International Youth Day is on 12 August and its theme for 2021 is Transforming Food Systems: Youth Innovation for Human and Planetary Health. This is a wide and varied theme which will spark different interests of young people across the UN countries. With the world’s every increasing population, it is recognised that simply producing a…
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What’s In It For Me?
This week we have been celebrating Volunteers Week, a chance to say thank you to everyone who volunteers, and remind ourselves how important volunteers are to so many aspects of our community. In Apex I am constantly reminded of the impact of volunteers because of the way in which the value of volunteering runs through…
People Are Not Widgets
In what seems like a very long time ago when I trained as a nurse, and later nurse tutor and nurse director, I experienced the extraordinary change in the NHS which the introduction of market economics and business models to NHS management created. I well remember the arguments between clinicians and economists, and the inevitable…
The Motivation Game
I have just finished watching a short video made by Andy, one of our team leaders, in which he talks about his own experiences of coming to terms with a criminal conviction record as a way to encourage others facing similar life challenges. You can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDbhvItzmtM I think you will find it…
Crisis Managed or Lessons Learned?
So that is welcome news about the easing of lockdown restrictions and especially the opening up of travel around the country. I suspect, like me, many of you will have been champing at the bit to get out of our bubbles and start living a more normal sort of existence, albeit one where we still require caution. Indeed, our…
Paying It Forward
We have just said goodbye to our retiring Chair, Gordon Samson, and welcomed Ann Landels as his successor. In doing so, we experience all the sadness at losing someone who has put so much into the organisation both in terms of his time and expertise but, perhaps more importantly, also his character and values. At…
Jumping to Conclusions
I wonder if you stay in touch with people you were at school with? Frankly, the very idea of school reunions sends me running to the hills in a cold sweat, but in today’s digitally shrunken world it is relatively easy to keep in touch at whatever level you wish, so I have a chat…
Petrol Saving and Funding Policing
Now admit, are you one of those people who will drive well out of your way just to find fuel suppliers that offer a slightly lower price? A friend of mine will spend ages looking up who has the best price and then taking great pride in telling everyone how he had saved two pence…
Aim Higher
One of the most obvious impacts of having liberty curtailed is that it generates a sense of low self-worth and motivation. This is something we have all been experiencing of late and the covid-19 blues is a very real and difficult mindset to get over, even when you have supportive family and familiar surroundings. Maybe…
Another Drop In The Ocean
Mother Teresa is reported to have responded to a reporter who had commented that her contribution to helping the poor was just a drop in the ocean, by pointing out that an ocean is simply a collection of drops. I have been thinking as we near the Christmas break of all the little contributions which…