THE WEBSITE FOR GRENVILLE JONES

PRESS RELEASE
Monday, December 10, 2012

Super-Dream is half way to reality

Five months ago Bath music man Grenville Jones announced his ‘super-dream’ to take a group of young people with severe learning difficulties on the holiday break of a lifetime to Disneyland Paris. The target to raise was £20,000.
 
This Saturday December 15 Grenville will be attending the MENCAP Super Saturday Club who meet at Three Ways School, Odd Down, Bath. They will celebrate the fact that £15,000 has now been raised in five months, only £5,000 short of the target. 
 
Grenville was invited to visit the MENCAP Super Saturday Club to take a Christmas fun singing session last December. Some of the children attend Three Ways School, others go to Fosse Way Special School, Radstock, or attend state schools.
 
The children have a variety of different needs. Some of the conditions include Down's Syndrome, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Global Development Delay and Williams Syndrome. Some of the children have severe communication difficulties and also have additional conditions such as epilepsy. Many require support during the night and with all aspects of personal care and also 1-1 support when they are out.
 
Grenville said:
 
“Donations have come in from many of the people who sing in my various choirs and we have also received £1,000 from Bath Rotary Club, £700 from the Compton Inn Quiz and £500 from Radstock and Midsomer Norton Lions. I recently produced a CD entitled Christmas-Dream. This features five of my local choirs and it has contributed £5,000 towards the target.”
 
This Saturday many of the people who have donated have been invited to attend the Super Saturday Club. Guests include the Mayor and Mayoress of Bath.
 
Plans are now in place for the weekend leaving Keynsham on Friday May 10th 2013.
 
Christmas-Dream is on sale at the Silver Shop, Bath.
 
www.super-dream.org.uk 
 
ENDS
 
Media are welcome to attend the Mencap Super Saturday Club at Three Ways School  this Saturday December 15th between 11.00am and 12.00noon.

www.grenvillejones.biz 

Press enquiries to Grenville Jones on 0777 828 2934 Or parent helper Kim Cole on 07816 148 098.

PRESS RELEASE 
Joy wins for goldies

The Goldies charity is well known for the way it brings joy to hundreds of older people through its singing and activity sessions across the area.
 
The winning formula for smiles is being backed by long-established local business Wellsway BMW and MINI who have just announced that they will be the main sponsors in March of the Goldies Bath Half Marathon team for 2013.
 

Martyn Read, Managing Director from Wellsway explained;
 
“One of our BMW promotions uses the words JOY WINS and we know that Grenville Jones and his wonderful Charity is brightening so many lonely lives throughout the South West. We all voted for their award winning Jubilee Time after Time in the National Lottery Awards 2013 .
 
"This is another inspirational programme from Goldies  encouraging as it does, hundreds of schools  to open their doors to the elderly in their communities. 
 
“Joy certainly wins with Goldies in so many ways and we are delighted to support them in the 2013 Bath Half. Members of our staff will be running and raising as much as we can for this very worthy charity which started here in Bath.”
 
Goldies have available places for runners who want to take part in the Bath Half, or if you already have a private place you can still raise funds for Goldies and receive the fantastic benefits offered to all Goldies runners. Like access to Bath Rugby Club before and after the race with private changing rooms and hot showers, a buffet for all runners and their supporters and a post 
run rub down by a masseuse.   
 
Contact Emma on 01761 470006 or via email at events@golden-oldies.org.uk
 
ENDS
 
Caption for Photo – Picture shows Goldies founder Grenville Jones with Martyn Read of BMW Wellsway with the following runners; Tim Harrison – BMW Service Receptionist, Richard Usher – BMW Parts Supervisor, Theresa McDermott – BMW Sales Administrator, Ian Bird – MINI Service Manager and KatySmart - Marketing & Database Co-ordinator

Enquiries to - Emma Shearman Fundraising Events Organiser and Music Assistant
(in the office on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday)
 
T: 01761 470006
E: events@golden-oldies.org.uk
www.golden-oldies.org.uk
Unit 7, Fourth Avenue, Westfield Industrial Estate, Radstock, BA3 4XE
 
Patron: Sir Cliff Richard

PRESS RELEASE
Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Goldies school project in top 10

The Golden-Oldies Charity started in Bath four years ago bringing together elderly people to sing, smile and make new friends. Sir Cliff Richard is Patron.

It now reaches out across the West of England and South Wales with hundreds of regular sessions attended by elderly people who live in isolation as well as those who suffer from dementia and with learning difficulties. 

Last year it won Big Lottery funding for a project called Jubilee Time after Time, which would encourage schools to open their doors to the elderly in their communities to share in events based on the 60 year Diamond Jubilee of her Majesty The Queen. 

Jubilee Time after Time has been a huge success and it has been named (today June 26th) as one of only 10 in the semi-finals of the National Lottery Awards 2012 in the Educational category. It is now calling on local support to take it through to the final three and national recognition at a star-studded BBC1 event. 

The National Lottery Awards recognise the positive impact that Lottery-funded projects – both big and small – make to local communities.

Hundreds have taken part with a variety of projects. As part of Jubilee Time after Time, a children’s song was commissioned called ‘Diamond Day’ written by Bath based Tessa Cox. The song has been sung at schools across the UK. A YouTube video of the song sung by Colerne Primary School has recorded nearly 11,000 hits. 

Not all the projects were singing. Some evoked memories of the past, there were portrait painting sessions, discussions on the changing face of school meals and even playground games. 

The Golden-Oldies Charity has been inundated with positive feedback from both elderly people and school children who took part in Jubilee Time after Time. 

Myra Barretto teaches at Peasdown St John Primary School near Bath. “Getting the Goldies into school with the children was fantastic. Everyone taking part seemed to get so much from it.”

"We have been treated like royalty" said Margaret who attends the Street Goldies session. She spent a very special day at St Joseph and St Theresa School, Wells. 

Rhiannon, aged 11 attends High Down Junior School in Portishead. They welcomed 30 Goldies to their Jubilee School celebration. She said: "I really enjoyed learning new songs and dancing with the Goldies." 

Kington St Michael School in Wiltshire held a Kings and Queens Day inviting elderly folk from across their community. Hazel Sandwell loved every minute of being back at school. She wrote to the school to say: “The hard work you and the staff put in was obvious from the success of the day, and how everyone, from the youngest to the oldest, enjoyed themselves.”

“Almost the best day I have had so far” that's what Amelia said after a Jubilee Time after Time day at Marksbury Primary School, Marksbury near Bath.  

People across the West of England are being urged to help Jubilee Time After Time make it through to the final three and an appearance on the Awards show, which is broadcast live on BBC One later this year. The winning project in each of the categories will receive national recognition at the star-studded event and a £2,000 cash prize[1] to spend on their project.

To register your vote for Jubilee Time after Time please call 0844 836 9685 or log on to www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk/awards. 

Actor John Barrowman supports the awards.  He said: 

“So many lives are being changed by the unsung heroes working with National Lottery funding.  The National Lottery Awards pay tribute to their selfless dedication.  National Lottery players raise a massive £30 million a week for Good Causes across the UK.  They should be proud that they are helping arts, sport, heritage and community groups near them.  Now is the chance for everyone to vote for their local project so it gets national recognition."

There are seven categories in the Awards each reflecting the main areas of Lottery funding: arts, sport, heritage, health, environment, education and voluntary/charity.

You can vote up to midday on Sunday 22 July. 

Grenville Jones, founder of the Golden-Oldies Charity added:

“Jubilee Time after Time has been a huge success and we would dearly love to be able to continue working with schools in the future. To do this we need the recognition that reaching the finals would give us.

“We ask all our supporters, our Goldies and their families and friends to vote for Jubilee Time after Time.”

www.jubileetimeaftertime.org.uk 

The three projects in each category with the highest number of votes will go through to the final round of public voting later this summer.

-Ends-

Jubilee Time after Time contact – Grenville Jones 07778 282934

Notes to Editors

·       Jubilee Time After Time received £60,000 of Lottery funding from the Big Lottery Fund

·       Calls cost no more than 5p from a BT landline. Calls from other networks may vary, calls from mobiles could cost considerably more. Callers are advised to check with their telephone network provider to be certain of the cost. No profit will be made from the cost of the phone vote by The National Lottery 

·       All voting will be independently adjudicated and verified by Electoral Reform Services

Semi- Finals

·       There are 10 projects in each of the seven categories

·       The public can vote from 9am on Tuesday 26 June and any vote cast before Midday on Sunday 22 July will be counted

·       The three projects with the most votes in each category will go through to the final round of public voting

Finals

·       There will be a total of 21 projects in the finals - three in each of the seven categories

·       There will be only one winner in each category. The seven winners will be announced during a special BBC One television programme transmitted later in the year

PRESS RELEASE 
Wednesday May 23, 2012

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Goldies founder Grenville Jones and Diamond Day song composer Tessa Cox are presented to the Queen 

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As founder of the Golden-Oldies charity, Grenville Jones was asked to represent the Big Lottery Jubilee People's Millions at the Queen's Jubilee Garden Party at Buckingham Palace yesterday - Tuesday May 22nd.

Last year the Goldies charity - which brings smiles through singing to hundreds of isolated people - won a Big Lottery (public vote) grant to run an inter-generational schools project called Jubilee Time after Time. 

Grenville invited Bath housewife Tessa Cox to attend with him as his guest. Tessa composed a song called Diamond Day for the Jubilee Time after Time project which schools across the UK are downloading to sing as part of their Jubilee celebrations.

Says Grenville:

"We were asked to stand apart from the hundreds of other guests and were presented to Her Majesty.

"She spoke to Tessa and myself for about 3 minutes. The Queen was very interested to hear of the progress of Goldies in such a short time and how Tessa's song was a celebration of the 60 years of her reign.

"She was so gracious and wanted to know about our work. What a huge honour it was for Tessa and I to be given the chance to speak to the Queen."

Tessa, 48 married with two children, lives just outside Bath. Last year she entered a song writing competition in Bath and made it to the final. 

One of the judges that night was west country music man Grenville Jones, well known through his leadership of a number of choirs including the Last Choir Standing Bath Male Choir as well other music projects. Last November he featured on the BBC's Children in Need night conducing a west country youth choir linking with Gareth Malone. 

Grenville is founder of the Golden-Oldies Charity that brings music to hundreds of elderly and isolated people. ‘Goldies’ as it has become fondly known, was started in Bath in 2008 with just four singing sessions. It now runs over 60 taken by 23 session leaders. These take place from Swindon to Weston super Mare and Gloucester to Yeovil.

For hundreds of people Goldies is the highlight of their week. Independent academic research by the University of Bath concluded, "without question Goldies IS good for for."

The charity has developed across the West of England and launched into South Wales last November with Goldies Cymru. Sir Cliff Richard is Patron.

Tessa said:

“I had an idea in mind for a song to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and after the ‘Song for Bath’ evening contacted Grenville who immediately said that he wanted to hear it. Little did I know that he was working on a project called Jubilee Time After Time. This would be led by his Goldies Charity and would encourage Schools across the West of England to engage with the elderly in their communities. 

“When he heard me playing and singing the song called ‘Diamond Day’ he immediately said that this would be the theme for the Jubilee Time After Time project.”

Explains Grenville;

“Tessa was the obvious choice to take to the Garden Party. ‘Diamond Day’ is a lovely song and through our Schools project we now have hundreds of children who are learning it as part of their School Jubilee Celebration. It can be downloaded from our website and is accessible to all schools. "

www.jubileetimeaftertime.org.uk/diamond-day---the-song.html

Tessa came to writing music later in her life. She inherited her Grandmother’s piano which she played as a child. 

ENDS

www.golden-oldies.org.uk
Grenville Jones mobile 0777 828 2934 or office 01761 472468.

Following the hugely successful Workshop at the Newport Minster, led by Grenville and Mark De-Lisser, we received many phone calls and emails. This one from David and Joan was typical of the feedback.

"Joan and I attended the Singing Workshop last Saturday. We would like to express our thanks to Grenville and Mark for a wonderful afternoon and evening. We are both members of a choir on the island, but have never previously attended a Music Workshop.

"The two types of music covered were very different, but the philosophies were the same. Clearly Grenville and Mark enjoyed their music and that was passed on to those participating and at the same time raised our standards.

"Many thanks for the Workshop and for reinforcing our love of singing."