Future Focus

“ Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” Mahatma Gandhi may have said this eons ago but in our ever evolving fast paced world, these pearls of wisdom are still relevant. Our Future Focus newsletter brings you information and opportunities on embarking on your learning journey whether it is for employment, developing a new skill or gaining confidence.

Learn to cook with an Air fryer or Slow Cooker. There are several dates and locations to choose from. Bookkeeping can be very tedious and time consuming especially for the self-employed. Our introductory course Bookkeeping for Self-Employed provides you with some basics that will get you started with some fundamentals.

10 October is World Mental Health day. This year the theme is ‘it is time to prioritise mental health in the workplace.’  Join online on this short  Mental Health Awareness that helps you recognise stress and anxiety and gain a better understanding of what support is available.

A New You is a 4-day training course to help improve your confidence and social skills. These sessions are free and fully funded under the Multiply project.

We hope to see you at some of these sessions. Continue to stay informed! Send us your feedback. We always look forwarding to hearing from you.

Kind regards,

Juli Riley
Head of Engagement and Skills

Employment support for every step of the way

Join us at our Leeming Road Hub on Fridays for employment support services.

• Creating online job-seeking profiles
• Writing CVs, personal statements, and cover letters
• Interview preparation techniques
• Communication tips

Appointments available every day

Contact: 01727 649960

training@communities1st.org.uk

If you are a care leaver between the ages of 17 - 25 and looking for work, the health and social care sector has opportunities!

We can support you in finding a role within the sector or the NHS. Click the button below to get in touch!

Come along and learn the benefits of cooking with a slow cooker.

Watch a demonstration on cooking a favourite recipe in the slow cooker. These sessions will also cover how to shop on a budget and to make your money go further in the supermarket.

Phone: 01727 649960

Email: training@communities1st.org.uk

Have an air fryer or considering buying one? Looking to cook cheaper and healthier? Come along to our three-hour cooking with an Air Fryer session. Learn to cook with one, add new recipes and learn about the cost savings. Cooking tips will be provided on this free course along with a chance to taste food cooked in the air fryer. 

Any Hertfordshire resident aged 19 and over is welcome to attend this course. Participants are eligible for the draw to win an air fryer if they have obtained a D grade or below in their Maths GCSE (or equivalent), or are in receipt of any benefits.

Phone: 01727 649960

Email: training@communities1st.org.uk

This course will provide a basic introduction to bookkeeping and will take place at the South Hill Centre in Hemel Hempstead.

You will to learn about:

• Setting up a basic bookkeeping system
• Accurately keep and record financial transactions
• Creating essential financial reports
• Taxation and compliance
• Reporting self-employment and expenses for Universal Credit

23 October 2024, 10am - 3pm

South Hill Centre, Cemetery Hill, Hemel Hempstead, HP1 1JF 

This is a four-day training course to help improve your confidence and social skills.

The course covers the following topics:

• Being assertive
• Team work
• Stress awareness
• Communication skills 

Dates - 18 and 19 November  and 2 and 3 December 2024

Time - 10am to 3pm

Venue  - Organ Hall Community Centre, 37 Bairstow Close, Borehamwood, WD6 4TB

Participants are required to attend all the sessions. Light lunch and refreshments will be provided. 

This one-hour online awareness session will serve as an introduction for staff and volunteers in the voluntary sector, healthcare staff, and the wider public on what Advance Care Planning (ACP) is. The session will include an opportunity to start thinking and talking about end-of-life care wishes and preferences. This session is for those who wish to explore more about ACP and what to include, for example Lasting Power of Attorney, ReSPECT, Advance Decisions to refuse treatment, and will introduce you to some of the templates that can be used to facilitate the process either for yourself, your loved ones, or those that you are working with.

7 October 2024, 12pm - 1pm - ONLINE

Introduction awareness session for staff and volunteers in the voluntary sector, healthcare staff and the public on how to be better at talking about death, dying and loss which covers bereavement. The session will be a look at why we don't talk about death, what a good death is for yourself, communication techniques​, empathy vs sympathy​, some the theories of loss and what to do and say. The session is to help people feel more confident in supporting people who might have a palliative care diagnosis and those who are bereaved. We will explore the social context of death and dying, considering the impact on good end-of-life care and bereavement support.

Please note this is an online session on Zoom. 

9 October 2024, 1.30pm - 3pm

Come and learn about effective ways to communicate with deaf people, as well as some basic sign language, at this deaf awareness online workshop. Participants coming to this session will gain the confidence and basic skills to communicate with those who are living with deafness and hearing loss. It will enable them to understand deafness, signs that someone can’t hear you, body positions and communicating.

There will be time for a Q and A at the end of this session. 

23 October 2024, 10am - 12pm - ONLINE

There is an increasing acknowledgement of the importance of the role of mental health in the wellbeing of individuals and the community as a whole. Being aware of your mental health can substantially reduce long term physical and mental health conditions and the stigma around it. 

The objectives of this online course are:

• To be able to recognise stress and anxiety and other mental health conditions
• To have a good understanding of what support is available to people with mental health conditions
• To be able to manage stress in day-to-day life.

13 November 2024, 10am - 11:30am - ONLINE

In partnership with Study Active, Live Longer Better in Hertfordshire are hosting a Masterclass Webinar. This webinar will explain what hypertension is and the different stages of hypertension.  We will look at how exercise can benefit hypertension and the exercise guidelines and considerations.  We will also briefly discuss some of the medications that are taken for hypertension and the implications of these on exercise. 

In Hertfordshire, around 1 in 4 adults live with high blood pressure (hypertension), consistent with the national UK average. However, many are unaware of their condition, as hypertension often presents no symptoms.

If you’re interested in learning more about the support and resources available to enable people to stay active whilst living with a long term health condition such as Hypertension, then please sign up to the event

If you have any questions about the event, or the wider project, please email hsphealth@herts.ac.uk 

Monday 14 October, 11am - 12pm

Our part-time courses allow you to develop skills in an informal, friendly and fun environment. Aimed at adults and the wider community, our courses can help you further your career, take up a new hobby or learn a new skill. We offer a range of part time courses suited to fit around your commitments, which include languages, writing, computing, art and design, personal development, cookery and more.