South Yorkshire Mayor unveils sculpture commemorating Sheffield FC’s history
In celebration of Sheffield's rich football history, a Sheffield-born artist's sculpture was revealed on Friday near the Millennium Gallery in Sheffield City Centre.
The 'Heads or Tails' sculpture commemorates the first and only coin toss to decide an FA Cup game on 30 October 1873.
It was commissioned by Sheffield Home of Football (SHOF), a charity which seeks to safeguard Sheffield's football heritage.
The sculpture tells the story of the only FA cup match won on the toss of a coin, in which Sheffield FC, the world's oldest football team, beat Shropshire Wanderers in their first-ever entry to the competition in October 1873.
The unveiling was attended by South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard and Lord Mayor of Sheffield Safiya Saeed-Berberawi, both of whom said a few words to honour the occasion.
"I'm really pleased that as a city we are increasingly owning that story," said Mr Coppard. "Sheffield all too often does not shout about itself. We haven't done for far too long."
The sculptor, David Westby, also attended the event and paid tribute to his brother, the late Martin Westby, one of the founders of SHOF and a renowned football historian.
Mr Westby said the sculpting "wasn’t a textbook process" and joked about how football had both united and divided his family throughout his life.
The unveiling comes as SHOF look to secure UNESCO status for Sheffield's unique football history.
At the event, Mr Coppard showed his support for the bid and said he would be writing to the UN in favour of it.
Former BBC journalist and Media Officer for SHOF, Andy Kershaw, said: "Manchester may have the national football museum, but the world football museum is going to be in Sheffield."
The bolstering of Sheffield's footballing history was a theme throughout the day.
Dr John Wilson, a trustee of SHOF, said: "Football is about sharing, it’s about enjoying, it’s more than a game. It’s art, it’s community, it’s culture."
Ms Saeed-Berberawi added: "We must take this message further than today."
Oliver Coppard to reveal transport vision for South Yorkshire
A new transport plan is being revealed at Sheffield City Hall today by the South Yorkshire Mayor.
Oliver Coppard will reveal the Transport Vision for South Yorkshire, focusing on transport and active travel across the region.
Starting at 11:00 today, the conference is being pitched as a “landmark moment,” and is open to members of the public.
This comes following national wins for South Yorkshire transport, such as the recent central government investment of £33 million into zero-emission buses for Sheffield and South Yorkshire.
The Mayor has also secured support for the reopening of Doncaster Sheffield Airport, and brought Supertram back under public control.
Sheffield Wire will be reporting live on this event, throughout the day.
Today on Sheffield Wire!
Good morning and welcome to the Sheffield Wire coverage for Monday 16 March, 2026.
Our top stories today:
- Oliver Coppard is set to announce a new transport plan for South Yorkshire in City Hall today at 11am.
- A grave from the 18th Century has been uncovered at St John the Baptist's Church in Penistone after it was hidden under another gravestone many years ago.
- MP's have launched an inquiry into student loans after young people have voiced concerns about hefty repayments.
The “most fly-tipped streets in Sheffield”, or the least protected by the Council?
Three quiet streets in Burngreave, North Sheffield, converge onto a small park. Here, lying just above the city centre in front of rows of houses, children ride bicycles with their friends, families talk with neighbours on front-door steps, and elderly couples walk hand-in-hand to and from local shops. But even on bright days like this, people avoid the park.
A Sheffield Wire reporter visited the area. The park is inhabited by piles of discarded, fly-tipped rubbish occupying lay-bys, bushes, and trees.
Coated in litter at its clearest points and mounded with features of black plastic and brown cardboard at its worst - the area is often bustling with people, but their shared community park is a persistent eye-sore; day and night the area is open to exploitation by criminals using the parkland as their personal dumping ground.
If there was a camera, a big camera, they wouldn’t come. My phone camera does not stop them for long.
Opposite the brand new NHS Spital Lane Health Centre, people living on the streets on the southern tip of Burngreave are reported in the media as being part of the “most targeted streets” for fly-tipping.
Reported by the Sheffield Star, through their 2024 Freedom of Information request to the Sheffield City Council, the individual fly-tipping statistics for these streets were revealed for 2024:
- Verdon Street, Burngreave: 90 fly-tipping incidents in 2024.
- Spital Lane, Burngreave: 102 fly-tipping incidents in 2024.
- Brunswick Road, Burngreave: 147 fly-tipping incidents in 2024 - the highest of any street in Sheffield.
While helpful in highlighting Sheffield's most exploited streets, the Star’s article - screenshotting streets from Google Street View - puts an incorrect face to the crimes being committed.
Giving the impression it is the streets themselves, and the people on them, who are breaking Sheffield’s fly-tipping records, is not the correct picture.
Only when walking the streets is it realised the residents are the ones suffering.
As seen by our reporter, the sections of the streets used by residents - the paths, pavements, and roadways - were clean; likely a coordinated effort between the Council and residents. Bin bags tied to street fences, likely put up by the Sheffield City Council, were all full and being used. People were not seen littering and excessive rubbish was not seen on the roads - these were ordinary streets.
What was seen, however, were people avoiding the park at the end of their road.
Ali
Across the park, amongst a growing pillar of smoke, a man was seen hunched over a small fire.
Likely one of the few people to still use and enjoy the park despite its condition, Ali, who has lived on Verdon Street for two years, spoke about living with the rubbish-filled park at the end of his street.
Looking out across the view of the city from his seat on the edge of the parkland, he said: “I come here on Sundays to sit and look at the view. Sometimes I make a barbeque; sometimes I burn the rubbish. I like to keep my area clean.”
He had just phoned his friend to come and join him.
“See that pile?” Pointing to the area across from him, “I will burn that next. It wasn’t there yesterday; I think they come in the night.” When asked how the rubbish is dumped, he said: “Look, there, there”, pointing to the white van parked on the opposite side of the park, “They always dump it there.” It was by the fly-tipped pile our reporter first found when arriving. He said it has always been like this for the two years he has lived on Verdon Street.
With no obvious signs of CCTV, or even posters or signs warning of punishment, the park - its sole purpose to unite the three streets together; a place for the residents to use and enjoy - unites them only under the same, subjugating title as Sheffield’s “most targeted streets”.
DEFRA
The more than a decade of fly-tipping in and around the park connecting these three streets is only likely to worsen. The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA)’s publishing of the ‘Fly-tipping statistics for England, 2024 to 2025’ on 25 February has revealed that, nationally, fly-tipping incidents have increased by 9% from 1.153 million in 2023/24, to 1.258 million in 2024/25. Meanwhile, the number of fines handed down from courts decreased by 9% from 1,378 in 2023/24 to 1,250 in 2024/25 - meaning merely 0.2% of fly-tipping incidents have resulted in court action.
| Enforcement Action Type | 2023/24 | 2024/25 | % Change | % of Total Actions (2024/25) |
| Investigations | 353,000 | 386,000 | +10% | 68% |
| Warning letters | — | 62,000 | — | 11% |
| Duty of care inspections | 27,000 | 29,000 | +9% | 5% |
| Statutory notices | 24,000 | 21,000 | −10% | 4% |
| Total enforcement actions | 530,000 | 572,000 | +8% | 100% |
In their report, DEFRA states: “Fly-tipping is a crime, a significant blight on local communities and a source of environmental harm. Local authorities have a duty to clear fly-tipped material from relevant land in their areas and consequently they deal with the vast majority of fly-tipping on public land.”
This is something we all know.
Something we should not ignore, however, is when the Council fulfils this “duty to clear fly-tipped material from relevant land in their area”, but does not effectively target, deter, and prevent the “significant blight on local communities” caused when areas are repeatedly used as fly-tipping hotspots - in the case of this south Burngreave park, for over a decade.
Considering their 2025-2026 Fly Tipping Reduction Strategy states "solutions" to the "most problematic sites" will have been produced by "Spring 25", this is an increasingly pertinent issue.
Abdullah
As Sheffield Wire prepared to leave, a man with a shopping bag stopped at the largest pile of fly-tipped rubbish; the one Ali had pointed to across the park - referenced as ‘A’ in the maps above and pictured at the start of the article and below.
The man threw his hands at it in a gesture of irritation and annoyance; our reporter stopped, walked over, and spoke to him.
Abdullah, who walks through the park often, revealed only last week he had stopped a van from dumping on this exact spot: “I had my camera, and went up to them to say 'look! Stop what you are doing!' - they drove off; nothing was dumped,” he said, “But now, look, it’s all here.”
When asked if he knew who had dumped it, Abdullah said: “They must come from a shop or something, far away from here. Maybe, look at it and there will be an address.” He turned over a cardboard box previously housing a TV, and a couple of black bags rattling as if they were filled with bottles or shards of glass.
There was no address; nothing to identify the perpetrator - it is likely the first thing the criminals with any experience in the crime remove before fly-tipping their waste.
Abdullah believes it is the fact there is no CCTV in the area that is causing the issue, he said: “If there was a camera, a big camera, they would not come.
"My phone camera does not stop them for long.”
This is not something difficult to imagine. There was not a single sign to deter fly-tipping or warn of prosecution in the park or on surrounding streets, and there was no obvious CCTV presence in the area to capture and record criminals in the fly-tipping act.
The Authority
To understand the Council’s position, their ‘Sheffield Fly Tipping Reduction Strategy 2025-2026’ includes details of educational and awareness plans to combat fly-tipping, the awareness they have for existing hotspots, and their deterrent and preventative tactics to address them:
- “Site specific target hardening solutions eg. fencing, CCTV, road closures etc to prevent incidents.”
- “Additional CCTV units were purchased to ensure where there were hotspots which would benefit from surveillance”
The strategy continues: "Sheffield city council has a small enforcement team of officers who investigate incidents of fly tipping. A large part of their work is reactive dealing with service requests from members of the public, internal and external partner agencies/departments. Our core approach when dealing with complaints is to identify if there is any evidence and then undertake a criminal investigation."
The glaring issue is: these hotspot tactics were not in place around Sheffield’s “most targeted streets”: not for Brunswick Road, Spital Lane, or Verdon Street. There was no fencing, no CCTV, and no road closures on any of these streets. The only work seen in the area was on the smaller, Handley Street, off Spital Lane, where a previous fly-tipping hotspot had been fenced off; pushing a new hotspot just under the fluorescent yellow warning signs posted on the plywood wall.
Neither here nor at any other of the fly-tipping sites was there evidence of these "additional CCTV units" - visible or sign-posted. Perhaps it has been decided that Sheffield's most fly-tipped street would not "benefit from surveillance"? If the small, reactive enforcement team are looking to conduct evidenced-based investigations into fly-tipping around the park area of Brunswick Road - where there is no clear CCTV coverage - it is no wonder that, nationally, the level of court action taken against fly-tipping incidents is at 0.2%.
Several Sheffield City Council representatives, including Councillor Safiya Saeed, the Sheffield Lord Mayor and a representative for Burngreave Ward, along with executives heading the Council’s environmental and development teams, were contacted for comment. The Council were asked for comment over their specific commitments to the streets of Spital Lane, Brunswick Road, and Verdon Street under the ‘Sheffield Fly Tipping Reduction Strategy 2025-2026’, and the comments received from residents regarding night-time fly-tipping and lack of CCTV coverage in the area were also put to them.
Sheffield Wire received response from Councillor Mark Rusling, who said: “A lot of work is going into the Burngreave area to clear up and prevent fly tipping.”
However, it is clear more will need to be said, and more will need to be done.
Reform in Sheffield: “Wading through concrete” or revolutionising local politics?
Marching up her driveway, leaflet in hand, a Sheffield woman became an unlikely internet sensation last week after footage from her Ring doorbell camera was shared online.
The focus of her fury was Matt Smith, vice chair of Reform UK Sheffield West, who had been canvassing in the area when the woman confronted him. Social media users were quick to herald her as a “legend”, while others lambasted the woman for still being in her dressing gown at 2 o’clock in the afternoon. But beyond the noise, the exchange appeared to reflect a wider tension within local politics, prompting observers to question whether, in challenging Mr Smith, the woman spoke for the rest of Sheffield, or not.
So just how popular is Reform with Sheffield residents?
Last year saw Sheffield appoint its first, and only, Reform councillor John Booker, after a snap election was called in Stocksbridge and Upper Don. Cllr Booker may have clinched the win by just 192 votes, but his success was viewed by many as a mere sign of things to come.
Buoyed by its victory in the north of the city, Reform will be targeting wards across Sheffield ahead of the City Council election in May. Laura Moynahan, Labour councillor for Manor Castle, worries that, as residents continue to grapple with a cost-of-living crisis, many of them are simply looking for someone to blame. “I think Reform is a real risk, we shouldn’t underestimate the threat they pose,” she says. “I’ve actually had people say about us building new houses in Manor: ‘Oh, you’re building those for the boat people.'"
Further east, Woodhouse is another area where a shift towards the far-right does not feel implausible. At the Sheffield City Council election in 2024, Reform candidate Andrew Hizzard lost out to the Liberal Democrats by just 10 votes - and a trip into Market Square suggests that a win for Reform is not out of the question.
Dave Franklin, a long-time resident of the area, reflects: “Woodhouse has been under a Labour council for years and it has just degenerated, it’s getting worse and worse. I’ve been listening to Reform more than anything.” Mr Franklin’s dissatisfaction, fuelled by fears around the recent influx in immigration, was shared by numerous other locals, including one Mervyn Greaves. “I’ll be honest with you: I like Nigel Farage,” says Mr Greaves. “Asylum is a fantastic thing, but it’s for people who do really need it.”
Other residents, however, appeared much more reticent to express their full-throated support for Reform. While Joanne Smith agreed that Labour had let the area down, she appeared unsure of the party’s central message. “I don’t really know what Reform’s policies are,” she says. “They just make a big thing about immigration and I don’t have any thoughts on it.” Richard Taylor, who has lived in Woodhouse for well over a decade, was quick to echo Ms Smith’s confusion. “All Reform keeps saying is ‘Deportation!’,” he says. “But they’re not saying what they’re going to do about education, housing, or potholes.”
A party plagued by controversy
Reform Sheffield East has been at the centre of significant controversy in recent months, after concerns regarding its candidate selection process led to four members being permanently expelled from the party. A report published by YorkshireLive in January of this year featured allegations that, when asked to role-play a gay couple attending a councillor’s surgery, one man kissed the head of a potential candidate. This is a claim that those expelled members have vehemently denied.
Among them was former chair of the branch Mark Harrop, who remains adamant that Reform failed to follow the proper disciplinary process. “We’ve been denied natural justice,” says Mr Harrop. “We don’t know the evidence that was presented, we’ve never seen it.”
More recently, Mr Hizzard, the previous Reform candidate for Woodhouse, announced that he had not been nominated to represent the party at the election in May. In a post published to Facebook last week, Mr Hizzard claimed that he had been “wronged by the party from a great height.” He complained of infighting within Reform and maintained that, in expelling its members, the Sheffield East branch had “thrown a whole year’s work down the drain.”
A spokesperson for Reform UK told YorkshireLive that, while the party does not comment on internal matters, it had followed the disciplinary process “to a tee”.
How might recent events affect Reform’s chances in May?
Mr Harrop was keen to reiterate that, while canvassing in Sheffield last year, both him and his colleagues received “mass support” from local residents. But, with Reform Sheffield East having come to blows so publicly, is it possible that the party could be losing its momentum?
Cllr Moynahan explains: “It’s a bit confusing because we don’t know who our Reform candidate in Manor Castle is. It seems to me that they’re all falling over one another about who can be more right-wing.” Mr Harrop, now a member of Restore Britain - the party set up by Rupert Lowe - is concerned that recent events will have a significant impact on voters’ confidence in Reform. “I think Reform has lost traction, they’re wading through concrete,” he says. “Within six months to a year, I think it’s going to start to go backwards.”
Speaking to residents in Woodhouse, it appears that Mr Harrop’s concerns are not unfounded. When asked about reports of infighting within the Reform party, Joanne Smith responds: “If they’re doing this now, how are they going to run the country?”
Despite various attempts to get in contact, Reform UK did not respond to Sheffield Wire's request for comment.
Sheffield litter pickers take on fly-tipping
A team of litter pickers have made a Sheffield neighbourhood "a nice place to live", amid national rises in fly-tipping.
Fly-tipping incidents dealt with by local authorities in England have increased by 9% from 2024 to 2025, according to national statistics from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, published last week.
There were 1.26 million incidents in England from April 2024 to March 2025, 62% of these involved household waste.
Yet Blackstock Open Space, an ancient woodland in Gleadless Valley, has improved dramatically thanks to the work of Iren Wadsworth, 57, and others clearing litter from the area.
After seeing waste strewn in the woods while volunteering with Gleadless Valley Wildlife Trust in 2017, Iren started a litter picking group, just six months after moving to the area.
In the first few years she put a lot of time into advertising and getting corporate parties involved, and these groups would be able to remove four or five tonnes of waste at a time.
She said: “It was a lot of work, but I needed to do that to achieve what I wanted to achieve.”
At the beginning of 2024, Iren had gone over all the woods and brooks in the local area.
Rob Last, 64, lives locally and joined the local litter picking groups in lockdown. He said: “This whole place used to be covered in litter when we first started. We used to get round about 5000 bags of litter, it's now down to about 2000 a year.
“It's got a lot better and people are dropping a lot less stuff now.”
Iren said: “The woods were so depressingly bad that people said they didn't want to go there, it's not a pleasant experience. When we’ve cleared the sections round their houses they say thank you so much, now I feel comfortable and like it's a nice place to live. So that's what we’ve achieved."
“We’ve done the major work now. There's nowhere we've completely done because you don't know what's still underneath, but it's a lot better.”
In years of cleaning up other people’s litter, Iren still doesn’t understand why people fly-tip.
She said: “Criminal youth gangs will steal cars and joyride them and set them alight in the woods and that's their thrill.
“If people want to get rid of stuff, the woods are right by the houses, so they chuck it in the woods. Humans are lazy, they'll just do the quickest easiest thing. That's our nature."
She told Sheffield Wire that littering isn’t always intentional, as sometimes bins fall over, or maintenance teams don’t have the staff to clear heavily littered grassy spaces before mowing.
Rob also litter picks twice a week with Iren and Kev Walters, 54.
Rob said: “I haven't the foggiest idea why they do it. There's lots of mysteries. On the way here, I found a set of kitchenware, two boxing gloves, a shower curtain, it's all just totally random. What they’re doing there or how they came to be there, we have no idea what goes on at night in this valley.
“We don't hate these people, they have difficult lives. We work with the people here because we live here and we’re here all the time.
“Loads of people think you can come in and engage with the community but you can't. You just have to be here all the time because people won't trust you otherwise.”
Thanks to Iren, litter pickers, bags and gloves are now available in Sheffield libraries for free.
Doncaster Rovers fans encouraged to “get excited about it”, with a Wembley visit in their sights
A mouth-watering semi-final against Stockport County in the Vertu Trophy awaits the Rovers fans on Tuesday evening, with the reward of a Wembley final within touching distance.
Doncaster will be searching to regain their confidence after a 4-0 defeat to League One leaders Cardiff City on Saturday.
Assistant manager, Cliff Byrne, said: "We're disappointed with the result, the outcome of the game and elements of the performance which we'll look to put right as we go forward."
Grant McCann's Doncaster team are looking to make it to their first Wembley Stadium trip since the League One play-off final against Leeds United in 2008, where they were promoted to the Championship.
Speaking on fan excitement, Byrne said: "We'd encourage the fans to get excited about it and get right behind us on the night.
"Come out in your numbers because the support really does count, it really does make a difference in these cup games as we've seen in the previous rounds."
On the challenge the opponents will provide at the Eco-Power Stadium, Byrne said: "They have good depth to their squad."
In both league clashes between the two sides this season, Stockport have emerged victorious on both occasions, with Rovers' looking to upset the League One play-off challengers.
A penalty shootout victory over Huddersfield Town in the last round secured their semi-final status, as Rovers try to win the competition for a second time, following their success in the 2006-07 season.
The Vertu Trophy consists of 48 League One and League Two sides, alongside 16 Category One Academy teams, presenting a valuable opportunity for lower league teams to win silverware.
Luton Town or Northampton Town compete in the other semi-final tie on Wednesday.
The match will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Football.
Image courtesy of Doncaster Rovers.
Upcoming World Book Day: a “complete shock” for Sheffield parents
A magical day for a child but an extra expense for their parents. World Book Day is coming up, but this time it will be echoed by a worsening financial crisis.
The annual event this year will be held March 5 in every school around the country, to encourage children to read and be more interested in literature, all while they are dressed up as their favourite book characters.
But this day can put a strain and pressure on families, especially ones with multiple children.
To combat this, Sheffield is offering alternatives to buying a brand new costume. Many charity shops around the city, such as Marie Curie, are selling second hand costumes all year round, and schools are also coming together to offer parents cheaper and eco-friendly alternatives.
Will Oliphant is a dad-of-two, with one child in nursery school and another in primary.
He said his children always take part in world of book day, with past costumes ranging from the Gruffalo, to the golden ticket from Charlie and the chocolate factory. They usually buy new costumes or make them, but often his younger child wears his eldest's costume.
But this year their school is running a second hand costume sale for the first time, and the Oliphants are planning on attending. He said: “The aim is that you buy a second hand costume and that money goes to the school and it’s less waste in general.”
Michelle Rawlins' daughter Tilly, aged 10, goes to a different school that is running a clothes swap where parents can bring in old costumes and then other parents or the same parents can go and swap.
This year Tilly has decided to wear the same costume from last year to dress up as her favourite book character Hermione Granger.
Mrs Rawlins said: "It helps parents financially and stops this waste of clothing that might only be worn once, and it means children can share.”
Becky Vaughan has described World Book Day as a "complete shock", with two daughters in primary school, aged five and seven. While her eldest has settled on Grace from city of dragons after many ideas, her youngest has set her heart on a character from K-Pop Demon Hunters.
She said: "I feel like it comes as a complete shock every year. We all know it's the first week of March but it comes around so quickly and it's like "oh God it's world of book day this week, what are we doing?""
To help out parents, the school also gives children the option to come in their pyjamas and bring along their favourite book.
"It's quite a lot of pressure on parents. It can put a lot of strain, it's quite expensive sometimes as well."
Sheffield residents comment on social media ban as consultation period announced
The UK Government has announced a three month consultation period for potential restrictions on social media, AI chatbots, and gaming sites for under-16s.
The consultation will engage with questions around age verification and curfews for social media sites, as well as whether addictive features such as infinite scrolling and auto play should be turned off to help with sleep.
Bridget Phillipson, Education Secretary, said: “Every child deserves a childhood – real experiences, real friendships, real opportunities.
“We are determined to make that a reality, both inside and outside the classroom.”
Several Sheffield schools, like High Storrs and Silverdale, operate no-phone policies, not allowing students to use their phones inside school hours.
High Storrs had previously operated 'no phone zones' for Sixth Form students but moved to a complete ban in 2024, after reflecting on advice provided by the Smartphone Free Childhood movement.
Last month, Ruth Fitzell, a representative from the Smartphone Free Childhood movement, presented Sheffield City Council with a petition showing concern with the level of smartphone use amongst teenagers at a children and families policy committee meeting.
Several councillors supported the proposal to form a group to explore the issue.
As part of the Government’s efforts to support parents, a website has been launched offering online safety advice.
One Sheffield resident said: "There is things you're exposed to that you really shouldn't be"
However, she added that social media use could become "more secretive and that could pose more risk for them".
Another said: "I see a lot of people who seem to be trapped in that phone world."
Last month, Conservative Leader, Kemi Badenoch said that the Conservative Party would support a ban on social media for under-16s.
The consultation period will last until 26 March 2026 and will try to engage with a range of people, including parents, carers, young people, teachers, and academics.
Image Credit: verkeorg, Flickr
Chuckle Brother to travel the length of Great Britain in effort to raise money for Marie Curie
Paul Chuckle is set to start his From Me To You Tour to raise money for Marie Curie.
Chuckle, who hails from Rotherham, will travel over 800 miles from John O'Groats to Land's End on the Marie Curie 'Daff Bike' from March 3 to 11. He hopes to raise up to £40,000.
2026 marks the 40th anniversary of the charity's Great Daffodil Appeal which raises funds to care for people with terminal illness.
Paul Chuckle, the stage moniker of Paul Elliot, is urging people to meet him along his route and give what they can. He said: "If you see a bucket, pop something in.
"Whilst I'd love to be able to cycle the iconic John O'Groats to Land's End route like so many incredible fundraisers do, I'm really excited to get to travel the route with the 'Daff bike', meet lots of people, have some fun and say a huge thank you – from me to you!"
The charity helped Paul and his family toward the end of Barry Chuckle's battle with bone cancer in 2018.
He said: "There truly is only one chance to give someone the best possible end of life. That’s why the Great Daffodil Appeal is so important. Every penny raised will help Marie Curie provide expert end of life care and support to people with a terminal illness and those close to them."
Paul will be stopping:
Glasgow: Wednesday 4th March
Glasgow Fort Shopping Centre, 12-2pm
Bradford: Thursday 5th March
Morrisons Enterprise 5 Store, 12-2pm
Birmingham: Friday 6th March
Victoria Square, 12-2pm
Penarth: Saturday 7th March
Marie Curie charity shop, 12-2pm
Exeter: Monday 9th March
Morrisons Prince Charles Road, 2:30-4:30pm
Plymouth: Tuesday 10th March
Plymouth Argyle F.C, 12-2pm
Paul hopes to see as many fans as possible on his tour. He said: "Marie Curie and I are grateful for every penny you’re able to donate."
You can donate via the Marie Curie Website.
First dedicated dementia research nurse will bridge gap for communities marginalised from trials
One of 20 designated dementia research nurses across the UK has been brought into Sheffield, in an effort to boost accessibility to dementia trials.
A £3 million investment from the Alzheimer's Society has funded Jo Howe's new position in the Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation trust making the site one of the UK's first to have this sole dedication to dementia research.
Mrs Howe, said: “I am honoured to be part of the first UK-wide network of dementia research nurses. My main aim is to promote dementia research to both staff and the public and make it easier for people to get involved. "
According to Alzheimer's Research UK dementia is the nations biggest killer and yet less than 1% of people diagnosed with dementia were recruited to early-stage research trials and 95% of those that have are from a diverse background, with 95% being of White British/European origin.
Laura Rooney, Lead research Nurse at Alzheimer's Society, said: "Research will beat dementia, the UK’s biggest killer.
We know people living with dementia are keen to take part in research and find it incredibly rewarding, but so few are offered the opportunity."
One of the specific goals of the Alzheimer's Society's UKDTN Research Nurses programme is to tackle barriers which prevent people taking part in clinical trials; focusing on bringing people from a range of backgrounds into dementia research.
Sheffield Memory Hub is an organisation working to support Sheffield locals primarily of African and African Caribbean descent suffering from dementia by using culturally appropriate cognitive simulation activities.
Carl Case, Sheffield Memory Hub's Co-ordinator, said: "Researchers and organisations need to ask themselves why groups are underrepresented, how they are getting out to them, who they are using, how can they better engage groups and remove barriers?"
He went on to say that for those in the community frequently engaging in trials and research, there is a developing cynicism in being over researched without feedback, impact and implementation shared.
An important factor in building trust, and confidence in the research process
Mrs Howe's new role is an important step in the currently lagging dementia research and The Sheffield Memory Hub will also be taking part in piloting the Admiral Nurses' new face to face support sessions in April.
Sheffield charity looks to future after emergency fund appeal target exceeded
A Sheffield-based domestic abuse charity has surpassed their goal for their emergency fund appeal but warns they must move beyond "emergency fundraising to long-term stability" to ensure it can continue to be a thriving lifeline for women.
Mums In Need is a Sheffield-based charity which supports women and children facing emotional, legal and financial abuse following coercively controlling relationships and post-separation abuse. This includes one to one counselling, financial advice and personal wellbeing sessions.
The organisation was plunged into a funding crisis earlier this year and was forced to launch an emergency fund appeal on Just Giving to raise £12,500 by Monday 2 March to keep critical services operating. The charity had warned supporters that if they did not reach their total then they may be forced to reduce or close their services.
Currently, 70 families are reliant on Mums In Need's specialist support. The charity was forced to close their waiting list for new referrals because of the funding shortfall.
The emergency fundraiser has reached a total of £15,660 at the time of publication, exceeding their original target.
Laura Riley, founder and CEO of Mums in Need praised the generosity of donors in their support for local women and children, thanking them for standing by the charity when it needed them the most.
She said: "I am incredibly relieved, and deeply moved, to share that thanks to your generosity, we didn’t just meet that target… we surpassed it. Your support has been a literal lifeline.
"Your ongoing support becomes the safety net that keeps our services strong and families protected."
Ms Riley said that consistent income streams are necessary for Mums In Need to have a viable, long-term future.
She added: "While this immediate crisis has passed, we are not yet out of the woods. To ensure we never face this kind of uncertainty again, we need to move from emergency fundraising to long-term stability.
"Regular, predictable income allows us to plan ahead and protect our services. It ensures that no family ever loses access to the support they depend on."
You can donate to Mums In Need's fund appeal by clicking on the link below: SaveMIN: Emergency Fund Appeal for Critical Services - JustGiving
Link to Mums In Need website: Support & Info