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February 2012 • Issue 4

Care in Crisis

Our care system is in crisis. Many of those who need help and support are beingbadly let down by a faltering system, while others find themselves having to sell

their homes in order to pay for the support they need.The Age UK Care in Crisis Campaign is calling on the Government to reform the care system inthis country so that everyone gets the care they need to live with a good quality of life, with dignityand the ability to plan ahead.Successive governments have talked about reforming care, but the issue has been repeatedlyshelved. With the recent Budget cuts and with a growing older population, the system is confusing,unfair and unsustainable. Urgent reform is needed now. Together we must make sure that theGovernment takes action.This Spring the Government is releasing its plans for the long term future of care. We have a greatopportunity to make sure older people get a better and fairer deal on care reform. Age UK thereforehas launched the Care in Crisis 2012 Report that outlines the extent of the pressures on the socialcare system. There will be a Mass Lobby of Parliament on Tuesday 6 March.Age UK is also launching the Care in Crisis petition, to give every one of us who feels stronglyabout this issue the chance to have our voice heard. We aim to collect 100,000 signatures. Petitionforms are available for signing at our office in George Street, Colchester and we urge all who feelstrongly about this issue to come in and sign their name. The petition is also available online:www.ageuk.org.uk/careincrisis.

Fordham Lunch Club visit Firstsite Gallery

Our popular lunch club joinedchildren from All Saints Primaryat Fordham on a trip to the newFirstsite Gallery in Colchesterrecently. The morning includeda joint art activity in theEducation Room as well as atour around the exhibition andthe building led by an artist.It was an interesting andthought-provoking experience!

Energy and Consumer AdviceManager

Hello my name is EdwardPentney and I would just liketo introduce myself as thenew Energy & ConsumerAdvice Manager at Age UKColchester.I have been involved inserving and helping the

general public in the Colchester area all my lifein some form, and very much look forward tohelping Age UK Colchester clients with theirEnergy and Consumer Issues in the future.I work on Wednesday Afternoons and FridayMornings in the Colchester office and anappointment can be made to see me byphoning the office on 01206 368420

A day in the life of a ComputerTutor

by Elizabeth Cropton

Modern technology, ahhh!!! I have been asked to put down a few words abouthelping to use the computer. I wondered how, inprevious centuries, the majority of people reactedto the modern technology of their time. In theeighteenth century did the piano, the first mercurythermometer, steam engines and the world's firstpublic railways worry and confuse society?What about in the 19th century when the sewingmachine, matches, electric telegraph, the lightbulb, telephone and typewriter appear? Did theyspread confusion and fear or were theyembraced?Then in the twentieth century came aeroplanes,automobiles, radio and spaceships, computers,cell phones, and the wireless Internet. Not tomention the twenty first century with quantumcomputers, nanotechnology, bioengineering andnuclear fusion!The Unknown can be confusing and worrying.We are told ‘Learn how to use the Internet and atyour finger tips is a world-wide source ofinformation and communication’. But that is easiersaid than done. Sitting there looking at a screenand a keyboard, where shall I start? Who will helpsimplify and explain what seems to be acomplicated tool?At Age UK Colchester we help do this. Tutors canassist people who are complete beginners tothose who are competent with the computer butwant to ‘fine-tune’ their knowledge. Myself? I aimto help by overcoming some initial fears, forexample, can I break it? How do I get onto theInternet? What is an email? How do I use aSpreadsheet or the Word Processor? What is cutand paste? There is a lot to understand, but likea jigsaw puzzle the pieces will start to fall intoplace with time, practise, patience and (mostimportantly) fun.Don't be worried or embarrassed, we all have tostart somewhere and in a one-to-one lesson thelearning process is two-way. You may havequestions to which I don't know the answer,together we will find those answers. During theone hour lesson we will laugh, chat away andsometimes the computer has a mind of its own

and makes me look like a fool, then I have to tellit off !!!It`s a ‘hands-on’ experience. We have leafletswhich explain how to use the Internet securely.You can learn how to research an interest orhobby. You can learn how to shop online. It canbe safe and the retail competition means thatthere are bargains to find and unusual gifts to buy.Try selling on Ebay! Get in touch with friends andrelations. Download photos, email them to friendsand relations or organise them into folders. Keepinformation, records or try writing a story usingthe Word Processor. The Spreadsheet can beuseful in keeping track of household expenses.Use PowerPoint to put on a show of your holidayphotos to the family, that'll please them!Come and enrol on our ‘Catch The Mouse’ course.You never know what you can learn until you try.Ring Colchester 368420 for details.

Our need for a

The current plan is for ‘super stops’ to be madein Osborne Street. The kerbing will bechanged, more seats will be placed under theveranda and the bus information system willbe updated.Age UK Colchester feels this is unacceptablebecause:� there will insufficient stops for the number

of buses.� there will not be any facilities for taxis to

drop of or pick up passengers.� the waiting accommodation will be very

basic and open to the elements.� there will be no layover space for buses -

just a brief window of time for stopping.Age UK Colchester has noticed that there isoften chaos in St John’s Street (outsideWilkinson’s) with too many buses vying for thefew stops that are available. This results inbuses pulling in to wherever there is a spaceand passengers having to rush to get on thatbus.For older people with visual or mobilityconcerns, or young parents with baby buggiesand toddlers, this can become a nightmare.

WHY REPEAT THIS DISASTER?

The ideal BusStation

The ideal Bus Station should be:� a place to meet and greet� to board intercity, airport and holiday

coaches� to connect with rural bus services� it should have toilet facilities� it should have adequate indoor seating� there should be an information desk

where coach tickets can be purchased� there should be up to date information

displays keeping everyone informed aboutbus/coach arrivals and departures� and, as far as possible, it should be a safe

environment.

Its location should be:� within a short distance of the High Street� to be near to visitor attractions� to be ‘on the same level’ as the shops and

attractions� to provide minimum disruption to current

bus services� in an area that is ripe for development

with dilapidated or empty buildings

Norwich Bus Station

The current plan

Osborne Street

new Bus StationOur ideas for a newBus StationLocationWe believe that the ideal location to meet our criteriawould be at or near the area of the current temporaryBus Station in Queen Street.

DesignIt is important to have a Bus Station that is functionalbut would blend in with it surroundings - particularlythe Firstsite Gallery which is nearby.Age UK Colchester believes that the design of NorwichBus Station would meet our needs as the fastestgrowing borough in the United Kingdom, and wouldprovide two iconic buildings buildings as part of the StBotolph’s Redevelopment Plan.

Above: The part of Queen Street (old Keddies)where the new Bus Station could be built

Above and below: a modern design likethat of Norwich Bus Station wouldcomplement the iconic Firstsite Gallery

For a copy of our submission to Colchester Borough Council and Essex County Council go towww.ageukcolchester.org.uk or ask for a copy at our office.

Plan of our ideasfor the new BusStation

The fall ofSingapore

The fall of Singapore to the Japanese Army onFebruary 15th 1942 is considered one of the

greatest defeats in the history of the British Army andprobably Britain’s worst defeat in World War Two. Itclearly illustrated the way Japan was to fight in the FarEast – a combination of speed and savagery that onlyended with the use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshimain August 1945.Singapore, an island at the southern end of the MalayPeninsula, was considered the "Gibraltar in the FarEast" and the surrender of Singapore demonstratedto the world that the Japanese Army was a force tobe reckoned with. The defeat also ushered in threeyears of appalling treatment for the CommonwealthPOW’s who were caught in Singapore.Once the Japanese expanded throughout the regionafter Pearl Harbour in December 1941, many in Britainfelt that Singapore would become an obvious targetfor the Japanese. However, the British militarycommand in Singapore was confident that the powerthey could call on there would make any Japaneseattack useless.British troops stationed in Singapore were also toldthat the Japanese troops were poor fighters; alrightagainst soldiers in China who were poor fightersthemselves, but of little use against the might of theBritish Army.The Japanese onslaught through the Malay Peninsulatook everybody by surprise. Speed was of theessence for the Japanese, never allowing the Britishforces time to re-group. This was the first time Britishforces had come up against a full-scale attack by theJapanese. Any thoughts of the Japanese fighting a

conventional form of war were soon shattered. TheBritish had confidently predicted that the Japanesewould attack from the sea. This explained why all thedefences on Singapore pointed out to sea. It wasinconceivable to British military planners that theisland could be attacked any other way – least of all,through the jungle and mangrove swamps of theMalay Peninsula. But this was exactly the route theJapanese took.As the Japanese attacked through the Peninsula, theirtroops were ordered to take no prisoners as theywould slow up the Japanese advance. The RAF hadlost nearly all of its front line aeroplanes after theJapanese had attacked RAF fields in Singapore, soany hope of aerial support for the army was destroyedbefore the actual attack on Singapore had actuallybegun.Britain’s naval presence at Singapore was strong. Asquadron of warships was stationed there lead by themodern battleship "Prince of Wales" and the battlecruiser "Repulse". On December 8th 1941, both putout to sea and headed north up the Malay coast towhere the Japanese were landing. But, two days later,both ships were sunk by repeated attacks fromJapanese torpedo bombers. The RAF could offer theships no protection as their planes had already beendestroyed by the Japanese. The loss of both shipshad a devastating impact on morale in Britain.Only the army could stop the Japanese advance onSingapore. The army in the area was led byLieutenant General Arthur Percival. He had 90,000men there – British, Indian and Australian troops whohad never seen combat. The Japanese advanced with65,000 battle-hardened men lead by GeneralTomoyuki Yamashita.All the indications were that the Japanese would attackSingapore across the Johor Strait. General Wavell,the British commander in the region, was ordered byChurchill not to surrender until there had been

"protracted fighting" in an effort to save the city.On February 8th, 23,000 Japanese soldiers attackedSingapore. They advanced with speed and ferocity.At the Alexandra Military Hospital, Japanese soldiersmurdered the patients they found there. Percival keptmany men away from the Japanese attack fearing thatmore Japanese would attack along the 70 milecoastline. He has been blamed for failing to back upthose troops caught up directly with the fighting but itis now generally accepted that this would not havechanged the final outcome but it may only haveprolonged the fighting.The Japanese took 100,000 men prisoner inSingapore. Many had just arrived and had not fired abullet in anger. 9,000 of these men died building theBurma-Thailand railway. The people of Singaporefared worse. Many were of Chinese origin and wereslaughtered by the Japanese.

Christmas Quiz Answers

1. Deck the Halls2. Mistletoe and Wine3. It’s a Marshmallow World4. Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer5. All I want for Christmas is You6. Jingle Bell Rock7. Walking in a Winter Wonderland8. Silent Night9. Christmas Wrapping10. Little Donkey11. We Three Kings12. O Little Town of Bethlehem13. While Shepherds Watched their Flocks byNight14. Twelve Days of Christmas15. Good King Wenceslas16. Torches17. Do They Know its Christmas18. Boars Head Carol19. Pretty Paper20. I Saw Three Ships

12 June 2012

Join Age UK Colchester’s Activ8 Club for agrand day out by coach and boat. LeavingColchester at 9 am, we head for Berkshire andthe Marlow Garden Centre, where there will betime to browse and have some lunch beforerejoining the coach for the short drive to Henleyin time for the afternoon sailing to Marlow.Whilst the sweet Thames flows softly by we canenjoy the beautiful scenery and indulgeourselves in the included Afternoon Tea.Disembarking at Marlow in late afternoon, werejoin our coach and journey home, arriving inColchester at approximately 7 pm.The cost for this trip is £25.00 for Activ8members and £26.00 for guests. If you wouldlike to join us then please contact the Age UKColchester Office on (01206) 368420.

Retired and nothing to do?Then come to our morning of dancing

at our

TEA DANCEEvery Thursday at the

Shrub End Social CentreShrub End Road

(opposite Leather Bottle Bus Stop)10.15 am to 12.15 pm

£3.00 admission on the doorTea, biscuits and a Raffle Draw

Phone 860330 or 504642 for further details

Everyone welcome

A Lunch and Social Club for thoseliving in the Ipswich Road, St John’sand Highwoods area of Colchester

Lunch • Activities • Talks • Visits

For further information ring 01206 368420

St John’s & HighwoodsCommunity CentreHighwoods Square

Our aim is simple: to help everyone makethe most of later life. We believe that oldage should be valued. That choice isimportant through life. And we believe inyour right to stay independent as long aspossible.

So, volunteers give practical support. Wehave expert information and advice youcan rely on; and we will campaign for yourrights.

Globe House, 6 George StreetColchester, CO1 1TP

Phone: 01206 368420Fax: 01206 500984Email: info@ageukcolchester.org.ukWeb: www.ageukcolchester.org.uk

Age UK Colchester is a registered charity (Registered Charity No. 1142414)and company limited by guarantee. Registered in England and Wales No

7517777. Registered Office: 6 George Street, Colchester, CO1 1TP.

We all love the daffodils,We place upon our window sills.We like how their pretty faces,Brighten up our living spaces.

Is it Spring or Winter still?Look upon the nearby hill.

Spring is here with tweet and trill,If there blooms the daffodil.

If you do not find it there,You have no need to despair.

Try as gloomy Winter will,It can’t hold back the daffodil.

Dark green blades and bright faces,It will bloom in all places.

You might as well give it roomThe daffodil intends to bloom.

Linda Burns