Nwicker60
30-May-12, 08:57
Caithness Courier review: May 30, 2012
THE lack of staff at a local home, which specialises in caring for people with special needs, has resulted in bullying and sexually inappropriate behaviour between residents. The Care Inspectorate has raised concerns about staffing at Forse House, in Latheron, stating that the level of supervision of residents at the home, needs to be improved, to stop such incidents happening in the future. The report, carried out in March, was done as a high intensity inspection after standards at the home fell – between September 2010 and September 2011 the quality of care and environment was downgraded from “good” to “weak”. Despite improvements being made over the past six months, and the status being upgraded to “adequate”, inspectors are still concerned about the level of staffing, saying that more individual support is needed for the 24 residents.
ALSO on the front page... has been made for talented local musicians to come forward and help stage an ambitious show in Thurso this autumn. Thurso Players will be presenting Lionel Bart’s classic musical Oliver for four nights in September. Due to the size of the production, the group wants to make up an orchestra to play during its run and is looking for 12 talented musicians to get involved. The Players are seeking people who can play the violin, cello, bass, flute, piccolo, oboe, English horn, clarinet, bass, clarinet, bassoon, horn or trombone. Rehearsal and performance pianist, Lesley Jackson, said that the show is set to be one of the Players’ biggest productions in recent years and they want to do it justice by finding talented musicians to accompany them during the run.
CAITHNESS General Hospital was again forced to close one of its wards after patients showed symptoms of diarrhoea and vomiting sparking fears the norovirus had returned. However, NHS Highland said tests showed the virus is not present and the ward was shut, only as a safety precaution. The Rosebank Ward was closed to admissions on Friday afternoon after four patients showed symptoms of the bug. But the ward was given the all clear and reopened yesterday morning after it emerged no patients were diagnosed with the norovirus. A spokeswoman for NHS Highland said the ward was closed to prevent further spread of the illness.
INSIDE...fears have been expressed that vital pots of cash from which Highland councillors award grants to local communities for small scale projects, could come under threat. Independent councillor, Isobel McCullum has sought assurances about the future of ward discretionary budgets from new Highland council leader Drew Hendry. Each of the 22 wards across the region receive about £50,000 a year which can be used for a wide variety of community schemes. The money has been employed to pay for revamped play parks, flower displays, sports and music events and bus shelters. Ward councillors cannot support projects which need an ongoing financial commitment and are also encouraged to grant money to schemes which can attract funding from other sources.
A LYBSTER man’s disgust at seeing “one of the most popular hotels in Caithness” close down, was the reason behind his decision to take on the lease of the Portland Arms. With 28 years experience in the hotel industry, Andrew Bowles said that he knew a promising venture when he saw one. The renowned Lybster hotel, which has been closed since March, reopened at the weekend after the 45-year-old went into partnership with a friend who wishes to remain anonymous. Mr Bowles said that after discovering the hotel had shut its doors to the public, he could not contain this anger and his interest in taking over the premises was immediate.
ORKNEY is not the only place where renewable energy is taking off in Scotland, despite concern that is the case, says a local business leader. Caithness Chamber of Commerce, Trudy Morris, maintains that the Far North has also demonstrated that it has a huge part to play in the future energy needs of the country. Her views come after attending the All-Energy 2012 conference in Aberdeen, last week – the annual focus of discussions and announcements on the future of renewable energy. Ms Morris told the Caithness Courier there was a feeling the Northern Isles is the only place where any progress is being made, but she emphasised Caithness companies are starting to make inroads as well.
TWO of London’s most celebrated chefs have visited Caithness, Sutherland and Ross-shire with a view to putting produce from the area on the menus of their award-winning restaurants and in particular their new venture north of the border. Jeff and Christ Galvin operate a number of restaurants, including two which are Michelin starred, in London. They are regarded as being among the top 10 most influential chefs in the UK and their restaurants serve more than 25,000 customers every month. The duo is due to open a high profile restaurant in Edinburgh this summer.
THE lack of staff at a local home, which specialises in caring for people with special needs, has resulted in bullying and sexually inappropriate behaviour between residents. The Care Inspectorate has raised concerns about staffing at Forse House, in Latheron, stating that the level of supervision of residents at the home, needs to be improved, to stop such incidents happening in the future. The report, carried out in March, was done as a high intensity inspection after standards at the home fell – between September 2010 and September 2011 the quality of care and environment was downgraded from “good” to “weak”. Despite improvements being made over the past six months, and the status being upgraded to “adequate”, inspectors are still concerned about the level of staffing, saying that more individual support is needed for the 24 residents.
ALSO on the front page... has been made for talented local musicians to come forward and help stage an ambitious show in Thurso this autumn. Thurso Players will be presenting Lionel Bart’s classic musical Oliver for four nights in September. Due to the size of the production, the group wants to make up an orchestra to play during its run and is looking for 12 talented musicians to get involved. The Players are seeking people who can play the violin, cello, bass, flute, piccolo, oboe, English horn, clarinet, bass, clarinet, bassoon, horn or trombone. Rehearsal and performance pianist, Lesley Jackson, said that the show is set to be one of the Players’ biggest productions in recent years and they want to do it justice by finding talented musicians to accompany them during the run.
CAITHNESS General Hospital was again forced to close one of its wards after patients showed symptoms of diarrhoea and vomiting sparking fears the norovirus had returned. However, NHS Highland said tests showed the virus is not present and the ward was shut, only as a safety precaution. The Rosebank Ward was closed to admissions on Friday afternoon after four patients showed symptoms of the bug. But the ward was given the all clear and reopened yesterday morning after it emerged no patients were diagnosed with the norovirus. A spokeswoman for NHS Highland said the ward was closed to prevent further spread of the illness.
INSIDE...fears have been expressed that vital pots of cash from which Highland councillors award grants to local communities for small scale projects, could come under threat. Independent councillor, Isobel McCullum has sought assurances about the future of ward discretionary budgets from new Highland council leader Drew Hendry. Each of the 22 wards across the region receive about £50,000 a year which can be used for a wide variety of community schemes. The money has been employed to pay for revamped play parks, flower displays, sports and music events and bus shelters. Ward councillors cannot support projects which need an ongoing financial commitment and are also encouraged to grant money to schemes which can attract funding from other sources.
A LYBSTER man’s disgust at seeing “one of the most popular hotels in Caithness” close down, was the reason behind his decision to take on the lease of the Portland Arms. With 28 years experience in the hotel industry, Andrew Bowles said that he knew a promising venture when he saw one. The renowned Lybster hotel, which has been closed since March, reopened at the weekend after the 45-year-old went into partnership with a friend who wishes to remain anonymous. Mr Bowles said that after discovering the hotel had shut its doors to the public, he could not contain this anger and his interest in taking over the premises was immediate.
ORKNEY is not the only place where renewable energy is taking off in Scotland, despite concern that is the case, says a local business leader. Caithness Chamber of Commerce, Trudy Morris, maintains that the Far North has also demonstrated that it has a huge part to play in the future energy needs of the country. Her views come after attending the All-Energy 2012 conference in Aberdeen, last week – the annual focus of discussions and announcements on the future of renewable energy. Ms Morris told the Caithness Courier there was a feeling the Northern Isles is the only place where any progress is being made, but she emphasised Caithness companies are starting to make inroads as well.
TWO of London’s most celebrated chefs have visited Caithness, Sutherland and Ross-shire with a view to putting produce from the area on the menus of their award-winning restaurants and in particular their new venture north of the border. Jeff and Christ Galvin operate a number of restaurants, including two which are Michelin starred, in London. They are regarded as being among the top 10 most influential chefs in the UK and their restaurants serve more than 25,000 customers every month. The duo is due to open a high profile restaurant in Edinburgh this summer.