This is the Christmas edition of our “What we learned this Month…..” newsletter in which we open the doors of Oxford Head Injury Services so you can take a look inside and see what we have been up to.
All of us at Oxford Head Injury Services wish you a very Merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year and we thank you for your support.
2016 has been a momentous year for Oxford Head Injury Services
At the beginning of the year we became the proud owners of our home, our Activity and Rehabilitation Centre in Kennington. Since moving to Kennington in 2002 we rented the building, but purchasing the entire site has allowed us to put into action our long-held plans to refurbish and expand the centre.
In August, the builders arrived on site and the work began in earnest.
The work is now completed and like all proud new home owners we couldn’t be happier. We now have brand new state of the art disabled toilet facilities, a fantastic new fully fitted top of the range kitchen in which we be running healthy eating classes for our daily groups of service users and they can also take a seat and socialise in our new café space at the heart of the centre.
The building also has a new look from the outside as well with Cedar cladding that not only looks beautiful, but it will also extend the life of the centre, we also have brand new signage with our new look Oxford Head Injury Services Logo emblazoned upon it, that is getting plenty of admiring glances from the Kennington locals as well as visitors to the centre.
All our staff offices have been moved out of the centre into new office space in the grounds freeing up space in the centre for new consultation rooms and quite zones for those who use our services. We also have a brand-new meeting room that we intend to hire out to local groups and businesses.
We would also like to pass on huge thanks to our friends from the Oxford Business Network who came to the centre on a very cold very wet Saturday to help us a build a disabled access pathway that will allow everyone who visits the centre to enjoy the garden, and Blanchfords Building supplies who donated all the materials for the build.
These exciting developments are essential for the future of headway Oxfordshire and our ambition to expand our services for our current service users and support even more people affected by brain injury and neurological conditions in Oxfordshire.
Oxford Head Injury Services Christmas Party
On Friday December 16th the Oxford Head Injury Services family gathered once more for our annual Christmas Party at the Kennington Village Hall.
Nearly a 100 service users and their carers and families joined us for the festive celebration. As is traditional we held the Christmas raffle and all dug into their pockets generously to support Headway, and the winners went home with some fantastic Christmas goodies.
Unfortunately for the staff another tradition of the Christmas Party, is the staff entertainment! This year we acted out a Christmas inspired poem penned by our Service Manager Claire Twinn and led the Christmas singalong at the end of the party with musical accompaniment from friend of Headway Gary Bosher.
Twas the week before Christmas and all through the ARC
Not a creature was stirring, not even a bark
The tables were heaving with food made with care
In hopes that ‘YOU ALL’ soon would be there
Then out in the car park there rose such a clatter
The staff all went out and said ‘Now what’s the matter?’
It was Iggy and Dude chasing squirrels up a tree
Jamie sat crying, “I can’t control them you see”!
They all trooped back in, then they stopped and they stared
The tables were empty of the food they’d prepared
Where were the crisps and the quiche and the cake bits?
The Maltesers, the twiglets, who’d managed to take it?
Though they all knew each other was after the food
They first pointed their fingers at Iggy and Dude
But the dogs were too short and clearly unable
To get off the floor and onto the table.
Now…let me see……Patrick is partial to Cheddar and Brie
And those Maltesers would make him SO happy.
Who has stolen the cheese, was it that naughty girl Polly?
She’s texting her boyfriend and looking too jolly.
Whilst Emma pretends she is solving our issues
Is that crumbs that’s she’s wiping away with some tissues?
Surely not Katie? She’s so innocent and sweet.
But that bag that she carries could be full up with meat
Loueze makes the ARC such a brilliant place
Surely she’s not stuffing chocolates into her face?
Jackie’s the new girl, and she likes to chatter
Is she the one guilty of stealing that plater?
And what of the Charlies? They could both double team
Where one takes the pies the other takes the cream.
Debbie returns from PA world weary with cares
Are her pockets and handbag filled with chocolate éclairs?
Now she is standing by the newest guy Clint
In all the commotion, did he steal the after eight mints?
Then Charlotte came in and they found after all
That she’d moved every plate full across to the hall
How they all laughed with relief and with shame
At how they had pointed and shared out the blame
It was left to the manager The Boss Claire Twinn
To pass out a punishment across the whole team
“You’ll all leave the chocolates and I’ll take the wine
On my smelly veggy soup you lot will now dine”
So they raised up their glasses to toast all was right
“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”
And Finally….
Please support our Headway Oxford Christmas 2016 Appeal
We need your support to help the 4000 people who each year suffer a brain injury in Oxfordshire by creating the county’s first ever dedicated neurological physiotherapy gym in the voluntary sector.
Christmas is nearly upon us, and every year, as soon as it has passed many us will hit the gym to burn off those excess calories from one too many mince pies scoffed over the festive season.
But just for a moment put yourself in the place of the staggering 4000 people on average who each year suffer a brain injury in Oxfordshire, enough people to fill all the seats on ten 747 Jumbo Jets. As you can imagine the availability of a centre where people with brain injuries can get easy access to physical exercise and expert physiotherapy equipment close to home is vital to their recovery.
Our aim with your generous support is to create Oxfordshire’s first ever state of the art neurological physiotherapy gym with equipment specifically designed for people with brain injuries and limited mobility at our newly refurbished Activity and Rehabilitation Centre in Kennington Oxfordshire.
You can be part of making this happen and transform the lives of people suffering from brain injuries in Oxfordshire by donating to our Christmas 2016 Neuro Gym appeal, just go to our appeal page here to make your donation, or click on Christmas Appeal at the top of this page.
Thank you from all of us at Oxford Head Injury Services your support will help transform people’s lives in your community.
