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ActivAge Spring Activities at Age Concern Sunderland

Age Concern Sunderland has a wealth of ActivAge, Leisure and Learning activities and classes, for the 50+ age group of our City.

The activities take place on a daily basis at the Bradbury Centre, Stockton Road, Sunderland, and at various other venues across the city.

Activities include positive health and well-being, tea dances, computing classes and computer drop-in, modern language classes, geology, researching your family tree and job search skills.

Age Concern Sunderland is holding ‘Open Days’, Monday 4 and Tuesday 5 January 2010, 10.00am - 3.00pm. Come along to the Bradbury Centre and take the opportunity to find out more information and enrol on courses and activities. Courses commence Monday 11 January 2010.

There is also a series of computer taster sessions, throughout the open days and you will have the opportunity to find out more about Age Concern Sunderland’s other services, including benefits advice, insurance services etc.

Director of Age Concern Sunderland, Alan Patchett commented “We have so much of interest on offer this year for older people in Sunderland and would be delighted to see many new participants taking advantage of our programme of activities.”

For more information, please contact: Paula Spraggon, ActivAge Manager on 0191 5141131

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“Dear MP, this Christmas I would like affordable energy bills…”

Age Concern Sunderland launches Christmas card campaign to end fuel poverty

Age Concern Sunderland is inviting older people in the community to write a Christmas card to their local MP asking their support for a new system of social tariffs that could help the 9,133 households in Sunderland’s four constituency areas living in fuel poverty.

The launch of this Christmas campaign comes just a few days after new figures revealed last winter’s 24% increase in the number of excess winter deaths in the north east region compared to the previous year.

Last winter, as temperatures plunged, rising inflation and soaring energy bills forced four in ten older people across the country to cut back on their heating to save money and thousands of older people will face the same cruel choice between eating and heating this Christmas. To prevent this from happening ever again, Age Concern Sunderland is calling on local MPs to use the Energy Bill, currently going through Parliament, to bring in a new system whereby older people on low incomes are automatically placed on the lowest tariffs available from their energy supplier.

Research shows that with the average energy bill at £1,026 at the start of the year, a cut of £100 would reduce fuel poverty by 45 per cent and a cut of £200 would reduce it by 60 per cent.

Alan Patchett, Director of Age Concern Sunderland, said:
“It’s a national scandal that just over a third of older households in the UK are living in fuel poverty. Thousands of older people will have to choose between eating and heating again this Christmas, as they did last winter. After dithering for far too long, MPs must now bring in mandatory social tariffs for older people on low income as a matter of urgency.”

Christmas cards are available at Age Concern Sunderland, Bradbury Centre, Stockton Road, Sunderland, SR2 7AQ and on the Age Concern and Help the Aged websites www.ageconcern.org.uk and www.helptheaged.org.uk.

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Number 26 - Information Café



NOW OPEN at 26 Stockton Road from 9.30am to 3.30pm Monday to Friday
Meet your friends, come in for a chat and access lots of information.

Fruit Teas	£1.00	Sandwiches	£1.20
Pot of Tea	£1.00	Toasted Sandwich	£1.30
Black Coffee	£0.90	Quiche and Salad	£1.50
Cappuccino	£1.10	Beans on Toast	£1.30
Latte	£1.10	Jacket Potato and Filling - From	£1.30
Macchiato	£1.20	Cake/Muffin	£1.00
Hot Chocolate	£1.10	Toasted Teacake	£0.90
Bottled Water	£0.60	Chocolate Biscuit	£0.30
Soft Drink/Cans	£0.70	Jam	£0.20
Fruit Juice	£0.60	Scone	£0.80
		Crisps	£0.20

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Tea With Dorothy

Are you 50+? . .
Looking for a place to meet other lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered people in a relaxed, social environment Come along to:

Tea with Dorothy Sunderland
We meet on 2nd and 3rd Wednesday
every month – 5pm–7pm
For more information contact
Good Neighbour Co-odinator at
Age Concern Sunderland
Tel: (0191) 514 8321

Tea With Dorothy Download PDF format Here

Note: You will need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader if you don't already have it installed on your PC in order to view/print the downloadable PDF.
You can download Acrobat Reader here: Adobe Acrobat Reader

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Suggestion Scheme

Your suggestions, opinions and views for improvement within Age Concern Sunderland are greatly appreciated and are very important; ultimately they may benefit older people in the City.


A reminder of the ways you can make suggestions:

• Via the suggestion form, which you can download here.
• obtain from notice boards or from the General Office at the Bradbury Centre.
• obtain from Area Offices in Hetton, Houghton and Washington.
• Telephone Maxine on 0191 5141131, fax 0191 5670378.
• email to make a suggestion which will be passed on to the Director.
• By letter addressed to the Director at our Bradbury Centre office.

In particular, we would be very interested to hear any thoughts on the following:

• Raising awareness of/attracting more people from the 50-65 year age range to Age Concern Sunderland.
• We know more social events would be appreciated, but what in particular would interest you?.
• What are your thoughts on slimming/healthy eating/lifestyle groups, talks, demonstrations, socialising/dating/relationship clubs?.

Suggestions are dealt with in confidence and responded to directly (unless made anonymously, for which a general response will be given via internal meetings). Thank you for your time and efforts for Age Concern Sunderland and in working with and for older people in the City of Sunderland.