Cornerstone News

From the past to the present

www.cornerstone.org.uk

SPRING/SUMMER 2010

Support the Cornerstone ..

This year is set to be a very exciting one for Cornerstone as we celebrate our 30th birthday! As many of you will be aware there are some great fundraising activities and events being organised to ensure staff, people we support and their families can join in the celebrations.

Our 30:30 Challenge sponsored by Ledingham Chalmers is our 30 themed fundraising initiative challenging you, along with the people we support, families and supporters to help us raise funds for Cornerstone. Visit our website which has all the materials you’ll need to make your challenge a success.

There is also a 30:30 Young People’s Challenge sponsored by Marathon Oil; working in partnership with Young Enterprise Scotland. This involves giving school children £30 and challenging them to come up with enterprising ideas to “grow” the money.

Please help spread the word about our 30:30 Challenge by speaking to your local schools, community groups and businesses. Flyers and booklets are available from the fundraising team.

We are planning to showcase the changes and developments within the social care sector over the past 30 years through a number of exhibitions which will include personal stories, archived materials, photographs, art-work and other items that represent 30 years of our history and changes in social policy. The exhibition will be launched at the Scottish Parliament on 1 June and will then travel to Glasgow, Dundee and Aberdeen.

There are many celebratory events planned locally including Race Nights, 5 a side football, 30th birthday parties and a fashion show. If you haven’t already, why not think about doing something in your area.

What’s On..

Paul Slater, a support worker at Cornerstone’s Rankine Street service in Dundee set himself a daunting fitness challenge to run two marathons back to back in aid of Cornerstone. He completed the epic 56-mile run from Ruchill in Glasgow to Edinburgh Quay in an amazing 8 hours and 40 minutes, raising £1,700 which he hopes to put towards garden decking for the Rankine Street service.

Paul wishes to thank everyone for their kind words and donations.

A double challenge for Paul

Button Box

Lets Dance!

New Patron

www.cornerstone.org.uk

Golfing champion, Richie Ramsay, has agreed to become our new Patron and is looking forward to learning more about our work. The PGA European Tour player and 2009 South African Open champion commented, “I am delighted to lend my support to Cornerstone. They provide a fantastic range of services and I wish them a successful year in 2010 as they celebrate their 30th anniversary.”

Two people we support made their stage debut at Glasgow’s Theatre Royal in January as part of the Go Dance Festival 2010.

Gerry Gallacher and Margaret Mary Carr, both supported by Cornerstone in West Dunbartonshire, attend the performance class of dance group Inspire. The class is a way for people with disabilities, their support workers and others to get together and be creative which has resulted in regular performances by the group. Both Gerry and Margaret love going to the class and we look forward to hearing of any future performances.

Richie Ramsay takes a swing

Mark Rait, Head of Marketing and Enterprise, has been sponsored by the Scottish Government to join a study tour of social enterprises in San Francisco and Vancouver.

The fourth Social Enterprise World Forum took place in April and Mark joined leaders from social enterprises around the globe to learn new methods for innovative social change.

Mark Represents at World Forum

Cornerstone has been named Robert Gordon’s College Junior School’s chosen charity of the year! The children of primary 6 and 7 put on a show of The Button Box performing songs from around the world. The night was a great success and raised funds which will make a real difference to the lives of the people Cornerstone supports.

www.cornerstone.org.uk

Malmaison Exchange

Veronica Stevenson a Cornerstone support worker from Glasgow recently took part in the Malmaison Exchange.

The exchange involved Veronica visiting the Malmaison Hotel in Glasgow for a week to gain an understanding of the work that goes into running a hotel. In turn a member of staff from Malmaison will be visiting a Cornerstone service to gain an idea of the work we do on a daily basis.

Veronica worked in various parts of the hotel including the reception, bar and restaurant and used the opportunity to look at how Malmaison can cater for the people Cornerstone supports whilst also comparing the different aspects of both jobs. To hear more about the exchange visit the intranet where you can view Veronicas diary of the week.

Veronica and Malmaison’s David Wedderburn

Cornerstone’s Annual Dinner 2010

Some of our guests

Cornerstone’s Annual Fundraising Dinner was held on 22 April at the Marcliffe Hotel in Aberdeen. The black tie event was attended by 260 guests and raised an amazing £53, 261 (net). The event, sponsored by BP, Optima Solutions and Technip UK Ltd, was a huge success and celebrated Cornerstone’s 30th anniversary whilst raising much needed funds to enable children and adults with disabilities and other support needs to enjoy a valued life. Guests from Aberdeen’s business community were welcomed by the Lord Provost of Aberdeen, Peter Stephen, and enjoyed a host of entertainment including comperes Roger Benton and former Miss Scotland, Nicola Jolly, and Annie Gunner Logan and Vic Rodrick, who provided a wry look at current affairs with topical musical comedy.

Companies and individuals had generously donated prizes for the silent auction, main auction and raffle. Popular lots included a three night stay at Trump Towers in Las Vegas and a painting by Kathleen Buchan.

The table, complete with Cornerstone cupcakes

www.cornerstone.org.uk

Glasgow Investors Dinner

Cornerstone held its second Glasgow Investors’ Dinner, sponsored by Space Solutions, at the Radisson Hotel in April. The dinner was a great opportunity to thank our corporate sponsors and investors for their support over the past year. A range of Glasgow business contacts attended to hear more about our work and were entertained by guest speaker, Thor Holt, director of Life and Limb Ltd.

We also presented our Cornerstone Investors’ Award to AVC Media Enterprises in recognition of their ongoing support.

Our 30th anniversary celebrations kicked off in style with the Dundee TASK Group Party on 26 February, two days before Cornerstone’s actual anniversary. The TASK Group, facilitated by Sue Thomson and Jackie Milne, held a disco at the Michelin Club and raised £736.20 on the night thanks to a raffle and an exciting game of bingo! The party was well attended by the people we support, staff and supporters, and a great time was had by all.

Other TASK Group parties will take place throughout the year so keep an eye out for what is being organised in your area.

Dundee TASK Group Party

We are delighted to announce that Cornerstone has recently been awarded the 15 Year Investors in People Award.

Liz Delaney, Head of Corporate Services comments, “the assessor was particularly impressed with the level of commitment despite the amount of change we are experiencing and was delighted to be involved in such a diverse organisation.”

Investing In People

Staff Awards

Mike Mccarthy, support worker, and Paul Stewart enjoy the party

We are looking for the stars of Cornerstone. We need your help to recognise those colleagues, teams and volutneers who do an exceptional job in helping us to achieve our aim.

The Staff Awards ceremony, sponsored by CNR, will take place this October at Norwood Hall in Aberdeen. More information will be coming soon about how to vote but in the meantime here are the categories so you can get thinking.

Categories:• Team Award for Outstanding Achievement• Families’ Award• TASK Group Award• Nick Baxter Award• Individual Award for Outstanding Achievement• Volunteer of the Year• Award for Innovation• Cornerstone Supporter of the Year

The Cornerstone 30th birthday cake

www.cornerstone.org.uk

Gift Corner, Corners Turned Ltd new social enterprise, was recently opened in Stonehaven by Sir Robert Smith MP. The newly refurbished shop sells a variety of gifts and embroidery products that have been produced in the partnering employment and training workshop also in Stonehaven. The shop and workshop provide employment opportunities to 18 people with disabilities and other support needs.

If your in Stonehaven come along and see the new shop, located at 26A Evan Street, Stonehaven.

We are always on the look out for social enterprise opportunities in other parts of the country. Please let Mark Rait, Head of Marketing & Enteprise know if you have an idea or spot an opportunity.

Agnes, Michelle and Pamela ready to welcome customers to the shop

Corners Turned Ltd has established a new upholstery business called Bennachie which was launched in Aberdeen in April. The new social enterprise employs two of Glencraft’s former employees and will continue to provide employment opportunities to people with disabilities while generating additional income to support our work in the community. The business offers a wide range of upholstery services to residential and commercial customers.

Gary Mackie, previously Glencraft’s Upholstery Manager, is responsible for managing the new business and commented “I am thrilled to be back in employment and enjoying the challenge of establishing a new social enterprise with Cornerstone.”

Gift Corner opens its doors

The team at the workshop

Gift Corner

Bennachie - Upholstery at it’s best

upholstery at its bestBennachie

Volunteering

Global XChange

www.cornerstone.org.uk

Cornerstone recently hosted two young people through the Global Xchange volunteer programme. Harriet from York and David from Tanzania were two of a group of 18 young people who spent three months volunteering with organisations throughout Aberdeen. David and Harriet spent the majority of their time assisting our Employment Service in Aberdeen and were very involved in the new social enterprise Gift Corner in Stonehaven.

Since January the group of 18 are doing the second part of their exchange in Dares Salaam, Tanzania. The volunteers have been involved in very different projects such as providing educational and training opportunities for vulnerable young girls. It has been great keeping in touch by email through this second stage of the programme and our Volunteer Service look forward to being part of the next exchange programme in 2010.

Dundee Fun Runners from 2009

We are looking for volunteers who are willing to tackle the 5k run in the name of Cornerstone! This event will be incorporated into our 30:30 Challenge and we want a team of 30 runners for Cornerstone on each date . So whether you are a regular runner, or whether your running shoes are hidden at the back of the wardrobe why not join one of our teams and benefit from a discounted charity entry fee?

For more information and to register online please visit our website or www.bigfunrun.com.

Our new ‘They Do It’ campaign has been launched targeting 16-25 year olds in a bid to recruit more young people into volunteering. More information can be found by visiting the volunteering pages on our website and ‘They Do It’ facebook page.

Calling all runners!

Stirling - Stirling University - Sat 10th Jul 2010 Aberdeen - Hazelhead Park - Sun 11th Jul 2010 Dundee - Camperdown - Sat 17th Jul 2010 Perth - North Inch - Sun 18th Jul 2010 Glasgow - Bellahouston Park - Sat 24th Jul 2010 Edinburgh - Holyrood Park - Sun 25th Jul 2010

At a recent Award ceremony in Edinburgh Jenna MacGre-gor was shortlisted for a Project Scotland award for her volunteering in the Children and Young People category. Jenna spent 3 months with the Star Carers Team based in Aberdeen and did a magnificent job organising the Sum-mer play scheme for children who have disabilities.

Well done Jenna and out thanks for all your hard work.

We continue to work towards the Healthy Working Lives (HWL) bronze award and are pleased with the enthusiasm many of you have shown for this initiative. Our evidence folders were submitted at the end of April to be assessed and we hope that by the time the next Cornerstone newsletter is printed we will have achieved the bronze award, allowing us to start working towards silver!

Our current health topic is Mental Health awareness. To highlight how kindness can have a positive impact on our mental health the 1st of March was identified as Cornerstone’s Random Act of Kindness day. It was great to hear some examples of how this day was marked across the organisation including; buying a valued colleague a bunch of flowers, paying a colleague a compliment, giving a new member of staff a welcome card and simply making someone a cup of tea. A member of staff in North Lanarkshire really embraced the act of kindness day by registering as an organ donor.

In the last newsletter we asked you to celebrate how your team has embraced and promoted HWL by nominating them for a prize. We have received nominations which highlight great examples of how involvement in HWL has had a positive impact, not only on the health/well being of staff, but also the people we support. By the time this newsletter goes to print the winners will have been announced so have a look at the intranet for details.

The HWL page on the intranet is regularly updated with useful information and now includes a ‘benefits’ section which details some of the health/well being benefits the organisation offers to employees including support to stop smoking, Halfords Cycle2Work scheme and Curves corporate gym membership.

If you have any suggestions/comments regarding Healthy Working Lives activity please contact your local health champion:

Valerie Kovarikova for the West Region, based in Airdrie on 0123671105Hilary Bennison for the Central Region, based in Fife on 01592780759Rosy Adams for the North Region, based in Aberdeen on 01224 256026

www.cornerstone.org.uk

Horsing around for HWLJackie Lamb, our HWL representative in Moray, offered Cornerstone staff the opportunity to ride her horse Ben as part of our ‘physical activity’ efforts. Christine Carney, service manager in Moray decided to take up the opportunity. Christine said, “as someone who is a bit afraid of horses this was a challenge for me but it was fantastic. What a great horse, a gentle giant and I felt so safe on him”. Due to the excellent feedback and amount of interest Jackie has kindly extended her offer until June this year. Anyone interested should contact Jacqueline.lamb@cornerstone.org.uk.

Christine in the saddle

Keep up to date with Cornerstone News on our website www.cornerstone.org.uk, or join us on Facebook and Bebo and receive regular updates, from news and events to the latest photo uploads.

We have recently launched our new DVD which can now be viewed on our YouTube channel CornerstoneScotland. Send the link of the DVD to your contacts to help more people learn about our work.

Keep in Touch

www.cornerstone.org.uk

Getting to know you.... Malcolm Laing

Who inspires you?A number of historical figures such as Ernest Shackleton and Winston Churchill and present day people such as Richard Branson, Ranulph Fiennes, Steve Redgrave and many others. But it’s not just famous people. I’m inspired by anyone who works hard and shows determination, commitment and loyalty. That applies to a lot of the Cornerstone staff and volunteers who demonstrate selfless dedication and patience. I am also inspired by a lot of those whom Cornerstone supports. Many of them go about their lives with little complaint despite in many cases suffering considerable disabilities and disadvantages of one form or another.

What do you think being a Cornerstone Board Director means?It’s a great privilege to be a director of an organisation which has such worthy aims, has done such a lot of good and has quite rightly built up an excellent reputation. With the privilege, however, comes a serious responsibility to safeguard that reputation, continue the good work and ensure the organisation goes from strength to strength. While the day to day work of the organisation is carried out by the Chief Executive and her team, it is the job of the Board to provide supervision, guidance and assistance.

What did you want to be when you were growing up? As a young boy a fighter pilot! As I grew older and wiser( and realised that with my poor eyesight I was never going to be a fighter pilot) I began to think about a career in law or the diplomatic service.

What was your first job? Picking fruit on a farm in the Mearns. I went on to have a variety of summer jobs as a student ranging from working in the now defunct Richards textile factory to pickling gherkins in Holland. My first “real” job was as an apprentice solicitor in Edinburgh.

Vice Chair of Cornerstone and Chair of Corners Turned Ltd