Category: Lifestyle

Teesside Charity Aims To Raise Awareness Of Dyspraxia

By on 25th January 2016in Lifestyle

A Teesside charity is launching a new support group which aims to help young people affected by dyspraxia…

Roseberry Community Consortium has set up Dyspraxia Support Group, which will offer assistance and a wealth of support for anyone in the region, aged between 13 and 25, suffering from the condition.

Pritthijit Datta, the brains behind this new group, suffers from dyspraxia himself, and has been a trustee of the Stockton-based charity for five years.

He said: “The support group will give members the opportunity to share their experiences with others who are affected by dyspraxia, and also help to build their confidence levels and social skills.

“There will be numerous activities which members can get involved in, ranging from art to one-on-one sessions, workshops and more.

“The charity has gone from strength to strength, and we would like to see this continue by getting as many people involved with the support group as we can.”

Dyspraxia is a life-long condition which specifically affects a person’s co-ordination. It is thought to affect around 3% of adults in the UK, and is more common in men.

Pritthijit – who was diagnosed with dyspraxia at a young age – has played a pivotal role in moving the charity forward, but believes the condition is still misunderstood.

He said: “I hope the support group will help us raise awareness of dyspraxia across the Tees Valley, and also help not only those affected by it, but also the people around them.

“Our aim is to educate people so they get a better understanding of the condition.”

Roseberry Community Consortium was established in 2009, and offers guidance for disadvantaged young people across the Tees Valley through numerous projects, including music tuition, dancing, heritage, education and life skills.

The charity also runs a horticultural project, Plot to Plate, which is transforming a once derelict piece of land between Stockton and Middlesbrough into a vibrant garden and horticulture resource.

“Plot to Plate encourages young people to think about healthy eating and wellbeing, and also aims to help members build their self-confidence,” said Pritthijit.

“It’s a fantastic project, and we’re hoping the area will become a community hub for the region.”

Roseberry Community Consortium wants to develop the Plot to Plate further, and is looking for volunteers to join the project in March.

Dyspraxia Support Group will launch on Saturday 30th January at Arc, Stockton, at 1pm and is currently looking for volunteers and new members.

For more information about the forward thinking charity, or to become a member or volunteer with Dyspraxia Support Group, visit www.roseberrycommunityconsortium.org.

Ramside Spa Offers Exclusive Valentine’s Packages

By on 20th January 2016in Lifestyle

Couples looking to pamper themselves this Valentine’s Day can indulge in a special spa day at a leading North East venue…

The Spa at Ramside, Carrville, Durham, is offering a range of spa packages to help guests to celebrate the most romantic day of the year.

All the Valentine’s packages include full use of the spa facilities and a two course lunch or dinner in the venue’s Fusion restaurant.

Guests can choose from the ‘Spa Struck – Valentine’s Twilight for Two’, which includes a 60 minute Balinese massage, and the ‘Two Peas in a Pod’ package which includes, a Mud Rasul ritual for two, and 45 minute back, neck and shoulder massage.

There is also a selection of packages, such as the Precious Moments Together and the Sheer Indulgence together – which also includes a 90 minute four hands sheer indulgence for two, and exclusive use of the spa’s newest addition, the light relax room and private balcony infinity pool.

“Valentine’s spa experiences are becoming increasingly popular, and what better way to treat your loved one? It’s the ideal gift,” said Jill Russell, spa director at Ramside Hall.

“Our packages have been specially designed to give couples some quality time together, and really help them to relax and enjoy themselves in our state-of-the-art facilities.”

The spa, which is part of Ramside Hall Hotel, includes five heat experiences, an outdoor vitality pool, a 25-meter swimming pool, balcony infinity pool and one of the UK’s largest hydrotherapy pools.

All the packages will run throughout February and March, excluding the Spa Struck package which will run exclusively between February 12th and 15th.

Prices start from £150 per couple. For further details please visit www.ramsidespa.co.uk.

Tyneside Restaurants Reveal Loved-Up Valentine’s Day Menus

By on 19th January 2016in Lifestyle

Restaurants across Tyneside have the recipe for romance, with Valentine’s Day dishes for loved-up couples…

On Sunday 14th February, The Runhead, Holburn Lane, Ryton and Scalini’s, at Osborne Road, Jesmond and Great North Road, Gosforth, are offering a range of special starters, main courses and desserts.

At The Runhead, diners can choose either smoked mackerel pâté or Portobello mushrooms stuffed with goat’s cheese, followed by rack of lamb, pan-fried Dover sole or mozzarella roast vegetable stack, with a dessert of strawberry mess or tiramisu.

At Scalini’s, Jesmond, starters include antipastos and roast pear salad, while main courses feature dishes such as chargrilled T-bone steak, pan-seared king scallop and tiger prawn skewers and heart-shaped pasta parcels filled with mozzarella.

Dessert is a sharing platter of strawberry-filled meringue, chocolate orange truffle, warmed caramel brownie, lemon pannacotta torte, ice creams, fruit coulis and chocolate pencils.

And, for those planning to celebrate the occasion with a group of friends, the restaurant is also offering a free bottle of house wine for tables of six or more.

At Scalini’s, Gosforth, diners can choose from crab and Welsh rarebit toasties or sharing platters of antipasto fritto misto or pulled beef brisket nachos, main courses of a pork board to share, 10oz ribeye steak or pan-seared scallops and desserts, to be announced on the day.

Those who can not wait until 14th February, can celebrate Valentine’s Day early at the Sandpiper, Cullercoats, which is serving its special menu on 13th February, in order not to disappoint Sunday diners keen to enjoy the venue’s popular carvery.

Romantic diners on 13th February will be able to choose either North Sea fishcake or ham hock terrine, followed by pan haggerty, seared cod, chorizo and bean stew or sirloin steak, followed by sticky toffee pudding or lemon posset.

Valentine’s menus are available throughout the day at each venue, and further information can be found at www.scalinisrestaurant.co.uk, www.therunhead.co.uk and www.thesandpiperbar.co.uk.

Tyne & Wear Museums Announce Groundbreaking Creative Technology Workshops

By on 18th January 2016in Lifestyle

Do you know a Future Maker?

Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums has teamed up with Manchester-based digital art organisation FutureEverything to deliver an exciting new programme of creative technology workshops at museums and galleries across Tyneside.

The Future Makers programme is a series of events that will enable children – and adults – to use new technologies for design and making.

From Minecraft sessions at Arbeia Roman Fort to a coders’ ‘hackathon’ at Stephenson Railway Museum, Future Makers seeks to inspire a new breed of creatives whilst challenging preconceptions of what museums and their collections mean in the digital age.

John Coburn, Digital Programmes Manager for Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums, explains: “We’re thrilled to be working with the internationally acclaimed creators and thinkers FutureEverything on this programme.

“Our nine museums and galleries showcase collections that were the work of pioneering inventors, artists and designers. With Future Makers, we want to invoke the spirit of these creators by using our museums as spaces for playful experimentation and creative thinking.

“It’s about ingenuity from the past inspiring people to imagine and create new futures.”

Drew Hemment, Artistic Director and Founder of FutureEverything, adds: “It is an absolute pleasure to be working with Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums on this brand new programme, inspiring the next generation of makers, creatives, collectors and visitors within some of the North East’s best galleries and museums.

“FutureEverything are always looking to bring innovative creative technology to a wider audience, helping to imagine bolder, smarter, futures.”

The programme gets underway at Gateshead’s Shipley Art Gallery on Wednesday 17th February with the Gadgets: Adventures in Design day for 7–11 year olds. Using the gallery’s outstanding collection for inspiration, children will design wearable objects for the people of the future before getting hands on with materials and the starter electronics kit Little Bits to realise the creations.

The main event for adults follows on Sunday 21st February at North Tyneside’s Stephenson Railway Museum. Railway Codes is a 10-hour hackathon for developers, makers, engineers, data scientists, artists and train enthusiasts.

Participants will follow in the footsteps of Robert and George Stephenson and join a team of 30 to experiment with historic data from both the museum collection and the UK rail network before creating new digital prototypes and artworks.

New Inventors on Saturday 27th February takes place at Newcastle’s Discovery Museum, home to some of the region’s most celebrated inventions, including the world’s first lightbulb. This event brings together two fun introductory electronics workshops for 7–11 and 12–14 year olds. The younger children will experiment with conductive dough, bringing it to life with light and sound, whilst older kids create electronic sounds by building their very own synthesiser.

Young fans of the phenomenally popular computer game Minecraft won’t want to miss the TimeCraft event at Arbeia Roman Fort, South Shields on Saturday 23rd April. In this workshop for 7–14 year olds, they will recreate Roman ruins in Minecraft, and imagine what it was like to live in a fort like Arbeia. They will also get to play digital architect and archaeologist and transport themselves 2000 years into the past with the technology of today.

Places for Future Makers events are limited and should be booked in advance via www.twmuseums.org.uk/future-makers.

A further private event exclusively for Newcastle University students – The Museum as Medium – will see the creation of novel sound and visual digital artworks using data from the Great North Museum: Hancock’s vast natural sciences collection. This takes place on Thursday 3rd and Friday 4th March.

Northern Youth Fashion Show Secures Big Name Guests

By on 15th January 2016in Lifestyle

Organisers of a special North East fashion show with one of the industry’s biggest names have announced the entertainment line-up for the event…

The Northern Youth Fashion Show, which will be attended by Anna Wintour, the Editor-in Chief of American Vogue and Artistic Director of Conde Nast, will take place on January 29th.

The event, which will be held at the University of York’s Central Hall, will include a live performance from 17-year-old Billie Marten from North Yorkshire.

The folk singer, who will open the show with an acoustic set, has been nominated for BBC’s Sound of 2016, a competition designed to identify the music industry’s rising stars, which has previously been won by Adele, Sam Smith, Ellie Goulding, HAIM and Years & Years.

The fashion show will give fashion students from across the UK the chance to showcase their designs in front of Anna Wintour, who will give a talk on the evening.

There will also be a Q&A session with Ms. Wintour led by Katharine Viner, Editor-in-Chief of The Guardian News & Media.

“We’re absolutely delighted to have Billie on board for the fashion show,” said Ellie Wintour, one of the event organisers.

“It’s fantastic to have such a rising northern star showcase their talent whilst also raising money for some really important causes too.

“So far, the event has been unbelievably popular. We only have one last batch of student tickets. We’re just beginning to see all the students’ designs. It’s incredibly exciting”

Friendly Fires and Metronomy, who have never collaborated together before, are creating a piece of music especially for the show. The piece will be placed during the final section of the show, which is based on the incredible future of northern talent.

Proceeds from the event will be split between Refugee Action York, which helps to integrate refugees into the local area, and the Xavier Project, which delivers mentoring schemes, offers job opportunities and runs schools for refugees across the world.

The show will include designs by students from the University of York, Leeds College of Art, Newcastle College, Hull College, University of Central Lancashire, Liverpool John Moores University and Leeds Beckett University.

Tickets to the event, which is being sponsored by a number of well-known organisations including train company Grand Central, makeup brand Bobbi Brown, and Yorkshire Living Magazine, are £30 per person.

The Students have also secured the hair brand Milkshake to sponsor the event. Milkshake will be leading a team of stylists backstage.

There is also a “Ticket And A Tin” option, which has now sold out. The tickets include a donation of a tin of food to go to York foodbank.

To buy tickets, visit www.yusu.org/tickets.

Mr And Mrs Winter Exchange Wedding Vows As Snow Falls

By on 14th January 2016in Lifestyle

Meet Mr and Mrs Winter – a North East couple who exchanged their wedding vows just as snow began to fall…

As bride Rebecca Thompson walked down the aisle at 600-year-old Lumley Castle, Chester-le-Street, to marry 31-year-old civil servant, Michael Winter, morning rain had turned to sleet.

And by the time the happy couple, from North Shields, had exchanged their wedding rings, the ancient castle was crowned with snow, giving their Winter’s tale a truly story book ending.

“It was magical, really,” said Rebecca, a 28-year-old recruitment consultant. “Michael’s surname was the inspiration for us having a winter wedding in the first place, but we never dreamed it would actually snow.”

Around 100 friends and family members attended the wedding in the four-star hotel’s Garter Suite, followed by a reception in the Baron’s Hall for 140.

“We’d chosen William Shakespeare’s play, The Winter’s Tale, as our theme,” said Rebecca, “and our table centrepieces were copies of the play.

“Lumley Castle is a story book setting at the best of times, but the snow turned it into a fairy tale.”

“A very great deal of thought and care went in to planning the wedding,” said Lumley Castle’s wedding coordinator Claire Sanderson.

“But, of course, no one can plan the weather – and it couldn’t have been more perfect.”

To book your own fairytale wedding at Lumley Castle, call 0191 389 1111, email reservations@lumleycastle.com or visit www.lumleycastle.com.

North East Campaign Searches For Over 450 Foster Carers

By on 12th January 2016in Lifestyle

Durham County Council’s fostering service has launched a campaign to encourage more people to become foster carers…

 

More than 450 foster carers are needed across the North East, and as part of the campaign ‘Make a Difference in 2016 – Become a Foster Carer’, which runs from January 4th to 18th, information sessions are being held to help people find out more about fostering.

The sessions take place at County Hall in Durham on Saturday 16th January between 10.30am and 2pm, and Monday 18th January between 11am and 6.30pm.

The council’s fostering team and foster carers will be available to answer any questions and help people find out how they can get started.

People will also be able to learn about the wide range of professional support and extensive training that is available to foster carers in County Durham.

Florence Coulter, fostering team manager, said: “We know that foster carers make a real difference to the lives of the children and young people that they care for and we would like to encourage more people to find out about how rewarding a career in fostering is.

“Lots of people have the skills to become a foster carer, but aren’t quite sure what’s involved. Our information sessions are a great way for you to meet our foster carers and hear what it’s like to foster.”

To find out more about becoming a foster carer or the information sessions, visit www.durham.gov.uk/fostering, email fostering@durham.gov.uk or phone 03000 269 400.

Members of the public can also find out first-hand what it is like to foster with Durham County Council by watching this video.

#ThrowbackThursday: Criminal Faces Of 1930s Newcastle

By on 7th January 2016in Lifestyle

Ever wondered what the bad guys looked like back in the day?

 

This week’s #ThrowbackThursday comes from the pages of a very old book.

It’s a Police Identification Book believed to be from the 1930s, and was found hidden away in a junk shop by a member of the public, who then went on to donate it to Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums. The images are now available on their Flickr archives.

Although there is no definitive information regarding which police force compiled the book, there is strong evidence to suggest that it’s from the Newcastle Upon Tyne area. As such, it provides a unique glimpse at some of the not-so-law-abiding citizens of the time.

See the gallery here:

 

 

Each mugshot is accompanied by the criminal’s details, and we can only imagine what some of those stories must be.

Some of the M.O.’s may also bring a wry grin to the face. For example: DODGSON, John. M.O., etc. Larceny and False Pretences. A general thief and bad character.

To see more of Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums photographs, click here.

To see more local #ThrowbackThursdays, click here.

Do you have your own North East memories or photographs to share? Leave a comment below, or email online@inandaroundmag.co.uk!

#ThrowbackThursday: Icebreakers Of The Tyne

By on 31st December 2015in Lifestyle

The Tyne & Wear Flickr Archive provides a unique view into Newcastle’s shipbuilding past…

 

 

Although the days of the Tyne being crammed with ships may be long gone, the proud memories of North East shipyards are still as strong as ever.

The region’s marine heritage dates as far back as 1294, when a galley was built in Newcastle for the King’s fleet. By 1346, ships were being built in Sunderland, and then in Stockton a little over a century later. From then, it remained a key industry in the area until the late 20th century.

So of all of the thousands built, where were these ships going to? As documented in this Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums Flicker album, some were destined for the far reaches of Russia.

 

The SS Baikal (pictured above) and the Ermack were both built by W G Amrstrong Whitworth & Co Ltd in the 1890s, in their Low Walker yard. These were sent east for ice-breaking duties across frozen waters.

Click through the gallery below to see the fantastic images of both ships in action.

 

Included in the gallery is a photograph of the workforce which reassembled the SS Baikal upon its arrival at Lake Baikal. As the caption reads:

“They were mainly exiles and criminals. They also included Isaac O’Henry, the Chief Engineer, who often told a tale of a long walk in the tundra alone with a guide who later turned out to have murdered his entire family with an axe.”

To see more of Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums photographs, click here.

To see more local #ThrowbackThursdays, click here.

Do you have shipbuilding memories or photographs of your own to share? Leave a comment below, or email online@inandaroundmag.co.uk!

County Durham Gets Fit For Free In 2016

By on 30th December 2015in Lifestyle

Friends could win the chance to improve their fitness for free as part of a three month effort urging more people to exercise this New Year…

 

Durham County Council is committed to improving the health of families, and is introducing new offers across its 10 managed leisure centres.

To celebrate, the authority is seeking one individual or two friends to take up the challenge and try out the centre of their choice for three months, with their progress tracked to inspire others to follow in their footsteps.

Further encouragement will come in the form of free exercise classes, open to all members of the public, from Monday 4th January to Friday 15th January.

The sessions – which will include new Body Combat classes – will give visitors a chance to try out new things, and learn techniques and routines.

Then, on the weekend of 16th and 17th January, all 10 centres will be hosting a free workout weekend, with open access to gyms, swimming pools and classes.

That will include Spennymoor Leisure Centre, which on 20th December will see its pool re-open following essential maintenance and improvements to its changing rooms.

If visitors choose to join as swimming or gym members during the free weekend, they will receive their first month’s membership for free.

To be in with a chance of getting fit with a friend for free, email your details to sportandleisure@durham.gov.uk by Friday 8 January 2016.

Full terms & conditions are available on the Durham County Council website at www.durham.gov.uk/leisurecentres.

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