Some weeks it can feel like everything
is conspiring to make you feel your age. For example, on Thursday, I bought us tickets
to see Tubular Bells for Two next year at the Royal Northern College of Music. Unlike
the original album where Mike Oldfield played all the instruments himself,
using a crude mixing system to bring them all together, this show involves two
men playing all the instruments live to reproduce the music. It should be an interesting
show. The original Tubular Bells album was released in 1971. It sold over 30
million copies and was the founding album for Richard Branson’s Virgin Records
company. In some ways, I think the intervening 47 years have perhaps been
kinder to Mike and Richard than myself – although I still have the original LP
and I can’t really complain; it just made me feel my age.
Likewise, I read a story last
week of a new phenomenon sweeping through Finland. It was a story of how people
of all ages were rejecting buying new in favour of recycling older objects;
furniture, clothes, artwork and so on. Giant supermarket-style shops specialising
in selling such not-for-profit re-use items are reportedly springing up
everywhere. They are called Kierratyskeskus. It is said they are so popular
that they are even challenging the Swedish furniture company, IKEA for ‘market
share’ (other furniture stores are available). One Sunday, some 20 years ago on
a very early ERASMUS visit to Turku in Finland, I asked if there were any car boot
sales that I could go and look at. I was told no, but there was this new ‘shop’
that had just opened selling second-hand items. I went and was well satisfied. I
even found yet another chicken to add to my collection. Reading the story of
how much of a social movement the Kierratyskeskus had become in the last 20
years was very interesting, but it made me feel my age.
Equally interesting last week,
was an item at the Greater Manchester Health and Care Board. This was a report
into the Mental and Emotional Wellbeing in Education Settings programme. The report
brought folk up to date with where the programme had got to – and I wrote about
some of these activities as they related to the four universities in Greater
Manchester and the work of the CAMHs services in Wigan a month ago – (see here).
To illustrate the progress of the
programme, two young people had been invited along to talk about their experiences
of being part of the Mentally Healthy Schools Pilot. Hearing first hand from
those with current experience of something is always better than reading a
written report (however well written it might be). They were good presenters
and told their story well. The pilot involved 30 schools and was aimed at helping
young people to better look after their emotional health and wellbeing. In addition,
it also provided teachers with the advice and support they need to either give
mental health first aid or if required, more expertly refer young people on to specialist
services. I was impressed with the progress, the level of engagement, and the integration
of approaches achieved across many agencies and organisations. The full report
is worth a read and can be found here.
In the Twitter discussion after the
meeting, there was one tweet that caught my attention: ‘[A] really interesting
point made @GM_HSC health and care board today that young people’s well-being
and resilience would be better supported by protecting sport and performing
arts in secondary schools. I totally agree’ – and so do I, and I’m so glad to
see the daily mile being taken up by so many schools. But I was saddened that
we are now having to replace much of the stripped away common sense approaches
to keeping children and young people healthy in their early years education, and
that made me feel my age.
However, on Friday, I was glad to
feel my age! It was the annual Recognising Excellence Awards night at Wrightington,
Wigan and Leigh NHS Trust. Reflecting the NHS70 celebrations, the theme for the
night was 70s and fancy dress was the preferred option. Now at the start of the
70s, I was just 15 years old and so as a young person I grew up and shaped a
great deal of myself during that decade. So last Friday I rooted through my
wardrobe and found everything I wanted (except my silver platform, knee high
boots) and complete with beads and the obligatory black hat I set off and
joined the party! It was a fabulous evening. Awards were given for innovation, collaboration,
compassion, unsung heroes, leadership and a new one for our apprentice of the year.
We had a great dinner, the conversation and fizz flowed, and the room was full
of colour and noise – it was straight out of the 70s as I remember them. Once the
awards were made, the meal finished, the dance floor was cleared, and the band
began to play – I decided it was time to leave, which after years of dancing at
various do’s, made me feel my age.
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