A group supporting the siblings of disabled children is set to have its first meeting in Harrogate this month.

The Sibling Group is an organisation offering a safe space for children with siblings who are disabled or have special needs. The first event in the area is set to take place January 20 from 10am-12pm at Christ Church.

The group for children aged six to 11 aims to “support their wellbeing and happiness”. The event will include activities and games to build positive relationships.

Grace Williams, founder of The Sibling Group created the organisation to support families who have children and siblings with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

She has a younger brother with special educational needs who is non-verbal, has a learning disability and autism. Grace has become devoted to supporting other families in a similar situation. She has a degree in special education, is pursuing a masters degree in autism and inclusion, and currently works as a specialist key worker for the NHS.

She said

“Growing up there was not much support available and there was a lot of stigma around this. It was very challenging for my family and I, as we had to take on a care giving role and adapt to my brother’s needs very quickly.”

Grace grew up in Harrogate and her brother attends Springwater School. She says that despite the large SEND community in the area she has always been “aware of the lack of support for families”, so when creating The Sibling Group, she “thought it would be a good area to work in.”

“Siblings are not thought about when services are created and offered to families, and I want to change this. Siblings experience extreme stress, isolation and miss out on things other children their age are doing.”

“The Sibling Group offers a safe space for children to come and meet other children with similar experiences. We offer fun activities such as arts and crafts, singing and dancing, sports and games.”

The meetings are free of charge and will be running during the school holidays and on Saturdays. To book a place at the event click here.

Read more:

• Children’s Corner is the only double winner at Family Business Awards
• Harrogate charity raises £75,000 for critically ill newborns

[the_ad id=”182785″]

A Harrogate grandmother diagnosed with heart failure 18 months ago has set up a support group to help others in the same situation.

Mary Mann, who was 76 at the time, said she had been active all her life, but suddenly became very ill in November 2021.

She told the Stray Ferret:

“I was so ill, I couldn’t do anything. I’d come downstairs in the morning and stay there – I could only crawl up the stairs at the end of the day.

“With heart failure, you have absolutely no strength. Until somebody tells you what it is and starts giving you tablets, you think, ‘am I ever going to get rid of this?’

“I had been perfectly fit and healthy, but I had a chest infection and it all started from that.”

Although Ms Mann was in her 70s, she said symptoms can begin much earlier for some people, including some women who can have heart failure after having a baby.

Fortunately for Ms Mann, a mum of two, she could be treated with tablets, and soon saw an improvement in her symptoms.

She will take the medication for the rest of her life and will have regular check-ups, but has been able to return to doing the things she loves: walking, gardening, and volunteering at RHS Garden Harlow Carr and with Harrogate in Bloom.

Grateful for her new lease of life, she began looking into ways to give back to those who had supported her and came across the website for patient-led charity Pumping Marvellous.

Ms Mann said:

“Pumping Marvellous asked me to be a patient educator.

“I was reading these people’s stories. Some of them were so lonely. I’ve been very lucky, I’ve got a lovely family and friends, and a great cardiologist. Everybody has supported me.

“These people had nobody.”

The former primary school teacher decided to set up a support group to offer heart failure patients the chance to chat to each other and gain support from others.

It will meet at the Harrogate Chocolate Factory Cafe on the last Friday of every month, from 2pm to 4pm, and is open to everyone – even those who feel they have good support at home. Ms Mann added:

“It’s nice to talk about what’s wrong with you without your family and friends glazing over and thinking, ‘here she goes again’!”

The Harrogate Pumping Marvellous group will next meet on Friday, May 26 at 2pm. Anyone interested can just turn up on the day, or can email Ms Mann in advance if they prefer.

Read more:

• Dance group for over 50s to launch Harrogate classes
• CrossFit Harrogate prepares for charity challenge

This story is sponsored by Slimming World.

A Harrogate slimmer is celebrating after reversing her liver disease by losing over a third of her body weight with Slimming World. 

Sylvia Skipper was told by doctors that her non-alcoholic fatty liver disease was off the scale, with a liver fat content of over 70%.  

“I was heading towards severe cirrhosis of the liver, which could lead to me needing a liver transplant,” said Sylvia. 

“The consultant explained the only legitimate way of improving or reversing this was by losing weight. I had struggled with so many diets in the past I had just about lost faith.” 

It was then that she turned to Slimming World, whose science-based healthy eating plan has helped thousands of people across the UK achieve their weight-loss goals without ever going on a diet.

“I vividly remember messaging Cate Pervana, who runs Slimming World groups in Harrogate, and sharing my health issues with her,” said Sylvia. 

“I had previously had thyroid cancer, so I struggled to control my metabolism and doubted my ability to lose weight. 

“But Cate gave me the reassurance I needed, and I joined Westcliffe Hall Harrogate Slimming World group.” 

Combining Slimming World’s no-hunger eating plan with its Body Magic physical activity programme, Sylvia soon started to see the weight fall off. Just over a year later, she has lost 6st 7.5lb – over 40 per cent of her original body weight – and is now down from a size 24 to a size 8. Even her feet have shrunk from a 6 to a 4 and she’s now proudly wearing her favourite pair of Christian Louboutin shoes, which had been stuck in her wardrobe for years. 

Sylvia Skipper combined Slimming World’s no-hunger eating plan with its Body Magic physical activity programme to lose weight.

“But the best news came this morning,” said Sylvia. “I now have less than 5% fat in my liver, I have completely reversed my liver disease, and I’ve been discharged. 

“I am so grateful to Cate and everyone at Slimming World for giving me all the support I needed. Getting healthy again has been my sole motivation on my weight-loss journey, and I feel on top of the world.”

Sylvia Skipper was in danger of needing a liver transplant, but with the help of Slimming World has stopped her liver disease in its tracks.

Slimming World in Harrogate and Knaresborough runs several groups, making it easier to find one to fit into your schedule. Cate Pervana runs groups in Harrogate, and Christine Husband runs them in Starbeck and Knaresborough.

Find out more: 

If you want 2023 to be the year you achieve your weight-loss goals, find out more about your local groups by calling Christine Husband (Starbeck and Knaresborough) on 07890 621324, or Cate Pervana (Harrogate) on 07834 897533. 

Alternatively, check out the Slimming World Harrogate and Knaresborough Facebook page here. 

A Ripon woman who believed she was “broken”, but went on to graduate from university after being diagnosed with dyspraxia, has launched a not-for-profit company to help others who may share the condition. 

Carol Turnbull set up Chrysalis Dyspraxia Awareness last year with a view to providing one-to-one support for people pre- or post-diagnosis and helping them to understand their potential.

She has also given a talk to a government department and hopes to expand this side of the business, speaking to companies and organisations about neurodivergency and its workplace implications. 

Dyspraxia is a condition affecting physical co-ordination and causes children to perform less well than expected in daily activities for their age, and appear to move clumsily. 

How people make plans and decisions, organise their lives and regulate their emotions may also be affected. The condition is closely associated with dyslexia, autism, ADHD, and dyscalculia. 

Carol Turnbull

Carol was 47 before she was diagnosed with the condition, but says she had always known there was something wrong. 

“I had a life of thinking I was broken; I could feel something wasn’t right,” she says. 

“As a child, I was always looked on as different and was picked on a lot. I always wondered why people didn’t like me, and that lasted right through till adulthood.” 

After more than 30 years working in the care industry, Carol happened to take her son to an open evening at York College, but ended up herself enrolling on an access course. That led to her taking a psychology degree at Leeds Beckett University, where she was first diagnosed.

Read more:

• Ripon auction to sell paintings of Derby winners found after 180 years
• Grants up to £3,000 available to Harrogate district community groups

She says:

“It changed my life. Learning about myself and how I function neurologically and socially has greatly improved my confidence and this directly contributed to the development of Chrysalis.” 

Now, she wants to pass on that knowledge, giving others the support that she missed out on. Contact can be made via her website here. She says:

“A lot of people with dyspraxia pigeonhole themselves, and it can feel quite disabling if people around you don’t know why you are the way you are if you yourself don’t know why.

“Giving others this power and supporting them to understand themselves and their dyspraxia better can open up the world to so many people who may feel their wants and desires are beyond their capabilities. This is something I am passionate about. I strongly believe that, given the right support, people can achieve absolutely anything!” 

A Harrogate group has stepped up its support with care packages to support new mums during lockdown.

Hey Mama is an online community designed to be a place for mums to share their experiences and open up about mental health.

Now that we have entered a second national lockdown the group’s founder has set up care packages to give a boost to those in need.

The packages include treats for mum’s like chocolates, tea, face masks, affirmation cards and bullet journals.

Read more:

• Christmas Eve Doorstep Jingle goes global
• Harrogate district shows support for volunteers and NHS
• Harrogate restaurant serves first free school meals

It has been made possible by donations from the Tesco community fund and the Two Ridings Community Foundation.

Trish Pedley, who founded the group nearly three years ago after struggling with postnatal depression, told the Stray Ferret that mums need support more than ever:

“It is hard at normal times to be a mum. Lockdown makes it three times or four times worse. The lockdown takes away that support network that is so vital.

“The group lets mums open up about their experiences with others. It shows them that they aren’t alone and that others are going through the same thing.”

As well as the care packages they are set to launch a text message service on Sunday. It is designed to give any mums struggling a direct line to help.

Since setting up three years ago Hey Mama has slowly built up a solid group of volunteers and mums.

In the future Trish hopes that they can set up Hey Mama groups all over the UK and branch out into a group for dads as well.

Anyone who wants to donate towards the group’s efforts can do so by clicking or tapping here.

A mental health support group in Knaresborough is raising awareness of the support it offers during the gap people face while waiting for therapy.

Project Bob, based at Gracious Street Methodist Church, runs weekly meetings and a 24/7 WhatsApp group offering support to people who are struggling.

The group’s founder, Chris Rawson, insists it isn’t a counselling service but instead calls it a “community”.

The volunteers are Christians but it isn’t a religious group: some members are suffering with current or past mental health issues.

Mr Rawson is aware more people are suffering lockdown anxieties and face widening delays in waiting to access professional help.

He has therefore invited people to reach out if they feel in need a boost.

The group is particularly keen to help those who have struggled to cope during lockdown. Credit www.radarfilm.co.uk

He said:

“The gap between getting the help is getting wider. We wanted to set something up to support working age adults. It’s not an official service, its a community of support to anyone that needs it.

“Over lockdown we met over Zoom, which is difficult because a lot of people come to talk to us about their home. People lost their jobs or are wary of getting ill or feel stuck at home – these are the anxieties we can help with.”

Read more:

• Harrogate Mind is expanding services due to an increased demand.
• Harrogate Samaritans is calling for people to reach out to family and friends following months of isolation .

The group offers a safe space for people to talk openly about their anxieties.

Mr Rawson added:

“We want to raise awareness that we’re there and have the space to help.”

Project Bob is suitable for people suffering with mild depression, anxiety and compulsive thoughts and behaviours.

The name is derived from St Robert of Knaresborough who was said to help vulnerable people.

To contact the group, click here.

Harrogate parents’ group Ready Steady Mums has been given the green light to resume its weekly walks, as they fit under the “support group” category within the government guidelines.

The group was forced to call a halt for the second time in early September when the “rule of six” came into place, which meant that, in most circumstances, groups of more than six could not gather.

However, after making contact with the office Andrew Jones MP to ask if it could keep going, Ready Steady Mums has been reassured it isn’t breaking any rules as it is a support group for new parents. The group split into ‘bubbles’ of seven parents with babies plus one volunteer and headed out onto the Stray again yesterday morning, in line with the limit of 15 people gathering for organised outdoor events.

Laura Brett, a former mental health midwife who founded the group, said:

“It was so good to be out again. It’s not a lot different to what we usually do – people often split into smaller groups as we go along – but it’s just being intentional about it. We give it a good two or three minutes between each group setting off to keep a certain amount of distance, and we stayed in those groups even for tea and biscuits afterwards.”

In good weather, the group sits out on the Stray for a socially-distanced picnic after the walk

Formed in 2016, Ready Steady Mums provides people with the opportunity to stay fit and socialise during the early weeks and months of parenthood. 

The group usually meets at St Mark’s Church at 10am on Friday, walks together around the Stray and then enjoys tea, coffee and cake inside the church. Resuming after lockdown, the refreshments became a picnic outside, in line with social distancing requirements.

From her background in mental health midwifery, and her new role in fundraising and promotions for Harrogate charity Wellspring, Laura said the group is even more important now than ever. New mums and dads don’t get as many chances to meet and talk to others in the same position, and people are finding their mental health is suffering.

“I’m very serious about the whole covid thing – I had it and I know how awful it is – but I think the mental health epidemic and isolation are also really worrying.

“I walked with one woman today who said, ‘I love it – it’s free, I don’t have to commit, and it’s just so inclusive’. She had moved into Harrogate over lockdown with a new baby.

“Even if we just do it for her, it’s so worthwhile.”

Read more:

• Dementia charity warns of impact of second lockdown
• WATCH: Are people in Harrogate ready for another lockdown?