Looking for a new managerial role for Christmas time? Check out Aldi

Employer of the Year Aldi has opened applications for its latest Area Manager scheme intake.

The supermarket is looking to fill up to 100 roles on its Area Manager Programme.  

Those enrolled on the scheme will participate in a year-long training programme, helping to provide candidates with all the skills they need to run a collection of stores successfully. 

Salaries start from £44,000 for successful applicants in the first year, with permanent contracts offered after this point and pay rising to more than £81,000 by the fifth year.

Kelly Stokes, Recruitment Director at Aldi UK, said: “We’re on the lookout for some of the most hardworking and ambitious individuals to join our team as part of the Area Manager programme.

“The scheme gives individuals the chance to learn the ins and outs of the sector at one of the fastest-growing retailers in the country, while also receiving in-depth training along the way.

“At Aldi, our colleagues are central to everything we do and we’re constantly searching for amazing individuals of all ages, roles and backgrounds to join our team.”

Those interested in applying for the Area Manager scheme with Aldi can visit: https://www.aldirecruitment.co.uk/area-manager-programme.

This would make an ideal Christmas gift to yourself.

Customers rush to buy energy-saving products as discretionary income continues to fall

With household bills continuing to rise sharply, the latest Asda Income Tracker shows families were £141 per month worse off in September compared to the previous year, primarily due to soaring utility bills, with gas prices up an eye-watering 95.7% and electricity prices up by 54% year on year.

In response, customers are increasingly turning to energy-saving products to try and keep their bills in check. 

Asda has seen a 320% increase in air fryer sales year-on-year, sales of slow cookers have more than doubled and sales of heated airers are 90% up compared to last September.

Regionally, those living in the south east saw the sharpest drop in discretionary income, with families in that region £212 a month worse off compared to this time last year, whilst the East Midlands showed the most resilience. However, they still saw an annual decrease of £116 per month, meaning no region saw an uptick in discretionary income compared to September last year.

To help customers during the cost of living crisis, Asda is introducing a new ‘winter warmer’ initiative offering those aged 60 and over the chance to enjoy soup, a roll and unlimited tea and coffees for just £1 in any of its 205 cafes all day and every day throughout November and December. This will run alongside the current ‘Kids eat for £1’ offer which continues to be hugely popular, with more than 630,000 meals served since the launch in late June.

The Asda Foundation has also launched new ‘cost of living’ funding pot worth £500k to help keep community groups running and the supermarket is also running a ‘Community Cuppa’ campaign in its cafes by creating space for community groups, who may otherwise struggle to meet due to rising energy costs.

We at That's Christmas feel buying energy saving devices for potentially vulnerable family members as stocking fillers for them this Christmas. So, please check out Asda www.asda.com.

Make their Christmas a Lush Christmas

At times our world can feel a bit darker and heavy at times. Even more so over the last few years.

So, what to do? This winter, Lush is encouraging a culture of kindness, giving and community.  

Lush’s 2022 Christmas range is designed with kindness in mind, being kind to yourself, others and the planet.   

Lush wants to spark moments of joy, with beautiful beneficial products for every need that have had a positive impact at every stage, and encourage not only gracious giving but opportune moments of self-care.  

You’ll see the rebellious return of Snow Fairy, whilst an extended collection of Lord of Misrule aims to unleash the mischievous side in us all! 

Available in Lush shops and online from now on here https://www.lush.com/uk/en.

More Christmas Products Available at Live Laugh Love

Good news! Live Laugh Love has just increased their range of wonderful Christmas Products.

A spokesman said: "Our Shabby Chic and Vintage Christmas decorations are a wonderful way to create a unique look and ambiance in your home, and certain to bring years and years of eclectic and festive charm, magic and joy."

Bring festive cheer into your home, and onto your Christmas tree this year, with our joyful, unique, handpicked, shabby chic and vintage décor from Live Laugh Love. 

From their Porcelain House Tealight Holders, Rustic Bells, snowy, Freestanding Twiggy Tree Decorations, tree hanging mice with fur coats or our woolly Nordic Gonks, your home is sure to heart-warmingly overflow with the charm, magic and enchantment of Christmas.

You can purchase these products from www.livelaughlove.co.uk.

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New funny cards and gifts for Christmas

Brainbox Candy have just launched new funny cards, gifts and wrapping paper, just in time for Christmas.

All their products are made in the UK and their cards and other paper goods including notebooks, wrap etc are printed on FSC accredited paper, sourced from sustainable sources.

They sell online at brainboxcandy.com and also stock great retailers including John Lewis, Waterstones, Urban Outfitters, Selfridges, Waitrose, Fenwick and many others.

They are also suppliers to galleries and museums like the Tate Modern, Turner Gallery, MOMA, Saatchi Gallery, Warhol museum and many others, besides.

Brainbox Candy is an award-winning, family owned and operated business that has been designing funny cards and gifts for over 14 years. 

Removable Christmas Wallpaper – The Ultimate Christmas Decoration

Did you know that removable Christmas wallpaper was available as an option for your home? Neither did we at That's Christmas. But it is!

You can deck your halls and walls and create yourself the ultimate winter wonderland this Christmas with removable festive wallpaper murals from Wallsauce.com. 

From snowy winter wonderlands to sparkling Christmas trees and joyful grottos, choose from a wonderful and vast range of beautiful images and bring the spirit of Christmas to your home.

Not only are these murals made to your dimensions so that waste is minimal, but the peel-and-stick material is also recyclable!

Embrace the traditional colours of Christmas with this winter scene wallpaper. Its gorgeous, deep greens bring a touch of nature whilst the golden hues add a hint of luxury. Complete this stylish look by decorating your Christmas tree with gold, snow-white baubles and candy canes to add an extra splash of colour to your room.

Host a Christmas meal your guests will remember when you extend your decoration to your walls with this beautiful snowflake wallpaper. A wonderful aspect of this wallpaper is how it will suit your walls throughout Christmas and also the winter months! Pair it with mustard or gold dining accessories such as plates, salt and pepper shakers and even your table runner. A wooden dining table with mismatched chairs will add the perfect whimsical touch. For ambiance make sure to include warm-white lighting.

Everyone dreams of a white Christmas! Create your own winter wonderland, right in your living room, with this stunning winter sunset mural. A soft, blanket of snow covering the roads, pavement and trees is enough to transform any area into a gorgeous wonderland. Team this wallpaper with brass accessories in the form of candle stick holders and a mixture of cool grey and crisp white fabrics in the form of throws and cushions. This will make your living room feel like a wintery paradise!

Treat the kids to a magical bedroom with a beautiful snowy landscape removable mural. This particular style is perfect to recreate a cosy scandi-style room. Stick to muted greens and greys with splashes of mustard and pine furniture for a gorgeous winter-inspired room.

With over 60 designs for you to choose from, you’re sure to find a design for any room and any style. Available to order on the removable peel and stick wallpaper, the Christmas murals are the perfect temporary solution for creating impressive festive décor.  Simply choose your favourite design, enter your dimensions and select the option for ‘peel and stick’ wallpaper.

Once your made-to-measure festive backdrop arrives, simply ensure your wall is smooth and clean, peel off the backing and stick each panel to your wall. Should you ever wish to remove it, peel it off and see your wall return to how they were.

Go ahead and bring the Christmas magic to your home with a festive wallpaper mural.

This Girl's Ability needs your support as they strive to help disabled girls and young women flourish. Ideal Christmas project

If we can raise £4,500, Sport England has confirmed they will pledge the other half!

This Girl's Ability needs £9,000 to help them start their non-profit community company, which seeks to decrease the isolation of disabled girls and young women and forge deeper connections within their community. 

Disabled people were disproportionately impacted on by COVID-19, and This Girl's Ability is committed to supporting their recovery post-pandemic.

The £9,000 raised through Crowdfunder will be used to provide weekly sports and creative sessions for disabled girls and young women in Havering and Essex.

Through regular group interaction, they aim to prevent and improve mental health, help members grow in confidence and learn new skills to improve employability, and provide sporting opportunities to this group not known to partake in physically active hobbies.

They aim to create a sustainable project by making the most of their current connections and creating new collaborative links with national governing bodies, sports clubs, local businesses, and community groups.

Georgie Hart, Director and Ambassador at This Girls Ability, said: “I believe this is a vitally important project. Growing up as a disabled girl with cerebral palsy was very hard at times. A club in my local community would have helped me make friends, given me more confidence and made such a difference in my life.”

The money they hope to raise through Crowdfunder will enable them to empower disabled girls and young women. If we can raise £4,500, Sport England has confirmed they will pledge the other half!

 They have some great rewards to claim with your donation. The community project will help to tackle inequalities and reach another area of regional deprivation.

This Girl's Ability has big dreams for their future, and by donating or purchasing a reward, you will be part of their journey and help them hit the ground running!

Donate at https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/thisgirlsability

Go Vegan for Christmas and beyond?

The suffering of billions of animals worldwide every year who are used and abused for human gain counts as one of the major moral issues of our time.

University Preacher at the University of St Andrews is urging Christians to adopt a vegan diet for the sake of animals and the environment.

Preaching on Animal Welfare Sunday, Dr Clair Linzey argues humans should move to a plant-based diet as envisaged in the first chapter of Genesis. “God blesses humans and gives them a vegetarian, actually plant-based diet, ‘every plant yielding seed’ to eat (v. 29).”

She argues: “We must ask ourselves what kind of relationship to the world is envisioned in a plant-based dominion? The answer, I suggest, is one of service and responsibility. We are to care for the world as God would care for the world.”

Recalling how scientific research has shown animals experience both pain and suffering, Dr Linzey maintains we should live without violence wherever we can.

“Seeing the world for animals involves facing the reality of suffering and pain of billions of animals worldwide for human gain. Over seventy three billion cows, sheep, pigs and chicken are killed every year for human consumption. Seventy three billion animals, for just 7.8 billion humans. And this is not all the animals killed for food, nor does it include all the fish and birds killed.”

“The suffering of billions of animals worldwide every year who are used and abused for human gain counts as one of the major moral issues of our time.”

The suffering we inflict on animals has harmful effects on ourselves, argues Dr Linzey, not least of all on the environment. “The primary emission from animal agriculture is methane, which is four times more potent than carbon dioxide. Researchers have concluded that becoming vegan is the single most effective thing you can do personally to combat climate change. What we choose to consume will determine whether we are able to address the climate crisis. Climate change truly begins on our plate.”

Dr Linzey is Deputy Director of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics and was preaching St Salvator’s Chapel in the University of St Andrews, Scotland.

Other Christian preachers have different views on this matter. What do you think?

Ideal family Christmas project? Charities urge people to volunteer for the UK’s biggest winter food drive

As food banks and frontline charities face their most difficult Christmas ever, people are urged to give the gift of their time to take part in the UK’s biggest food donation drive. 

And it's something you and your family can get involved with.

The Tesco Food Collection is taking place in all Tesco stores from December 1 to 3 and the Trussell Trust and FareShare are urging volunteers to sign-up to support the event in store.

It comes as both charities face an unprecedented level of demand for food. The Trussell Trust, which has the biggest foodbank network in the UK, has seen a 46% increase in the number of food parcels distributed in recent months, while FareShare has a growing list of thousands of other frontline charities seeking food.

During the collection Tesco customers are to be encouraged to donate long-life food to support the charities in their work. Donations for the Trussell Trust will help its network of food banks provide emergency food parcels to people in crisis, while donations to FareShare will support its food deliveries to thousands of frontline charities. Tesco, which has been partnering with the charities over the past decade, will once again top up the customer donations by 20% in cash.

Volunteers are needed to staff collection points, because, when volunteers are present, they collect a greater amount of food. The fact one in five food parcels given out by the Trussell Trust come from donations from Tesco and its customers underlines how much the donations made in Tesco stores are needed.

Trussell Trust CEO Emma Revie is urging people to volunteer. “As winter sets in, even more people will be pushed deeper into poverty and we're expecting hundreds of thousands of people to be forced to use a food bank in the coming months,” she said.

She went on to point out: “This increase in need means the winter Tesco Food Collection will be more important than ever as food banks work tirelessly to help everyone who needs their support.”

Lindsay Boswell, the CEO at FareShare added: “The cost-of-living crisis is forcing more and more people to turn to their local charities for support with food and other services, meaning the demand for FareShare food has skyrocketed.

“The Tesco Food Collection is a vital event for FareShare, helping to bring in much needed long-life food that will help us continue our support of the people most in need this winter. Volunteering at the Tesco Food Collection this December will make a huge difference during this increasingly difficult time.”

You can sign up to volunteer with FareShare at https://fareshare.org.uk/foodcollection/ or with the Trussell Trust at https://www.trusselltrust.org/get-involved/tesco-food-collection/volunteer/