Today is World Asthma Day.

World Asthma Day (WAD) (May 3, 2022) is organized by the Global Initiative for Asthma, (GINA) (www.ginasthma.org), a World Health Organization collaborative organization founded in 1993.  WAD is held each May to raise awareness of Asthma worldwide.

Although asthma cannot be cured, it is possible to manage asthma to reduce and prevent asthma attacks, also called episodes or exacerbations.

Here, the Bridge College Nurse, Sarah Humphreys, tells us what we can do to manage asthma on a daily basis.

With the national walking month coming in May, we caught up with Daniel who is taking on a mammoth walking challenge to raise money for the Together Trust's services. Daniel will be walking the Trafalgar Way. Running from Falmouth in Cornwall to the Admiralty in central London, it is the 271 mile stretch that Lieutenant John Richards Lapenotiere travelled (by coach) to bring news of the Battle of Trafalgar back.

We talked to Daniel about how he feels about the challenge and why he chose to support the Together Trust...

A bedtime routine helps to regulate children’s body clocks and aids relaxation, leading to a good night’s sleep. Often, when trying a new bedtime routine, sleep patterns get worse before they get better. Consistency is important and we advise sticking to the new routine for at least two weeks before you start to see some positive changes.

Below is an example of a bedtime routine for a child whose bedtime is 8:15 pm.

Make sure your child only uses their bed for sleep in order to associate it with relaxation and a pre-bedtime ritual such as reading a book, rather than homework, gaming or playing with toys, for example.

Avoid using your child’s bed for time-out, or they’ll learn to associate it with punishment.

If you were asked whether social media does more harm than good these days, what would you say?

Nicole* is a young girl in one of our residential homes - Linden, where our charity supports children and teenagers with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties.

Despite her tender age of 16, Nicole has already faced and experienced some of the more damaging effects of social media.

These fears are very normal and usually start showing up around the age of two. The reason for this is that a toddler’s mind is maturing, their memory is getting longer, and their imagination continues to develop. They are starting to become more aware that there are things that can hurt them. They may have even watched a show or read a book that frightened them.

18 March marks World Sleep Day - the annual celebration of healthy sleeping patterns and awareness-raising of sleep problems. Quality sleep is essential to good mental health and living a happy life. This year’s theme is ‘Quality Sleep, Sound Mind, Happy World’.

Artists Laura and Mei Yuk from The Turnpike gallery have been working with a group of students every Thursday as part of the Making of Us project at Bridge College. Since January, the group has been meeting every week and have gained huge mutual respect and learned a lot from each other. 

"Making of Us is a professional development programme supporting 16 mid-career socially engaged artists living and working in Greater Manchester. Bringing together the cross-sector expertise of partners in the arts, social care and education sectors, Making of Us will initiate mutual learning opportunities and new ways of collaborating with a focus on artists engaging young people."

Have you heard about the fantastic work being done to promote LGBTQ+ rights at Inscape House School? Proud Together is a staff and student-run group that empowers students to learn about the issues affecting LGBTQ+ people, share their own experiences, and create a more inclusive school and community. Here, Senior Teacher Stéphane Maitrejean shares an update on their activities.