Dozens of pubs around Cheshire, the North West and even further afield are coming together to help a terminally ill woman achieve her dream of pulling a total of 100 pints in 100 different pubs.
Caitlin Shaw has been battling with multiple health issues since birth, including life-limiting heart and lung conditions, Klippel-Feil syndrome and a disability called kyphoscoliosis which causes severe curvature of the spine.
Sadly, back in March, the family were informed there was nothing more doctors could do to fight off the deterioration of her heart and she was placed on end-of-life care after signing a DNR.
Following the tragic news, Caitlin was told to make the most of her remaining time and create as many special memories as possible and has been working through her bucket list ever since: one of which was to pull a pint in 100 different pubs and she’s been doing just that.
Credit: Sam Jane MacVicar/Caitlin’s wishes (via Facebook)
According to her mother, Sam Jane MacVicar, the 21-year-old has “always wanted to be a barmaid since she was very young” and wasted no time in getting started on her mission to get behind as many bars as she can.
Pubs and bars around the likes of Wilmslow, Disley, Knutsford; Macclesfield, Congleton and more across Cheshire have answered the call to help Caitlin, as well as various other places around the North West.
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You’re all legends, every single one of you.
There are literally dozens of pubs putting their names forward to help Caitlin cross this off her bucket list.
A private group has also been set up called ‘Caitlin’s wishes’ where more than 1,4000 different members are helping her and the same goes for her GoFundMe page, where people are doing everything from helping send her to live shows and her favourite places around the UK to doing wing-walks in her name.
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Thanks to people’s charitable efforts, the fundraiser has already reached over £17,700 and she should soon be able to live her dream of taking a cruise to Spain, among many others.
If any pubs or bars around want to get involved, you simply need to get in touch via Facebook — it would be lovely to see the Greater Manchester area helping out their neighbours down the road — and you can do your bit by donating to HERE. Let’s do it for Caitlin.
Featured Image — Sam Jane MacVicar/The Throstles Nest (via Facebook)
News
Hundreds of staff at four Greater Manchester hospitals to strike AGAIN next week
Emily Sergeant
Another round of strikes has been called at a handful of major Greater Manchester hospitals.
Amid ongoing disputes following the first set of strikes at the end of last month, it has now been announced that more than 350 Northern Care Alliance Foundation Trust (NCA) employees – including nurses, clinical support workers and housekeepers – who are members of the union UNISON will once again walk out for three days next week.
According to the union, the dispute centres on the NCA’s use of an outside agency called NHS Professionals (NHSP) to manage overtime.
When covering staff shortages, workers are entitled to time-and-a-half pay – however in some cases, staff earn less than they would on a normal shift, and some have even been missing out on more than £80 per shift, the union added.
Operating theatre staff were previously on picket lines in June, and although an option to resolve the row was initially tabled by NCA bosses, this has now fallen through.
Hundreds of staff at four of Greater Manchester’s hospitals are set to strike next week / Credit: Stephen Andrews (via Unsplash)
This means that staff at Salford Royal Hospital, Royal Oldham Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary, and Fairfield Hospital in Bury are walking out next week on Monday 14, Tuesday 15, and Thursday 17 September.
The union’s North West regional organiser, Kevin Dolan, said the trust had given ‘no indication’ that it’s willing to re-enter negotiations, adding that operating theatre services were ‘chronically under-staffed’ and staff were choosing to work extra shifts to cover shortages.
Ahead of the August strikes, the trust declared a critical incident to help it secure extra support and keep urgent surgery running, while also announcing that some procedures would have to be postponed.
Understandably, some disruption is expected at each of the hospitals on strike days.
But Gertie Nic Philib, who is the chief people and strategy officer at the Northern Care Alliance, said that the trust will do ‘everything we can to minimise the impact on patients’ and ‘maintain high standards of care and quality at all times.’
“We also have contingency plans in place for emergency situations,” they concluded.
Featured Image – Pxhere
News
Stockport man jailed for life after kidnapping and sexually assaulting teenage girl
Emily Sergeant
A Stockport man has been sentenced to life in prison after kidnapping and sexually assaulting a teenage girl on her way home from the library.
Paul Sharpe has been sentenced to life imprisonment with an eight-year minimum term in prison after being convicted of a number of offences when subjected a teenage girl to what police called a ‘terrifying ordeal’ that lasted several hours back in May 2026.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) confirmed that the victim had been studying at Sale Library before beginning her journey home with friends at around 5:50pm and contacting her parents at 6:10pm to let them know she was on her way.
Twenty minutes later, she spoke to her boyfriend on the phone and said she was approximately five minutes away from home, but that her phone battery was about to die.
This was the last contact received from the victim that evening.
While walking along Bradgate Road in Altrincham, the victim noticed a grey Ford parked nearby and a man wearing a high-visibility jacket pressing doorbells in the area.
As she walked past, Sharpe approached her from behind, placed her in a headlock and threatened to stab her if she did not get into his vehicle.
Concerned that their daughter had not returned home, the victim’s family contacted police at 9:22pm to report her missing, and officers immediately launched an investigation to locate her.
Over the next several hours, the victim was subjected to and placed in a number of terrifying situations.
Sharpe drove the victim to several locations across Greater Manchester and Cheshire, before police located and arrested him at around 3:40am on 19 May 2026.
Following his arrested, 56-year-old Sharpe was convicted of kidnap, committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence, sexual assault, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, threats with a bladed article, and administering a noxious substance with intent to injure, annoy or aggrieve.
“This was a terrifying ordeal for a young girl who was simply making her way home,” explained Detective Inspector Karl Perry, from GMP’s Criminal Investigation Department.
“Sharpe targeted a vulnerable victim, subjected her to hours of fear and intimidation, and went on to sexually assault her.
“The victim has shown immense courage throughout the investigation and court proceedings. Through her bravery and actions, she no doubt made it harder for Sharpe to carry out whatever acts he had planned.”
Danny Jones -
29th June 2023 
