost out by the Government's action to nationalise Northern Rock.

The journey for me began at Callerton Parkway Metro station at about 6.45 on Monday. Fortunately, for me, as a manual wheelchair user, I'm not affected by the current ban on scooter users, and I find the Metro relatively user friendly. The big fear is always a lift of order, but not on this occasion, as I arrived at the Central in plenty of time to catch the 7.40, along with others heading down to London to support the claimants.

I was greeted with the news that the train was cancelled, but the problem was resolved as we joined the 7.52 and I was able to take up the same wheelchair seating position I'd reserved on the 7.40.

I take my hat off to GNER, and now National Express, for their efforts in accommodating wheelchair users. On at least one carriage, two sets of four seats have been removed to provide space for a reasonable size wheelchair and its user 'staying on board'. I've always found station personnel very helpful and courteous, without being patronising, which is often the case elsewhere.

No problems on this occasion either, as they pushed me up the portable ramp and I settled into my space on a pretty full train as a result of the earlier cancellation.

We were joined by reporters and film crew from the BBC and Tyne Tees, and soon after departing, I was interviewed by Gerry Foley for the 6 o'clock news.

Good on-board service was also provided by the train staff as they served up a cup of tea and a bacon sarnie, only available to others visiting the buffet car.

The accessible carriages also have a pretty reasonable wheelchair accessible loo, with an automatic door, grab rails, etc. But beware of the locking mechanism, as if you don't lock the doors properly, another passenger may open the auto doors from the outside and your bits will be on display for all to see as the door opens widely.

Jumping ahead a few hours after touring around London on an old unsuitably accessible London Routemaster bus, we arrived at the Houses of Parliament to meet the MPs. For a listed building, they'd made a decent effort in providing appropriate wide doors, ramps, platform and stair lifts as well as thankfully an accessible loo, which I was desperate to use after journeying on the Routemaster for a couple of hours.

The short trip to where we were staying was accomplished in a good old London Black cab. Thanks to Mr Livingstone, I presume, all have ramps, space for a wheelchair user to travel in the chair and, usually, a courteous driver willing to help. Someone was telling me that the cabbies are coming round to recognising the value of offering this service, which gives them competitive advantage over the growing number of inaccessible minicabs now on the roads. With the advent of SATNAV, the "Knowledge" is no longer as vital as it used to be.

Methinks there's a lesson to be learnt here from a service provider being accessible.

We were all staying at the Union Jack Club near Waterloo Station. On arrival, I was delighted to not only see a wheelchair stair lift at the foot of the 20 steps, but also signage and a buzzer, the communication aid I'm advocating to be made mandatory in my e-petition to the Government http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/answer4access/ (please sign and support me). Within a minute or so, a member of staff came down to assist and very soon I was entering the wide automatic doors and checking in, where I noticed they also had a hearing induction loop.

Although not overflowing with accessibility, the Union Jack Club had made sufficient effort in my opinion to become accessible and the staff was always very helpful.

Finally to the Royal Courts of Justice and their accessibility...

Yes, there was a sign and a buzzer with intercom, although when the member of staff arrived, there was a lengthy "push" to the wheelchair accessible entrance nearest to the court where the case was being heard.

I had no problem accessing the courtroom and there were accessible toilets nearby, but there's a lot more worked needed in the building for it to be much more accessible. But who's going to make a DDA claim in the small claims court against almost the highest court in the land?

add or read comments (0)

Affluent minority keeps retail industry afloat

Posted by on January 15, 2009 11:33 AM

WHY do expensive goods sell better than cheaper ones in a recession? Bargain-hunters flocked to the high street during the traditional Christmas frenzy, yet high-end retailers generally fared better than those operating in the mass market.

Continue reading "Affluent minority keeps retail industry afloat" »

add or read comments (0)

An Antidote to the Anecdotes

Posted by on January 15, 2009 11:39 AM

After months of preparation, it is only now that I am hearing the horror stories of Kilimanjaro.

Why do people feel the need to share these with us two days before we fly?

What I want to hear is how it felt to be standing on 'the top of Africa', the sense of achievement on reaching the summit, and knowing you had raised thousands of pounds for a charity that literally changes people's lives.

I do NOT want to hear about the horror stories!

As I did last night when I went to buy some last minute pieces of kit and the guy who served me told me about his friend who attempted to climb Kilimanjaro before Christmas. Yes, that's right he said 'attempted'. That was before he had to be airlifted off the mountain with acute altitude sickness!

This more or less topped off my day. It started off with a story on something called

Continue reading "An Antidote to the Anecdotes" »

add or read comments (0)

One Climb - Five Climates

Posted by on January 16, 2009 9:30 AM

When it comes to climbing Kilimanjaro, there are several routes to choose from.
Neil and I have chosen the Macheme-Mweka, which is often referred to as the Whiskey route.

Before you get excited on my behalf, it is apparently because of the intoxicating views rather than the abundance of alcohol.

It climbs out of the forest and moorland to the edge of the Shira Plateau, where it traverses the mountain via the South Circuit with those all important stops at Barranco Hut and Barafu Hut and then onto Uhuru peak at the very top of Africa.

We will basically experience all seasons during our climb - from hot desert to the freezing arctic zone.

I knew my degree in Geography and Environmental Management would come in handy! The significant reduction in the amount of ice and snow nearing the summit is often cited as an effect of global warming, and sad though this is, it is fascinating to think I will get to see evidence of this for myself.

But I'll come back to that later as, before we reach the summit, we have to tackle five zones, each complete with its own personal climate!

Continue reading "One Climb - Five Climates" »

add or read comments (0)

Rwanda: A Journey from Research to Reality

Posted by on January 19, 2009 11:28 AM

After well over a year of research, planning, developing and securing funding for the Rwandan Producer Support Project, here I am in Kigali seeing it in action.

I have been to Rwanda four times now and never cease to be amazed by the kindness of Rwandans, the cleanliness of the country and the warmth of the people I am fortunate enough to work with.

I arrived super early this morning as I was told that the traffic jams in Kigali would be horrendous and it would take well over 50 minutes to get to the training venue; in reality it took all of 10. That's 40 minutes of valuable sleep I could have caught up on after my journey from the UK!

But when the trainers arrived, all thoughts of rest disappeared. They have clearly gone through a journey themselves, forming a close bond between each other and the Traidcraft staff that we have consulted to run this part of the project. I was greeted like an old friend and told me with great pride about the progress they have made. This includes a training manual, which they will put into action next week with 30 handicraft makers from across Rwanda.

I have to pinch myself to check that this is real, that this Shared Interest Foundation project is no longer just something written on sheets of paper, but it is having a real impact on people's lives.

I have to go now as the training is about to begin again, but will write again soon as I cannot wait to share the stories of the trainers, handicraft organisations as well of those of our very own project coordinator, Donatien, with you all very soon.

add or read comments (0)

Learn while you go for the Burn!

Tags:
Kilimanjaro

Posted by on January 20, 2009 4:04 PM

Unfortunately, just because I am geographically nearer Kilimanjaro does not equate to physically being nearer my training goal!

So yesterday I signed myself up for my very first African fitness class!

I turned up a little nervous, not really knowing what to expect.

Can I point out that I was first to arrive? (I forgot that we were working on African time!)
Not that this made any difference to the remainder of the class - or even the teacher - as they strolled in over ten minutes late!

We started out with a little warm up. Nothing new there....Lulled into a false sense of security, it was about 20 to 30 minutes into the class that I twigged it was all about the booty.

Every exercise we did seemed to involve sticking your backside out as far as you could. I began to think of the effect this could have on my walking style and started to see the funny side.

There was no time to laugh though as I was already falling behind (no pun intended!) and since I was next to someone exactly like Phoebe from Friends (off in the opposite direction to everyone else and kicking her right foot when everyone else was kicking their left), for health and safety reasons alone I really couldn't risk it. I feared 'Phoebe' would knock me out!

On top of that, the instructor kept changing languages from English to French with a little Kinyarwanda in there just for the hell of it!

So, just as I was getting into he would say something in a different language and I would look slightly confused as the rest of the class moved in unison (well apart from Phoebe who just kept side-kicking me!)

But hey on the whole, what a result! Not only did I leave the class slightly fitter but I can also count to 10, and say "turn", "stop" and "you're not doing that right" in three different languages.

Maybe this is something us Brits are missing out on. Learn while you go for the burn. What a concept.

add or read comments (0)

Fate or Fortune. What's the Alternative?

Posted by on January 21, 2009 2:22 PM

My uncle recently passed away at only 50 years old as a result of an accident. Since then, I have spent many a sleepless night wondering how this could have been avoided. I cannot even begin to put into words the shock, anger and pain that this has caused my entire family. To lose someone so suddenly to something that didn't have to happen just doesn't seem fair.

I used to be a strong believer that everything happens for a reason even if we never understand that reason, however now I'm really not so sure.

In fact, this story that I am about to share with you shakes me to my inner core and makes me question further my own belief as well as the basic morals of humanity....

Our project coordinator over here, Donatien, is a gentle man, as well as being incredibly intelligent (just finishing off his MBA.) His achievements and demeanour seem all the more impressive however, when you learn that he is also a genocide survivor.

As we sat over lunch in a Rwandan coffee shop that overlooks the city, we talked about life, family and friends. Donatien asked about my family and whether I have any brothers or sisters, aunties and uncles and if my parents are still alive. I tell him that I have a very close family, that my parents are both alive and that my brother lives overseas so I don't get to see him much, but we chat often on the internet and phone and I have quite a few aunties and uncles, however recently my uncle who I was very close to passed away.

I could see in his eyes he understood the sadness of losing someone close, and then began to tell me the story of his family.

Continue reading "Fate or Fortune. What's the Alternative?" »

add or read comments (0)

Grey Skies in the Gulf

Posted by Mark Lisgo on January 26, 2009 1:45 PM

When speaking to people back in the UK, or when colleagues or friends who come across to the UAE to visit, it is clear that there are a great number of people in the UK and elsewhere who think that the current global crisis has bypassed the oil and gas rich states of the Gulf. I can assure you this is not the case.

The same issues which are affecting banks, businesses, workers and their families in the West are also being seen in the Middle East. The scale of the problems might not be of quite the same magnitude, nevertheless there are significant difficulties being faced here.

Continue reading "Grey Skies in the Gulf" »

add or read comments (0)

Teesside manufacturing still alive and well

Tags:
Corus

Posted by on January 27, 2009 10:00 AM

It's been a turbulent week on Teesside.

The news that the SeaDragon project is to be aborted means millions of pounds of lost revenue for the local supply chain. On top of that, steelmaker Corus' decision to make annual cost savings of around ÃÂ£200m will lead to several loyal workers receiving their P45s.

Continue reading "Teesside manufacturing still alive and well" »

add or read comments (0)

Life is like a Pack of Cards

Tags:
Shared Interest Foundation

Posted by on January 27, 2009 3:08 PM

As I set foot inside Cards of Africa, I am immersed into a bustling environment of people sitting around wooden tables, gluing, cutting, bending wire and laughing as they hand-make each and every card.

The results are beautiful but as I sat and chatted with a group of ladies on one table I soon realised that their stories of hope and personal triumph were even more dramatic than the cards themselves.

I would like to share just one of the many stories I heard that day:

Continue reading "Life is like a Pack of Cards" »

add or read comments (0)

Search the site

About this site

Recent comments

Recent Posts

Sponsored links

Feeds

Blog Authors

Archives

Links