Things in the Library - October

Why work with Librarians and Knowledge Specialists?

Because we can help you! Watch this video to find out more.

Unseen Men

NSPCC Learning has released a new blog as part of a series looking at the importance of language in safeguarding, focusing on the use of the terms like “hidden men” and “invisible fathers”. The blog discusses how fathers and male caregivers are often overlooked by services, and how using alternative phrases such as “unseen men” can prompt professionals to think about how they could identify the men in a child’s life and consider any support or protection needs.

Smoking and Vaping in Children

NHS Digital have released figures showing that less children smoke and take drugs than they used to. Among 11-15 year olds, there has been a 3% decrease in smoking and a 5% decrease in drug taking. However it also showed a 3% increase in children of the same age-group vaping.

Anaemia in the Perioperative Pathway

The Centre for Perioperative Care (CPOC) have a new Guideline for the Management of Anaemia in the Perioperative Pathway. It is for all ages, but also includes specific recommendations for those working with children, with Sheffield Children's own Dr Nadia Ladak leading on the paediatric side.

Mental Health

The Centre for Mental Health reports on two psychologists from Project Future embedding in a youth group, and how they supported young men with their mental wellbeing and provided training, advice and support to the youth workers there. 

 Placing mental health workers in a youth club enables them to reach young people who would not normally trust mental health services. By using game-based activities to engage and educate young men about their wellbeing, it creates an openness about mental health that traditional approaches cannot achieve. And by bringing the complementary skills of psychologists and youth workers together, it takes the stigma away from mental health.

 Primary School Weight Measurement

The Office for Health Improvement & Disparities reports on the National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP) data, the first national analysis of the same children from reception to year 6. The majority of children were a healthy weight in reception (84.7%), and of these 78.8% remained a healthy weight in year 6. Children in the most deprived areas and of a minority ethnic background were less likely to remain a healthy weight by year 6. 

Things to do in Sheffield in October

Rush: A Joyous Jamaican Odyssey

On 7th and 8th October at the Lyceum Theatre you can go to see Rush, and hear the story of Reggae music and the Windrush Generation. Narrated by comedian John Simmit and featuring ska, rock steady, calypso, gospel, lovers rock, dancehall and Reggae played live by the JA Reggae Band.

Makers Market 

Millennium Gallery are hosting high-quality stalls from local makers selling illustration, ceramics, jewellery design, woodworking, textiles, and glassware. This will be held on 8th October from 11 til 4.

Recipe of the Month

This Mexican-inspired pumpkin (or squash) soup from Riverford is really warming and tasty with a lovely crunch from some broken tortilla chips. It has lots of ingredients but it's easy to make and reaps the reward in flavour. Jarlsberg cheese ✓ sweet chilli sauce ✓ kidney beans ✓ Delicious!

Things in the Library - June

 Things changing a bit...

From now on the blog will be published once a month, on the last Friday of each month, giving you a bumper blog full of things we think you might want to know.

Things about NHS libraries...

13th-17th June is NHS Library & Knowledge Services Awareness Week. We think we're pretty great of course, and we hope that if we have helped you to find evidence, to organise your emails, to find an article that you just can't find anywhere, to reference that weird document, or to find that blue and white book that you saw last year but can't remember what it's called or who it's by - that maybe you think we're great too!

Things about health inequalities...

The Health Foundation and the Association for Young People's Health have mapped the inequalities experienced by young people from different groups. People aged 10-25 in the poorest areas of the UK will die earlier than their peers in the least deprived areas, and will live 18 more years with ill health. Rachael McKeown says:

"Young people growing up in deprived areas are less likely to have access to resources and support that allow them to live healthy lives. They are more likely to live in overcrowded housing, with limited access to the space and tools needed to exercise, learn and look after their health. Because they may experience transitions in all of these areas during their teens, adolescence is a defining period for young people’s health. Inequalities between individuals and groups can become established and embedded at this time."

Things about health visiting...

The NSPCC has published a news story looking at health visiting services in England and calling on the government to ensure all families receive the five face-to-face health visits they’re entitled to. Findings from analysis of Public Health England data include: in 2021, 19% of babies didn’t receive their 12-month health visitor review by the time they were 15-months-old. 25 organisations, including the NSPCC, have written to the government in an open letter calling for the rebuilding of the health visiting service and highlighting the importance of checks in identifying and supporting new parents experiencing or at risk of mental health problems.  

 Things about nurses...

The BBC has reported that nearly half of the new nurses and midwives registered to work in the UK in the past year have come from abroad. More than 23,000 nurses and midwives have been recruited from abroad, a record high, with most coming from India and the Philippines. It is hoped that the number of new nurses in the UK will keep increasing - the overall number of nurses currently in training has started to rise after the reintroduction of some funding support for student nurses in England in 2020, three years after bursaries were scrapped.

Things to make...

I have some béchamel sauce to use up this weekend, so being from Teesside OF COURSE I have to make myself a parmo. Most of the time I eat vegetarian but the parmo is one thing I make an exception for because heritage is important. This recipe is from North East Recipes, though I have to take exception to a parmo being listed under 'Geordie recipes'! It looks horrible, it's about as unhealthy as you can get, but it tastes just like heaven (or, 2am in a kebab shop in Middlesbrough).

Things in the library 10th Sept...

 Things about child well-being... 

The Children’s Society has published its annual Good Childhood report, looking at the wellbeing of children in the UK in 2021. Findings from a survey of around 2,000 10- to 17-year-olds between April and June 2021 include: 7% of 10- to 15-year-olds in the UK are not happy with their lives; the areas causing the greatest dissatisfaction are school, friendship and how they feel about their appearance; and 85% of children who rated how well they had coped during the pandemic gave themselves a score of above five out of ten. Children's happiness is in an alarming state of decline. 

"Society is tragically failing our young people. School, friendships and how they feel about the way they look are causing the greatest dissatisfaction in adolescence."

 Things about art... 

Evening in Benares, India
Sir William Rothenstein (1872-1945)

For the past six months there’s been a lot of work going on behind-the-scenes to renovate, redecorate and redisplay works at the Graves Gallery, and they are now open again.

They have transformed four of the galleries in the Graves – walls have been re-cladded, spaces redecorated and over a third of the artworks on display have been changed over.

Currently you will be able to see Phlegm’s Pandemic Diary, a new exhibition of work by sculptor Mark Firth, an exhibition curated by pioneering artist Keith Piper, and a new display on the theme of landscape.

Things to buy... 

We have over 100 second-hand books for sale, the list and prices are on this spreadsheet. Now that we can take card payments it is easier than ever for you to come up to the library to browse and buy.  You can also ring us with your choices and, if they are still available, we can take your card payment over the phone and either keep them for you to collect or send in the internal mail (at your risk). Please make sure all transactions take place 30 mins before our closing times. 

Things about opening hours... 

A reminder that we are now back open on two evenings a week  Tuesday and Wednesday until 19:00 - it seems to be popular and we have a few regular attendees.

Things about ultra processed foods... 

A cohort study, published in JAMA Pediatrics, of 9025 British children assessed longitudinal associations between UPF consumption and adiposity trajectories from childhood to early adulthood.  Ultraprocessed foods tend to be more energy-dense and nutritionally poorer (ie, high in levels of free sugar, salt, and saturated fats but low in levels of protein, dietary fiber, and micronutrients) compared with less processed alternatives and are designed to be cheap, palatable, durable, convenient, and appealing. The findings suggest that higher UPF consumption is associated with greater increases in adiposity from childhood to early adulthood. 

Robust public health measures that promote minimally processed foods and discourage UPF consumption among children are urgently needed to reduce obesity in England and globally.

 

Things about everything... 

 Whether you want to know more about our training, what we do, how to request an article or what services we can provide for management then our website is the place to look. Including useful links to Book a Librarian, finding e-books or searching our library catalogue.

Things to book and attend... 

Sheffield's brilliant 'Off the Shelf' literary festival is back 15th-31st October. With speakers and events for everyone including comedian and writer Andy Hamilton, Former Labour MP Helen Jackson, Black Women Write Now – curated by Désirée Reynolds' Lady Hale (who was the first woman and youngest person to be appointed to the Law Commission, President of the Supreme Court and a pioneering reformer), Miriam Margoyles and  Poet Laureate Simon Armitage performs a newly commissioned piece in celebration of the Peak District National Park’s 70th anniversary. This brochure has all the events at a glance.

Things to make... 

One of my jobs this weekend is to make crab apple jelly. This year my fairly new tree is heavily laden with fruit. If you don't have crab apples then other UK apples are coming up to their best season - one of my favourite apple recipes is Dorset apple traybake.

 

Things in the library 6 August...

 Forty things... 

Someone asked me recently “was I counting the days until my retirement” …well I wasn’t …but I did & found I had 40 of my working days left. So I thought I would spend my last 40 days telling everyone something  different about the library on each of those days via our Facebook page or on Twitter using the hashtags  #40things #GillRetiring . When I made a list I found so many things I wanted to tell people about that I might have to postpone my leaving day 😄. So do follow us to find out what 40 things I have chosen.

Things for new starters... 

If you have new rotating doctors in your area or as colleagues please make sure that they know about the library and all our services. Everyone in the trust gets our Monday morning bulletin so do encourage them to glance through this and also to join the library to make the best use of our services whilst they are with us. Whether it is for training, literature searches, current awareness services or leisure reading or a place to work, they will be very welcome. They can find full details of everything to offer on our website.

Things green... 

Sheffield has been blessed with many green open spaces within the city boundaries - many thanks to be benefactor J G Graves. This greenground map produced by Outdoor City and University of Sheffield shows 365 of them.

Things about mindfulness... 

An interesting article spotted this week looks at Yoga and Mindfulness Interventions for Preschool-Aged Children in Educational Settings: A Systematic Review which can be downloaded from this link. They conclude that this systematic review provides some evidence that yoga and mindfulness are promising practices for addressing social emotional development among preschool-aged children.

Things about social and ethnic groups... 

A  population-based retrospective cohort study has published the results of  research looking at the social and ethnic group differences in children’s use of healthcare services in England, from 2007 to 2017. They conclude:

Between 2007 and 2017, children living in more deprived areas of England made greater use of emergency services and received less scheduled care than children from affluent neighbourhoods. Children from Asian and black ethnic groups continued to consult GPs more frequently than children from white ethnic groups, though black children had significantly lower outpatient attendance rates than white children across the study period. Our findings suggest substantial levels of unmet need among children living in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas. Further work is needed to determine if healthcare utilisation among children from Asian and black ethnic groups is proportionate to need.

The full text of the article and supplementary material  in Archives of Disease in Childhood can be accessed by this link. 

Things about opening hours... 

We are now open one evening a week (Tuesdays) until 7pm if you need to use the library and/or the computers.

Things about Children and young people’s mental health... 

Researchers at the University of Birmingham have published initial findings from the early evaluation of the Children and Young People’s Mental Health Trailblazer programme, a programme funding the creation of mental health support teams working in schools and further education colleges in England. An evaluation of the first wave of mental health support teams and education mental health practitioners, working with more than a thousand schools and colleges, include: schools and colleges welcomed the funding of additional capacity to provide in-house mental health support and participants raised concerns about gaps in support, especially for children and young people whose needs were not ‘mild to moderate’ (the group that the teams are designed to support) but also not serious enough to meet the referral criteria for specialist services. The final report from the early evaluation will be published in summer 2022.

Things to read... 

The next virtual Reading Group meeting will be on Sept 1st at 18:30 to 19:30 - all are welcome, please contact the library for the joining link. The book we will be looking at is 'West' by Carys Davies.

When widowed mule breeder Cy Bellman reads in the newspaper that colossal ancient bones have been discovered in a Kentucky swamp, he sets out from his small Pennsylvania farm to see for himself if the rumours are true: that the giant monsters are still alive and roam the uncharted wilderness beyond the Mississippi River. Promising to return within two years, he leaves behind his daughter, Bess, to the tender mercies of his taciturn sister, Julie. With only a barnyard full of miserable animals and her dead mother’s gold ring to call her own, Bess fills lonely days tracing her father’s route on maps at the subscription library in town and shrinking from the ominous attentions paid to her and her aunt by their neighbour and sometimes yard hand, Elmer Jackson. Bellman, meanwhile, ventures farther and farther from home, across the harsh and alien landscapes of the West in reckless pursuit of the unknown.

Things to make... 

Greengages (Reine Claude in France) are, I think, my favourite plum (sorry Victorias ...you are a close second) and spotted in the shops yesterday. They can vary in quality but good ones are fabulous. If you want to cook with them this Nigel Slater frangipane tart is good (you can always cheat with a ready-made pastry case if pastry isn't your thing.

Things in the library 30th July

 Things about opening hours... 

So far we have had little response to our survey about early morning/late evening opening hours. If this is something you would use then please take a couple of minutes to give your opinion. This will inform our decisions about opening hours from September. 

In the meantime the library will be open until 19:00 on Tuesdays in August (unless we have any unforeseen staffing issues) and on Wed 4th August until 19:30 - no counter services available for the last hour as I will be hosting the Teams Online meeting for Reading Group.

Things to read... 

So 4th August 18:30 till 19:30 'Little Women' is the book to be discussed. Please contact the library if you would like the joining link. The book to be reading for September is 'West' by Carys Davie.

Things with a new look...

We had an update of our library management systems this week and alongside that the images have been updated for our library catalogue. So if you are looking at the catalogue (a webpage - so available for searching from anywhere) you might spot some of these.

Things about LGBTQ+... 

People who identify as LGBTQ+ experience disproportionately worse health outcomes and have poorer experiences when accessing health services. In this Kingsfund podcast, three years on from the Government’s LGBT action plan, Helen McKenna sat down with Dr Michael Brady, National Adviser for LGBT Health at NHS England, and Michelle Ross, Co-Founder and Director of Holistic Wellbeing services at cliniQ to explore the health inequalities LGBTQ+ people face and what needs to happen to make sure health services are inclusive.

Things for all of us... 

PHE has launched the latest Better Health campaign to encourage adults across the nation to lose excess weight, eat more healthily and get active this summer. The move follows a nationwide survey of over 5,000 adults which revealed that over 4 in 10 (41%) adults in England say they have put on weight since the first lockdown in March 2020.

Almost over half a stone (4.1kg) was gained on average by those who put on weight, with 1 in 5 (21%) reporting putting on a stone or more. In adults aged 35 to 65 years old, the average weight gain for those who put on weight rises to over 10lbs (4.6kg).

Search ‘Better Health’ or visit nhs.uk/betterhealth for free tools and support to start leading a healthier lifestyle today.

Things about Tai Chi... 

Tai chi was as effective as conventional exercise for reducing central obesity in middle-aged and older adults, according to a trial published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The authors recommended incorporating the gentle mind-body exercise into physical activity guidelines for older people.                         

 

Twelve weeks of regular tai chi sessions helped older adults reduce their waist size in a recent clinical trial. The trial’s 543 participants aged 50 years or older were located at a single research site in Hong Kong. They were randomly assigned to a control group with no exercise, to aerobic exercise and strength training, or to a tai chi group for 12 weeks. An instructor led the conventional exercise and tai chi groups, which met 3 times a week for 1 hour.   

At baseline, 75% of participants were overweight or obese. Because Asian individuals typically have a higher body fat percentage than White people at the same body mass index (BMI), the researchers used waist circumference as a more accurate measure of cardiometabolic risk. At weeks 12 and 38, waist circumference decreased similarly in the conventional exercise and tai chi groups but increased in the control group. Both exercise groups also had modest decreases in body weight and BMI.

Things about autism... 

 A policy paper on the 'The national strategy for autistic children, young people and adults: 2021 to 2026' was published recently. The roadmap for the next 5 years, which is set out in their vision, gives these aims:

• Improving understanding and acceptance of autism within society
• Improving autistic children and young people’s access to education and supporting positive transitions into adulthood
• Supporting more autistic people into employment
• Tackling health and care inequalities for autistic people
• Building the right support in the community and supporting people in inpatient care

Things to see... 

A new exhibition opens at the Millenium Gallery next week. 'Earthbound: Contemporary Landscape from the Roberts Institute of Art' and a related event (charge and needs booking) you can join award-winning artist Paul Evans for a day of drawing from natural environment surrounding Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet. Using both traditional and highly innovative techniques, Paul will take you through a number of drawing exercises that will bring you closer to nature, build your personal repertoire of marks, and improve your ability to 'experience and see things for yourself - as they really are'.

For family events across the road at Weston Park see these suggestions. 

Things to make... 

If you are enjoying the Olympics then why not try some Japanese inspired recipes, perhaps this version of a Katsu curry which can be adapted for different diets.

 Things read...

The Reading Group this week departed from our normal fiction selection to read 'Why I am no longer talking to white people about race'. You might be interested in the summary of our discussion.

It was universally appreciated (enjoyed doesn't quite seem the correct word) and many said they would read it again, that it was an important book and would recommend it to others. Most found it easy to read and understand though a few struggled a bit with it being not their normal type of reading matter  (non-fiction). Many mentioned the history chapter as the most informative and interesting. One or two felt that bits of the book turned a bit 'lecturery'. Comments about the 'Fear of a black planet' section were that it was easy to relate to and parts made us feel uncomfortable.  It was felt that it was a sobering reminder of the history that we are not taught and an eye-opener to the way education, health services, police etc have been structured to privilege some people and discriminate others. Positive discrimination was explained well in terms of the need to re-balance an organisation - whilst we recognised that it can also be divisive. The importance of us all speaking out in situations where we are aware of discrimination and having conversations on discrimination was the take-away message. 

Things about child poverty... 

The End Child Poverty Coalition has published figures on the rates of child poverty across the UK. The figures, which cover the period from 2014/15 to 2019/20, show that: in March 2020 half a million more children in the UK were living in poverty compared to five years ago, totalling 4.3 million children; child poverty is rising significantly in the North East of England; 75% of children living in poverty in 2019/20 lived in households with at least one working adult, up from 67% in 2014/15; and the highest rates of poverty are in larger cities, particularly Birmingham and London. The level of child poverty percentage rise in Yorkshire & Humberside is 5.4% and in Sheffield 5.6%

 Things coming soon... 

14th - 18th June is a week to celebrate NHS Knowledge and Library Services and Specialists. The week focuses on the invaluable work undertaken by NHS knowledge and library specialists [that's us!]. The week is an opportunity to highlight the range of ways in which NHS knowledge and library teams support all healthcare staff and learners [yes all of you!] to deliver informed decision making and evidence-based care across all areas of clinical and operational healthcare. 

We are going to receive 10 titles chosen by NHS staff as part of the 'Uplifting Resources for the NHS from the NHS' collection and will add them to our Leisure Reading collection when we recive them - number 4 on the list we already have available as it was a previous reading group book choice.

1. "Love in colour” by Bolu Babalola

2. “The boy, the mole, the fox and the horse” by Charlie Mackesey

3. “Three things about Elsie” by Joanna Cannon

4. “Before the coffee gets cold” by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

5. “The lido” by Libby Page

6. “Where the crawdads sing” by Delia Owens

7. “The salt path” by Raynor Winn

8. “Calypso” by David Sedaris

9. “The lost spells” by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris

10. “Happiness FM” by Mary Dickins

Things about children and the pandemic ... 

Barnardo's has published findings from and commented on a survey by YouGov on the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on children and young people's mental health. Findings from the poll, conducted with more than 4,000 children and young people aged 8- to 24-years-old, include: 29% of 8- to 15-year-olds reported feeling more stressed now than before the pandemic; the two most common issues that 8- to 15-year-olds were worried about were catching or spreading the virus and being behind in their studies; and the number of 16- to 24-year-olds who reported struggling with their mental health and wellbeing has increased from last year.

The Disabled Children's Partnership has published a report on the impact of the pandemic on disabled children, their siblings and their parents. The report shows the findings from the third in a series of surveys of disabled children and their families. It found: a high proportion of disabled children and their families are still experiencing severe levels of social isolation despite the easing of restrictions; over half of families are unable to access therapies vital for their disability; 60% of families are experiencing delays and challenges accessing health service appointments; and that disabled children and their families are at risk of developing additional long-term health problems.

Things to tell your colleagues... 

If you have ever  received a service from the library that has helped you then please tell someone around you. We try to advertise our services widely but still sometimes find people coming here saying "I've worked here # years - and I never knew we had a library". The dents in the wall from library staff hitting their heads against it may soon become an issue of concern to facilities - 'Save a librarian'! Seriously though, we know that most people who use our services do so because they were told about it by a colleague so do talk about us.

Things to be reading now... 

The next Reading Group meeting will be via Microsoft Teams on 7th July at 18:30. Please contact us if you would like the joining link or to be on the mailing list if you want to read along with us. The next book is 'American Dirt' a 2020 novel by American author Jeanine Cummins, about the ordeal of a Mexican woman who had to leave behind her life and escape as an undocumented immigrant to the United States with her son. A book which has provoked some controversy so it will be interesting to find out the opinions of our Reading Group.

Things away...

I will be off on my holidays for the next 2 weeks - trying to avoid the sight of the G7 leaders in their bathers and limousines stuck in Cornish lanes!  Apologies if the blog is missing as my colleagues may not have time to write it in my absence. Stay safe everyone. Now to stock up on my holiday reading!

Things to make...

With Cornwall in mind it has to be a Rick Stein fish recipe this week -  one of my favourite combinations hake and chorizo. Enjoy.

Things in the library 14 May...

 Things for free... 

As a thank you to NHS workers: the chance to win a free paperback of Richard Osman's 'The Thursday Murder Club'. To celebrate the paperback publication of 'The Thursday Murder Club' and all the extraordinary work done by members of the NHS throughout the pandemic, Penguin are giving away 1000 books to NHS workers, sign-up to be entered in a draw.

Things for Mental Health Awareness week... 

Local artist, Hannah Flynn, and a small group of volunteers from NHS Sheffield Clinical Commissioning Group are the creative minds behind a new Sheffield Wellbeing colouring book that is also a guide to mental health services in the city. It’s been produced in partnership with Sheffield CCG, mental health charity, Sheffield Flourish and local people who use their services.

The aim of the guide is to close the digital divide which means that many people are missing out on the support they need because they do not have access to the internet. It has tips on improving emotional wellbeing and details of over 300 primarily Sheffield based mental health resources, plus some regional and national support organisations.

Each page has information on the left hand page and on the right hand page is a themed colouring page of Sheffield landmarks. Research has shown that colouring can reduce people’s stress and anxiety.

Copies of the guide will be available from local voluntary and community organisations across the city. To find out the nearest place to collect a free copy call Sheffield Flourish on 0114 273 7009.

The online mental health guide can be found at www.sheffieldmentalhealth.co.uk

Things in the library... 

Don't forget that, although we don't have any copies of the above book, we do have colouring sheets and pens for use in the library if you need some time-out.

Things about COVID & Obesity... 

WHO reports that COVID-19 is likely to negatively impact childhood obesity levels in the WHO European Region. School closures and lockdowns can impact access to school meals and physical activity times for children, widening inequalities. Childhood obesity prevention strategies should therefore remain a priority during the pandemic. 

The latest European Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative (COSI) data comes from 36 countries that participated in the survey during the 2015–2016 and 2016–2017 school years, measuring around 250 000 primary school-aged children. The COSI report holds the most comprehensive data for boys and girls on overweight, physical activity and dietary patterns.

Overall, the prevalence of overweight (including obesity) was 29% in boys and 27% in girls aged 6 to 9 years; the prevalence of obesity was 13% in boys and 9% in girls. These figures hide wide variations between countries.

The highest proportions of childhood overweight and obesity were observed in Mediterranean countries such as Cyprus, Greece, Italy and Spain, where over 40% of boys and girls were overweight, and 19% to 24% of boys and 14% to 19% of girls were obese.

The lowest proportions of childhood overweight/obesity were observed in central Asian countries such as Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, where 5% to 12% of boys and girls were overweight and less than 5% were obese.

Things about attachment... 

NSPCC Learning has published new content on understanding attachment in children. The content looks at: why attachment is important; how children develop attachment; attachment and behaviours to look out for; how trauma can affect attachment; and ways to support parents and carers to develop a bond with their child

Things about Asthma... 

This integrative review in Journal of Pediatric Nursing looks at yoga & mindfulness in relation to asthma in children and adolescents. Despite the availability of treatments and educational methods, children with asthma continue to report an impaired quality of life, including symptoms of anxiety and inability to participate in physical activity. As complementary health approaches are becoming more popular and show promise in the management of many chronic diseases, the purpose of this integrative review is to examine the state of the science regarding popular complementary health approaches- yoga and mindfulness- for children and adolescents with asthma.

Things about nettles... 

Apparently today is the start of  'Be Nice to Nettles Week'... 

Image by Hans Braxmeier 
from Pixabay 

The stinging nettle is one of the most important native plants for wildlife in the UK. The nettle supports over 40 species of insect including some of our most colourful butterflies. The sting of the nettle prevents it being grazed by most animals so providing a safe place for insects. The stinging structure of the nettle is very similar to the hypodermic needle although it predates that man-made invention by millions of years! Each sting is actually a hollow hair stiffened by silica with a swollen base that contains the venom. The tip of this hair is very brittle and when brushed against, no matter how lightly, it breaks off exposing a sharp point that penetrates the skin and delivers its stinging payload. 

If cooking with nettles they are best when very tender, so pick them in the spring when the nettles are just coming up or later in the season when they’re growing well, but before they are flowering. Use rubber gloves or pinch the leaves hard, so you don’t get stung. Pick the young leaves from the tips.

Lay the nettles out on a tray to wilt or wash them in hot water. Once wilted they can no longer sting you. The sting relies on erect hairs to penetrate the skin and inject the stinging formic acid. When wilted strip the leaves off the tough stems.Always cook nettles to destroy the stinging acid. 

Nettles are not suitable for salads!

Things about foraging... 

If you are out and about this weekend why not try foraging for some nettles or wild garlic (which smells wonderful when you bring it home).

Remember the foraging code

• the first rule of foraging is simple. Never eat anything poisonous! if you are not certain what it is don't eat it. Guide to nettles    Guide to wild garlic 
• take only what you want for personal consumption and pick with respect. Respect the trees, plants and mushrooms, the surrounding environment, wildlife that may have a dependence on with what you are taking, other people and their property.
• stay away from all Sites of Special Scientific Interest

So then you can make... 

There are many recipes for nettle soup but also other things you could try such as risotto and even nettle crisps or perhaps a wild garlic and cheddar tart .