Avast ye! Partyworld.ie calls on all “sea dogs” to break the World Record

Partyworld, based in the Riverstown Business Park in Tramore, Co. Waterford, is renowned for supplying fancy dress costumes and accessories to kids and adults for every occasion for the last three years. This year sees Partyworld.ie get on board with the Guinness World Record attempt to host the largest gathering of pirates in the world which take place from 9.30am on Friday, July 1^st, starting from Bolton Street Car Park.

Partyworld.ie is supplying 1,000 free “Pirate Packs” for any aspiring “sea dogs” and have even kitted out MC of the event Cap’n Roddie “Jolly Roger” Cleere.

Sonya Kelly of Partyworld.ie is delighted to be involved with this world record breaking attempt. “The anticipation ahead of the Tall Ships Festival is amazing. There is so much going on over the three days and the Pirates Guinness World Record breaking attempt has created such a buzz. We have already started distributing the 1,000 free Pirate Packs from Garter Lane Theatre and they are being snapped up.”

“The content of the Pirate packs varies but contain everything any self respecting pirate would need, including a cutlass, eyepatch, a pirates hat and in some cases a hook, pistol and pirates earrings.”

So why not get behind the drive to break the Guinness World Record Largest Gathering of Pirates in one place...... grab your eyepatch and get to Bolton Street Car Park on Friday, July 1^st at 9.30am.

For further details check www.partyworld.ie

Waterford Businesses are ready to get online!

Waterford City Enterprise Board, in association with Google, hosted a free web seminar giving small businesses and sole traders the opportunity to create a website and get on line for free.

The event which took place in the Tower Hotel saw over 60 business people in attendance, who heard about the importance of Irish businesses being on line.

Ciaran Cullen, Acting CEO, Waterford City Enterprise Board welcomed the attendees and gave a presentation on “Bringing your business online – The Business Case.” Having identified that 40% of Irish commercial SMEs do not have a website and almost 60% do not have an entry in an online directory, Mr. Cullen’s presentation made the case as to why Irish businesses need to be online to survive and thrive in an increasingly competitive trading environment.

Ronan Cleary of Eagle Dreams addressed the audience as to how to get online through www.gettingbusinessonline.ie and Denis Hegarty of WSI Success on Line highlighted the potency of online marketing and how to maximise its benefits through Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), Google ad words and social media.

Mr. Cullen was delighted with the attendance. “It’s great to see so many new and not so new small businesses now taking the initiative and putting the systems in place to get online. By working with local web professionals or through www.gettingbusinessonline.ie local businesses will be able to consolidate their current position in the marketplace and through their websites open up new markets.”

“The follow up workshops will begin on July 5^th and these workshops will outline the process of setting up a free, easy to update site, will give businesses a free .ie, .eu or .com domain for one year and all participants will receive €100 worth of Adwords.”

If you have a business that needs to get online there is a limited amount of workshop places available (€25 for two workshops).

To register or for further information about getting your free business website call Waterford City Enterprise Board on 051 – 852883 or log onto www.gettingbusinessonline.ie

A historic day for Waterford

The magnificently restored Bishop’s Palace was officially opened by Dr Leo Varadkar TD, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport at on Wednesday June 22^nd in the presence of Cllr. Mary Roche, Mayor of Waterford City and Dr Pat Wallace, Director of the National Museum of Ireland.

Waterford City Enterprise Board to get businesses on line for free

Waterford City Enterprise, in association with Google, will host a free web seminar that will give small businesses and sole traders the opportunity to create a website and get on line for free.

The initiative, “Getting Irish Business Online”, was recently launched by An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, T.D. and calls on all businesses that do not have a website to log on to www.gettingbusinessonline.ie where they can create their business website for free.

Research by Google found that 40% of Irish commercial SMEs do not have a website and almost 60% do not have an entry in an online directory.

According to Ciaran Cullen, Acting CEO of Waterford City Enterprise, Waterford businesses match the national trend. “Some of these statistics uncovered by Google are quite astonishing. Currently, over 75% of customers use the internet as their primary tool for researching new companies and products and 68% believe that search engines help to find relevant sellers of products. Companies, particularly start ups, are at a distinct disadvantage if they don’t have an online presence. For many new companies there are many outlays in setting up, such as production, staff, overheads and utilities, so in many cases on line marketing takes a back seat.”

“This seminar and subsequent workshops will give small businesses that don’t have an online presence the advice, tools and resources to get online. The seminar will be followed up by two workshops for participants. These workshops will cost €25 and participants will get the chance to work with trainers and professionals in creating their own website, getting online, opening up new markets and generally becoming more competitive.”

“Looking at the statistics from Google we really believe that an online presence is crucial for small business success. By creating a website through Getting Irish Business Online or by working with local professional web designers SME’s can become more viable.”

Waterford City Enterprise Board free Web seminar will take place on Thursday, June 23^rd at the Tower Hotel, Waterford from 9am to 11.30am. The follow up workshops will commence on Tuesday July 5^th.

To register for the seminar and workshops or for further information about getting your free business website call Waterford City Enterprise Board on 051 – 852883 or log onto www.gettingbusinessonline.ie

The Bishop’s Palace Museum - history on the move!

The magnificently restored Bishop’s Palace will be officially opened by Dr Leo Varadkar TD, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport at on Wednesday June 22^nd in the presence of Cllr. Mary Roche, Mayor of Waterford City and Dr Pat Wallace, Director of the National Museum of Ireland.

The historic Bishop’s Palace reveals the story of Waterford from 1700 to the 1970s and contains many items of national and international significance, including the only surviving Bonaparte ‘mourning cross’ in the world (only twelve of these crosses were originally made in 1812 on Bonaparte’s death ), the Penrose decanter – the oldest surviving piece of ‘Waterford Crystal’ which dates back to 1789, as well as the precious van der Hagen 1736 painting of Waterford city which was commissioned by Waterford Corporation for the princely sum of £20 and which has hung in the council chambers for many years.

The Bishop’s Palace offers a unique experience for visitors. The building contains a cornucopia of fascinating artifacts, period furniture, beautiful fireplaces and a collection of rare and important paintings. An entire floor of the building is dedicated to historic stories specific to Waterford such as Ballybricken’s pig markets, Waterford’s Home Rule story, the First World War in Waterford, the War of Independence in Waterford, childhood and household living in Waterford and the fascinating story of Brendan Bowyer and the ‘Hucklebuck’!

Waterford city boasts the finest collection of 18^th century architecture of any city in Ireland outside of Dublin, and its great legacy from the period is its elegant architecture, silverware and of course, fine glassmaking. This period of elegance began in Waterford in 1741 when the Anglo-German architect Richard Cassels designed the wonderful Bishop’s Palace. Today Richard Cassels is celebrated as one of Ireland’s greatest architects having designed most of the great buildings of Ireland including Powerscourt House, the Rotunda Hospital and the seat of the Irish parliament, Leinster House in Dublin.

Eamonn McEneaney, Director of Waterford Museum of Treasures stated that “The Bishop’s Palace is one of the most important 18^th century buildings in Waterford which has now been restored to its former glory as a typical grand residence of its time. This wonderful building has been transformed into a showcase for the great treasures of 18^th and 19^th century Waterford for everyone to enjoy.”

The Bishop’s Palace is the jewel in the crown of the Waterford Museum of Treasures. It marks a significant milestone in the development of the Viking Triangle, Waterford’s historic city centre. With over 1,000 years of history in 1,000 paces, Waterford’s unique history, heritage and culture are key to developing a successful tourism industry. The Viking Triangle development has been made possible under Fáilte Ireland’s Tourism Capital Investment Programme as part of the National Development Plan 2007 – 2013.

Eamonn McEneaney (Director of Waterford Museum of Treasures) and Mr. Michael Walsh (Waterford City Manager) are available for interviews on the Bishop’s Palace and Waterford’s Viking Triangle.

The Bishop’s Palace is open to the public from Thursday 23^rd June 2011. Full details of opening hours, admission prices and guided tours are available at www.waterfordtreasures.com or on Facebook.

New Viking Exhibition at Reginald’s Tower

Another significant step in Waterford’s development as a major tourism destination takes place this week, when Waterford Museum of Treasures opens an exciting new exhibition at Reginald’s Tower that, using a superb collection of historic and archaeological artefacts, tells the important story of Waterford’s Viking heritage.

Waterford is Ireland’s oldest city and dates back to 914 A.D. when the first Vikings came to Waterford. Almost 1,100 years later, traces of the Viking legacy can be found in Waterford in such names as Reginald’s Tower, Olaf Street, Ballygunner and Ballytruckle as well as in popular family surnames such as Doyle and MacAuliffe.

Among the exhibition’s many striking artefacts is a Viking ‘face weight’ that is thought may have originated in Iraq. Other items on display include combs, a copper dog collar, gaming pieces, ringed pins, and of course the famous kite brooch, of the finest pieces of Viking metal work surviving which was found in a pit in Peter Street and is known to have been made locally. The kite brooch bears testimony to the wealth and sophistication of Waterford’s early inhabitants.

Reginald's Tower is the oldest urban civic building in Ireland, and Waterford's most recognisable landmark. It was in this tower that Strongbow, leader of the Anglo-Norman invasion force, met Aoife, the daughter of Dermot McMurrough, King of Leinster. Their marriage was to change the course of Irish history forever.

In later centuries, the tower took on the functions of a royal castle and was later used as a mint and a prison. To this day, it remains Waterford's most recognisable landmark.

Within Waterford’s historic city centre known as the Viking Triangle, there is over 1,000 years of history in 1,000 paces. Along with its Medieval and Georgian architecture, Waterford possesses a remarkable collection of internationally important museum artefacts that span over a thousand years of the city’s history. As part of the development of the Viking Triangle, Waterford Museum of Treasures is relocating into three new locations: The Bishop’s Palace, Reginald’s Tower and Choristers’ Hall (opening 2012).

Waterford’s history, heritage and culture are key to developing a successful tourism industry and the development of Waterford’s historic city centre, the Viking Triangle, has been made possible under Fáilte Ireland’s Tourism Capital Investment Programme as part of National Development Plan 2007 – 2013. The restoration of the Bishop’s Palace and the new Viking Exhibition at Reginald’s Tower are cornerstones in the larger strategic vision for the Viking Triangle.

Some statistics about Waterford Museum of Treasures:

- Over 150 people have been employed during the restoration of the Bishop’s Palace and the development of the Viking exhibition at Reginald’s Tower.

- Waterford Museum of Treasures will eventually employ approximately 15 people when the entire project is completed.

- Waterford Museum of Treasures expects to reach a target of aquarter of a million visitors over the next three years.

33% of people do not need to be in a nursing home.

With over €1 billion being spent on the Fair Deal in Ireland and 33%[1] of people not needing to be in an nursing home, the Government is spending €330 million on people that could be looked after at home at a fraction of the cost.

At present 4.5% of the older population in Ireland live in long-stay residential care. That is 40% higher than the EU average of 3.2%. Of those residents 33% are assessed as either a low or medium dependency which means they could easily be cared for in the community. This means that with an average weekly cost of a nursing home at €778, there are substantial savings to be made if a big percentage of these people can be kept at home.

A further 1% of the population are in hospital, with evidence that for many of them their discharge is delayed because of the absence of Respite, Rehabilitation or adequate home-care funding. An acute hospital bed costs upwards of €7,000 per week.

With the prediction that the number of people 75+ to double by 2021, it makes it even more important that the Government needs to shift valuable resources into more cost effective community and home care services.

The Home Care Association propose a fresh approach to supporting older people to remain in their own homes, where substantial savings could be achieved compared to the cost of nursing home and hospital care for many people who do not need to be in those residential facilities and who would be much happier to live a more independent life in their homes.

About the HCA

Representing 50 members across Ireland, the Home Care Association (HCA) is the trade association representing professional home care providers in Ireland, who directly employ, train, Garda vet, supervise and insure caregivers so as to provide a quality service to clients.

For Information, log on to www.homecareassociation.ie. Or call Ed Murphy 087-2306230

[1]Health in Ireland Key Trends 2010http://www.dohc.ie/publications/pdf/key_trends_2010.pdf?direct=1

Figure 4.3 - Low and Medium Dependency Residents

Home Instead Senior Care highlights World Elder Abuse Awareness Day

World Elder Abuse Awareness Day takes place on Wednesday June 15^th. Every year this international initiative raises public awareness about elder abuse in its many forms; physical, sexual, psychological, financial, discriminatory and neglect.

Awareness of elder abuse has risen in the last year with more than 2,000 cases of elder abuse reported to the Health Service Executive (HSE) last year, up almost 13 per cent on the previous year.

It was recently reported in the Irish Times that the figures were presented to The Irish College of General Practitioners at their annual conference in Galway and showed that in 95% of cases the abuse was alleged to have occurred in the older person’s home. Approximately 65 per cent of the alleged victims were women and half the victims were over 80 years of age.

Home Instead Senior Care was established in Ireland in 2005 to bring practical, cost effective and above all, kind and compassionate non-medical care to elderly and disabled people who wish to remain living in their own homes.

Danette Connolly, Director of Care at Home Instead Senior Care said: "Elder abuse is appalling and it so important that we come together as a community and take particular care to look out for older people and be aware of instances of elder abuse.”

“World Elder Abuse Awareness Day highlights what measures we, as families, friends and communities, can take if we become aware of elder abuse.”

“We would urge anybody who is concerned that an elderly person in the community is at risk of abuse to contact the HSE Information Line on 1850 24 1850 or our Waterford Home Instead office directly on 051 333966.”

Ms. Connolly added “If you suspect an ageing loved one is the victim of abuse, Home Instead Senior Care encourages you to do the following;

Listen to seniors and their caregivers to make sure they are being cared for appropriately. Report suspected elder abuse to your local HSE office or An Garda Siochana. Visit ageing loved ones as often as possible so the older person sees you as someone they could trust and talk to about any difficulties they may have. Seniors that are isolated are more likely to be a victim of abuse.”

The most pertinent piece of advice I can offer to anyone is “Don't be silent. Tell someone. Get support and stop the abuse.”

To find out more about World Elder Abuse Awareness Day on June 15^th, call Danette Connolly of Home Instead Senior Care on 051 333966 or visit www.homeinstead.ie