The UK’s leading end of life charity Marie Curie is calling on all budding bakers in Pembrokeshire to help raise some much-kneaded dough by signing up to its autumn baking fundraiser.

Whether you’re a cupcake king, a queen of tarts or more of a baking late-bloomer, Marie Curie has got choux covered with everything you need to host your own bake-off challenge, cupcake decorating competition, cake sale or pie-eating contest.

When signing up, Marie Curie will send all budding bakers a special recipe pack with autumnal bakes from Melissa Hemsley, the Hairy Bikers and Fay Ripley, to help inspire people to get creative in the kitchen. Bakers will also get everything they need to help make their fundraiser a success – from posters and social media graphics to invitations and fundraising in-memory cards.

Actor, author and presenter, Fay Ripley, who is supporting the campaign by sharing her own banana and chocolate loaf recipe, said: “I find myself yelling “use your loaf!” at everyone and anyone so now I’ve used my loaf – my banana and chocolate loaf in fact! – to support Marie Curie with their important work, delivering expert care at the end of life. I promise I won’t yell at you, but I hope everyone gets baking with me!”

Claire Phillips, Head of Community Fundraising in Wales, said:“Whether you’re crazy about chocolate cake or partial to pumpkin pie, this autumn Marie Curie is making raising funds for expert end of life care a piece of cake.

“As the nights draw in, baking and sharing sweet treats can be a fun (and tasty!) way to help Marie Curie continue to provide expert care and support at the end of life, free from unnecessary pain, so people can have the dignity and respect they deserve, whatever their illness. 

“It’s up to you how you fundraise – you could ask friends, family or work colleagues to bake up a storm with you or you could go it alone and enjoy arranging your own bake sale. However you choose to fundraise, we’ll support you throughout – and you will be helping ensure that Marie Curie is there for more people, and their loved ones, when they need it most.

Marie Curie is dependent on fundraising and public donations. In your area Marie Curie Nurses and healthcare professionals provide expert advice and also the emotional and practical support you want – at home, in hospital or over the phone.

As well as providing hospice care and hospice at home care right across the UK, Marie Curie also has a free Information and Support line which is available to anyone with an illness they’re likely to die from and those close to them. It offers practical and emotional support on everything from symptom management and day-to-day care to financial information and bereavement support.  

To find out more and sign up for Marie Curie’s autumn baking challenge, visit mariecurie.org.uk/autumn or contact us by email at [email protected] or telephone 029 2042 6068.

PAUL SARTORI Hospice at Home, a local charity providing home end-of-life care and support services is bidding for a cash boost from the Tesco Stronger Starts scheme.

Stronger Starts provides grant awards of up to £1,500 to local community projects. Three groups in every community have been shortlisted to receive grant awards and Tesco customers can vote for the group they think should take away the top award in their local Tesco store.

Paul Sartori Hospice at Home is one of the groups on the shortlist in Haverfordwest and Goodwick. The charity applied to enable them to purchase additional equipment items to continue its free, vital home care services for end-of-life patients and their families in the community.

“Every year the number of equipment items loaned in our community increases,” highlighted Pat Coombs, Clinical & Equipment Coordinator at Paul Sartori, adding “This Tesco scheme is a great way of local people supporting the growing need and our services in our county.”

Voting is open in all Tesco stores from October to Mid-January 2025. Customers will cast their vote using a blue token given to them at the check-out each time they shop.

Tesco’s Stronger Starts – previously known as Tesco Community Grants – has already provided over £110 million to more than 60,000 projects across Britain.

This £5m Stronger Starts grant programme, delivered in partnership with Groundwork UK, helps mainly schools and children’s groups provide nutritious food and healthy activities that support young people’s physical health and mental wellbeing, such as breakfast clubs or snacks, and sports equipment for after school clubs.

Funding is available to community groups and charities looking to fund local projects that bring benefits to communities, particularly those helping to provide food and giving children the support they need for a good start in life.

Anyone can nominate a project and organisations can apply online. To find out more visit tescoplc.com/strongerstarts.

The Paul Sartori Hospice at Home Service provides a range of services to Pembrokeshire people living in the final stages of a life limiting illness, including home nursing care, equipment loan, complementary therapy, bereavement and counselling support, clinical nurse specialist in palliative care, physiotherapy, advance care planning and training. Services are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, thanks to the kind generosity of the Pembrokeshire Community. Further information on the charity and its services can be obtained by visiting their website www.paulsartori.org, or by phoning 01437 763223.

AT a workshop held recently in Pembrokeshire, leaders from key industry organisations across the Port of Milford Haven came together to discuss ways to maximise efficiency and improve the Authority’s service reliability for international energy customers using the port.  

Hosted by the Port of Milford Haven, the initiative brought together senior leaders from the oil and gas sector as well as service providers integral to the port operation including shipping agents and tug operators; each of them recognising the need for greater collaboration to address shared challenges.  During the week-long event, delegates took part in a number of collaborative workshops that focused on maximising the Port’s customer service provision, while ensuring the highest levels of safety and operational reliability. 

In order for the Port of Milford Haven to deliver a year-round, safe, efficient and integrated port service, participants agreed to support a number of actions including data exchange, resource allocation – covering both people and assets – and technological innovations.   

One of the key outcomes of the discussion was agreement for all organisations to work towards a set of principles, key to ensuring the long-term success of the Port:

• Partnership Working: Collaborating to challenge current thinking, fostering innovation and continuous improvement 
• Maximising Safety: Operating to the highest safety standards whilst using an analytically-based, dynamic and responsive marine risk process 
• Enhancing Reliability of Service: Developing a transparent, optimised and integrated port coordination and planning environment that maximises the reliability and availability of the port 
• Sustainability: A pan-port, long-term commercial view that secures the future prosperity of each of the businesses operating within the Port of Milford Haven, their communities, and their environment. 

Tom Sawyer, Chief Executive at the Port of Milford Haven, said: “As the UK’s leading energy port handling or processing around twenty percent of the UK’s energy needs it is critical to the resilience and security of UK energy that we provide a port service that is safe, reliable and efficient 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.  

“Safely manoeuvring some of the world’s largest ships onto their berths within the Port of Milford Haven requires precision coordination of multiple resources.  During much of the year this happens seamlessly but we recognised that more winter resilience was needed and these workshops and the Port’s investments made this year in extra pilots, pilot boat crews and pilot boats will improve this. By working collaboratively with our customers and other service providers we are confident we can retain an excellent year-round reliable service.”