Latest news with #Bromsgrove
BBC News
28-05-2025
- General
- BBC News
Bromsgrove man's daily 5K runs to help construction workers talk
A Bromsgrove man has been running 5km every day in May to raise awareness of mental health issues in the construction Baker is raising funds for the Project 7,000 - The Lost City campaign, which is raising awareness of the high rate of suicide in the construction project's name is based on the premise that the 7,000 construction workers who have taken their own lives over the past decade could have built a Baker said he had struggled with mental health issues and addiction, particularly during the pandemic, but working in construction had saved him, and he wanted to send a message to other men that it's "OK to talk". 'It can get easier' Four weeks into the challenge, Mr Baker said his legs were "a little bit sore".He said: "I've struggled massively with my own poor mental health, specifically through Covid. I struggled with addiction."He said working in the building industry helped him to recover, adding: "I wasn't actually in construction at the time, and I believe construction has actually saved me and had the opposite effect."Mr Baker said it was important to break down the stigma about talking, adding: "It's okay to talk and do you know what – when you do talk about your problems and you open up, it can get easier for you." Mr Baker said there was support available for people, including The Band of Builders, the national construction charity, which offers a 24/7 support helpline via text. He said Construction Sport , a charity set up to offer sporting opportunities across the industry, also ran events to help organisation creates opportunities for construction workers to have downtime from tools, laptops and stress, and address their mental Baker said he had received a huge amount of support for his challenge, with people sending messages of encouragement and "talking and opening up about the way that they potentially felt".The runner has raised nearly £1,600 and is aiming to get to £2,000 before the end of the month. If you have been affected by this story or would like support then you can find organisations which offer help and information at the BBC Action Line. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
23-05-2025
- General
- BBC News
Worcestershire daughter, mother and grandmother achieve gold DofE
Three Worcestershire women from the same family have achieved the same top award - decades Megahey, 21, of Bromsgrove, is the latest member of her family to take home the prestigious gold Duke of Edinburgh's award, which she completed through has followed in the footsteps of mother Hazel Megahey, 54, also from Bromsgrove, who completed it in 1990, and 85-year-old grandmother Gillian Watson, from Wythall, who received it in three attended a celebration at Buckingham Palace and met the Duke of Edinburgh, who said their three-generation achievement was "quite impressive". 'Something with a purpose' After the event, Megan said she was "super proud" and even prouder all three of them had completed the award through Girlguiding. She joined the movement as a Rainbow, aged said: "To have mum and nan both do it as well – we've all done bronze, silver and gold, so it's a massive achievement as a family, for us."Her mother said it had been an "absolute honour" to meet Prince Edward, and for him to take the time to hear the family's Watson, who took part after the award was extended to girls in 1958, said she was "so proud" they had followed in her footsteps. Mrs Watson was in the first group of girls to take part, under a pilot project, and remembered how there were "just six of us in the country who went to the palace".Remembering how there wasn't much for girls to do in the 1950s, Mrs Watson said: "I wasn't interested in messing around and wanted to do something with a purpose."She described how the award had changed over the years, and she had chosen between doing an expedition or a worthwhile project, which she carried out by helping disabled this day, Girlguiding was giving girls "a chance to be girls and to be their own people", she three are still part of Girlguiding Birmingham – Mrs Watson is involved at a county level and her daughter and granddaughter lead Kings Norton-based 188th Birmingham Brownies. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Gymshark tycoon issues X fake ads alert and blasts 'misinformation'
Midland Gymshark tycoon Ben Francis has warned his X followers over fake ads using his image. The gymwear company founder said his picture was used on the social media site to illustrate articles falsely claiming to have been produced by the BBC. Dragon's Den judge Steven Bartlett has also been the subject of similar bogus ads on X, which was formerly Twitter and is owned by the world's richest man, Elon Musk. READ MORE: Man buys £4million National Lottery winning ticket from Londis but sees none of cash READ MORE: UK faces 550-mile wall of rain but nine counties in England will be spared READ MORE: I tried new restaurant and they're 'really showing off' with £5 dish Francis, who is from Bromsgrove, co-founded Gymshark as a student at Aston University. His fortune was estimated at £725 million in last year's Sunday Times Rich List 40 Under 40. He posted on X: "There are some fake ads on this platform using my image for supposed BBC articles. As I say, these are fake and if you click on them, it takes you somewhere completely different. The more people that report these ads, the more likely X is to take down this misinformation." Bartlett responded to the fake ads featuring his likeness on X earlier this month, urging people to take steps to protect themselves against "scams". He posted: "Over recent months I've had thousands of messages flagging AI videos and paid ads that use my image on every social platform. "The crazy part is that these aren't normal posts - they are promoted adverts that are being boosted using Facebook, X or YouTube's advertising tools - this means someone somewhere is paying Meta and X to target people with scams, and Meta and X are collecting that money. "I've received so many (too many) messages from people who have lost money because of these scams - some of which are absolutely heartbreaking - and the horrible truth is that the people most at risk are some of the most vulnerable in society. " If the platforms can tag my face in a photo, automatically, it can spot it in a scam advert. If it can name a song in one second, it can spot an AI voice clone in a video." X tells advertisers: "Advertisers on X are responsible for their X ads. This means following all applicable laws and regulations, creating honest ads, and advertising safely and respectfully. This article describes our advertising policies. Our policies require you to follow the law, but they are not legal advice."
BBC News
15-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Worcestershire parents demand more from SEND provisions
Parents and campaigners have visited Parliament to call for improvements to be made to special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) services in Winchester, a mother of two children with learning difficulties from Bromsgrove and chair of the North Worcestershire Parents with Autism Group, said a different approach needed to be applied to ensure a better outcome for children."SEND provisions have got way worse since failing inspections back in 2018 and nothing changes, we only get changes of faces at Worcestershire County Council," she BBC has approached the county council for comment. Ms Winchester said: "Children are out of school, and people aren't getting their children's needs met, and there's going to be a lost generation."Five of the county's six MPs met with parents and campaigners on Bloore, MP for Redditch, said he sympathised with those who came down to demand more for children across the county. "Today shows you the importance that all MPs in the county show towards this matter, we're recognising the institutional and strategic failures that we have in SEND provision in Worcestershire."Let's remind ourselves that parents shouldn't have to be traveling down to London to get the attention of MPs, to get the attention of Worcestershire County Council, to improve the reports and the quality of provision," Mr Bloore Collins, the MP for Worcester, said parents had brutally described the issues they faced."I think the biggest issue is a lack of trust, that trust has been lost in the system, and people don't feel that their children are being cared for the way they need to be." Parent Susan Tracey said she left the meeting feeling heard and somewhat optimistic."I felt they all listened to us so whatever the outcome will be we will have to wait and see," Ms Tracey Style, whose 21-year-old daughter has relied on SEND services since she was three, said she had not received the full support needed."She is behind functioning by 13 years so she can't independently read and write, which has a massive impact. "How can she move into adult life without those basic skills?"We are taking our children out of education, not because we want to but we're doing it because we are keeping trying to keep our children alive," Ms Style said. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
13-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Shropshire care home firm 'dismay' over planned visa changes
A crackdown on visas for lower-skilled workers has caused "dismay" and "major frustration" for one care home Woosnam, the human resources director for Shropshire's Coverage Care Services, said: "Without this pool of migrant workers I can't see how we are going to be able to maintain our workforce to the levels that we require."And Joyce Pinfield from Bromsgrove, vice chair of the National Care Association, described the move as "yet another blow to the care sector".The government said it would be requiring firms to hire British nationals or extend visas of overseas workers already in the country. Ms Woosnam said her reaction to the news was "dismay, major frustration".She said the industry cared for "the most vulnerable people in our communities and we need skilled people to do this". But she believed the change in the rules would mean "the tools are being removed to enable us to do this properly". Her company employs staff from India, Africa and the Philippines who she said played "a vital part in replacing those hard-to-recruit positions, particularly night-workers".In the past the industry had difficulties attracting British people, she said, and these problems had not gone away. "We had a reduction in the number of young people wanting to come and have a career in care and we had an ageing workforce," she said. Ms Pinfield said: "We just seem to fail to get (British) people in."She said paying more was "very difficult". "Unfortunately, if you are reliant on the fees paid by local authorities, it is very difficult to pay more," she explained. 'Back to drawing board' The government plans are part of a wider push to reduce the amount of immigration into the Secretary Yvette Cooper said the government expects these changes will "lead to a reduction of up to 50,000 fewer lower-skilled visas over the course of the next year".Ms Woosnam said: "It feels like we have to go back to the drawing board and re-look at our strategies but with really little to do that with."She added part of her dismay was because her company had helped overseas workers settle in Shropshire and that work was now in Pinfield said the industry had been "So pleased when we were allowed to bring in care workers from overseas".But she said a lack of clarity meant many firms had "brought people in from abroad that didn't really have the jobs ready for them".She believed this had partly led to the government crackdown. Follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
