Jon visited the Charity’s Poverty Action Week shop at Highcross and met with Charity Link staff and volunteers to help celebrate the Charity’s annual dress up day, ‘Wear a Funky Scarf Day’.

Wear a Funky Scarf Day, part of Charity Link’s Poverty Action Week (25th – 31st January), was launched in 2015 and encourages local individuals, businesses and schools to wear their favourite or most funky scarves on the day and donate an amount of their choice for the pleasure.

Jon stated: “The year round work that Charity Link does in the City is so important. As Charity Link helps people who cannot afford to keep warm over the winter period or have to choose between eating and heating, ‘Wear a Funky Scarf Day’ is a great idea to raise much needed funds.”

“It is crucial that Charity Link is able to provide items that the majority of us take for granted, such as beds, fridges cookers, clothing, and in emergencies, food. It also offers help with mobility equipment and utilities where necessary. So please give generously to Charity Link or drop off some food at its food bank in the Malcom Arcade.”

Charity Link’s Poverty Action Week Shop, which has been open within the Wot SPACE shop on Shires Lane since Monday, is highlighting the Charity’s work supporting people in poverty, hardship or crisis throughout Leicestershire and Northamptonshire.

The Charity is encouraging local people to share their views on local poverty on a giant thoughts board. Visitors can also donate food for the Charity’s city centre food bank, find out about volunteering and take part in food quizzes.

Since being elected, Jon has been a supporter of Open Hands and the services it provides to the local community. He has visited many times, and in February 2014 he officially opened the Support Centre.

Due to ever increasing demands for its services and the need to get value for money, Opens Hands requires a large warehouse.

Jon said: “I hope the City Council and other organisations will be able to provide a suitable base within the City for Open Hands. This fantastic, and much needed organisation, desperately needs access to a warehouse so that it can store furniture and food donations.”

The organisation requires a warehouse of approximately 5000 square feet.

Sue Smout, Senior Manager, commented: “It would be ideal if this warehouse is near the City Centre. Such a large warehouse would mean that Open Hands can expand many of its services, but particularly its furniture project.

Through a range of specialist services Olympus supports people who have a physical or learning disability, older people, people living with dementia and services to younger people including the transitions group.

Jon met with the Manager and Team Leader of the Employment and Disability Service which is a speciality service within Olympus. The Employment and Disability Service (EADS) has actively supported disabled jobseekers since 1982. The team guide disabled people in finding and sustaining paid employment in Leicester.

Jon stated: “It was very informative meeting the Manager and the Employment and Disability Service team, particularly as I have been involved in campaigns for the provision of services for people with mental illnesses and learning disabilities.”

As well as assisting disabled people to find work, EADs also helps people to stay in employment by providing on-the-job support, assistance with negotiations with employers and developing skills through courses and training.

Jon visited the Leicestershire MS Therapy Centre which is one of about 60 Centres in the UK that offers a number of therapies to those with Multiple Sclerosis and their families, and now offers their services to other conditions such as stroke and cancer.

Jon said: “I only became aware of this much needed facility following a meeting with one of my constituents, Kim Bradshaw. My visit was very informative and I leant a lot about the condition and how people can be helped.”

About 1 in 700 in the UK are diagnosed with MS whereby any parts of the motor and sensory system could become impaired which can affect mobility, dexterity, vision, speech and bladder and bowel control.

As well as offering counselling, the MS Therapy Centre has a well-equipped suite for physiotherapy sessions and a Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy chamber room. The Centre also offers massage and aromatherapy, reflexology, yoga and more all of which can benefit people suffering from MS and their carers.

Jo Hill, the Centre Manager, said: “The Centre has been on Freemens Common for 30 years and in all that time it has been entirely self funded. More and more people are finding a need to visit not just those with MS but other conditions like cancer and diabetes. We operate as a drop-in and are open Monday – Thursday 9am – 4pm and Friday 9am -2pm.

The Centre is a very friendly, welcoming place.”

As a charity, the MS Therapy Centre receives no state funding or grants. It costs over £100,000 a year to run the Centre, all of which has to be sourced by the Centre.