ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR GENERAL

SAGA

PRESS RELEASE

November 1, 2010.

LOCAL AUTHORITY HOME CARE CUT FEARS: COMMENT FROM ROS ALTMANN, DIRECTOR GENERAL, SAGA.

Councils in England and Wales could be forced to end home help for elderly and disabled people, the Local Government Association has said.

The LGA, which represents 422 authorities, has told MPs that budget cuts may result in services being restricted to only those with critical needs.

Ros Altmann, Director General of Saga, said: “This warrants an immediate and categorical response from the government. There is nothing worse than uncertainty, and thousands of elderly people and their families, have, in an instant, suddenly been told by representatives of frontline care providers – the LGA - that the system will not be able to cope, and that in some parts of the country home help will simply stop.

“But that uncertainty has been compounded: the government is saying the opposite – that there will be more money available for social care.

“There needs to be absolute clarification, and that clarification needs to be delivered – alongside assurances to the elderly and their families – that they will not be deserted.”

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley

im@pressrelations.co.uk

07788 978800

www.saga.co.uk

EUROCODES: PROFESSIONALISM IS “FALLING SHORT” IN UK CONSTRUCTION.

MCBAINS COOPER

PROPERTY & CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANCY

PRESS RELEASE

November 1, 2010.

EUROCODES: PROFESSIONALISM IS “FALLING SHORT” IN UK CONSTRUCTION.

Professionalism is “falling short” in the UK construction industry with a poor understanding of Eurocodes amongst British construction companies. 

The pan-European model building codes developed by the European Committee for Standardisation should have been fully adopted in the UK from April 2, 2010, when British Standard codes for construction stopped being updated.

“This is a potentially massive issue: our research indicates that the vast majority of construction industry professionals are blissfully unaware that Eurocodes are here - and that two-thirds of civil engineers feel uncomfortable with Eurocodes - and that they have been designing and specifying buildings to outdated British Standards since updates stopped,” said Paul Cowton of property and construction consultancy McBains Cooper.

“Only around a third of civil engineers said they’ve received any Eurocodes training. It’s a ticking time bomb, and sooner or later there’s going to be a slip up resulting in litigation at the very least.

“British Standards for building will be withdrawn completely in 2013, and simply aren’t being updated. But so far as we can see, the vast majority of professionals in building design simply don’t know about Eurocodes, but the front-line engineers do.

“We attended a seminar recently, and, anecdotally, literally 90% of the construction professionals in the room had not even heard of Eurocodes.

“So confusion reigns. If something goes wrong, there is huge potential for litigation, because they’re not designing to current best standards or using current best practice. There is a strong potential for legal action under Duty of Care.

“This is about professionalism in the construction sector, and, frankly, it is falling apart when it comes to Eurocodes. But it is a tediously important piece of legislation.

“Back in April we warned that Eurocodes will sneak up and bite any UK construction company or professional services business that does not recognise their importance.

"The EU directive states that national codes were to be withdrawn on 31st March 2010, and the BSI has confirmed they are complying with that directive and will not be supporting changes to British Standards beyond March. The updating of Building Regulations to reflect this directive will not take place until 2013. Many Engineers see this as the point of no return when they must use the Eurocodes.

“The fact is that it is the contracts that will decide when we must change, particularly public contracts which will undoubtedly require the change to take place immediately.”

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley

07788 978800

im@pressrelations.co.uk

www.mcbainscooper.com

Notes.

McBains Cooper.

McBains Cooper is an international inter-disciplinary property and construction consultancy, one of the most successful in its sector.

Driving and supporting projects ranging from minor works to major contracts worth more than £100 million, McBains Cooper operates across a variety of sectors throughout the UK, Europe and Latin America.

McBains Cooper is committed to environmental, social and economic sustainable development, and its integrated approach means it can deliver effective, award-winning solutions to its clients.

The business is involved in professional consultancy in property, infrastructure and construction, offering a wide range of consulting and design services including architectural, aesthetic or technical design, problem solving, budget management, facilities management, health and safety, sustainability consultancy and on-the-ground civil engineering.

The group employs 150 people. McBains Cooper has regional headquarters in London (head office), Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Manchester, Oxford, Windsor, Athens (Greece,) Lima (Peru), and Monterrey (Mexico), Mexico City and Miami, with associate offices in Belfast and Dublin. www.mcbainscooper.com

DEMENTIA ACTION ALLIANCE: COMMENT FROM ROS ALTMANN, SAGA.

ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR GENERAL


SAGA


PRESS RELEASE


October 27, 2010.

DEMENTIA ACTION ALLIANCE: COMMENT FROM ROS ALTMANN, SAGA.

Ros Altmann, Director General of Saga, the lifestyle organisation for over-50s, says the newly Dementia Action Alliance - charities, royal colleges, public and private companies pledging to transform the quality of life for people living with dementia – is a massive boost to the dementia consequence awareness cause.


Dr Altmann says that dementia issues are finally taking up their place on the social care agenda, and the momentum a potentially big-hitting alliance can provide is key.


“Dementia care, and, more importantly, dementia consequence awareness, is finally establishing traction. It may already seem to be a cause making progress, but for far too long it has been a cause hobbled by ignorance. Now is not the time to sit back and consider the job to have been well done, the fact is that we are a long, long way off establishing a full appreciation of just how debilitating the condition is, not just to people with dementia but for their carers, and, as life expectancy increases, the UK’s economy,” said Ros Altmann.


“Any initiative that has the potential to drive dementia consequence awareness, and hence force the government’s hand on dementia care, is a massively welcome addition to the movement to gain social justice for all those affected.

“The Dementia Action Alliance has the full support of Saga, and we will bring to bear whatever influence and support we can muster. It is a tremendous initiative.”


Ends


Further information:


Iain Macauley


im@pressrelations.co.uk


07788 978800


www.saga.co.uk

A GRAND CHRISTMAS, A FOUR GRAND CHRISTMAS IN FACT….

HOUSING UNITS

PRESS RELEASE

October 27, 2010.

A GRAND CHRISTMAS, A FOUR GRAND CHRISTMAS IN FACT….

Video.

Sales of Christmas decorations at Housing Units – which launched its 2010 festive department 106 days before Santa is due – have exceeded the same period in 2009.

But one super-enthusiastic shopper was so taken by the occasion of her visit that she spent more than £4,000 on decorations.

The department is 3,500 square feet of floor-space dedicated to Christmas trees, decorations and accessories, with seven ready-made decoration themes, while the front of the store is designed as a fairytale castle, with a layer of snow over outdoor displays and the entrance area – a special effect produced by designers more used to creating snow scenes in Disney movies.

“People seem to want a really grand Christmas this year, in every meaning of the word, with many families turning the decoration of the house into an event in its own right – by starting Christmas so early we have clearly helped both the consumer and the economy,” said Nick Fox, director of north-Manchester based Housing Units.

“While one customer spent £4,000 in one hit, it’s clear now that customers like the idea of being able to spread the cost of purchase of decorations, with many shoppers making return visits - and UK families are very much following the North American trend of making Christmas a much bigger and more decorative event in any case – so they’re actually spending more on what they really want, and spreading the cost.

“A good part of the reason for the relentless demand is that we have created seven self-contained design and colour themes – this enhances the decorative abilities of those with a good eye, but also proves to be a solution for the less well naturally co-ordinated.”

Housing Units – known for its top-hatted doormen - was established in 1947. It is a family-owned furnishings retailer based in Wickentree Lane, Failsworth, Manchester M35 9BA, next to Junction 22 of the M60. It stocks 30,000 high-quality lines across a range of departments in two buildings and a crescent of specialist shops, and prides itself on its unique style of customer service, the value of its goods and the shopping experience it provides.

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley

0161 929 0446/07788 978800

im@pressrelations.co.uk

www.housingunits.co.uk

TENS OF THOUSANDS OF STEM CELL SAMPLES COULD BE REJECTED BY DOCTORS.

SMART CELLS INTERNATIONAL

STEM CELL COLLECTION AND STORAGE

PRESS RELEASE

October 27, 2010.

TENS OF THOUSANDS OF STEM CELL SAMPLES COULD BE REJECTED BY DOCTORS.

SCI videos here.

A test which measures the number of stem cells in cord blood samples should be made mandatory to prevent heartbreak amongst families for whom stem cell transplantation may be the last chance to save a life.

London-based Smart Cells International Ltd (SCI), the UK’s longest-established stem cell banking service, says thousands of families have no way of knowing whether samples stored for future use with some private banking services will actually work, because the test has not been carried out.

                                       

The test measures a marker on stem cells called CD34, is well-known to stem cell transplant experts and referred to as “the gold standard”, and is carried out by SCI at the time of sample storage – but SCI believes it is the only private UK stem cell banking service to carry out the test, and has been doing so since it launched in 2001.

SCI has consulted an expert in the field – working in a busy NHS Transplant unit - who said samples harvested and then stored without CD34 testing would be summarily rejected by doctors carrying out stem cell treatment.

“Fundamentally, the CD34 test measures the number of stem cells in a sample, and allows doctors planning and then carrying out stem-cell transplants – or ‘infusions’ – to know if and adequate dose is available,” said Amanda Cool, General Manager of SCI.

“As in everything involving medical treatment, there needs to be a minimum dose; in the case of stem cell infusion, that dose is determined according to the weight of a patient and the particular medical situation. If the dose of stem cells is too low, then a bigger dose has to be sourced either from other stored samples, or from other sources such as bone marrow.

“But if CD34 testing has not been carried out, then an accurate measurement of the dose of stems cells cannot be guaranteed.  In fact, transplant doctors will typically not accept cord blood samples for transplant unless CD34 has been carried out and the results provided.

“As well as being a waste of money, it could also mean heartbreak for families who only find out too late that a sample had too low a dose of stem cells, but, because stem cells can be used to re-build the immune and blood-making system after chemotherapy, this could potentially compromise clinical outcome.

“For any stem cell banking service which has not adopted the CD34 test, it could also be hugely litigious: there are tens of thousands of samples stored in the UK, and as well as not knowing the dose of stem cells they may also be rejected by doctors. The only way through it would be to retrospectively test samples at huge cost.

“In a nutshell, stored samples which have not been subject to CD34 testing have limited use. It is like going to your local GP for a prescription of antibiotics, but knowing neither the dose required nor the potency of that dose.

“While the Human Tissue Authority (HTA) inspects stem cell banking and their processes, there is no mandatory test for CD34. SCI’s submission that CD34 should become standard procedure in the private transplant sector is a valid one.”

SCI is the only private UK stem cell banking service to have been involved in successful stem cell transplants.

“Because CD34 testing is considered to be a key element of the storage process, we had never previously recognised that our approach was unique. When we discovered that we are, to our knowledge, the only private stem cell banking service in the UK to apply CD34 testing we were extremely surprised, because samples not tested to CD34 are likely to be rejected by transplant doctors,” said Amanda Cool of SCI.”

Ends 

Further information:

Iain Macauley

im@pressrelations.co.uk

+44 (0)7788 978800

www.smartcells.com

Notes:

Smart Cells, formed in February 2001, collects stem cells on behalf of families worldwide and stores samples at its labs in West Drayton near London Heathrow Airport in the UK. Smart Cells’ lab provides cord blood preparation and storage in an environment designed to comply with all current and foreseeable European medical guidelines and practices.

Stem cell storage expert Smart Cells International has been named London’s Life Sciences Exporter of the Year at the London Export Awards 2010,

Smart Cells International is fully licensed by the Human Tissue Authority and holds licence no 22522.

PENSIONS EXPERT ROS ALTMANN, SAGA: REFORM COULD FINALLY START TO ADDRESS OUR PENSIONS CRISIS

ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR GENERAL

SAGA

PRESS RELEASE

October 25, 2010.

PENSIONS EXPERT ROS ALTMANN, SAGA: REFORM COULD FINALLY START TO ADDRESS OUR PENSIONS CRISIS.

Ros Altman, Director General of Saga, says the government is finally getting to grips with the inadequacies of the UK state pension system – and a “pensions revolution” may well be on the cards.

Before the General Election, Saga conducted a nationwide poll of the over-50s and drew up a list of the top six policy changes that older citizens want.  This Saga Manifesto called for “a flat-rate state pension for all citizens without means testing”. 

“It could be that we are one step closer to achieving that now,” said Ros Altmann..

“After years of watching our pension system falling apart, it seems that the new Pensions Minister, Steve Webb, may finally be getting to grips with the inadequacies of the UK state pension.  If today's reports are accurate, and they do seem mightily well-informed, a pension revolution is about to occur.

“For years, Government has tinkered with our current inadequate state pension system, adding to its complexity, while failing to address the fundamental problems associated with mass means-testing of pensioners.

“As the OECD recently pointed out, the UK has just about the lowest state pension in the developed world - and it is by far the most complex.  Most people have no idea what state pension they will be entitled to.

“This is because anyone retiring can receive many different elements of State Pension.  There is a Basic State Pension, a Second State Pension, plus some State Earnings Related Pension - or SERPS - plus the Graduated Pension.  All of these have different qualification criteria and come from contributions made in different years.  And if all these are not enough, nearly half of pensioners can claim a complex, means-tested Pension Credit, which consists of a Guarantee Credit and a Savings Credit.  What a mess.

“Before 1997, Gordon Brown told the Labour Party Conference that he wanted to end the means test for the elderly, but he actually increased means-testing dramatically.  While advising the Labour Government from 2000 - 2005, I kept highlighting the complexities of our pension system, also warning of the dangers and disincentives entailed in mass means testing.  I advised introducing a universal flat-rate pension.  But this was ignored.  In 2005, the Turner Commission again failed to grasp the opportunity for such radical reform.  So many missed opportunities.

“The fundamental problem is that our State Pension system undermines private pension saving.  If around half of pensioners end up entitled to means-tested benefits, their private pensions will be penalised and some may see their whole private pension effectively taken away.

“As we are about to launch a national system of auto-enrolment, and a new national pension scheme (called NEST) specifically targeted at low to moderate earners, we would be at risk of putting these workers into a pension which would ultimately be partly or totally removed from them by the means-test.  It is particularly those low to moderate earners who are most likely to lose out and they will be unable to save enough to float themselves off means-testing.  Therefore, in order to alleviate some of the problems of auto-enrolment and the official NEST pension system, it is really important that the Government sorts this out.

“The increase in State Pension Age, announced in the Comprehensive Spending Review, was supposed to be 'fair' because it was in exchange for a decent state pension.  However, the current proposals for slowly raising the Basic State Pension each year would not be sufficient to really pay a decent pension, whereas radically reforming the system, as suggested in today's papers, would be a far better deal, especially for women.

“If there was a flat-rate state pension, the Government would be able to end the current practice of allowing people to 'contract out' of the state second pension.  This could bring in an extra £8billion in National Insurance contributions each year - £5billion of which would come from public sector workers and employers.  This extra revenue would also save money in the longer term, because public sector pension schemes would not have to pay the replacement State Second Pension from scheme pension age, it would just be paid from state pension age.

“This could be the best news for pensions in years.”

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley

im@pressrelations.co.uk

07788 978800

www.saga.co.uk

CONSTRUCTION: GOVERNMENT MUST DRIVE COST SAVING AND QUALITY TO DRIVE RECOVERY, SAYS MCBAINS COOPER CEO.

MCBAINS COOPER

PROPERTY & CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANCY

PRESS RELEASE

October 25, 2010.

CONSTRUCTION: GOVERNMENT MUST DRIVE COST SAVING AND QUALITY TO DRIVE RECOVERY, SAYS MCBAINS COOPER CEO.

Watch video interview.

A senior figure in the property and construction professional consultancy sector is warning both the government and the building industry not to cut corners on quality as it battles to cut costs to the bone following the Comprehensive Spending Review.

Michael Thirkettle, Chief Executive of McBains Cooper, the international property and construction consultancy, says the government should be investigating, understanding and driving the proven-efficient inter-disciplinary approach to government-funded building projects to help match or even exceed its cash saving plans.

“The government is looking for savings everywhere, but while there are some very good top-line ideas, the key is to ensuring specialists – with specialist understanding – drill down and get to grips with where efficiencies can be driven without compromising quality,” said Michael Thirkettle.

“I believe many building and construction projects shelved by the government could be resurrected, with cost efficiencies identified, allowing those projects to be delivered to precisely the standard envisaged at brief stage, but to the same high quality.

“Where does the money come from? Through savings identified and driven in projects which have been given the green light, and where the inter-disciplinary approach can be applied equally effectively.

“While it is driving austerity measures following the CSR, the government should recognise the benefits to be gained by balancing cost-saving with maintenance of quality – and Ministers, even with a reduced level of investment in public sector building projects, can still influence that balance.

“The market needs and requires an inter-d approach to achieve cost savings and efficiencies, but also to maintain the quality of the product over the next three to five years.”

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley

07788 978800

im@pressrelations.co.uk

www.mcbainscooper.com

Notes.

McBains Cooper

McBains Cooper is an inter-discipline consultancy, specialising in property, infrastructure and construction, offering a wide range of consulting and design services including architectural, aesthetic or technical design, problem solving, budget management, facilities management, health and safety, sustainability consultancy and on-the-ground civil engineering. Driving and supporting projects ranging from minor works to major contracts worth more than £100 million, McBains Cooper operates across a variety of sectors throughout the UK, Europe and Latin America. McBains Cooper is committed to environmental, social and economic sustainable development and their integrated approach means they deliver effective, award-winning solutions to their clients. The Group employs 150 people. McBains Cooper has regional headquarters in London (head office), Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Manchester, Oxford, Windsor, Lima (Peru) and Mexico City, with associate offices in Belfast and Dublin. www.mcbainscooper.com