Five year old Cassie Mansfield lives with an extremely complex ilness, CHARGE syndrome and has Hypotonic Cerebral Palsy along with other intricate conditions. Cassie requires full time care from her parents and requires the use of mobility and medical equipment which she uses every day.

CHARGE syndrome is a genetic disorder which has a known pattern of features and Cassie's growth, feeding, respiration and mobility are severely affected. She is also very small for her age and often shares clothes with her 14 month old baby sister. Despite her numerous conditions, Cassie is a fiesty and cheeky little girl with a love of lights and enjoys walks to the park.

While Cassie continued to grow, the need for home adaptations has become increasingly essential. However, her parents Marta and Steve struggled to afford the costly refurbishments. "After moving to a new home, finances were stretched and we couldn't do the necessary adaptations ourselves. Cassie needs an adapted wet room as handling her is becoming more and more of a problem as she grows older."

React has been working with the family for three years and had previously provided Cassie with an early intervention system which provides support and comfort for babies and toddlers with global developmental delay. Marta contacted React with the hopes of assistance after struggling to afford a specially adapted wet room for Cassie.

"I cried happy tears when we received the good news from React. The wet room is perfect and so much easier for Cassie now. It has everything she needs and it will be a massive improvement on Cassie as well as our health and handling her. We can't express how grateful we are to React, this is a perfect Christmas present for Cassie."

Notes:

There can be no greater tragedy than to be told your child lives with an illness which will shorten his or her life. REACT (Rapid Effective Assistance for Children with potentially Terminal illness) exists to improve the quality of life for children with life-limiting illnesses who are living in families experiencing financial hardship.

React works to give these children comfort, dignity and where possible, greater independence. React provides a wide range of equipment from specialist wheelchairs, beds, baths, and mobility aids, to essential everyday items like washing machines and tumble dryers. React can also offer mobile home holidays in the UK and sometimes, sadly funeral and memorial expenses.

A £35,000 grant has been awarded to Eckersley House, a free ‘Home from Home’ which provides emotional and practical support for families with sick children being treated in hospital in Leeds. The grant, which has been awarded by Children’s Heart Surgery Fund (CHSF), will contribute to the running costs enabling families to stay free of charge.

Eckersley House, which is provided by The Sick Children’s Trust, helps approximately 530 families each year, 100 of which are children who undergo open heart surgery.

Sharon Coyle CEO of CHSF said: “We're thrilled to be able to provide funds to Eckersley House for another year. The accommodation they provide is second to none, and our heart families continue to receive such wonderful support from this local haven in their times of need." CHSF, who support the Leeds Congenital Heart Unit, initially helped with cost the build, and have contributed £445,000 to Eckersley House over the past 6 years.

Pictured left to right are CHSF Chair of Trustees Andy Chilton, Eckersley House manager Jane McHale, Sharon Coyle CEO of CHSF and Adult Cardiologist and Trustee James Oliver.

Ends

Notes to editors

For more information please contact: Andy McNally, Marketing and Communications Manager, 0113 3922948, andy.mcnally@chsf.org.uk.

Club Soda and Blenheim have teamed up to launch the first ever pub guide for mindful drinkers and to accompany the launch, they are challenging Londoners to do a Mindful Pub Crawl in January.

A Mindful Pub Crawl is a pub crawl with a difference. Instead of boozing to excess, it’s about sampling drinks a little less ordinary, with low or no alcohol. Hop from one bar to the next, test pubs on their alcohol-free beers, creative mocktails, craft sodas and rate them.

Timed to coincide with the traditional January health kick, clubsodaguide.com has been supported by 200 of the best pubs and bars in Hackney and the City of London.

The Guide is designed to help customers navigate the best places to go out when they want to drink less. But it also gets pubs to look after their non-drinking customers more and points them to useful case studies and product ideas. Each venue has entered details about the low and no alcohol drinks they stock into the Guide and been given a score out of 5, along with advice on how to improve their score.

Club Soda co-founders Laura Willoughby MBE and ex-City banker Jussi Tolvi said:

“We created the Club Soda Guide to help everyone discover good places for mindful drinkers. We are so convinced you can go to the pub and stay healthy that we are challenging Londoners to use the Guide, do a mindful pub crawl, and review the best places. We will even send you a mindful pub crawl kit5 packed full of pub games and drink ideas to get you started.”

The Club Soda Guide’s mindful pub crawl challenge is a way for Londoners to support their local pubs and improve their health. January is traditionally a time for healthy New Year’s resolutions, with over 2 million people in the UK taking a month off booze. Many people reducing their units and counting their calories often tend to avoid pubs, whose profits plummet.

Sharon Daughter, Director of Services at Blenheim said:

“This is a great opportunity for people who want to reduce or stop their drinking, permanently or for a short period, and don’t want to miss out on meeting up with friends and going out. We think this is a fantastic start to making pubs more welcoming places for everyone.”

Anyone can run their own Mindful Pub Crawl, or join one of the Club Soda Guide Crawls. The launch mindful pub crawl is on Thursday 5th January, from 7pm at the five star rated Draft House on Plough Place, in the City of London.

We are asking people to review the venues they visit on the Club Soda Guide online, and will be rewarding the top venues in February. We plan to go nationwide with the Guide later in 2017.

The guide has been developed in partnership with Blenheim and with funding from Hackney and City of London, The Big Lottery Fund and the RSA. It has been developed as a result of Hackney funded research undertaken by Club Soda looking at the best ways to change the behaviour of pubs and bars - you can see that research on nudgingpubs.uk.

Notes:

A British publisher has brought out a book called The Wit and Wisdom of Donald Trump which consist largely of blank pages. Skyscraper Publications, which publishes a range of fiction and non fiction, rushed out the book in time for the inauguration of President Trump on January 20th 2017.

Publisher Karl Sabbagh said: "Enormous research went into the preparation of this book. But as we neared publication date, we had reluctantly to accept that, apart from the chapter titles, the pages would have to remain blank. No example of wit or wisdom among the words of Donald Trump would have escaped the research team if it had existed."

This book is divided into sections under headings such as:

How I will bring peace to the world

How I will heal the divisions in American society between racial, ethnic and lifestyle groups

How I will protect the rights of women

How I will demonstrate restraint, civilised behavior, and compassion

The major positive achievements of my business career

Tributes from the major beneficiaries of my charitable giving

The major benefits my presidency will bring to the USA

Testimonials to my good qualities from leading statesmen

"We hesitated over the last chapter," says Karl Sabbagh, "since the researchers found a quote from Vladimir Putin appearing to praise Trump. But we decided that it was actually tongue and cheek and not worthy of inclusion.?

The book is released on January 12th and costs £5.

LOCAL youth charity YMCA Humber has long been synonymous with the Village People’s hit 1978 song Y.M.C.A but it’s another one of the group’s disco hits, ‘Go West’ that is more apt as the organisation launches its Sleep Easy fundraiser for 2017.

The mass homelessness awareness events returns to Grimsby’s Freshney Place Shopping Centre Car Park on Friday 3 February from 6pm until 6am but this time fundraisers will take to their cardboard boxes and sleeping bags in the centre’s West Car Park at the Deansgate end of the town.

It is the fourth year running that Freshney Place Shopping Centre has hosted the event, which began in 2011 and has raised over £125,000 for YMCA and other homeless charities so far.

Over 80 people took part in the 2016 version of the event, which raised over £10,000 for YMCA Humber – the funds being spent on improving the current bathrooms at the charity’s Peaks Lane Housing Project in Grimsby, home to 72 vulnerable young people.

Jonathan Byrne is YMCA Humber’s Events and Marketing Lead and he is taking part in his ninth Sleep Easy event in total. He is hopeful that the public and local businesses will get behind the fundraiser.

He said: “The support for Sleep Easy has been incredible over the past six years but regrettably the problem of youth homelessness is one that is worsening, as the latest statistics show.

“Rising rents, a lack of affordable housing and welfare support cuts mean that it is increasingly harder for young people to thrive in independent living.

“For the first time, figures show a distinction between roof-lessness and homelessness – we house over 100 young people each night of the year, without places like YMCA, they would have nowhere else to live.

“So we are once again asking the local community and local businesses to spend one night sleeping rough…so others don’t have to.

“Although we will have some cover on that February evening, it will still be a cold night and we are asking if you can give up one night’s worth of comfort to raise funds for young people who need our support, especially at this time of year.

Jonathan added: “We would like to once again Freshney Place for all their support with Sleep Easy.

“As a YMCA, it is our dream to one day be able to build a multipurpose campus-style project that provides all the opportunities that young people need to belong, contribute and thrive in their local community, with the support of the public and businesses through events like Sleep Easy, we can turn that dream into reality.”

Registration for Sleep Easy is open now, with early bird registration of £5 per person (under-18s free) available until Friday 6 January (registration is £10 per person, under-18s free after that).

The Bedford Half Marathon, in support of The Sick Children’s Trust, is bringing free Mini Mile races to Bedford in September.

Ten schools across Bedford will benefit from 200 free places to help encourage participation, fitness and the well-being of young people from the borough. The Mini Mile races, which will be held after the adult’s half marathon in Priory Country Park, will also include a family fun run. Every finisher will receive a medal and have the chance to meet local Olympians.

Race Director, Mark Draper said: “The Mini Miles are fundamental to what we are trying to achieve with the event. We want to encourage and inspire people of all ages to get active. Too many people are put off sport at a young age so we are trying to change that by offering free, positive, inclusive sport.”

Community Fundraiser for The Sick Children’s Trust, Zoe Morris, said: “The Mini Miles is a great addition to The Bedford Half and really shows just how much of a family fun day out it will be in September. We’d like to say thank you once again to Mark and Jo for their continued support which will help hundreds of families stay close to their seriously ill children in hospital.”

Public entries for the event are now open. Go to www.bedfordhalf.co.uk for more information.

Just in Time for Resolution Season, PETA Ad Blitz Urges Commuters to Skip Meat-Based Burgers and Drumsticks

London – Clapham Common tube station is now fully plastered with more than 60 ads featuring cows, pigs, and chickens – who appear on every poster, door, and turnstile – to tell commuters, "I'm ME, Not MEAT. See the Individual – Go Vegan". PETA launched the UK's first vegan tube-station takeover on New Year's Day to inspire commuters to pledge to help animals, protect the environment, and get healthy by going vegan in 2017.

"Cows, chickens, and pigs are no different from human beings when it comes to feeling pain and fear and valuing their lives", says PETA Director Elisa Allen. "PETA is encouraging people everywhere to show compassion to animals by skipping meat-based meals and choosing humane and healthy vegan fare instead."

PETA – whose motto reads, in part, that "animals are not ours to eat" – notes that eating vegan spares sensitive animals daily suffering and a terrifying death in today's industrialised meat, egg, and dairy industries – in which chickens' and turkeys' throats are cut while they're still conscious and piglets' tails are cut off without any painkillers. Vegans are less prone to suffering from cancer, obesity, and diabetes than meat-eaters are, and they also have a lower carbon footprint.

That's why millions of Britons – including 20 per cent of 16- to 24-year-olds, according to the research group Mintel – are embracing plant-based meals.

Photos are available here, here, here, here and here. For more information, please visit PETA.org.uk.

Bereaved mums and dads in Monmouthshire are inviting local people who have also been affected by the death of a baby, to come along to the launch of a new Sands (Stillbirth & neonatal death charity) support group.

The group will support parents and their families whose baby has died before, during or shortly after birth. It will be launched on Wednesday 11 January at 8pm at Bridges Community Centre, Drybridge House, Drybridge Park, Monmouth NP25 5AS.

After the launch, regular support meetings will take place on the second Wednesday of the month from 8pm-9.30pmat Bridges Community Centre, and bereaved parents are more than welcome to drop in for a cup of tea and a chat.

Sands groups are run on a voluntary basis by people who have themselves experienced the death of a baby.

Dr Clea Harmer, Chief Executive of Sands, said: “We hope the new Monmouthshire Sands group will help and support bereaved parents and their families at a devastating time for them. Many bereaved parents tell us that other parents who have experienced the death of a baby are able to offer real understanding and empathy.

“I would urge anyone in the local area who is bereaved to come along to the launch of the Monmouthshire group, or attend a group meeting in the future. We are dedicated to providing emotional support and information right from the early hours after a baby's death, through to the weeks, months and years ahead.”

After the launch, regular support meetings will take place on the second Wednesday of the month from 8pm-9.30pmat Bridges Community Centre.

For further information call HeatherJane Coombs, Welsh Network Coordinator at Sands on 07709 602635 or email monmouthshiresands@gmail.com Follow Sands on Twitter at: www.twitter.com/sandsuk

Notes to editors

For further information, please contact Lee Armitt, Press and PR Officer in the Sands press office on 0203 598 1959/07587 925411 or media@uk-sands.org

About Sands

Sands is the leading stillbirth and neonatal death charity in the UK. They work nationally to reduce baby deaths through promoting better maternity care and funding research. They have a programme of training and a wide range of resources designed to support professionals to improve the bereavement care they provide following the death of a baby, and they provide a comprehensive bereavement support service both nationally through their helpline and locally through around 100 regional support groups based across the UK. Further information can be found at www.uk-sands.org.

National problem gambling support charity GamCare will host an hour-long live chatroom for problem gamblers struggling to find positive coping strategies ahead of ‘Blue Monday’, said to be the most depressing day of the year. The chatroom will run from 2pm- 3pm on Friday 13th January.

GamCare operates the National Gambling HelpLine and provides free, specialist counselling for problem gamblers, their family and friends, across England, Scotland and Wales. The charity also offers a range of online support, including regular chatrooms and a moderated Forum.

A GamCare Counsellor will be on hand during this chatroom to offer additional encouragement and suggestions regarding positive behaviour changes, and also to discuss how GamCare counselling may differ from other treatment options.

Stephen Cunningham, Frontline Services Manager at GamCare, says: “As well as beginning to understand the motivations behind harmful gambling behaviour, for instance through GamCare counselling, we believe it’s important to deal with the practical issues.

This chatroom is designed to give emotional support to problem gamblers and provide a chance to ask any burning questions. The chatroom is a supportive space to figure out how they can begin to deal with individual triggers and make positive changes moving forward.”

To participate in the chatroom, register as a GamCare Forum member at http://www.gamcare.org.uk/user/register and join at 2pm on Friday 13th January.

For more information visit www.gamcare.org.uk

ENDS

For more information or accompanying images please contact Catherine Sweet, Marketing and Communications Manager, at catherine.sweet@gamcare.org.uk or on 020 7801 7000.

Notes to editors:

GamCare – Working to minimise gambling-related harm

Sales and marketing firm and supporters of entrepreneurship Phoenix Event Marketing have reviewed recent reports that entrepreneurship in the UK has reached an all-time high. Here the company share what they are doing to support new entrepreneurs.

In an index conducted by Barclays, it was recently revealed that entrepreneurial activity across the UK had hit an all-time high, despite the year's uncertainties surrounding the state of the economy following the shock Brexit vote back in the summer.

About Phoenix Event Marketing: http://www.phoenixeventmarketing.co.uk/about-us/

The index found that every region of the UK saw entrepreneurial growth this year, with the UK as a whole seeing a 10% rise in entrepreneurial performance. There was a 4% increase in the number of active businesses in the UK over the last 12 months – with over 345,000 new business incorporations.

Phoenix Event Marketing, a Southampton-based outsourced event marketing firm were pleased with the results of this year's index and believe the results reflect the country's true entrepreneurial spirit. "Even in times of uncertainty, this result shows that more people than ever before are willing to adapt and move outside their comfort zones to succeed at something they are truly passionate about," stated a spokesperson for the firm. "This is an attitude that needs to be encouraged and celebrated throughout the UK, and we are keen to do our bit to spread this positive message."

Since their establishment, Phoenix Event Marketing has played an active role in encouraging entrepreneurship within the industry, and offer advice and support to many young professionals looking to start their own ventures. "We believe success comes from collaboration, and that especially in today's uncertain economy, it is up to established entrepreneurs and business leaders to share their expertise and time with the next generation of entrepreneurs," stated Phoenix Event Marketing. The firm has been doing this by offering young professionals within the sales and marketing industry the chance to take part in optional skills workshops, led by industry leaders, and participate in mentoring opportunities where they can access support and encouragement and develop their own business identity.

"It's important to get the balance right, you need to give aspiring entrepreneurs the freedom to exercise their new skills and build experience – this means letting them take the rough with the smooth. This is why we put young people in control of their own advancement so that they can move forward at their own pace while knowing that support is there if they need it," added the spokesperson from Phoenix Event Marketing.

Phoenix Event Marketing is an event based sales and marketing company located in Southampton. The firm works closely with clients from a variety of sectors, using face-to-face marketing strategies as a platform for building more personal connections with their clients target audiences. This in-person approach has allowed the firm to become leaders in the outsourced sales and marketing industry by increasing clients' daily acquisitions, offering greater brand awareness and delivering cost-effective results.

Now is the time to be planning for success in the New Year states Norfolk and Suffolk Promotions. Here, the firm outline how people can set attainable goals and guarantee success for the New Year.

In the run up to 2017, professionals often take the opportunity to look ahead to the New Year and consider the goals they would like to achieve in the coming 12 months. The New Year presents the ideal opportunity for change – providing a clean slate for people to start afresh and change their lives dramatically. The reason many people chose the New Year to set goals is that it offers the ideal time to reflect on the past year, to assess whether their time was spent effectively, and consider what factors would make them happier and more successful in the New Year. However, dreaming about change is only the first step in reaching success and Norfolk and Suffolk Promotions, a leading sales and event marketing firm is voicing the importance of being proactive in the run up to 2017 and why professionals must plan for their New Year goals now.

About Norfolk & Suffolk Promotions: http://www.norfolkandsuffolk.com/

Norfolk and Suffolk Promotions has seen people both succeed and fail in achieving their goals and have observed that in the vast majority of cases, failure is the result of poor planning. The firm state that it's crazy to think that as soon as the clock strikes midnight and the New Year rolls in deep rooted bad habits will disappear. By failing to plan for goals correctly, the majority of professionals are alluding to this belief.

Planning goals properly require professionals to build motivation. Before taking any steps forward, an individual needs to visualise their goals in a way that inspires them. The goal has to have the power to inspire – to push an individual to stay up late and get up at early, to make sacrifices to realise their purpose and build a better future. If a goal fails to generate this emotional response, it's a waste of time and energy, and will only cause a person unnecessary guilt when they inevitably fail to reach their goal.

Norfolk and Suffolk Promotions work with a number of passionate young sales and marketing professionals, who each have their own inspirational goals in place for the New Year. To help others identify their New Year goals the firm has the following advice.

Write down Everything

And by EVERYTHING, the company means everything an individual wishes to achieve in life; this could be financial gains, personal improvements – There are no limits. A person should write down everything and anything they think would improve their quality of life and lead to greater happiness.

Select the goals that need to be accomplished in the New Year

After creating this list, people should prioritise their goals – writing a ‘1' next to all the goals they wish to accomplish in 2017. Rather than worrying about what is achievable at this point, they should do this by thinking about which goals they are most inspired by – it is often the most outlandish goals that make people work the hardest.

Write a paragraph explaining the reasons why it's important to achieve each goal

This will create a visual aide that can be looked at in the future when motivation wavers. Knowing the reasons behind why they are working towards goals will compel a person to take continuous action.

Norfolk and Suffolk Promotions have already set big goals for 2017, and are eager to grow the business to new markets across the UK. As such the firm is currently carefully building a workforce that shares their determination, ambition and positive attitude moving into the New Year.

London, the UK – SocialBox.Biz, a social business and technology startup company based out of London with a special passion for helping businesses and corporations carve out a wide-reaching Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), this week shared a University study that confirms the expanded benefits of investing in sustainable CSR.

McGill University in Montreal, Canada, has officially proven that the combination of marketing and CSR can provide shareholders with a 3.5 percent gain in stock returns. In the University’s released paper, this translates into a $242.34 million gain in stock value, based on the average market capitalization of firms in their sample.

“This study confirmation is monumental – it has assigned a profitable monetary value to CSR and charitable activities by large businesses and corporations,” said Peter Paduh, Founder of SocialBox.Biz. “Essentially by participating in our Laptops for the Homeless and Elderly initiative, partnering corporations will be increasing their company wealth one laptop at a time.”

The social business venture focuses on partnering with corporations and hosting laptop donation bins onsite for increased donation rates. Outdated laptops and accompanying accessories are placed in the bins and then transported and refurbished via SocialBox.Biz.

Any corporation that participates in the charitable initiative will receive increased CSR ratings with local communities, as well as positive press and marketing exposure to prospective investors.

“This is a win-win for everyone who chooses to be part of our initiative, and we hope more corporations consider the significant monetary gains of pursuing serious CSR,” said Paduh.

For more information, visit: https://www.socialbox.biz/

###

About SocialBox.Biz

SocialBox.Biz, a socially focused London-based technology startup determined to use their expertise and knowledge for the betterment of both the homeless and elderly in accommodation services as well as unaccompanied refugee minors.

SocialBox.Biz's Laptops for the Homeless Initiative works with the homeless in accommodation services for getting them back on track through digital inclusion. SocialBox.Biz delivers working laptops to the individuals registered with homelessness services for providing them access to the working world. In return, participating corporations and businesses witness incredible Corporate Social Responsibility increases.

https://www.socialbox.biz/homeless-support/

Everyone falls victim to procrastination at some point in their lives; however, sales and marketing firm GB Marketing Enterprise have shared the three principles they believe can end procrastination for good.

When it comes to achieving goals and building a bright and prosperous future, many people will at some point fall victim to procrastination. It's easy for people to say what they want to achieve. However, when it comes to taking action, there are endless distractions that can create barriers and prevent success. GB Marketing Enterprise, a sales and marketing firm based in Cardiff have always believed that people are what they do, and not what they say they will do and as such are constantly developing new strategies to overcome procrastination and take action on goals.

About GB Marketing Enterprise: http://www.gbmarketingenterprise.com/about-us/

GB Marketing Enterprise believes at this time of year; procrastination is a serious plight among business professionals, many professionals put off striving for their goals until the New Year, believing that they will have greater motivation to pursue their goals when the New Year rolls around. However, procrastinating in the final weeks of the year can be incredibly damaging and have a severe impact on an individual's mindset, causing them to start the New Year with little sense of urgency – a key component in achieving goals.

To help people start 2017 with a winning mindset and overcome the power of procrastination, GB Marketing Enterprise has shared the following three principles:

Apply the Goldilocks Strategy

When a goal is too difficult people can feel overwhelmed, and when a goal is too easy they won't feel motivated enough to achieve it. The Goldilocks strategy states that to accomplish a goal, a person must ensure the task is just right for them. When a goal is perfectly balanced, it is always far easier to achieve.

Revisit Your Purpose

When an individual has a strong, emotional reason to accomplish something, they will do whatever it takes to reach their desired outcome. As such, when a professional feels procrastination taking hold they should make a conscious effort to revisit their purpose and the driving forces behind setting the goal in the first place.

Build A Ritual

No matter what may be happening around them, successful people always manage to stay on track towards their goals. This is due to them creating rituals and forming positive habits that allow them to focus even when they may not feel like it.

The easiest way to develop a routine is to link tasks and actions together. For example, an individual could decide to work on learning a new skill every day after their morning coffee. Over time, the person will automatically associate this positive new action with their morning coffee and feel a greater drive to perform it.

Located in Cardiff, GB Marketing Enterprises is an outsourced sales and event marketing firm. The firm provides clients with cost-effective and innovative marketing solutions, which allow them to expand business activities into new target markets, boosting sales revenues.

With big plans to expand their services across the UK and internationally in the next couple of years, GB Marketing Enterprise has committed to making 2017 their most successful year to date. As such the firm will be implementing the above strategies across their organisation to boost their chances of achieving these expansion goals.

The hotly anticipated all-new Vito Taxi officially launches in London today, priced from £168 a week with nil deposit*.

Offering unrivalled levels of space and refined comfort for the driver and up to six passengers, as well as being fully-wheelchair accessible, the new Mercedes-Benz Vito Taxi sets the benchmark for London’s black cabs, and is now available to hail in the capital.

Tested by real ‘cabbies’ at VanExperience Live in June 2016, and most recently as part of the marketing campaign around the city, the London edition of the new Vito Taxi uses the low-emission 114CDI Euro 6 engine, offering 136 hp.

In conjunction, the fuel-efficient 7G-TRONIC PLUS seven-speed automatic gearbox also comes as standard. Controlled via a steering column-mounted lever, this transmission reduces driver fatigue by offering easy gear selection and smooth gear changes, enabling the driver to remain aware of their busy surroundings.

The London-specific model comes with a Compact body length and incorporates a rear steering axle that allows it to meet the famous 25ft turning circle rule as prescribed by the Public Carriage Office so it can execute a U-turn in London’s congested streets.

Standard equipment also includes fuel-saving BlueEFFICIENCY measures like the engine Start/Stop function, air conditioning for the driver and passengers, electric folding mirrors, electrically operated sliding doors on both sides and an electrical nearside and off-side step.

The new Vito Taxi comes with a three-year, unlimited mileage manufacturer’s warranty and MobiloVan back-up, which includes free, round-the-clock emergency roadside assistance.

Steve Bridge, Managing Director, Mercedes-Benz Vans UK, commented: “We know that the London taxi fraternity has been waiting in anticipation for us to bring the new Vito Taxi to market – our previous cab took the industry by storm and has sold in excess of 3,000 units since its launch in 2008.

“After a significant period of testing, I’m delighted to be announcing the start of sales today – I know there has been a bit of a waiting period while we put the new Taxi through its paces and I thank London’s cabbies for their patience.

“The new Vito Taxi is quite simply a game-changer in every sense of the word and I’m very proud that our black cab helps to keep businesses moving – both the businesses of the taxi drivers, and the businesses of their clients. I look forward to hearing the feedback of how it is improving the fuel-economy and comfort for our hard-working professional drivers.”

The new Vito Taxi London is supplied exclusively via Mercedes-Benz Dealer S & B Commercials at Welham Green, Hertfordshire. Visit www.mbvitotaxi.co.uk for more information.

Ends

Abject Galley is pleased to announce a four-day, in-gallery residency and month long exhibition of Icelandic street artists, Örn Tönsberg and Margeir Sigurdsson.

For their first UK show Tönsberg and Sigurdsson will create a collaborative artwork, which explores Ideological realism, an artistic movement in 19th century Russia, which was based largely on the theory that literature and art should attribute a social and moral responsibility. Formed by a group of young artists who rejected the institution, frustrated by its elitism and conservative separation between high and low art. In an effort to bring art to the people, the students formed an independent artistic society, The Petersburg Cooperative of Artists (Artel). In 1870, this organisation was largely succeeded by the Association of Travelling Art Exhibits (Peredvizhniki) to give people from the provinces a chance to follow the achievements of Russian Art, and to teach people to appreciate art. In a similar fashion a united rise took place among the literary world - ideological realism tried to deliver an ideological message to the reader, in addition to staying close to reality. Ideological realism is evident even in Dickens’ challenge of institutional and often polemic attitudes towards outsiders and those often considered ‘lower’ in society.

Margeir Sigurdsson was born in Akureyri, a small town in the North of Iceland, after studying in Barcelona he settled Reykjavik to continue his practice, fusing Fine Art and Street Art. Dire claims to be the founder of ‘Absorbism’, a way of painting that does not exclude any way of expression, but gathers them in one whole. Dire has exhibited extensively across Iceland as well as Spain, Finland and New York. Örn Tönsberg studied Literature at Háskól Íslands, Reykjavik and has been a prominent figure in the Icelandic art scene for more than a decade. His works, both animated and vibrant, illuminate the streets of Reykjavík. Tönsberg preferring to compare his work to high art although the graffiti is definitely always in the background, as he states, it is his voice and tool. Tönsberg is not limited to graffiti but enjoys the great exposure it attains.

During the four days each artist will be working opposed to one another, creating works separately on opposite sides of the gallery and then, as if colliding into one another will meet ‘in the middle’ creating a collaborative piece, an exploration into Ideological Realism. As we learn more about how life works, the line between realism and abstraction becomes blurred.

The gallery will be open to come and see the work being made from the 26th until the 27th of January. There will be a preview on the 28th of January of the completed works, 7pm-10pm. The exhibition will be open from 1st February until 25th February.

More information is available at www.abject.gallery

Örn Tönsberg and Margeir Sigurdsson: Flow Preview: Saturday, 28th January 2017, 7:00pm – 10:00pm Exhibition: 1st February – 25th February 2017 Opening Times: Wed – Sat, 12:00pm – 5:00pm Location: Abject Gallery, 8th Floor, Bamburgh House, Market Street East, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 6BH

- ENDS -

Information for editors

For media enquiries contact Zoe Anderson on 07533 195512 or email info@breezecreatives.com.

Press image available at: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/hrvrytceh7p729f/AADdDIKsuY4CNTm-t2D9bknza?dl=0

Additional images can be emailed upon request.

Sales and marketing firm, MJ Experia Marketing recently expanded into a new location to appease their growing needs. Here, the firm reviews details of their expansion and how their new office space will benefit them in the New Year.

Having seen a number of new starts rise through their firm, MJ Experia Marketing outgrew their last office space which led to the firm relocating into a larger location, still within the Birmingham area where they are known as the go-to sales and marketing agency. MJ Experia Marketing can now be found on Floor 2 – The Mansion, 27 Frederick Street, Birmingham, B1 3HH.

About MJ Experia Marketing: http://www.experiamarketing.co.uk/about/

MJ Experia Marketing is confident that moving has given the firm much more space for daily activities as well as room to continue with their growth. The firm highlights how with an expanded office space they will be able to attract more talent and encourage further growth. Additionally, MJ Experia Marketing believes that knowing the firm is growing at such a fast pace that they needed a new office space helps to enable an extremely positive mind-set for their contractors.

MJ Experia Marketing is sure that this positive mind-set and new office space will benefit them massively in the New Year. The firm has a number of goals in place for 2017 and feels that this relocation will enable them to achieve many of these targets, including plans to attract new top talent to the firm which will see their numbers grow rapidly. Additionally, the firm is aiming to expand into new locations throughout the UK and believes that having already relocated this will show the firm that change can be an incredibly positive step forwards.

MJ Experia Marketing is an outsourced sales and marketing firm based in Birmingham. The firm specialises in a personalised form of marketing which allows them to connect with consumers on a face-to-face basis. This one-to-one interaction helps the firm to drive long-lasting and personal business relationships between brand and consumer. In turn, this often leads to increased customer acquisition, brand awareness and brand loyalty for their clients.

MJ Experia Marketing offers unique business development opportunities for hard working and ambitious individuals with the drive and motivation to pursue a career in sales and entrepreneurship. The firm helps their contractors to develop skills in areas such as sales, leadership, marketing, management, public speaking, financing and more. MJ Experia Marketing invites potential applicants to send their details to info@experiamarketing.co.uk

“The UK would shudder to a halt if all the grandparents who look after their grandchildren simultaneously downed tools”, so says Annie Harrison, founder of GoMunkee. “Over 14 million people in this country are lifesavers for their own children, taking either an active or essential role in the care or raising of their grandchildren. From pre-schoolers, through to teens and beyond, these grandparents keep the wheels on the family bus going round and round, enabling their own grown children to work and play. And grandparents are taking the tablets (as well as iPads, laptops, smart phones and PCs) to help manage busy lives, connecting to everything and loving it (mostly)”.

As a web app which helps parents and grandparents find things for their children to see and do, GoMunkee undertook a qualitative survey of grandparents (aged 55-83 and 91% female) each of whom is actively involved in the care/raising of their grandchildren, to find out the good and bad aspects of digital family life.

Soundbites and observations from GoMunkee’s chats with tech-savvy grandparents:

GoMunkee interviewed 100 grandparents from Folkestone, Ashford and Canterbury in Kent between 2 November 2016 and 31 December 2016. The research is unscientific and was informally conducted, simply to obtain a snapshot of digital perspectives amongst grandparents involved in childcare. All participants were given a free copy of The GoMunkee Weekly Planner 2017, available from Amazon at £7.50. These discussions were not endorsed or sponsored by any digital organisations mentioned in the press release. www.gomunkee.com

- e n d s -

GoMunkee is a mobile first, web app available across all digital devices. It acts as a digital signpost, aimed at parents, grandparents and adults with responsibility for children. GoMunkee points to practically everything there is for children of all ages (0-16) to see and do (including free things), locally, regionally and nationally. It’s free, fast and comprehensive. Centred around location, it searches, suggests and inspires, saving busy parents/grandparents’ precious time. Everything can be sourced and filtered from one online location. GoMunkee is content-rich and fully integrated with social media platforms. Families can register the month and year of their child’s birth, and GoMunkee grows up with the child, always imparting age-appropriate, personalised information on things to see and do. Importantly, its existence provides adults with an antidote to kids’ screen-gazing Wi-Fi dependency – it gets them out.

GoMunkee also links event and activity organisers directly to their target audiences. Audiences come to them, rather than the other way around and it’s free to list.

GoMunkee is currently in development and will be launched mid-2017. The GoMunkee Weekly Planner 2017 is currently available from Amazon, priced £7.50.

Southampton-based sales and marketing firm, Phoenix Event Marketing, reveal their 10 top tips on how to become unstoppable at their recent workshop.

Phoenix Event Marketing knows that entrepreneurship can be an arduous journey; the firm state that learning to become invincible can play a huge role in an individual’s ability to achieve success. Unstoppable people don’t compete with anyone else but themselves and won’t stop until their achieve their ultimate goals.

About Phoenix Event Marketing: http://www.phoenixeventmarketing.co.uk/about-us/

This week, Phoenix Event Marketing hosted a workshop sharing 10 top tips on how to become unstoppable. Here, the firm shares them:

Always be prepared so you can act on instinct - practice and perfect your skills and talents so that you can adapt to any opportunity that may present itself.

Never be satisfied - for unstoppable people, it’s not achieving the goal that drives them forward, it’s about the climb to see how far they can push themselves.

Always be in control - it is important to act on instinct and not impulse. Do things because you want to and not because you have to.

Never take the pressure off - unstoppable people never take the pressure off and instead, they continually turn up the pressure to keep alert and active.

Don’t be afraid of failure - never be scared to make mistakes because they can easily be transformed into an opportunity to learn.

Never stop learning - to become the best, it is important never to stop learning and improving on skills and knowledge.

Let your work speak for itself - work hard enough so that your achievements speak for themselves.

Be confident - confidence will give a person the mental strength needed to achieve great things and not to be scared of challenges along the way.

Have clear goals -goals are important to focus behaviour and give actions meaning.

Start before you are ready - most people wait until they feel ‘secure’ - whether regarding money, time, credentials. Unstoppable people start despite this.

These 10 top tips on how to become unstoppable were shared with the firm’s sales contractors at the recent office workshop. The company regularly host workshops and seminars to help with the professional and personal development of the company's contractors.

Phoenix Event Marketing is an outsourced sales and marketing firm based in Southampton. As a company, they specialise in engaging with their clients’ consumers on a face-to-face basis; this in-person approach helps to foster long-lasting customer relationships and raises brand awareness, which increases customer acquisition, and brand loyalty and generates a higher ROI for their clients.

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Source: http://www.success.com/blog/do-these-30-things-if-you-want-to-be-unstoppable

Young UK
women lack financial confidence

· Crisis of confidence in banking,
borrowing and insurance knowledge.

· Gender pay gap starts
at age 8.

· 10% confidence gap with
young men closed after expert-led money lessons.

· Charity calls for
sustainable funding of effective financial education for young people.

48% of 11-18 year old UK women are not financially confident, a
study has revealed.

The charity, MyBnk,
crunched the data on over 1,200 students taking part in their financial
education workshops in 2016 - covering everyday personal finance issues
such as budgeting, saving, pensions, tax and public finance.

Girls were also 10% less confident in money matters than boys,
leaving them potentially less prepared to deal with other inequalities later in
life like pay, debt, unemployment and social mobility.

They lagged behind boys in their confidence of borrowing by 23%,
banking by 20% and insurance by 14%. They were also 16% less confident their
ability to make an informed financial decision.

However, young women showed the most improvement after expert-led
money lessons, closing the confidence gap - bringing them level with young men.

Financial inequality starts young

The gender pay gap starts at age 8 with boys
receiving 13% extra
weekly pocket money than girls. A gap that grows to 18% in adulthood.

Just 36% of
girls in the UK receive any form of financial education at school compared to
45% of boys.

Nearly two thirds of
Brits struggling with debt are women and the same amount make up the number of
insolvencies. Young British women are also the most bankrupt prone part
of society.

Addressing the gap early

Money lessons form a limited part of the national curriculum and
academies, sixth forms and free schools do not have to teach it at all.
Just 26% of
teachers taught money lessons last year and of that one in five do
not feel confident in doing so.

MyBnk helps address the inequality gap early, delivering
workshops to hundreds of thousands of 11-25 year olds in 750 schools and youth
organisations - backed by funders such as Prudential plc, the Asfari Foundation and players of
the People's Postcode Lottery.

Post-session, students see a 40% increase in understanding credit,
interest rates and inflation, an 18% rise in positive attitudes towards money,
and a 25% jump in skills.Its financial capability programmes for young people are proven and evaluated by The Money Advice Service.

Quote:

“When it comes to a basic life skill, money management, we have
identified a worrying early indicator of divergence in the life chances of
young women compared to young men. Yet this study also reveals the huge
potential of young women when they are engaged
with money and are motivated to act which also affects attitudes and
behaviours.

Prevention is always cheaper than the cure and we are calling on
education departments, financial services and corporates to back what
works in our classrooms to help dodge debt and level the
playing field for young people. Funding is tight and it is becoming
harder to deliver frontline projects like ours which help narrow the inequality
gap.” Guy Rigden, CEO MyBnk.

Methodology:

1,200 young people were asked 14 questions, answering on a scale
of 1-4. 1 being ‘Definitely No’ and 4 ‘Definitely Yes’ before and after our
sessions.

Examples:

• I can use a budget to help me make effective use of my money.

• I feel confident managing my money.

• I can identify the risks of financial decisions.

• I know how pensions work.

• I know how to prioritise my wants and needs.

About MyBnk:

MyBnk is the UK’s leading designer and deliverer of financial
and enterprise education programmes for young people. Its experts bring a range
of workshops covering topics such as saving, tax, budgeting and university
finance to 11-25 year olds in schools and youth organisations.

Programmes are created by its in-house team and young people.
Education Officers are rigorously trained and are assessed by young people and
teachers and youth workers after every session.

For more information or to attend a MyBnk session, please
contact declan@mybnk.org or call 0207 377
8770.

Making Music awards prestigious music prize to Sir Karl Jenkins

Making Music has awarded the prestigious Sir Charles Groves Prize to Sir Karl Jenkins. One of the most performed living composers in the world, Sir Karl’s prolific career spans the music worlds of classic, jazz, advertising and film. In 2015 he was confirmed as the most popular living composer in Classic FM’s 'Ultimate Hall of Fame'.

The Board of Making Music was unanimous and enthusiastic in selecting Sir Karl Jenkins for this award, given the accessibility and enormous popularity of his works with amateur choirs in particular up and down the country, introducing new generations of amateur performers and their audiences to ground-breaking work from a living composer.

“It is with great pride that I accept the prestigious Sir Charles Groves Prize for 2016. In these difficult times for music subsidy, and governmental indifference, Making Music does a huge amount of work in supporting and promoting this aspect of the nation’s cultural life. I feel honoured to have been asked.”

- Sir Karl Jenkins, CBE D.Mus FRAM LRAM

“Making Music is delighted to be recognising Sir Karl Jenkins fantastic contribution to music with our prestigious Sir Charles Groves Prize. Many of our music groups find not only that his music speaks to them, but that it is accessible and allows them to engage with new music and issues in today’s society. Sir Karl’s music transcends traditional genre classifications and brings communities together, which is very much in the spirit of what our members do, week in, week out, across the UK.”

- Barbara Eifler, Making Music Executive Director

The Sir Charles Groves Prize is awarded bi-annually by Making Music to an individual or organisation that has made an outstanding contribution to the cultural life of the UK, with past recipients including Sir Colin Davies, Gareth Malone and the Glastonbury Festival of Performing Arts. The award was established in 1990 in honour of the lauded English conductor Sir Charles Groves who, along with his wife Lady Hilary Groves, gave exceptional support to Making Music during his lifetime.

---Ends---

For more information contact George Acock, PR and Publications Manager at george@makingmusic.org.uk, 020 7939 6041

Making Music, 8 Holyrood Street, London SE1 2EL.

0207 939 6030

info@makingmusic.org.uk

www.makingmusic.org.uk

Making Music, The National Federation of Music Societies A company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales no. 308632 Registered Charity in England and Wales no. 249219 and in Scotland no. SC038849

Notes to editors:

Since 1935, Making Music has been the membership organisation for voluntary music in the UK, bringing together musicians and music groups of all genres and abilities.

We support, connect and champion everyone who makes, performs and presents music on a voluntary basis. The services we provide allow our members – ranging from symphony orchestras to samba bands – to cross the boring things off their ‘to-do’ lists and get on with making music.

As the voice of voluntary music among policy makers and stakeholders at a national and regional level, we aim to transform lives and enrich communities across the UK through music making.

www.makingmusic.org.uk

Sir Karl Jenkins is one of the most performed living composers in the world. The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace alone has been performed over 1800 times in 20 different countries since the CD was released while his recorded output has resulted in 17 gold and platinum disc awards.

His style and integrity has transcended musical boundaries encompassing jazz-rock with Soft Machine, the global ‘crossover’ phenomenon Adiemus, soundtracks for Levis and British Airways, while stopping off along the way to score a Kiefer Sutherland movie, be a castaway on BBC Desert Island Discs, be featured by Melvyn Bragg on the ITV seminal South Bank Show and be awarded the Freedom of the City of London. Recordings on Warner Classics include Requiem, Stabat Mater, Quirk, Stella Natalis and The Peacemakers and on Deutsche Grammophon Adiemus Colores and Motets. He has composed music for HRH The Prince of Wales, Bryn Terfel, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Dame Evelyn Glennie and the London Symphony Orchestra amongst many others.

A Doctor of Music, he holds Fellowships, Honorary Doctorates and Professorships at five universities or conservatoires, including the Royal Academy of Music, where a room has been named in his honour. In November 2009 he was given the Cymru For the World Award and in March 2010 was honoured with the Hopkins Medal given by the St. David’s Society for the State of New York.

In 2015 he was confirmed as the most popular living composer in Classic FM’s 'Ultimate Hall of Fame' and holds the Classic FM ‘Red f ‘award for ‘outstanding service to classical music’. He was awarded a Knighthood in the 2015 Queen's Birthday Honours for "services to composing and crossing musical genres" and his autobiography Still with the Music was published by Elliott & Thompson. His music is published exclusively by Boosey & Hawkes.