Newort Pagnell on Film

Milton Keynes College leads the race for tomorrow’s Dragons

Milton Keynes College has been picked by Dragon’s Den star and multimillionaire businessman, Peter Jones to help find and train Britain’s next generation of entrepreneurs.

The College is one of only a handful of educational institutions in the country chosen to join the Peter Jones Enterprise Academy  offering  BTECs in Enterprise and Entrepreneurship in partnership with Edexcel; these are the first qualifications of their kind for 16-19 year olds in the UK. 

The courses will be offered from this September when students will be taught how to start their own business.  There will be visiting lecturers and master classes from successful entrepreneurs and the students will also be involved in a number of practical workshops and real business networking events.

Peter Jones CBE, founder of the Peter Jones Enterprise Academy, said:

“Milton Keynes College has put Enterprise at the heart of its curriculum, by sharing our entrepreneurial ethos and encouraging more young people to realise their ambitions.

“With record levels of youth unemployment, I believe it is a priority to inspire more young people across Britain to consider a different career path – an entrepreneurial one.

“The Peter Jones Enterprise Academy aims to equip young people with the skills, confidence and experience to unleash the entrepreneur in them and we are delighted that Milton Keynes College has joined our growing Academy network.”

Chief Executive and Principal of Milton Keynes College, Dr. Julie Mills, says:

“We are extremely proud to have been invited to join the Peter Jones Enterprise Academy. It is recognition of how well regarded Milton Keynes College is in terms of the business courses we provide.  This is an opportunity for young people in the city and wider region to become serious business owners in their own right and to learn from people who’ve already been there and done it for themselves.”

For further information please contact:

Carolyn Jardine, Jardine Michelson Public Relations

Tel: 0845 1651651/07734 837912

E: carolyn@jardine-michelson.com

WILLEN HOSPICE QUIZ NIGHT IS A HUGE SUCCESS

The Willen Hospice ‘Great British’ Quiz Night, held on Thursday 15^th March at the Jury’s Inn was a resounding success.  The evening, kindly sponsored by Fastbolt Distributors, welcomed 28 teams making this the largest Quiz Night in the Hospice’s history.

The evening raised an amazing amount of over £4,200 of essential funds for the Hospice. 

Quiz Master Mike Rhodes did a splendid job of making the evening fun and competitive.

The overall winners were Sheila’s Wheels, one of the regular Quiz Night teams, who took home the beautiful glass winner’ s trophy.  Second prize went to The Park’s Trust Brains after an exciting tie breaker round with The Complete Blanks from HSBC being awarded runners up.

Julia Rogerson, Event and Promotions Manager said “I would like to thank Fastbolt Distributors UK Ltd, our main sponsor and the Jury’s Inn Milton Keynes for hosting this great event.  Thank you also to all the teams who took part and to Mike for doing such an excellent job as Quiz Master.  We hope to see all the teams taking part again next year”.

At the end of the night the teams were treated to a special preview from MK’s own Gaz Wesley, who has teamed up with the Hospice for his unique ‘Quiz of the Week’, allowing the Quiz Member a chance to become the Quiz Master!

GREAT RE-LEAF AT FROSTS GARDEN CENTRE

Frosts Garden Centre in Woburn Sands celebrated Garden Re-Leaf Day on Tuesday 13^th March.

On the day, the restaurant sold leaf-shaped cookies and cake to raise money for the Greenfingers Charity, which creates magical gardens for children’s hospices; in total they raised £200.

Over the road at Asquith Nursery, Woburn Sands, garden expert Maurice Rust helped the children plant flowers and fruit & vegetables for the autumn harvest.

James Frost, managing director at Frosts Garden Centre said: “These were two wonderful community activities to show our commitment to a nationally celebrated day across all garden enthusiasts. I would like to thank everyone that helped prepare for the day and for those that gave their time and money for a really good cause.”

The Garden re-Leaf day was designed to kick-start the Spring Season nationally.

Have you ever wondered if hypnosis really works?

If so, you’re not alone. Most people are very sceptical … maybe because they’ve seen stage Hypnosis and it looks a little fake.

I don’t blame you for having doubts – at times it does look a little contrived!

So let’s take a very brief look at what Hypnosis is:

Have you driven the same route day after day and sometimes arrived at your destination and cannot remember the drive?  Have you have watched the TV but not really seen what is on the screen?  Then you have been in a trance like state just like hypnosis.  Some people compare it to daydreaming or like the moment just before you go to sleep!

Once your mind is quiet and relaxed, in this trance like state, then your subconscious is open to positive suggestions given to it; the positive desires you want to happen to improve your life.

Cognitive Hypnotherapy using a combination of CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy), a type of therapy that aims to help you manage your problems by changing how you think and act; encourages you to talk about how you think about yourself, the world and other people, and how what you do affects your thoughts and feeling, together with hypnotherapy (hypnosis for positive change) can be very powerful as it tackles both the rational and emotional parts of the mind.

Think about this – one part of your mind wants a bar of chocolate, a cigarette or has a irrational fear; or even low self esteem based on something that happened long ago in your childhood (that’s your subconscious mind), while another part of the mind is saying “I don’t want this” (That’s your conscious mind) … and …. Guess which one wins? I think we all know the answer to that question!

Using Cognitive Hypnotherapy we can work in partnership to convince the conscious and subconscious mind to change that unwanted behavior.

For more information contact Leigh on 01908 265410

(based in Gt. Holm, Milton Keynes)

e-mail: leigh@setyourmindfree.co.uk

or visit our website Set Your Mind Free

SHARING KNOWLEDGE IS KEY TO UNDERSTANDING ME

National ME/CFS conference to be held in Milton Keynes

Up to 130 healthcare professionals from across the UK will visit Milton Keynes on Wednesday 14 and Thursday 15 March to attend the British Association for CFS/ME (BACME) 2012 conference.

The conference, facilitated by the Association of Young People with ME (AYME), is the only one of its kind in the UK for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME)/chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) specialists, who will be able to share their knowledge and experience, provide updates on research currently being carried out and present recent findings.

Theatrescience, a highly acclaimed theatre company that has an excellent reputation for its collaborations with the medical profession, will also perform a production on CFS/ME at the conference.

Professor of psychological medicine at St Bartholomew’s Hospital, Peter White, will give the keynote speech at the event about the pacing, graded activity and cognitive behaviour therapy (PACE) trial, the first in the world to test and compare the effectiveness of the main treatments currently available for people suffering from ME/CFS.

Dr Esther Crawley, service lead for the children and young people’s CFS/ME service at Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases NHS FT in Bath, researcher at the University of Bristol and medical adviser for AYME, will be one of the many guest speakers at the event, updating delegates on research, including her much publicised research paper revealing that as many as one in 100 secondary school pupils could be missing school because of ME/CFS.

Mary-Jane Willows, CEO of AYME says: “We are pleased to be facilitating the BACME 2012 conference. AYME is the largest charity in the UK for children and young people with ME, it helps thousands of children, parents and carers to cope with the isolating and complex symptoms of ME, and the conference will enable specialists to learn more about the condition, and share their knowledge and expertise.”

For further information visit www.ayme.org.uk or telephone 08451 232389.

Interdirect Loves Facebook Timeline For Business

Social media is becoming an increasingly important marketing tool, exploited by forward thinking corporates seeking to contact hard to reach demographics. Hannah James, online marketing specialist at full service agency, Interdirect, discusses the recent changes to Facebook’s business page format, and explains how easy it is for businesses to get on board with Facebook Timeline.

Here are five reasons why Hannah loves Facebook’s new Timeline for business:

     1.       Snazzy new look

Facebook Timeline for business is very similar to Timeline for personal profiles, enabling businesses to add a cover photo and, with the page split in two, it highlights posts in milestones, for example company announcements, launches and new products and services. The updated look and feel will bring a human element to your brand’s page, which will undoubtedly encourage visitors to proactively engage with the content and respond to updates from your business.

     2.       Keeping it clean

The panel of links, which was previously displayed on the left of the page and included hundreds of tabs, has thankfully been replaced with a much tidier tool bar of essential information, with further tabs available at the click of a drop-down button. Businesses can now choose their top three apps – good page analytics should help to determine the most viewed links.

     3.       Out with the old

The ability to set a default landing page, a popular tool with many savvy marketers, as it enabled them to control visitors’ first impressions of the page, has been scrapped. Businesses will need to regularly update the top messages in their Timeline, to ensure they give the best possible overview of the brand and its products and services. Facebook ads will be the only way to send new and clicking users directly to individual applications.

     4.       In with the new

My favourite new feature is the ability to ‘pin’ specific posts to the top of the Timeline. Pinning a post will put it above all other content on the Timeline, and can be recognised by a small, orange tag in the right hand corner of the post. Only one item can be pinned at any one time, and the post will appear both at the top of the page and in its chronological position.

     5.       Tell me more…

Unlike your old business page, you will now be able to engage in conversation with interested parties via private messaging. This means businesses can now follow up leads, respond to customer enquiries and make contact with potential new customers.

Timeline is changing Facebook as we know it, and the new format can only be a positive move for businesses who want to get ahead of the game when it comes to utilising the power of social media.  Businesses that regularly update their page with interesting and engaging content now have the best tools yet to attract visitors’ attention. What will your business do with Facebook Timeline?

Mums are special at Calcutta Brasserie!

The Wildest Way to Spoil Mum this Mother’s Day is at Woburn Safari Park!

Take your mum on safari to meet the wild animals of Africa without even leaving the English countryside! 

Book your discounted family tickets online for a visit on the weekend of the 16^th – 17^th March and you will be entered into a special Mother’s Day competition to win a fantastic luxury weekend break for your Mum.

Simply book online to be entered and you will enjoy a wild family day out driving through the safari reserves in over 300 acres of beautiful parkland. Meet elephants, lions, zebra, giraffe, tigers, rhino and bears!  Your action packed day out includes sea lion and parrot shows, elephant and birds of prey demonstrations and close encounters with over 800 magnificent animals.

The amazing Mother’s Day prize includes an overnight stay at the Inn at Woburn, with a meal for two; an annual ticket for Woburn Safari Park for two adults and two children; a VIP Experience going off road and behind the scenes at the park; Admission tickets for Woburn Abbey and Afternoon Tea at the Duchess’ Tea Rooms.

Buy your special Mother’s Day weekend tickets online at www.woburn.co.uk/safari where you will also find full terms and conditions of the competition. 

£30,000 investment completes new look Abbey Hill Golf Centre

Abbey Hill Golf Centre has further enhanced its facilities following a £30,000 investment to create a brand new golf shop.

This latest injection takes the total investment enjoyed by Abbey Hill – part of Burhill Golf & Leisure, the UK’s leading golf course owner and operator – to more than £800,000 in one year following the opening of Pirate Island, MK’s first adventure golf facility, last October.

This investment has helped Abbey Hill to increase revenue with a 10% rise in people using the 21-bay covered and floodlit driving range and the Par-3 Short Course, since the opening of Pirate Island Adventure Golf – a course based around mini golf with players requiring only a putter to navigate their ball around an 18-hole course littered with cunning pirate-themed obstructions.

Now, the old shop has been completely gutted and a new, larger retail space has been opened in its place, giving visitors to the centre more choice than ever before and completing the construction of the modern complex.

Gordon Forster, General Manager of Abbey Hill Golf Centre, said: “We are experiencing growth around the whole facility. Turnover in the new Coffee Bar is starting to increase quite a lot, which I believe is down to the new modern style clubhouse along with free WiFi making it far more attractive to people who would not normally think about coming to a golf complex for a drink or bite to eat.

 “The previous retail outlet was beginning to look a little out-dated when compared to the rest of the centre – with the new coffee shop, snack bar and of course Pirate Island.

“We have now brought that up to date and more in line with the rest of our facility and offer golfers more choice when they’re looking for new equipment, clothing and accessories.”

Staffed by expert PGA Professionals and stocking the latest golf equipment from the sport’s leading brands – such as TaylorMade, PING, Cobra, Callaway and clothing from Puma and Nike – golfers of Milton Keyes will find everything they need.

For further details visit www.abbeyhillgc.co.uk or www.pirateislandgolf.co.uk