It seems that every year we have the same problem…. Just what to do on New Year’s Eve!

It seems that every year we have the same problem…. Just what to do on New Year’s Eve! There is plenty of choice, it’s just making a decision that suits everyone involved that seems to be the tricky bit. We’ve all got our own issues with deciding what to do: If you’ve got young children then it needs to be family friendly, if you have elderly relatives then a nightclub isn’t going to be ideal.
To make the choice a little easier for you, we’ve come up with five options for celebrating the New Year, each with their pros and cons. Hopefully one of the below will do the trick!

Attend a house party
This option is my first choice to celebrate the New Year. We usually all know one person, family or friend, who is hosting a New Year’s Eve house party. These parties can range in style and scale depending on the host but all usually follow the same three rules:

1. Bring your own drink, alcoholic or otherwise. Nobody likes a freeloader, and if you want to be invited back next year then bringing your own drink is a must.
2. Gather in the living room (or garden if there are fireworks) for the countdown. When it’s time to bring in the New Year, everyone needs to be together in the same room to revel in the festivities together. Make sure your drink is topped up and you don’t need to go the loo when the countdown commences.
3. Don’t overstay your welcome. We are not suggesting that five minutes after the New Year is welcomed in that you leave but you also don’t want to be still there at 5am when everyone else has left and the hosts are dropping hints about being tired and that they’ve got a busy day tomorrow. Try to leave when everyone else decides to call it a night

Who is this best for?
House parties are recommend for everyone really, depending on the host, for example, if the host has children then it’s usually okay for families with children to attend. You will need to gauge this yourself.

Go out for a meal
A staple of New Year’s Eve is going out for a meal with family or friends. A favourite in the office is going for a sit down Chinese meal or a 5 course banquet. This option is really easy as you don’t have to worry about cooking or cleaning up after yourself and you can sit, relax and see in the New Year with very little effort.
A meal for New Year is however very popular, so if you haven’t already booked a seat you may find it difficult to find availability. Some restaurants have different sitting times so if you intend to see through the countdown in the restaurant, make sure you check their arrangements.

Who is this best for?
Going out for a meal is the best option for families with children and/or elderly relatives as there is no restrictions on restaurants and it is usually suited to those who want a more laid back approach. It probably isn’t the best option for the party animal as there is very little option to party like it’s 1999.

Join a pre-organised event
There are various types of event that you can join, big or small. If you live in a large city such as London or Edinburgh then the celebrations in the city centre are usually huge, with firework displays and live music. There are however, other events you can attend on a much smaller scale. One popular one in towns and cities across the UK is going to the local pub. Pub’s usually have small events on which sometimes include, but are not limited to; a buffet, karaoke, a New Year quiz and live music. Some pub events are so popular that you require a ticket to attend so if this sounds up your street get yourself down to the local and enquire what they have planned.

Who is this best for?
Again, this really depends on the event. If it’s a firework show at the local social club then it’s family friendly. Large events in cities are probably best for those who are wanting to party in with a group of people. Pub events are a mix between families and people who like to party, depending on the scene in the pub.

A night on the town
This one is pretty much what it says on the tin. Visiting the local clubs and bars in your town or city. Something a few of us spend most weekends doing anyway, why not replicate this for New Year? For those of you with no viable options then going to a few bars and having some drinks is an easy way of spending the evening. Larger nightclubs may have dedicated events on but smaller bars and clubs are normally business as usual, with added festive tunes thrown in and a countdown at midnight.

Who is this best for?
We would recommend this option solely for the younger people who are looking for a party. It’s not an option for under 18’s as most bars and clubs will have age restrictions and realistically it’s not the type of event that the elderly would enjoy. Still, it’s a great option for those without any plans and does not require any preparation.

In the house in front of the TV
What better way than to see in the New Year than spending it in the comfort of our own home, with a glass of wine / cup of tea, feet up in front of the box? This sounds boring? It’s a cop-out you say? Well let’s face it, it takes no effort what so ever, you can enjoy the festivities by watching it on BBC News from your sofa. Invite your close family round, have a nice chat while listing to some of this year’s hit singles and unwind. Why bother with making an effort for one night anyway? Chances are we are all still recovering from Christmas so staying in and enjoying a low key affair sounds like a plan.

Who is this best for?
The beauty of staying in is that it’s suitable for everyone. Whether you have kids, elderly relatives, close family and friends or just your other half! This really is a one size fits all option!
Not convinced? Yeah, neither are we! Taxi!

So the big day has been and gone, hopefully we all had a great Christmas and are now relaxing and working through the leftover food!

So the big day has been and gone, hopefully we all had a great Christmas and are now relaxing and working through the leftover food!

If you’re anything like us then we’re sure you will have received some presents that are best described as “questionable”, we know we have.
We don’t want to sound ungrateful for any of our presents but let’s face it, we are probably never going to use any of them and they could potentially be relegated to the back of the cupboard or re-used as birthday presents sometime in the New Year.

So today we are going to list the top six unwanted gifts that we always seem to receive at Christmas.

Socks/Underwear
We always seem to receive socks and underwear for Christmas. This on the face of things isn’t a bad thing as we’re always loosing single socks or running out of clean clothes. The problem is, the socks and underwear that we usually receive are ghastly looking! It could be those novelty boxer shorts with the antlers sewn on the side or those bright pink socks with yellow polka dots making your feet resemble Mr Blobby! This type of gift is not practical, the only use we’ve found for them is either use as a makeshift car polisher or for fancy dress. Odds are that we will all have received some type of sock/underwear for Christmas, our fingers are crossed that the type you have is at least mildly acceptable!

Bath Sets
This gift is a huge bugbear, mainly for the girls in the office! Receiving a bath set might look all well and good, some of the lads in the office have admitted to sending them to their sisters and female friends this year, but apparently it’s a big no-no. Upon further investigation this is for two reasons. The first being the assumption that the receiver has enough time in their day to enjoy a nice relaxing bath with all the trimmings; candles, baths salts, body butter etc, etc. Apparently most people don’t have the time for a long soak, no matter how much they might like it. The second is because they just don’t like the brand or type you have chosen for them. Point taken, never buy bath sets in the future!

Deodorant Gift Sets
Much like the bath sets with the girls, it seems that the lads have the same problem with deodorant sets. The usual suspect is a Lynx Africa gift set containing a deodorant spray and a bottle of shower gel. After a quick poll in the office, it seems that every lad has received this specific gift set at least once in a Christmas past. Coupling this up with the Bath Set gifts we are guessing that as certain fragrance stores and pharmacies have special offers on gifts before Christmas this type of present is an easy choice for Christmas shoppers across the UK! In the future let’s at least mix up the fragrance!

Tools
Another one that is mainly for the lads, when you get to a certain age we seem to receive tools of all varieties as Christmas gifts. The problem is, if you needed the tools you would probably already have them and if you didn’t have them then you’re probably never going to use them. Upon investigation the types of tool we have received are as follows, tape measures, spanner kits, hammer sets and even a universal Allen Key. This is another gift that will probably spend all year sitting on a shelf in the shed waiting to be passed on to their next home.

Chocolates
As a standalone present, chocolate is by no means a bad gift, in fact, it was featured on our Last Minute Christmas Gift Blog, as one of the preferred presents to buy someone if you were in a rush. The problem with chocolates is that we tend to be over faced with them. Usually chocolates are purchased “for the house” before Christmas, then we end up receiving them from a number of different people, leaving a mountain to get through in the New Year. If we just received one selection box or a couple of Ferrero Rocher’s, it would be great, not so much when you’re living room resembles something from Willy Wonker’s workshop!

Onesie (for people aged 12 months and above)
This one came in from the left field from a member of our team, his reasoning, no one should ever receive a onesie, EVER. He was quite adamant in the fact so we decided to reward his tenacity and include it in our list. Love them or hate them, onesies are quite popular as lounge wear. However, admittedly, if we did receive a onesie as a Christmas present we would probably cringe, no matter how cute we would look dressed like a lamb or minion.
Whether you have received any unwanted gifts or not, we would like to take this opportunity to wish you all well for the New Year and say Thank You for supporting us throughout 2015!

We would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas from everyone at NCC!

We would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas from everyone at NCC!

We hope you all have a sensation time over the holidays!

What ever happened to the traditional Christmas card?

What ever happened to the traditional Christmas card? Many will remember back to the time when Christmas cards portrayed nativity scenes, images of churches, snow scenes, robins, coach and horses, children, etc. Nowadays, the choice detailed on the front of a Christmas card could have anything included. Christmas cards depict all sorts of images such as, cartoon characters, Father Christmas, joke content, cuddly bears etc. etc. The internal content has also changed from a traditional Christmas message of goodwill to more unimaginative prose such as ‘Merry Christmas’ leaving the writer of the card to insert their own message.

Sir Henry Cole, back in 1843, is cited with starting the custom of sending Christmas cards within the United Kingdom. Sir Henry was a civil servant who was interested in the new ‘Public Post Office’ and how more ordinary people would use the service.

Sir Henry had the idea of Christmas Cards with his friend John Horsley, who was an artist. They designed the first card and sold them for 1 shilling each. (5p in today’s money).

Almost all main-stream Charities now have Christmas cards available as this is an extremely useful source of raising income from their supporters. Christmas cards can also be recycled in various ways to raise additional funds. Some charitable organisations will make gift tags for re-sale, large supermarkets will have collection points for customers to dispose of their cards which are recycled to support organisations such as The Woodland Trust.

In 1994 the ecard was launched and has over the years become very popular, the sender can personalise their message, choose animated story cards whilst background music is played to enhance the experience of the recipient.

The largest supplier of Christmas cards today in the United Kingdom is Hallmark cards which was set up in 1915 by John C. Hall and his two brothers.

One of the newer types of Christmas Card is the photo card. Many people now send personalised cards, with a photograph of them and or their family. Politicians have taken to this trend recently with the current Prime Minister, David Cameron, issuing a Family Photo for his festive card this year. Celebrity family, the Kardashian’s, reportedly spent $250,000 on a photograph for their Christmas card recently showing that it’s a huge business!

Many people now design and prepare their own cards, the craft hobbyist is ever present in this area as they are relatively easy and cheap to make. Schools and organisations such as the Girl Guides and Scouts Associations also involve young children who make a card for ‘mum and dad’ or grandparents. Why not design your own cards and include a personal message to a friend or loved one become creative and delight the recipient. To get your creative juices flowing consider enrolling on NCC Home Learning’s Creative Writing Diploma to unleash your inner poet, write a personal journal or perhaps a novel, the list is limitless.

It’s getting closer and closer to Christmas and odds are that a good number of us will still have presents to buy!

It’s getting closer and closer to Christmas and odds are that a good number of us will still have presents to buy, I know I have! With only 4 shopping days left I’ve come up with a fool proof list to use if it comes to Christmas Eve and I’m still struggling to find a gift for Great Aunt Edna.
Below is my magic seven last minute gifts that can be used no matter who’s receiving them!

Vouchers
The gift we all dreaded when growing up, vouchers or a gift card. Now we can thank our lucky stars that such a thing exists! Vouchers are somehow more acceptable than cold hard cash to give as a present, mainly because it shows that you have made some sort of effort to buy a gift. Nowadays you don’t even need to visit the store the intended vouchers are for! Petrol stations, supermarkets and even corner shops now sell gift cards of varying amounts! No longer are you required to brave Marks and Spencer’s on a Saturday afternoon to buy your Nan a £10 gift card that she will use to buy those slippers she wanted in the January sales. Vouchers are the perfect cop-out present for any occasion and anyone you are buying for! With any luck you’ll also receive a complimentary card that you can write that last minute message in too!

Chocolates
A last minute gift that is usually reserved for Valentine’s Day or as an apology for missing an anniversary, yes that means you lads! Chocolates are a quick and easy way to get away with a present for a loved one. You have a good choice as well, for a close relative you can pick up a box of Thornton’s or Lindt, for a brother of sister how about a tub of celebrations and who doesn’t love a Toblerone at Christmas? What’s even better is that chocolates are relatively cheap, so you can get that last minute gift without having to spend a small fortune!

Re-using old gifts
Okay, we might get a bit of stick for this one but surely what the receiver doesn’t know won’t hurt them? Reusing a gift that has been given to you, or upcycling as we prefer to call it, is a great way of giving a last minute present! We’ve all received things in the past which end up at the top of the wardrobe or hidden away in a cupboard never to see the light of day. What better way to both declutter your home and save yourself from the faux-par of not having a decent Christmas gift to give than upcycling that bath set or unwatched DVD. Just be sure that the gift you intend to re-use wasn’t sent by the person you are giving it too!

Wine
This is a gift that can strictly be only used for adults but it is still one great last minute present! Wine, or any alcohol for that matter, is a perfect gift if you are seriously struggling for last minute gift. Most corner shops and supermarkets stock a variety of alcohol to choose from and you may also have the luxury of a local off-licence. This one is particularly good if you happen to know the person’s favourite tipple as it shows that you have put some thought behind the gift, when in reality you have spent 5 minutes picking something up down the road. For those who are really cutting it fine you could also use a bottle of something that you already have in (unopened of course)! We’ve used this trick a few times when we’ve not had the chance to buy for (or forgot about) someone’s birthday. If you’re in luck they may even choose to share this one with you!

Cash in a card
Probably the most unimaginative option of this list and something of a last resort, putting money in a card can always be used if necessary. As mentioned earlier, somehow a voucher or gift card is seen as more acceptable than cash but cash can be used nevertheless! If you are resorting to this, I would recommend picking out a very fancy card with lots of room for you to write something witty in which will hopefully spare your blushes. For those who are struggling with words, why not use something like the poem below?
Twenties are purple,
Fives are blue,
I forgot your gift,
So this cash is for you!

Lottery Ticket
This is probably my favourite on the list, not least because it’s one of the cheapest, but it has the potential to be the best Christmas gift ever! Buying someone a lottery ticket or a number of lottery tickets is a great way of showing someone that you have made an effort to buy them a gift without having to actually make much of an effort. This is perfect for those people who have everything and are really hard to buy for, grandparents I’m looking at you! You also have the chance of being the person responsible for changing someone’s life around, hopefully if they did win they wouldn’t forget who provided the winning ticket!

NCC Home Learning Course
Are you still struggling to find that perfect gift? Then why not the gift of learning? The NCC Home Learning office is open until Christmas Eve and you can also place orders online throughout the Christmas holidays! With courses ranging from Autism Awareness to Zoology we provide something to suit everyone. What’s more, we currently have a special offer where you can receive a 20% discount on all orders made online by using the code XMAS20.
Need some more information? Then contact a course advisor by Telephone: 0800 970 2522 or Email: [email protected]

Today we are celebrating Christmas Jumper Day 2015 in the NCC office!

Today we are celebrating Christmas Jumper Day in the NCC office!

Christmas Jumper Day is celebrated each year to support the Charity Save the Children. This year, in collaboration with ITV’s Text Santa campaign, Save the Children are teaming up with Macmillan Cancer Support and Make-A-Wish® UK to raise as much money as possible over the festive period!

What is Christmas Jumper Day?
Christmas Jumper day is exactly what it says on the tin. It’s a day where you can raise awareness and money for charity while getting into the festive spirit by wearing your best, or worst Christmas Jumper. Traditional Christmas Knits are always a popular choice however we have seen more and more elaborate jumpers in the last few years ranging from homemade ensembles, LED lights to giant stuffed turkeys! Whichever way you choose to adorn yourself, it’s always fun to get involved!

Who are Save the Children?
Save the children are a charity that operate internationally. Quite simply they help save children’s lives.
Save the Children can trace their roots all the way back to the 20th century where in 1919 two sisters, Eglantyne Jebb and Dorothy Buxton campaigned for children’s rights, specifically those suffering from the effects of the First World War.
Throughout the 20th Save the Children were instrumental in providing support for children following a number of events such as the Second World War, the Korean War and the Ethiopian Famine.
In the modern day, Save the Children work in a number of areas helping to provide education, healthcare, food and housing to children across the globe. In 2014 they estimate that they helped 17.4 million children. The money raised from Christmas Jumper day goes to help children across the world who are suffering in poverty.

What is Text Santa?
The Text Santa campaign was set up in 2011 to support families in the UK and abroad who are suffering from life threating conditions by providing support, medical care and granting wishes to children.
Since 2011 more than £21 million has been raised supporting a number of charities and helping thousands of children and their families.
The aim is simple, people can text the word SANTA to 70760 to donate £5 to the charity. This is then split between the three charities, Save the Children, Macmillan Cancer Support and Make-A-Wish® UK. 100% of all donations will go to these charities which will be used in the vital work that each charity undertakes.

This year, as with years past the NCC office are participating in Christmas Jumper Day to help raise funds and awareness! We have a competition for the most interesting jumper in the office and are hoping to raise a bit of festive cheer to all our learners with our swanky sweaters!

Our winner for the most interesting Jumper is one of our course advisors, Kelley. Her Elf Ensemble was chosen as the best effort from the whole office!

Kelley with her prize!

Here at NCC, we try to support charities at all times of year, we have raised awareness and funds for causes such as Macmillan Cancer Research, British Heart Foundation and the Steve Prescot Foundation. If there is a cause close to your heart that you would like to see us fund raise for please get in touch!

NCC Home learning have reached 5000 likes on Facebook!

NCC Home Learning are pleased to announce that our dedicated Facebook page has now reached over 5000 likes!

We would like to take this time to thank everyone who has liked our Facebook page and also all of our learners, past and present!

Keep an eye on our page for exclusive discounts and competitions! In the past year we have gave away some fabulous prizes including; an iPad, remote controlled drone, free courses and gift vouchers!

Please find a link to our Facebook page below:
https://www.facebook.com/NCCHomeLearning

The day that millions of people around the globe have been waiting for is nearly upon us…. The release of a brand new Star Wars film!

The day that millions of people around the globe have been waiting for is nearly upon us…. The release of a brand new Star Wars film!
Star Wars: The Force Awakens opens at cinemas in the UK tomorrow, December 17th 2015 with a worldwide release following on December 18th 2015. The film has been hotly anticipated by fans, who are hoping that the new movies are much more satisfying than the previously released prequel trilogy (the less said about those, the better!)

In celebration of the film’s release we have polled our office to find the six characters, from the whole franchise, which we would love to see in the new movies. Hopefully there won’t be a Jar Jar Binks in sight!

6. Mace Windu
Coming in at number 6 on our list is Mace Windu, the Jedi Master famous for his purple lightsabre. Windu is the only character in our list who is exclusively from the Prequel trilogy showing just how popular the originals are over the newer films. It seems there is one distinct reason that we all chose to include Windu on the list, the actor who plays him. The great Samuel L. Jackson portrays Mace Windu in the films, rumour has it he only agreed to appear if he could choose his own colour lightsabre, hence the aforementioned purple colour. Jackson is such a great actor that he made the character of Mace Windu much more appealing and was one of the saving graces of the prequel trilogy.

There is however only a slim chance that we would see Windu appear in the new films. Mace Windu was seemingly killed by the combination of Anakin Skywalker (soon to be Darth Vader) and Darth Sidious (soon to become Emperor). We never actual see confirmation of his death so there is always a chance that he somehow survived but we’re not holding our breath!

5. R2D2
Number five on our list is a character that has appeared in every Star Wars film to date and is a firm personal favourite of mine! R2D2, the small silver and blue Droid is one of the best characters in the franchise, which is made even more astonishing when you realise that he doesn’t say anything remotely recognisable, and only communicates through beeps and whistles. R2D2 along with his golden counterpart C3PO have appeared in all six previous Star Wars films and the trend looks set to continue with both R2 and Threepio confirmed for the new films. We can’t wait to see what mischief they get into, whether it be causing search parties in the desert or being in the middle of battles in space.

R2D2 is definitely the droid that we are looking for!

4. Luke Skywalker
Luke, the hero of the original trilogy comes in at number 4 on our list. He may be a little short to be a Stormtrooper but he still makes the cut for our characters we are looking forward to seeing the most list. Luke, the first of the new Jedi, defeated the Emperor at the end of the original trilogy but who knows what has happened to him since? This is one of the main reasons we are looking forward to seeing him in the new films, to catch up with him and see what he’s been up to since burying his once evil father and freeing the galaxy of the emperor’s grip.

The other main reason we want to see him is because of the secrecy surrounding his appearance in the new films. Mark Hamill, who plays Luke, has been confirmed to appear in the new films but exactly what his role is has been a closely guarded secret. Our fingers are crossed that we get to see Hamill portray a darker side of Luke!

3. Boba Fett
A surprise entry for the casual fan on the list however for the hard-core fans it’s an oblivious choice. Fett, the most infamous bounty hunter in the galaxy, has generated something of a cult following since the original trilogy was released. With under 20 minutes of screen time over the first three films and only a handful of lines it’s astonishing that Fett has become so popular among fans. Our best guess is that his awesome outfit and the fact that he’s got a jetpack has a lot to do with it!

As to whether we will see Fett in the new films is a matter of debate. The last time we saw him, he was being digested slowly by the Mighty Sarlac (a giant mouth with tentacles, coming out of the desert floor) during Luke’s rescue of Han Solo from Jabba. Hopefully Fett has escaped this gruesome fate and he will make an appearance, let’s face it, it would be criminal if he doesn’t!

2. Yoda
Everyone’s favourite little green alien comes second on our list! Don’t judge Yoda by his size, he is small in stature but has left a huge impression on cinema goers of all ages! Fans and none fans of Star Wars alike will undoubtedly recognise a Yoda quote, partly due to the outstanding accent and partly because he seems to get his words muddled up when he speaks. In the original trilogy Yoda was a hermit living on a remote, swampy planet in the Dagobah system. Providing advice and training to Luke, Yoda passed away before the end of the films. This however does not rule Yoda out from returning, as we may see a “Force Ghost” version as we did with Obi-Wan. This would be every fans dream, to potentially hear some more of Yoda’s mixed up wisdom.

Some of our favourites are:
“Truly wonderful, the mind of a child is.”
“Wars make not one great”
And our all-time favourite:
“Do. Or do not. There is no try.”

1. Han Solo
Possibly everyone’s favourite rogue and the character that everyone in the office most wanted to see! Han Solo, played by one of the coolest men on the planet, Harrison Ford, is one of the most iconic characters not just in the Star Wars universe, but in the history of film! We already know from the trailer that Solo and his furry partner Chewbacca will be making an appearance in the movie. Hopefully it won’t be just a cameo appearance and we get to see Solo in action taking on Stormtroopers and impressing the Princess! One of the things that makes Han Solo so great is his famous wit.

Here are some of our favourite Solo quotes:
“Never tell me the odds”
“Laugh it up Fuzz Ball”
and probably the most famous in response to Princess Leia expressing her love for him….
“I know”

If you are interested in Film/TV and would like to learn more about the process of creating a movie of TV series why not take our Media Studies Diploma? This course aims to provide the learner with information on modern day media, how it affects our lives and the history of media in the UK.

This has to be the best time of the year, family gatherings, time spent with friends, time off from work (for some), presents, Christmas decorations and of course not forgetting a fabulous and extravagant Christmas dinner.

This has to be the best time of the year, family gatherings, time spent with friends, time off from work (for some), presents, Christmas decorations and of course not forgetting a fabulous and extravagant Christmas dinner. With so many options available: Turkey, Goose, various birds stuffed one inside another, beef, lamb, etc. etc. you then have to think about what to have as a starter along with a desert. What accompaniments to provide such as vegetables, what drinks to serve? It can be a minefield of decisions to ensure that you execute the very best festive offering.

Oh how different it was in the not so long and distant past, we did not have the convenience we have today, whether for shopping, or indeed, cooking. Turkey is a relative newcomer to the festive table as it was far too expensive for many to afford. This is not so now, as it is suggested that this Christmas around 10 million turkeys will be consumed in the UK.
There are now also plenty of other choices to consider where you do not have to labour in the kitchen all day. You could go out to your favourite hotel, restaurant, pub, golf club, etc. However, this can be pricy affair and you will be directed by a time of the proprietors’ choice, not necessarily yours. One thing is guaranteed though, someone else will be doing all the stress related preparation and they will also clean up after you!

You could opt for a lavish feast which you can ruminate over from the comfort of your armchair and then pre-order online from your favourite supermarket chain such as Marks and Spencer, Waitrose, Tesco, Sainsbury’s or a wide array of other equally suitable suppliers, it very much depends on your budget. You can also have your delivery shipped straight to your front door at a time convenient to you, and, by an experienced delivery driver who knows how to take care of your produce. You will also receive cooking guidelines detailing exactly how long to cook the meal items for and at what temperature to set the oven to. All in all, if you do appropriate research, this option can take away a whole load of preparation and allow you to spend more time relaxing rather than being locked in the kitchen.

The choice, I guess, that most people will still opt for will be the selection and purchase of the whole gamut from the local supermarket, or, independent butcher, greengrocer and various other specialist outlets such as bakeries and off licences. This approach may seem like much more effort but it will certainly be more rewarding. The only tip for a successful Christmas dinner is to prepare as much as possible in advance and get the timing right. You can then enjoy the meal with your family and friends before retiring to a comfy chair for a well-earned relaxing break – this is also the time when the chef of the day should be spoilt rotten whilst others don their aprons and rubber gloves to tackle the mess left behind.

For some great recipes, tips and advice, take a look at www.britishturkey.co.uk, this site has everything you will need to cook and present a fantastic meal.

From all at NCC we wish all of our customers past and present a magical Christmas and a fantastic New Year.

The aim of the Living Wage is to provide all workers (over the age of 25) with a high enough wage to have a “normal” standard of living.