Life in United Kingdom

"Wear something red" (a rose?) to to celebrate Day of Love! Girls and boys in the nursery last year made Valentine cards for their Dads and Mums respectively, and I received my "special card" from my daughter, no card for her Mum.

There will be Valentine Disco for all school children from Reception this year. The party for Reception/ Year 1/Year 2 starts at 4.30, and last for one hour.

Tickets £1 on sale from Monday 1st February, Drinks and snacks on sale at the Disco.

THE Queen is to visit Derby city's Cathedral on April 1st to distribute Maundy Money. This traditional ceremony, dating back to King John in 1210, will be held on Maundy Thursday – which commemorates the Last Supper – during Easter week. Maunday Thursday is followed by Good Friday. (ThisisDerbyshire.co.uk)

The name 'Maundy' is derived from the Latin word “mandatum”, meaning a commandment. Jesus Christ, at the Last Supper, commanded:

'And now I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.' John 15:12

The monarch of England had to wash poor's feet and kiss them, you may wonder how the England Kings could stand the poor's smelly feet, don't worry of course, the feet were first washed by Yeoman of the Laundry before the monarch had to "wash" them again. Since 1689 this tradition was replaced by giving out Maundy Money to pensioners.

Maundy coins are specially minted for the occasion are much soug…

I bought a Blistex relief cream for my cold sores. The cold sore happens under my nose, my daughter thought it was nose bleeding. The reason of cold sore might be extreme weather conditions, but 'you are more vulnerable to developing a cold sore if you are feeling stressed and rundown.' So it is written on the cream package, sure it is for my case.

I also got persistent shoulder pain recently, there are three possible causes: spending two much time in front of the computer, or my daughter 's getting heavier,  or my pillow is too high.

Blistex Realief Cream (formerly Blisteze) is a penetrating and soothing remedy to relieve and treat occasional cold sores and cracked and chapped lips, leaving you lips feeling soft again. When first symptons arise, gently apply every hour for rapidly relieve any discomfort. It feels good.

[Gateway Newsletter, more warnings of school closures.]

School closures are extremely rare and are only undertaken if we have insufficient staff to maintain the safety of the children; or if we have a systems failure such as a gas leak or a boiler breakdown.

We will always notify parents of a school closure via both RAM FM and BBC Radio Derby. Although we inform the radio stations as soon as the decision to close is made, it can take them some time to place this on their websites and to broadcast this live.

In cases of heavy snowfall please tune in to RAM FM (102.8FM) or BBC Radio Derby (104.5FM) and continue to listen up to the time that you would normally set off for school. Their live broadcasts and website are constantly updated. Parents accessing details of school closures via the internet should refresh the page to get the latest screen, every time you view.

The web addresses of both RAM FM and Radio Derby are:

http://www.ramfm.co.uk/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/derby/

[With icy weather gripping Derbyshire, many schools are closed.]

Dear parents,

We have received reports throughout today informing us that the weather is deteriorating throughout both the city and county. It is my priority to keep the school open whenever possible. However, as some of our teachers live a considerable distance from the school it may not be possible for them to travel to work safely due to the weather conditions in their area.
I have asked staff to contact me, if they are unable to get to work, by 7:00 am each morning during this period of bad weather. This will enable me to find out early if we have enough teachers to open school. If the decision is made to close school I will inform both RAM FM and Radio Derby and ask them to broadcast a closure announcement. Please can you listen to the radio each morning this week to avoid you making an unnecessary journey to school? Hopefully we will not be as affected as surrounding areas and there will not be a problem.
Several p…

Dear Parent,

Your child has been identified as being in the group of patients aged between 6 months and under 5 years who would benefit from having the vaccination against Swine 'Flu which is a different vaccination to the seasonal 'flu vaccine. We are holding swine 'flu vaccination clinics on

(Date and Adress)

Please telephone the relevant surgery quoting the above booking reference, but DO NOT ring on a
Monday.

If your child has an allergic reaction to eggs, please contact the surgery and ask to speak to The Nurse who will be able to advise you. Also, if your child has had this vaccination elsewhere could you please let us know so that we can update their records.

Only if you DO NOT wish your child to have this vaccination should you complete and return the slip below

Yours faithfully

The Partners
Charnwood Surgery