On Sunday 15th April 2012 four cyclists from Wymondham Post Office Limited will be setting off from John O'Groats to cycle all the way to Land's End to raise money and awareness for Wymondham based cancer charity Star Throwers.

Paul Wightman, Dean Whitnall, David Crisp and Trevor Manser will be pedalling all the way with Andy Howard driving the support van.

The team, all keen cyclists, have been training hard since January and hope by April they will be able to average 90 miles for 11 consecutive days to complete the gruelling challenge.

They decided it would be a good way to raise money for charity and have chosen Star Throwers, a local cancer support charity based in Wymondham. Star Throwers offers care and advice to all those suffering with cancer in a relaxed friendly atmosphere, and offer a range of complementary therapies to produce a sense of well being. All money raised for Star Throwers is directed to benefit those who need their care.

Details of the ride can be found on www.polscnrjogleblog2012.co.uk with daily bulletins posted during the ride.

Donations can be made through Just Giving by searching for POL SC Jogle 2012 or directly to Star Throwers at 30 Melton Road, Wymondham, NR18 0DB.

Star Throwers and The Lively Crew would like to wish them all the very best of luck and a good ride!

 Our Charity of the Year, Star Throwers have collaborated with Norfolk Council Adult Education Services and Norwich MIND to organise an event to promote various paths to improving wellbeing.

Wymondham based cancer charity Star Throwers offered its premises for the event which will provide an opportunity for anyone interested in improving their wellbeing to have a go at some fun, unique, relaxing activities and also learn something new which they can take away and use at home.

The day will feature over ten different types of activities for people to try out, including  relaxing massage workshops and taster sessions, engaging presentations from doctors and professionals on various aspects of healthy living, and an opportunity to have beautiful henna hand painting. Also planned for the day is the chance to participate in Art as never seen before, fun group singing sessions, gardening workshops, yoga, qigong classes, a djembe performance and workshops, and more.

There will also be a plant stall where people can buy plants donated to Star Throwers in aid of their Well Being Day.

The event will be hosted at Star Throwers' centre in Wymondham on Saturday 31st March from 10am - 4pm and is open to anybody where they're from and whatever their situation. Please arrive early to allow time for registration.

For more information, please visit www.starthrowers.org.uk or call 01953 423304

2011 was a highly eventful year at The Lively Crew, so put your feet up and get a cup of tea as we look back over the year that was 2011:

January
 January saw two new staff members joining the team. Andrew Lawn joined as Marketing Manager, following working on the campaign to keep Tesco out of his hometown of Sheringham. Andrew was joined by Robert Ediker who started a year's Apprentice scheme while he completed an NVQ in Customer Service from Broadland Council Training Services. During the coming 12 months, Robert would prove a very driven, talented and ambitious member of the team and will be joining the team permantly in 2012.

February
In February we were delighted to win a contract with South Norfolk Council to supply the area with a dedicated Online Business Directory, similar to those we were already managing from Breckland and Broadland District Council's. The new Directory was officially launched in June with a free business networking event, which also kicked off a year of quarterly Business Breakfast Forums for the area.

March
During March we undertook the official reckie ahead of the Disabled Motoring Alps Challenge in June. The reckie highlighted just what a mammoth undertaking the Alps Challenge would later prove to be, but was invaluable as a result.

April
During April we oversaw the official rebrand of national disabled motorist charity Mobilise, to Disabled Motoring UK. We were delighted to have managed the re-brand from start to finish, including developing a long-term business plan to re-model the charity, appeal to a younger generation and reverse declining membership numbers. We were also responsible for designing the new logo and accompanying stationary and managing the process of re-branding. Since the name change we are delighted that member numbers have increased and we have been able to attract new celebrity supporters and ambassadors to the charity, including motor-racing star Nicolas Hamilton.

May
May saw another permanant arrival to The Lively Crew staff, with Jodie McGill joining as Business Development Executive. Jodie has taken on all aspects of the BOLD Group and our Online Business Directories and has become an integral part of the business communities in Breckland, Broadland and South Norfolk.

June
The month that saw the Alps Challenge. Joined by celebrities including Ade Adepitan, Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson and Nicolas Hamilton, we managed the challenge from long before the official start line at the Queen's House in Greenwich, down through England, across France and over the Swiss Alps, before returning North, through France once more and up to the finish line opposite the House's of Parliament in London. The event was a huge success and generated huge awareness of the charity both at home and abroad.

June also saw us launch the third of our Online Business Directories in South Norfolk.

July
In July we were delighted to launch our new logo and website, to better reflect our sustainable, environmental and socially responsible company ethos. To celebrate the new website we are continuing to offer a free marketing diagnostic to all businesses looking to ensure their marketing is measurable and working for them.

August
To help spread the message of sustainability and cutting waste, our Director Valerie and Business Development Executive Jodie McGill headed to the Peterborough Green Festival to talk to businesses and consumers about our environmental products in Fresh Pod and Enviro Pod.

September
In September we oversaw the official Disabled Motoring Awards Ceremony at the Goodwood Revival Festival. The Awards were to celebrate and recognise the achievements of disabled people and organisations, who have contributed to a better day-to-day life for disabled individuals across the United Kingdom. Winners, which we helped judge, came from right around the UK, including Scotland and Northern Ireland and included motor-racing star Nicolas Hamilton, Cambridge City Council, Peatlands Park and mobility scooter display team the Red Wheelies.

October
Two Business Breakfast Forums kept us busy in October with both Thetford and Broadland business leaders meeting to discuss the latest business news and developments in their respective regions.

November
During Movember our Marketing Manager undertook Movember and raised over £100 for Prostate Cancer whilstmaking himself look seedier than a flower in Spring. The whole team got involved, partly through their generous sponsorship efforts but primarily by making sure Andrew felt as ridiculous as he looked and pointing this out to all they could

December
Throughout December we ran Light for Life events for our Charity of the Year; Star Throwers. By attending numerous Christmas light switch-on events across Norfolk, we helped raise a massive £1,115.43p for the cancer charity based in Wymondham.

 Norfolk marketing, sales and events agency The Lively Crew have raised £1,115.49 for Wymondham based cancer support charity Star Throwers after a series of successful Light for Life events across Norfolk, whereby people light a candle in memory of somebody touched by cancer.

Star Throwers, who were founded by Dr Henry Manning in 2007, is a not-for-profit charity run entirely by passionate volunteers, dedicated to supporting and advising people in East Anglia who are affected by cancer, or are at particular risk of developing cancer. Star Throwers provide free, independent and unbiased advice on all types of cancer treatment, care and support.

The Lively Crew, who have offices in Norwich and Bridgham, have supported Star Throwers as their Charity of the Year since 2010, donate staff time, money and their marketing expertise to the charity. As part of this, every Christmas staff from The Lively Crew put on the Light for Life events across Norfolk, to raise awareness and vital funds for the charity.

The name 'Star Throwers' was inspired be a freak weather incident which left thousands of starfish stranded on a beach and fast drying out in the sun. A little boy, began the arduous task of throwing them back into the sea one-by-one. A passer-by mentioned to the little boy that, due to the number washed up, his efforts were wasted and would make no difference, to which the little boy replied whilst returning another starfish to the water "well it did to that one".

Photograph courtesy of the EDP

 Shoppers are being asked to consider others in the festive shopping rush this Christmas. National disabled motorist charity Disabled Motoring UK are appealing to shoppers to not be selfish when they park their cars in retail areas and ensure that disabled parking provisions are not compromised.

The issue of disabled parking bay abuse is one which affects disabled motorists and their passengers throughout the year, but the problem is particularly apparent in the run-up to Christmas. Increased visitor numbers to retail centres and heightened stress levels creates the perfect condition for rushed parking jobs, which leads in turn to more incidents of parking abuse. In addition to this, poor weather condition can lead more people to take to their cars, further exacerbating parking problems.

Popular television show Top Gear has recently come under fire for parking abuse after presenters Jeremy Clarkson and James May parked in disabled bays to discuss the merits of electric cars, while soaps including Coronation Street have also been pulled up for characters parking in disabled bays.

Helen Dolphin, Director of Campaigns and Policy at Disabled Motoring UK said “The festive period is a very busy one for lots of people. We are asking shoppers to remember that many disabled people rely on a car to get around. Public transport is not always accessible and disabled people may not be able to get to the bus stop or station in order to access it. But in order to be able to work, shop and socialise using their vehicle, disabled people rely on being able to park close to their destination. Often people don’t set out to cause a problem for others and don’t realise the impact that their actions can have. We want to show what the impact is and make people aware that there is no excuse for parking abuse.”