1960s EVENT WAS FULL SWING IN BRAUNSTONE
For the third year in a row, close to 100 residents from Braunstone attended a tea party held by the Braunstone Blues, as part of their ‘Winter Warmer’ initiative.
Braunstone Blues is small team of staff from blue light services; Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service, Leicestershire Police and East Midlands Ambulance Service, aimed at reducing repeat calls and demand placed on emergency services in Braunstone.
The 1960s themed tea party, held at the Oak Centre, Bendbow Rise took place on Thursday 30 November, as part of an initiative to keep over 55s in Braunstone, ‘Healthy, Safe and Secure’ during the winter months.
The event got into full swing with residents arriving to a room decorated with balloons, props and music playing from the era. Guests were later treated to a local singer, who sang hits from the 1960s and encouraged residents to take to the dance floor to show off their moves.
Tess Stanton, Occupational Therapist for Braunstone Blues, who organised this year’s event, said: “The Winter Warmer is a great way to engage residents who might benefit from messages centred around staying well, safe and secure during the colder months. The event also addresses other concerns the blue light services have for over 55s, such as social isolation, social deprivation or borderline mental health issues.”
During the party members of Braunstone Blues and volunteers served freshly made soup to guests, which was followed by tea, coffee and cake.
Residents also took part in a ‘guess the weight of the cake’ competition, famous faces of the 60s and a general knowledge quiz.
Local resident Maggie Mackness, said: “I think its lovely that Braunstone Blues have brought all the community together for this 1960s party. The food was lovely, the music was lovely, and we even had a dance. It’s been wonderful.
“Without the volunteers, Braunstone Blues and others there would be a lot of people stuck at home. This party has allowed them to come out and meet others, bringing the community together.”
Fellow Braunstone resident, Kath Purple, added: “The company has been great. It is nice to have all the community together. We came to the 1950s tea party last year. Both have been brilliant!”
Braunstone Blues would like to thank the following for volunteering, providing food, donating raffle prizes and helping to make the event possible: B-inspired, DMU, Bradgate Bakery, Bluebell Cakes, and Asda at Fosse Park.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
- To find out more about Braunstone Blues visit www.braunstoneblues.org or contact Braunstone Blues on 07800 709 802, or email Braunstone.blues@lfrs.org
- You can follow Braunstone Blues on social media:
Facebook: @braunstoneblues
Twitter: @braunstoneblues
Instagram: braunstoneblues
About the Braunstone Blues
In May 2015 Braunstone Blues was established. This is a dedicated team consisting of a Watch Manager and a Community Safety Advisor from the fire service, Police Constable, Police Community Support Officer, and a Paramedic. The team has since extended to a second Paramedic and an Occupational Therapist.
999 demand data from all three services was analysed and it was found that the small geographical area of Braunstone produced close to 8,000 calls every year. This was roughly a 49% Police, 49% EMAS and 2% Fire. The population of the area was 18,000 people living in 4,500 homes. This was shown to be the highest area of demand in all of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.
The team work with partners and residents of Braunstone to deliver a healthier, safer and more secure community by educating and directing residents to appropriate services via a home visit service and delivering appropriate campaigns, to reduce the number of emergency calls in the area.
There are four main streams of work for Braunstone Blues; Home Visits, Community Events, working with high demand users and running Life Skills sessions in the community.
Contact:
Jessica Essex
Braunstone Blues Communications Officer
07966 111 273
jessica.essex@lfrs.org
