Manchester Airport Publishes Draft Master Plan To 2030

Manchester Airport has published details of its development plans for the next 25 years as it aims to become one of the leading 21st Century airports in the World.

The draft Masterplan describes how Manchester Airport will deliver its long-term role, set by the Government in the 2003 Aviation White Paper.

Included in the draft Masterplan are details of the challenges and opportunities for Manchester Airport during the next 25 years, the links between the Airport and the wider region, its physical development and how the positive and negative effects of the Airport’s growth will be managed.

An extensive consultation on Manchester Airport’s Masterplan is already underway with a wide range of stakeholders including local councils, residents, community groups, Members of Parliament, airlines, local businesses and regional inward investment and tourism authorities.

The current consultation ends on 29 September 2006. The final version of the Manchester Airport Masterplan will be published by the end of 2006.

Getting started with blogging software

Idealware, the web site providing candid reviews of software of interest to non-profits, added a feature on blogs over the summer. Getting started with blogging software is a good place to start (! ) - http://www.idealware.org/blogging_software/2006/06/introduction.php

You will have to register to read the report.

From: VolResource Newsletter 262

National Lottery Day

National Lottery Day is about thanking Lottery players who have raised £18.5 billion for good causes over the last 12 years. This year National Lottery Day is taking place earlier than usual on Saturday 23 September. The day will focus on a series of bigger highlight events, rather than hundreds of smaller ones.

Major events include a festival of wildlife at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust headquarters at Slimbridge, Gloucestershire, a festival of sport at Bolton Arena and a celebration of Welsh culture and history at The National Slate Museum in Wales. This year the National Lottery is working more closely with the BBC to demonstrate the impact of Lottery funding.

Individual events to celebrate the Lottery are still encouraged but there will be no supporting merchandise available. Instead there will be a huge ticket give-away. The public will be able to win free tickets to Lottery funded events and attractions across the UK. Tickets will include a rugby international match at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, theatre tickets during the Belfast Festival at Queen’s and family passes to Lottery funded visitor attractions such as The Eden Project, The Deep, Tate Modern, London Wetlands Centre and National Space Centre.

There will also be some special prizes to win such VIP tickets to a gala premiere event at the London Film Festival and a one-to-one dance lesson with a prima ballerina in the Scottish Ballet. For a chance to win, look out for these competitions on local BBC radio stations, in the local press and on the National Lottery Day website http://www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk/national_lottery_day/index.cfm from 18-23 September. The 2006 winners of The National Lottery Awards will also be announced on National Lottery Day and will be featured as part of a special BBC programme on 23 September.

New Dental Access Centre

A new Dental Access Centre (DAC) based at Manchester Dental Hospital on Oxford Road is now open to patients.

The new DAC is being funded by the Department of Health. The DAC will have two dedicated full time dentists. Charges for any treatment will be the same as in any normal NHS dental practice.

This is a joint initiative between Central Manchester Primary Care Trust which has commissioned the service and Central Manchester & Manchester Children’s University Hospitals Trust which provides the new service at Manchester Dental Hospital.

The new Dental Access Centre is an innovative facility as it is a primary care service delivered from a secondary care (hospital) setting.

“The new Dental Access Centre will improve access to NHS treatment for people who live, work or study in Manchester,” said Sue Assar, Chief Executive of Central Manchester PCT. “It will make a significant difference to a large number of local people and we are delighted that it is now up and running.”

In addition, the emergency service which previously operated in the morning only has also been extended to a full day service. This service is for the urgent relief of pain. This treatment is free of charge but standard NHS charges will apply to any follow-up treatment provided by the Dental Access Centre.

The Dental Access Centre is one of a number of initiatives that are being developed across the city to increase access to NHS dental care.

Ratings for care services

Star ratings for providers of adult care services in England (excellent, good, adequate or poor) are due to be introduced from mid-2007 by the Commission for Social Care Inspection, subject to a consultation running to 14th November. Go to http://www.csci.gov.uk/about_csci/publications/quality_ratings_consultations.aspx for download options.

From: VolResource Newsletter No. 261