Overwhelmed? Stressed? Unfulfilled? Life coaching can help. For many of us, life often seems to be a constant battle to juggle work and family, coping with the needs of children and aging parents. So often we struggle to see how we can make improvements and find it difficult to keep on track with plans we have made. This is where a life coach can help us move forward more quickly and productively than on our own. According to Life Coach, Karen MacDuff, “Life coaching can create positive changes. It helps people achieve happier, more fulfilled lives in which they can cope with their difficulties as well as unlocking their potential and realizing new ventures and achievements. Even small changes can have profound, positive, energizing effects on well-being, lifestyle and careers.” More people than ever are beginning to realise the benefits of working with a life coach to cope with their difficulties and achieve their aspirations. For decades, life coaching was only available to those in elite corporations or those who could afford the high cost of coaching sessions. Thankfully, life coaching is now becoming more mainstream and affordable. Using a variety of methods, including skilled questioning and visualization, coaches help clients challenge negative thinking whilst supporting and encouraging them to overcome obstacles and create positive changes.

All aspects of our lives can be helped, whether they be specific individual one -off problems, long standing difficulties or a desire to follow a dream. Truly remarkable things can occur through small changes and challenging misconceptions. Life Coaching can help us all to reconsider how we cope with our difficulties, and take back control of our lives: making time for ourselves and regaining a sense of purpose, calmness and wellbeing.

The author is a life-style development coach with additional specialisms in educational motivation and career transition. She is also a teacher and writer of educational books. www.lifecoachkaren.co.uk info@lifecoachkaren.co.uk

The moment you meet foster carer Lesley and her former foster child Polly you are struck by their closeness and the undeniable bond between them.
Lesley, 57, from Mansfield, has fostered with Nottinghamshire County Council for 24 years. Until eight years ago she was a single foster carer of mainly teenagers, but now fosters with her husband Keith.
Lesley and Keith currently have a staying put placement, a young person over the age of 18 who is remaining with the couple beyond his ‘foster placement’, and a 17 year old boy.

“I never had any children of my own and I must admit fostering at first seemed like an alien experience, but I quickly grew to love it,” says Lesley.
“I wanted to bring children into my home and make sure they felt like part of the family, not just visitors.”

Polly, now 33, remembers vividly her first visit to Lesley’s home. “She made me feel so at ease and welcome, and asked me very quickly how I’d like my bedroom doing up before my next visit,” said Polly, who now lives with her partner, her partner’s daughter and her own two daughters in Hucknall.
“Lesley and I went shopping for bedding and other bits for my room and we clicked straightaway. I felt comfortable and a sense of belonging from day one.”

Lesley openly admits that she sees Polly as the daughter she never had.
“We just slotted into each other lives and we have been there for each other at important times,” Lesley said. “Polly played a huge part in the preparations in the run-up to my wedding eight years ago and I have some lovely memories of us going to look at wedding dresses together.”
Polly also holds precious memories of Lesley helping her move into her first flat when she moved out aged 19. During the years she fostered Polly, Lesley maintained good relations with Polly’s birth mum and dad.
Lesley explained: “I was Polly’s foster carer and she lived with me but it was important in my eyes that she knew where she came from and had a sense of family and belonging. That sense of belonging is important for any child and we maintained that throughout Polly’s stay with us.”

Lesley has fostered more than 50 young people over the years and tries to keep in regular touch with all of them. “They need to know that the support is still available even though they have moved on with their lives. I want them to feel they can still come to me with their good news or a problem and I’ll be there for them.” Lesley is supporting the County Council’s New Year fostering campaign This year, be the difference in a child’s life and urges anyone who has been thinking about fostering to take a closer look.

“It really is a fantastically rewarding role, I feel I’ve made a difference to so many young people’s lives and that gives me a real sense of achievement.”

Rushcliffe Borough Council and local homeless charity the Friary have praised the generosity of residents who collectively donated over 12 tonnes of food and clothing to those in need. Residents across the Borough donated items when they placed their bin out for collection on the weeks of (January 7-11) and the authority’s waste team have been busy collecting the charitable gifts.

It is estimated that the number of donations has increased by a massive two tonnes since a similar effort in January last year. Deputy Leader Cllr Debbie Mason said: “The staggering number of clothes and food items donated this year is a wonderful achievement for the Borough. “Last year the waste teams collected a phenomenal 10 tonnes of donated items, so to surpass that figure this year is a true testament to the generosity of residents.

“It is magnificent how people have entered the spirit of this effort and ensured items are recycled in a manner where they will be warmly received by those who need them most.” Rushcliffe Borough Council’s waste teams have been dedicating extra hours to the cause by spending longer on their collections this week to collect the many donations. Volunteers will soon begin sorting the items so they can be used at the charity’s centre in West Bridgford, which offers advice, health and practical support services to those who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

Sam Crawford, Chief Executive of the Friary said: “A massive thank you once again to the amazingly generous people of Rushcliffe. “These donations will now go straight to those in crisis and provide further basic essentials they require. “This will really help the Friary to continue assisting local people in need on their journey to recovery and independence.”
Visit @theFriary88 on twitter, www.the-friary.org.uk or call 0115 982 5448 to find out more about their services, how to contact them and how you can become involved in supporting their work.

Rushcliffe Borough Council staff also contributed to the collection efforts with a reverse advent calendar at their sites at Rushcliffe Arena, Rushcliffe Community Contact Centre and Abbey Road depot offices, that amassed hundreds of items.

Nottingham City Council’s Environmental Health Officers have been working with local sunbed operators to ensure citizens are able to get the safest tan possible.

Officers have been checking the radiation levels of sunbed tubes to ensure they are not too powerful and comply with safety limits.  While exposure to Ultra Violet light always carries some risk, all sunbeds in Nottingham City have been checked that they comply with the EU ‘Safe level’ of 0.3W/m².

Environmental Health Officers advice that people shouldn’t use a sunbed if they:

• Are aged under 18 (illegal for tanning salon operators to allow under 18s to use sunbeds)
• Always burn in natural sunlight
• Have a medical condition that becomes worse in sunlight
• Have an excessive amount of moles and/or freckles
  
• Have a history of sunburn, particularly from childhood
• Have skin cancer or does any member of your immediate family have/had skin cancer

Anyone using a sunbed should remember to:

• Wear protective eyewear
• Ask about 0.3 compliance
  
• Always leave at least 48hrs between tanning sessions
• Not exceed two sessions per week
  
• Only use a maximum of 30 times per year

Cllr Toby Neal, Portfolio Holder for Community Protection, said: “A tan is your body’s attempt to protect itself from the damaging effect of UV rays. Using a sunbed to get a tan isn’t safer than tanning in the sun but officers have been checking that the tubes in local tanning salons me

et the correct standards and don’t overexpose users to higher levels than expected.

“If you decide to use a sunbed, the operator should advise you about your skin type and how long you should limit your session to.”