The Usher Gallery Trust is calling all Lincolnshire-based artists to submit their work for ‘Art of the Now’, an open exhibition launching in July 2025 at the Usher Gallery.
Age and experience are no barrier to entry as the Open exhibition looks to celebrate the wide variety of Lincolnshire’s art scene.
Laura Garner, exhibitions and interpretations assistant at the Usher Gallery, said: “We’re really excited to open up the Usher to showcase some of the best work from our amazing local artists.
“Our judging panel will be on the look out for originality, creativity, quality and skill, and on top of the fantastic opportunity to display your art in the Usher, there’ll be five cash prizes up for grabs too!
“We’re always blown away by how talented the county’s artists are, and we can’t wait to see all your fantastic submissions.”
The judging panel will consider all work from Lincolnshire-based artists that has been completed in the last 3 years in any of the following mediums: painting, video, photography, textiles, and sculpture.
Submissions are open until 7 April, and it is free to enter your work.
Image credit: Lincolnshire County Council Round-Britain walker returns home after two years on the road
A Lincolnshire man who has spent two years walking the entire coast of mainland Britain in his quest to raise £100,000 for charity has marked journey’s end with an open letter of thanks to a boy he met in a Welsh village a year ago.
Freemason Chris Jones, who lives near Woodhall Spa, said: “It was November last year when this young man in his Minecraft top ran after me in the street in a village near Conwy to give me a pound coin. I wanted him to know how grateful I was for his donation. I felt he deserved to know that he had helped me towards my fundraising target of £100,000 to support the charity that saved my life when I was contemplating suicide, and can do the same thing for others every day, thanks to the generosity of people like him.
“It was a rainy horrible morning, and as I crossed the street this young chap was running up behind me. When I looked around to work out why he was alone in the street in his PJ’s, there was a group of faces in the upstairs window of a house waving at us. His mum, and I guess his siblings… That really moved me; I was so far from home and this little fella had obviously seen me walking up the road from his window… Incredible, people… especially young people…
“His donation was one of seven pound coins given to me by children on my travels, all of which have been given to the Freemasons’ charity the MCF. The charity put me in touch with a counselling service when I was at my lowest ebb, and thanks to them I’m here today.
“I walked the entire coastline of Britain to raise awareness of mental health issues and to raise money. I didn’t know at the outset what target to set, so I decided to shoot for the moon and aim for £100,000.
“I’ll be home for Christmas, by which time I shall have raised a significant proportion of that, and I hope to be able to get the remainder by writing a book about my journey ‘On The Edge’. I called it that because I was ‘on the edge’ of suicide, and on the edge of the country, navigating by keeping the sound of the sea in my right ear.”
Chris started his walk in Skegness on New Year’s Day 2023, since when he’s has walked almost 6,300 miles, worn out six pairs of boots, carried a 35kg pack throughout his journey, slept indoors in beds when they were offered, and wild camped when they weren’t. The ceremonial ‘end’ of the walk will be marked with a return to Skegness Masonic Hall on December 14th.
He said the conversations he’d had on his travels had highlighted the extent of the struggles so many people were having with their mental health. “If you’re struggling, you first step must be to ask for help,” he said. “There’s no shame in that, and it will turn your life around, just as it has mine.”
Boston Freemasons boost five good causes with cash donations
Freemasons of Boston-based Lodge of Harmony have shared £1,300 between five good causes in the area.
The Thistles Charity at Sutterton was given £500, and gifts of £200 each were made to Boston Choral Society, Kirton Brass Band, South Lincs Guides Association, and Boston Stump Food Bank.
The £800 making up the four £200 donations came from the Lodge’s 100+ Club. The £500 donation was one of more than 70 made by the Freemasons’ Province of Lincolnshire, which invites all of its Lodges to pick the good cause of their choice to receive it.
The picture shows charity representatives recipients with Lodge Master Geoff Bell, Charity Steward Phillip Featherstone, and 100+ Club organiser Alan ‘Tiny’ Clifton.
Play park re-opens in Grantham with more than £100,000 of improvements
Children now have more options for outdoor fun following the re-opening of a play area with more than £100,000 of improvements.
New apparatus, with safe flooring and inclusive features, has been unveiled at Beeden Park Play Area in Grantham, welcoming all children, including those with limited mobility or sensory requirements.
The money has come from the FCC Communities Foundation, with an additional £21,570 investment by South Kesteven District Council, with £5,000 from the Rotary Club of Grantham.
The park serves the Beechcroft Road area of the town, where more than 30 new play features have been added. Highlights include a multi-use games area, a rota web climber, an inclusive roundabout, junior and toddler multi play units, sensory boards and fitness equipment for all ages.
The new equipment, installed by Wicksteed, is designed with accessibility and inclusivity in mind, providing both sensory experiences and space to accommodate wheelchairs.
Cabinet Member for Culture and Leisure Cllr Paul Stokes, who is also the Deputy Leader of the Council, said: “We were all thrilled to take part in the grand opening of the new and improved Beeden Park, which now offers fantastic, up-to-date, safe and modern equipment for all.
“Green spaces and play areas are crucially important for our community and make a huge difference to the wellbeing of those living in the area.
“We are delighted that the FCC Communities Foundation agreed to award us the money to improve the facilities here. I also need to thank Cllr Steven Cunnington for his drive and design input on the project.
“Together, we’ve created a vibrant and inclusive space for youngsters of all ages and abilities. There is also a range of outdoor gym equipment, which means this investment has provided something for everyone. It’s a space that works for the whole community.”
The equipment is designed to accommodate children aged two and above, and includes a covered social area for teenagers.
FCC Communities Foundation is a not-for-profit business that awards grants for community projects through the Landfill Communities Fund.
FCC Communities Foundation Grant Manager Penny Horne says: “It’s wonderful to see something we have funded finally open and ready to make such a difference to young people and families across Grantham. FCC Communities Foundation is always happy to consider grant applications for projects that benefit local communities and this is a great example of what can be achieved.”
Image credit: South Kesteven District Council
Free face-to-face clinics for families affected by dementia in Lincoln
Nationwide and Dementia UK are bringing free face-to-face specialist dementia care to Lincoln.
The clinics will be hosted by Dementia UK’s Admiral Nurses in Nationwide’s Lincoln branch, offering life-changing support to families and individuals living with dementia in the area.
Support includes practical and emotional advice on all aspects of dementia – from worries about memory problems and understanding a diagnosis and how the condition can progress to help with financial and legal issues. Appointments can be booked via Dementia UK’s website here.
Nationwide branches offer a safe, comfortable and private space for families to discuss any aspect of dementia, which aims to help 100,000 people affected by dementia.
As part of the partnership, Nationwide will host 200 pop-up clinics in branches around the UK, and fund 30 dementia specialist Admiral Nurse posts through Dementia UK.
The clinics form part of Nationwide’s new social impact programme, Fairer Futures, which addresses three of the UK’s biggest social issues through charity partnerships – dementia (Dementia UK), youth homelessness (Centrepoint) and family poverty (Action for Children).
Latest research from Nationwide found that:
- One of the main asks of banks and building societies by dementia carers was for a dementia-friendly environment in branches (48%).
- Over four in ten (43%) wanted help to better understand care costs and options.
- Nearly six in ten (59%) of those caring for someone with dementia were concerned about the impact the disease would have on their finances.
- 50% of dementia carers are worried by the cost of residential care, with older people (55+) being the most concerned about this. 49% are worried about other costs, such as costs at home.
County Council says it’s being short-changed by Government’s funding formula
Lincolnshire County Council believes it’s being short-changed by more than £100m a year due to the Government’s funding formula, and is extremely concerned at the additional financial pressure caused by the removal of the £9m Rural Services Grant.
This reduction in funding is in addition to rising costs associated with increased demand in adult social care, children’s services and home-to-school-transport.
And the recent increase in national insurance contributions is expected to raise costs by up to a further £15m, with the rise in the national living wage costing at least an additional £5m.
Council Leader Martin Hill said: “While some additional money has been promised, there is also very significant cause for concern that it will not be enough to cover these huge extra costs.
“We are particularly disappointed to see that the Rural Services Delivery Grant has been scrapped. This was introduced in recognition of the additional challenges rural authorities face in delivering services, and its removal seems like a backward step.
“Instead, the government has said it will focus on ‘deprivation’ in reforming the funding system. There is currently no clarity as to what this means, and we have a real fear that money will be taken from rural communities and given to urban areas – making our unfair deal even worse.
“We need assurances from Government that we will be compensated for these additional costs in this year’s settlement. At present all that appears certain is the Government’s expectation of a five per cent increase in council tax.”
£15m Community Diagnostic Centre opens to Skegness patients
The first patients have been welcomed to the new £15 million Skegness Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC).
The facility on Old Wainfleet Road opened last week, bringing a number of NHS diagnostic services to the town for the first time, including state-of-the art CT and MRI scanners, echocardiograms and dental X-ray.
Community diagnostic centres offer a range of elective (planned) diagnostic services, away from main hospital sites, providing easier and quicker access to tests, potentially closer to patients’ homes. Each centre in Lincolnshire is being designed to consider the specific health needs of the local community.
Other services available at Skegness CDC include non-obstetric ultrasound and a range of physiological testing, such as blood tests for adults and children over the age of five, standard ECGs and 24-hour blood pressure testing.
Blood testing for chemotherapy patients will also be available, in the first step to develop a chemotherapy service from the site.
Bernard North, from Sutton on Sea, was one of the first patients to use the new CDC in Skegness, attending for a CT scan.
He said: “My GP asked me where I wanted to go for my appointment, and initially I asked for Louth. Then I was telephoned and offered the chance to come to Skegness. My wife Rosalyn and I didn’t realise this facility was here and thought it might be a mobile scanner, but this was fantastic.
“I would 100% recommend it. I’ve been looked after so well by the health service.”
Approximately £42 million has been invested in community diagnostic centres in Lincolnshire during 2024, which also includes a £5 million expansion at Grantham in March 2024 and a £23 million new modular-built facility in Lincoln.
Professor Karen Dunderdale, Lincolnshire Community and Hospitals Group Chief Executive, said: “We believe this to be the most significant NHS investment in Skegness in recent years and we are very proud to be delivering new diagnostic services that we know will make a huge difference to the local community.
“The CDC will offer more choice and convenience to help reduce travel for patients, while increasing the number of appointments to help bring down waiting times for diagnostic tests.
“We have already seen great success in the Lincolnshire CDC programme as a whole, with more than 118,000 tests delivered to patients since it began in November 2021 and the creation of approximately 140 clinical and non-clinical job roles.
“This has been made possible thanks to developments like this with better partnership working across NHS services, including with local primary care providers.”
Skegness CDC has been built on land owned by Skegness-based leisure operator Teen Spirit Limited.
Managing Director Scott Sinclair said: “Teen Spirit Limited is delighted to be working in collaboration with the NHS to bring a much-needed facility to local residents of Skegness and those in surrounding areas.
“The opening of Skegness Community Diagnostic Centre will be a quantum leap forward in meeting the health needs of local residents, speeding up access and alleviating the burden of travel to access essential diagnostic services.
“On a personal note, my four-year-old daughter was diagnosed with cancer in December and during treatment in Nottingham we met a family from Skegness who travelled long distances for care. I am sure having more local opportunities to receive diagnostic testing will make such a difference to others in a similar position.”
The dual contract for construction of both Skegness and Lincoln CDCs has been delivered by Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) specialist MTX Contracts Ltd.
MTX Managing Director David Hartley said: “We are privileged to partner the Trust to deliver new community diagnostic facilities that will have such a huge impact on waiting lists and deliver a significant improvement in patient care.
“This contract is one of several won by MTX to build CDCs across the UK. Employing MMC enables MTX to deliver fully compliant high quality facilities for NHS Trusts faster, safer, greener and more cost effectively, compared with conventional building techniques.”
Image credit: United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust
South & East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership sign a Motion for the Ocean
The South & East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership has pledged its commitment to playing its part in keeping the marine environment and our coastal waters clean and healthy.
The Motion for the Ocean is primarily backed by the Local Government Association Coastal Special Interest Group (LGA Coastal SIG) and recognises that ‘our ocean and climate are in a state of emergency.’ Over thirty councils across England have made pledges in support of the Motion since its introduction in 2021.
By supporting the Motion for the Ocean, the Partnership recognises that local government play a vital role in supporting the health and productivity of our oceans, and that the communities the Partnership serves in South Holland, Boston and East Lindsey are on the frontline for managing the crisis the ocean is in.
The LGA Coastal SIG highlights that the oceans are often left out from the climate action plans of many local authorities and aims to raise awareness for this and cause change – partly by attaining the support of local councils.
The South & East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership has made seven pledges, which have been signed by Cllr Craig Leyland, Leader of East Lindsey District Council, Cllr Anne Dorrian, Leader of Boston Borough Council, and Cllr Nick Worth, Leader of South Holland District Council.
In a joint statement, Cllr Craig Leyland, Leader of East Lindsey District Council, Cllr Anne Dorrian, Leader of Boston Borough Council, and Cllr Nick Worth, Leader of South Holland District Council, said: “We are proud to be supporting the Motion for the Ocean, and recognise the importance of keeping our coastal waters healthy for years to come.
“The South & East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership will ensure our pledges are followed up on as part of our ongoing commitment to support the environment and reduce the impact of climate change. We anticipate that our hard work will make a lasting difference for our local landscape and communities.
“With our seven pledges and heightened concern for the prosperity of the ocean, we are confident that the Partnership is taking a positive step forward.”
The pledges include:
- Review within 12 months the actions and projects that have been undertaken to promote ocean recovery in South and East Lincolnshire and understand further opportunities that may exist alongside the resources required to do more.
- Consider the implications for ocean recovery in strategic decisions, plans, procurement and approaches to decisions by the Partnership Councils, primarily in planning/planning policy, regeneration, skills and economic policy, aligning with climate change mitigation and adaptation requirements.
- Ensure that the Local Nature Recovery Strategy for Greater Lincolnshire strives to support ocean recovery both through supporting healthier coastal waters and inland watercourses.
- Work with partner agencies such as Anglian Water, the Environment Agency, Lincolnshire Chalk Streams Project, developers, and others to explore ways to improve the water quality of our rivers and coastal waters benefitting nature and residents alike.
- Work with partners and relevant authorities to promote and support ocean literacy across South and East Lincolnshire, including ensuring all pupils are given the opportunity to experience the ocean first-hand before leaving primary school and promote sustainable and equitable access to the ocean, through physical and digital experiences for all residents.
- Promote marine citizenship through all appropriate means, including through supporting staff to attend awareness raising volunteering events such as beach cleans or habitat creation/management activities to raise awareness and understanding of our problems facing the marine environment through a ‘source to sea’ approach.
- Write to the Government asking them to put the ocean into net recovery by 2030, following expert guidance.
Local community network secures £1m to combat local social, economic, environmental and health challenges
East Marsh Community Research Network has secured just under £1m funding to combat local social, economic, environmental and health challenges in the region.
The money has been awarded through phase two (the implementation phase) of the Community Research Networks programme, which has been funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), and will be delivered by The Young Foundation, a non-profit organisation that specialises in community research and social innovation.
In phase one of the programme (the expression of interest phase), the group received £25k to develop a robust partnership of local organisations, undertake extensive community consultation to ensure the community were receptive to the project and its aims of combatting local challenges, and develop a pilot research project.
Through phase two, the network seeks to empower, train and upskill community members to lead and shape the future of the East Marsh. It will be seeking to influence key stakeholders, decision makers and policymakers to help shape policy, practices, services and behaviours that are central to enhancing life in the community.
Killian Troy-Donovan, Programme Manager at Our Future, said: “We know what is possible when people have space to explore the questions that matter to them, and find solutions that work for the people that will live with them.
“These have often already been developed through years of conversations over breakfast, at the market, in youth clubs, cafes, and pubs. The East Marsh Community Research Network will build on the vast knowledge that exists locally, empowering people who have been exploring these questions for much of their lives.”
Helen Goulden OBE, CEO at The Young Foundation, said: “We know that local communities and citizens understand local needs best, and are fundamental to tackling complex societal issues. Which is why the Community Research Networks programme is so important.
“The insights gained from East Marsh Community Research Network and other local research networks will be vital if we are to work together to tackle some of the persistent and entrenched challenges we face.
“And at a national level, we hope to be actively contributing to a new and evolving infrastructure to support community research across the UK. This is core to The Young Foundation’s strategy, and as delivery partner we are proud to be working alongside UKRI to support this work over the next five years – and beyond.”
The aim of the Community Research Networks programme is to put communities at the heart of research, awarding grants to organisations that are interested in supporting local people across the UK, and working with them to better understand their valuable role in research and innovation. The programme has awarded a total of £8.9m to community networks across the country in this second phase, with an additional £625k awarded in the first phase.
East Marsh Community Research Network includes Foresight North East Lincs , East Marsh United, North East Lincolnshire Council, NSPCC, University of Lincoln, Learning4Life-Gy, Our Future and NEL Health and Care Partnership.
Image credit: Stock.adobe.com/Stockfotos-MG
Scunthorpe mum reunites with life-saving crews after cardiac arrest
A woman who says her “children still have a mum thanks to everyone involved in my care,” has been reunited with the ambulance crews who responded in her time of need.
On the afternoon of 7 June 2024, 45-year-old Sian Deeks went over to her partner Daniel’s house. They were in the middle of a conversation when Sian started to lean against the worktop in the kitchen and became unresponsive – she had gone into cardiac arrest.
Speaking of that day, Sian said: “I would never have thought I’d have gone into cardiac arrest ever. You just never think it would happen to you. I don’t remember any of it, but Daniel said he was calling out to me, and I wasn’t responding to him.
“I’ve lived with heart failure for a few years now, so while he didn’t know it was a cardiac arrest, he had an inkling it was due to a complication with my heart. That’s when he put me in the recovery position and dialled 999.”
Daniel’s call was answered by Emergency Medical Advisor Tim Higham-Jones, who advised Daniel to lay Sian flat on her back and perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) until ambulance clinicians could take over.
Steve Green, a Specialist Practitioner, was one of the many people from EMAS and the Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance Service (LNAA) involved in the response to Sian.
He said: “The advanced life support we delivered to Sian wouldn’t have been as successful, if it hadn’t been for Daniel taking instant action with bystander CPR.
“While he was understandably quite emotional when we got there, we reassured Daniel that he’d given Sian the best chance of survival by delivering effective hands-on CPR at the earliest opportunity.
“CPR not only save lives, but the quicker it’s delivered also reduces the risk of adverse and irreversible damage to the brain for those who do survive.”
Upon the arrival of ambulance and air ambulance colleagues, Sian’s airway was managed to keep it open – allowing the flow of oxygen to her body to be uninterrupted, CPR was maintained, and a defibrillator was attached to Sian.
After approximately 17 minutes, the defibrillator identified Sian’s heart as being in a shockable rhythm, and after two shocks were delivered, her heart was beating again – however, Sian was not out of the woods yet.
Steve added: “Once we managed to stabilize Sian’s condition, we then needed to get her safely out of the property and to hospital as quickly as possible.
“She was taken by road in the ambulance, travelling with myself and the LNAA team. We continued to manage her airway and ensure she remained stable until we got to the hospital.”
Sian was then handed over to the Resuscitation Department at Scunthorpe General Hospital, while still sedated and intubated.
In the early hours of the following morning, Sian went into cardiac arrest for a second time while in the Intensive Care Unit.
Sian said: “A nurse spotted it when she was doing her observations. She had apparently shone a light into my eyes to see they had gone into the back of my head, and the machines attached to me started beeping.”
Miraculously, after six minutes of further advanced life support being delivered to Sian, she managed to survive her second cardiac arrest in less than 24 hours.
Sian says experiencing these major events on top of living with an existing heart condition has been challenging, but she is grateful to her partner Daniel, and all the medics who she credits as her reason for her children “not having to scatter their mother’s ashes.”
Image credit: Stock.adobe.com/JTana
