Welcome to the Launcells Parish Council Website
Launcells has been an interactive parish since 2013, offering online access to its residents and beyond.
We have just upgraded our website to comply with the new website regulations for 2020.
Please browse and let us know what you think and please tell us if there is anything that you feel the website could add to benefit users.
Thank you
Launcells Parish Council
We want to invite you to take part in our local NHS 10-year health plan engagement that is now underway.
Your involvement will help ensure that the local needs for Cornwall and Isles of Scilly are fed into the national plan, and we will also use your feedback to shape local delivery.
How you can get involved
- Take part in an NHS 10 year plan engagement workshop. A series of online and in person engagement events take place during January and February 2025. You can register to attend an online or in-person workshop.
- Complete the local NHS 10 year plan survey. Available online you can complete our local survey even if you have already completed the national one. This is to ensure that insights from local people can be used to improve local services.
Want to know more: There is a dedicated webpage, which includes further information and will be kept updated throughout the engagement timeframe.
If you have any questions regarding our engagement plans, including any requests for additional events, please email the communications and engagement team.
Thank you in advance for your support.
Communications and engagement team
NHS Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Integrated Care Board
Is your New Year resolution to lose weight in 2025?
Get FREE support from our friendly team at Healthy Cornwall to lose weight and improve your overall health and wellbeing.
Our FREE Digital Healthy Weight Programme runs for 4 weeks and is designed to help adults across Cornwall to begin their weight loss journey and understand how to use the free tools and links provided by our team to support longer term weight and healthy lifestyle goals.
Each session is just 30 minutes long and delivered online.
We have a new programme running each month, book your space on our website now.
Or if you’d prefer to speak to someone in person pop along to our Healthy Lifestyles Support Drop-in Sessions happening in locations across Cornwall.
These FREE sessions are a chance for you to catch up with your local Health Improvement Practitioners for advice and support about a range of topics involved in improving your health and wellbeing, including:
- Getting an up-to-date weekly weight measurement inc. muscle mass and BMI
Healthy weight loss advice and support
Answers to nutrition queries
Having food diaries checked over
Recipe ideas
Physical activity ideas
Stop smoking support, tools and resources
Signposting to other services
...and much more
These sessions are free for anyone to drop in, just turn up and speak to one of our members of staff.
Free webinar and information on damp and mould in the home
Damp and mould growth has adverse health impacts, including respiratory effects such as asthma, and serious illness.
The presence of damp and mould can also affect mental health due to worries about the health impacts, unpleasant living conditions, damage to the home, and it has an impact on fuel costs.
You can come along to a FREE webinar on Tuesday 28 January at 10am and find out more about the effects of mould and what you can do to prevent and treat it.
Cornwall Council’s Private Sector Housing advisory leaflet offers simple tips to try and prevent condensation, dampness and mould growth within the home.
The Winter Wellbeing guide is also available which offers useful advice from organisations providing services and support to help residents. Page 32 of the guide particularly focuses on damp and mould and includes some helpful tips.
Cornwall Scrapstore
Cornwall Scrapstore is a registered charity that has been supporting communities across Cornwall for over 30 years. Our mission is to provide low-cost materials for creative projects, help reduce waste, and promote sustainability, all while serving as a valuable resource for schools, community groups, artists, and individuals alike.
Over the years, Cornwall Scrapstore has become a vital part of the local community. We have built strong relationships with schools, charities, and individuals, providing them with access to surplus materials that would otherwise be discarded, allowing them to create, learn, and innovate. This initiative has not only helped foster creativity but also reduced environmental waste, contributing to Cornwall's broader sustainability efforts.
Unfortunately, like many small charities across the region, Cornwall Scrapstore is currently facing significant challenges due to the ongoing cost of living crisis. Rising costs and limited funding which have placed a strain on our ability to continue offering our full range of support. We are reaching out to seek help in securing both financial support and assistance in promoting our work.
Financial Support: A donation or a grant to assist in covering operational costs, purchasing materials, or maintaining our premises would go a long way in sustaining our work.
Raising Awareness: Helping us promote the Cornwall Scrapstore to local residents, schools, and community groups would greatly expand our reach. We are in need of support in spreading the word about the positive impact our work has on the community.
Materials Donations: We also welcome donations of unused or surplus materials, which can help us continue to provide resources to those who need them most.
Your support would not only help sustain Cornwall Scrapstore but would also contribute to the long-term wellbeing of local communities by fostering creativity, sustainability, and education.
Parish Council Meeting 09/01/25
Notice is given that Launcells Parish Council will be holding a parish council meeting in Launcells Parish Hall on Thursday 9th January at 7.30pm.
If you would like to share your views on an agenda item, but are unable / uncomfortable attending, please email your comments to launcellspc@gmail.com no later than midday on Wednesday 8th January.
Low-income households to benefit from £4.5m Household Support Fund
Low-income households in Cornwall will once again receive payments to help with the ongoing cost of living crisis after we secured £4.5m from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), through the Household Support Fund (HSF).
Payments of £80 per person will be made automatically to those eligible, including pensioners receiving council tax support and vulnerable adults on a low income.
In a change to the way HSF funds are allocated, this latest round will see an £80 payment made to an additional 3,000 pensioners in receipt of council tax support – previously only those in receipt of pension credit received payments.
A payment of £80 per child will also be made to low-income households who claim council tax support.
The latest round of funding will run to 31 March 2025, and will provide urgent support for those most in need as living costs continue to rise.
Reduce your risk of developing dementia
We’re sharing some top tips for reducing your risk.
There are a whole range of things you can do to lower your chances of getting Alzheimer’s disease and all types of dementia in later life.
In this video Dr Vicky Brown, shares her top tip to avoid loneliness and isolation.
New chatbot to help you get information fast
Residents in Cornwall will get help from a new and improved chatbot which has just launched on the Cornwall Council website.
The chatbot nick named ‘Ker-Know' can answer questions on all the services offered by the council, from waste to education, and do tasks by responding to messages in real time.
It does this by using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to search the website on behalf of residents, intelligently responding to their inquiries.
Ker-Know can now resolve almost three quarters of enquiries received by the council daily.
New Reuse shops open
Reuse shops are opening at some of Cornwall’s Household Waste and Recycling Centres (HWRCs).
Run by Suez Recycling and Recovery UK, which operates Cornwall’s HWRCs on behalf of Cornwall Council, Kernow Reuse Shops will stock a variety of pre-loved items including home and garden accessories, small electricals, sports equipment, books and DVDs, and everything in between. The items are sold at the shops for affordable prices.
Shops have already opened at Truro and St Austell HWRCs, with more due to open in the coming months.
People can donate pre-loved items for the shops at all of Cornwall’s HWRCs. Donated items will be sold at the reuse shops or given to charity organisations.
Kernow Reuse shops will be open between 9am and 4pm seven days a week.
Protect your baby from RSV
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a major respiratory virus that is most common over the winter period, typically October to February. While the symptoms are mild for many, for some it can have much more serious consequences. The new RSV vaccination programme launched in September will help to prevent thousands of cases of RSV, GP visits and hospital admissions.
Around 20,000 babies under 1 are hospitalised with RSV in the UK each year. Sadly we see 20 to 30 infant deaths as well. You can have the RSV vaccine from week 28 of your pregnancy. Having the RSV vaccination in pregnancy reduces your baby’s risk of severe RSV lung infection by around 70% in the first 6 months of life. Speak to your maternity service or GP practice to arrange an appointment
£3,900 for five minutes of your time?
Help spread the word to anyone you know over State Pension age that they could be missing out on extra money.
Spending 5 minutes using the government's online 'can I claim Pension Credit?' checker tool and find out if they're entitled to extra support.
They might be allowed to claim even if they :
have savings
own their own home
are working
are getting a small occupational pension
have been turned down in the past
Remember, you can report lots of things to us online like:
- missed waste collections
fly tipping
full litter bins
graffiti
broken street lights
potholes
abandoned vehicles
Know a young person who's struggling?
Do you know a young person who's faced disadvantages in their life?
Has fallen out of education and training, maybe? Is struggling to find a steady job? Or is vulnerable in some other way?
If your answer is 'yep', then we hope that 'Yep!' will prove to be the solution, too.
Yep! is a collaboration between some truly brilliant community partners and Cornwall Council to give 16 to 24-year-olds having a tough time support with:
job searching, CV and interview skills
work experience, apprenticeships and internship opportunities
enterprise skills
motivation and confidence building
mental health
passing the driving theory test
budgeting, debt management, accessing benefits
ICT and technology skills
and more
If you think you might know a young person who'd benefit from this support, hit the button below.
To qualify, they need to be aged 16 to 24, living in Cornwall or the Isles of Scilly, be struggling in 16+ education, or not be in employment, education, or training at all.
Borrow a blood pressure monitor with your next library book
You can now borrow a blood pressure monitor free of charge from your local library, just like you borrow a book - all you need is a library card.
Around a third of adults in the UK have high blood pressure, although many don't realise it.
Known as the silent killer, high blood pressure rarely causes symptoms but, if left untreated, increases the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
The borrow a blood pressure monitor scheme launched as part of this week's Know your Numbers Week - the national campaign encouraging people to check their blood pressure at home.
Climate and Nature Fund
Cornwall Council’s Climate and Nature Fund is open for applications for projects and activities that help Cornwall tackle and respond to climate change and promote nature recovery. The fund provides up to £5,000 in support and up to £15,000 for exceptional initiatives.
Applications from all sectors will be accepted, and projects which show a strong community impact and promote public access will be prioritised. All project applications will be judged on merit and must support either nature recovery, carbon reduction or tree planting projects. See the Crowdfunder website for details of how to apply.
Not sure if it’s for you? Take a look at these case studies to see how the fund has helped other projects:
Time to wave goodbye to your old wetsuit?
You can now take pre-loved wetsuits, even if they’re ripped or marked, to your local household waste and recycling centre.
After being cleaned and repaired, they'll be sold at affordable prices at Wave Project's shop in Newquay.
Items that can't be repaired are recycled into new items such as pencil cases and bags.
All proceeds support The Wave Project's Surf Therapy initiatives, helping young people improve their mental health and wellbeing through the power of surfing.
How much do you know about dementia?
Our public health team want to learn more about people's understanding of dementia.
To help them, we'd like you to answer one simple question using our online poll. Use the button below to take part.
Listen to our new podcast
Cornwall Council’s Together for Families service has launched a new podcast series called Empowered Parenting.
We will be releasing new episodes each week, bringing you top tips and guest speakers to discuss a range of topics relating to your parenting journey.
This first episode is an introduction to the podcast series as well as an overview of the wider parenting support on offer in Cornwall.
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Want to be part of a scientific effort to monitor changes to Cornwall's coastline?
It's as simple as taking a photo on your phone!
Find out how you can get involved by watching this short animation and looking out for one of the 17 CoastSnap stations across Cornwall.
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Learn First Aid Gestures
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Community Emergency Plan
The community emergency plan document can be found here
It was created in 2018 and distributed to all parish households - some details have changed but the general information is still relevant.
November 2020 -
Covid - 19 Directory amended pdf here
Launcells Parish Defibrillators
The first defibrillator is located at Launcells Parish Hall in Grimscott - EX23 9LS
The second is It is located at the Red Post Inn, by the post box - EX23 9NW.
As before, should you need access to this "self-guiding" piece of equipment, just phone 999 and follow the instructions on the cabinet. You will then be given the access code to open it. The machine then tells you how to use it.
We would hope to arrange another set of training for the use of a defibrillator, once we return to normal, but in the meanwhile, attached is the note that was in the Parish Magazine a while back.