Take advantage of a free health check for fishermen in your port this coming week!

Calling all fishermen (and ex-fishermen) - why not take advantage of a free health check, literally down the quay? Yesterday saw the Healthy Cornwall team run the first of a series of fishermen's health checks in the harbour office - right next to the fish market!

Fishermen in Cornwall are being encouraged to know the important numbers relating to their health with help from a Healthy Cornwall check-up service from Cornwall Council.

The Men’s Health Forum campaign to “know your numbers” focusses on specific numbers all men should be aware of that relate to their overall health and wellbeing.

Cornwall Council public health consultant Ruth Goldstein said: “It can be especially difficult for fishermen to keep track of their health as they often work long hours and are dependent on tide times so may not be able to access normal health services.

“They are also more likely to keep any health worries to themselves and find it difficult to find the time to visit the doctor on top of all the other pressures on their time.”

The outreach sessions will take place at different ports, with a range of support services on offer, from physiotherapy to NHS health checks, MacMillan skin cancer advice and advice from the Fishermen’s Mission.

Dates for the diary are:

• Friday 14 June – Fisherman’s Shack, Newlyn
• Monday 17 June – Wheelhouse, Mevagissey
• Tuesday 18June – Memorial Hall, Padstow
• Wednesday 19 June – Fisherman’s Mission, Newquay
• Friday 21 June – Fisherman’s Shack, Newlyn

All sessions will take place from 7am until 2pm.

There's many more similar services available across the country - for more info head to the Seafarer's UK website who are the main charity funding the initiative.

Once the blood test (for cholesterol and other heart conditions) has been taken height, weight and blood pressure are also recorded.

The Fishermen's shack in Newlyn is just one of the bases for ever-improving support now in place for the welfare of the industry.

Another service that is currently available for fishermen is the Seafit programme. This service provides support to fishermen and their families in Newlyn, motivating and supporting them to lead a healthier lifestyle.

The Healthy Lifestyle Advice service is available to all fishermen and their families in Newlyn. A drop-in takes place every Tuesday from 7am-12.30pm at the Fisherman’s Shack. There’s no need to book, just turn up. There’s also a drop-in at Harbourside Physiotherapy every Monday from 2pm-6pm.

Newlyn Filmhouse will be at Newlyn Fish Festival!

Coming soon - a cinema near you. And coming sooner, Suzie and Alistair Sinclair of the Newlyn Film House will again be hosting Newlyn Fish Festival's "Fish Films in the Fridge". 

All day long, they will be showing film clips that will make you think about where our fish comes from and the dedicated people who work hard, often in perilous conditions, to deliver it to us.

£35,000 raised so far - that's a whole heap of salt!

Hot off the press!

Enough to fill a Newlyn pilchard press salt cellar - sales of 'Salt of the Earth', the book of the portraits of the people who make Newlyn the unique fishing port it is have now exceeded £35 thousand pounds for @thefishmish !

Book launch - Salt of the Earth at the Mission tonight

A name synonymous with fish, fishing and fishermen!

At last, the day has arrived when the public will get a chance to see all 200 of the local fishing community captured in book form by portrait photographer David Penprase in the book Salt of the Earth which has just been published as a fundraising project that captures the people, mainly fishermen who make the community Newlyn what it is......

fishermen like these two who if you know them you will see something of the person captured so well by David Penprase...

the Mission centre in Newlyn is sadly planned for selling off by the charity RNMDSF as it finds it can no longer support big, expensive building in fishing ports that it has so wonderfully served for over 100 years and instead is focusing on supporting Mission staff in their services to the community...

well know skippers like Don Liddicoat and his family feature...

as do a host of other skippers and fishermen...

and the next generation to follow in their boots...

sometimes it's an unmistakable hat like Cap'n Cod's...

or in Joe Crow's case his minuscule mutt - just the kind of dog you would expect from a regular in a pub that featured in Sky TV's series, Britain's Most Dangerous pubs...

is to serve fishing communities up and down the country...

and part of what makes the port a living, working fishing community with a bright future!

From tea to technology - The blogging Mission skipper!

Never one to shy away from a challenge, Newlyn Fishermen's Mission skipper Keith Dixon (recently of Great British Menu fame) has begun to blog! With Mission HQ planning to close Newlyn's iconic Mission building sometime in the future, Keith is doing all he can to diversify and reach out to the community using the latest technology tools - hence the Newlyn Mission Blog. Today's latest posting reports on a visit by 12 children from Chernobyl - yes Chernobyl - who enjoyed the best start possible to the day - a hearty Mission fry-up!


The Mission's blog can be found on the Through the Gaps web site as a page link here.