She was speaking after a care worker was sentenced for sending degrading Snapchat images of dementia patients

A Co Antrim woman living with Parkinson’s Disease and Lewy Body Dementia says the sentencing of a care worker for posting degrading images of people living with dementia is a reminder that every person deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.

She was speaking after Ciara Corvan, who took degrading pictures of dementia patients and sent them on Snapchat received a probation order and 100 hours of community service earlier this week.

Corvan, 28, committed the offences while working as a healthcare assistant at a specialist ward for dementia patients at the Bluestone Unit at Craigavon Area Hospital.

Passing sentence at Craigavon Crown Court on Monday, Judge Patrick McGurgan said Corvan, from Cathedrals View in Co Armagh, had failed to treat patients in her care with the respect and dignity they were entitled to.

Pat Cullinan, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease and Lewy Body Dementia on the same day in 2023, says a diagnosis of dementia should never mean losing your rights, your voice or your dignity.

Pat, 65 and from Ballymena, is herself a former care home worker and committed to challenging the stigma that comes with a dementia diagnosis.

She said: “It’s heart-breaking to think that something like this could happen to someone like me. No one should have their dignity taken away simply because they have dementia. People living with dementia still have rights. We deserve to be treated with respect, compassion and humanity, right to the very end of our lives.

“Too often there is an assumption that ‘they won’t know anyway’, but that could not be further from the truth. Even when someone can no longer express themselves in the same way, it does not mean they have lost their voice or their right to be treated with dignity.

“I have worked in nursing homes and to think that someone could be humiliated, photographed without consent and denied a voice is devastating.”

Since her diagnosis, Pat, who has four children and four grandchildren, has found a lifeline through the support of her peers after joining Dementia NI’s Empowerment Group in Ballymoney; she says this has been crucial to her continued health and positive outlook.

She added: “None of us knows what lies ahead. We should treat every person as we would want to be treated ourselves. A diagnosis of dementia should never mean becoming forgotten or losing your voice, your rights or your dignity.”

Among the images Corvan sent to co-workers on Snapchat was a picture of a female patient in the bath; a video of her shaking a patient’s hand while music played in the background with a caption claiming she was having a “rave”; and a picture of her and a patient with their noses almost touching with the caption “why the f*** is she so close to me?”.

Earlier this year, Corvan pleaded guilty to a total of seven counts of ill treatment of patients under the Mental Health Order (NI) 1986.

The offences, which covered the period from the autumn of 2022 to the summer of 2023, involved four dementia patients being cared for on the ward. All four have since died.

Police said the case was the first prosecution of its kind in Northern Ireland.

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Judge McGurgan told Corvan her crimes were committed while she was in a position of trust.

“You were employed to provide care for some of the most vulnerable members of our society,” he said.

“It is a hard enough decision, in my view, for a family to make to place a loved one in a care setting, particularly when that loved one is as vulnerable as the victims were in this case.

“The very least families can expect is that those who are entrusted to care for their loved ones are treated with respect and dignity.

Dementia NI says Pat’s words highlight why it is important that people have the opportunity to plan ahead and make their wishes known.

That’s why the charity, which supports people with dementia to live well and drive positive change, is calling for the introduction of Lasting Power of Attorney in Northern Ireland, so people living with dementia can have their choices respected and their voices heard, both now and in the future.

Those who would like more information on the campaign to ensure Lasting Power of Attorney is implemented in NI can find it here.

For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here.

Hayden Mullins has been named Newport County’s new manager following Christian Fuchs’ surprise departure earlier this summer.

Newport County have appointed former Premier League midfielder Hayden Mullins as their new manager following the shock departure of Christian Fuchs.

The Exiles have been searching for a permanent replacement since Fuchs left Rodney Parade on the eve of pre-season in late June, despite successfully steering the club to League Two safety last season.

Chris Todd has overseen the side on an interim basis throughout pre-season, but County have now confirmed the appointment of Mullins, who joins from Fulham where he has been in charge of the club’s under-21 side since 2023.

Mullins, 46, arrives with experience both as a player and coach, having enjoyed a lengthy playing career with Crystal Palace, West Ham United, Portsmouth, Reading, Birmingham City and Notts County.

He also represented England at under-21 level and featured for Portsmouth in the 2010 FA Cup final.

His coaching career began in Watford’s academy before he twice stepped in as caretaker manager of the Hornets’ first team following the departures of Quique Sanchez Flores and Nigel Pearson.

Mullins later joined Colchester United as assistant manager and was handed the permanent role in 2021, although he was dismissed less than a year later. He also had a brief spell in charge of the Turks and Caicos Islands national team before moving to Fulham.

Jones, who came through the Kirkby academy, is entering the final year of his Liverpool contract and may be prepared to leave the club as he looks to become a first-choice option away from Anfield, where he is currently entrenched behind Dominik Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister in the midfield pecking order.

Jamie Taylor, 39, of Arrandale in Hemlington, and Kelly Keogh, 49, of Regent Road in Middlesbrough, were sentenced at court after pleading guilty to possession with intent to supply class A drugs in Middlesbrough.

On January 21, 2026, officers from a Proactive Team using a drone to monitor activity in the Maple Street area, witnessed drug deals taking place in a back alley.

Taylor was detained at the scene and found in possession of cash and cocaine.

Meanwhile, Keogh was located at an address where she was attempting to conceal further cocaine.

Both pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply class A drugs and were sentenced on July 29.

Kelly Keogh was given a suspended sentence (Image: Cleveland Police)

Taylor received 18 months in prison, while Keogh was given an 18-month sentence, suspended for 18 months.

PC Maloney, the officer in the case, said: “I am pleased with this outcome at court.”

Jamie Taylor has been jailed (Image: Cleveland Police)

He added: “We will continue to proactively pursue those that are involved in class A drug dealing in the Middlesbrough area.

“We will utilise all tools available to us in the fight against drugs.

“We will not tolerate those who cause misery for others for their own criminal gain.”

Anyone with information about drug-related activity is encouraged to contact Cleveland Police on 101, or report anonymously through Crimestoppers.

This Morning star Cat Deeley has thrown caution to the wind with an inventive new way to deal with the heatwave.

It probably hasn’t escaped your notice that the UK population has been melted into a puddle by the ongoing heatwave which has seen highs of 38 degrees in some parts of the country.

From sold-out AC units to desparate TikTok hacks, people have been going to whatever lengths they can to keep cool during this unprecendented weather that has redefined what British summertime means.

Of course, what way to cope with the beating sun is to do away with clothes all together and ITV presenter Cat, 49, took a leaf out this book with her steamy lawnmowing technique.

In a new Instagram post sharing snippets of her life this summer, she posted a video of her on a drivable large green lawnmower clad in a skimpy black bikini, racing through the grass, barefeet.

Naturally, Chamillionaire’s Ridin’, featuring the iconic lyrics ‘they see me rolling, they hatin’…’ is playing in the background.

The post was captioned ‘British summertime’ and an influx of comments are praising her funky lawnmowing outfit.

‘Tractor goals,’ Taraleeyoga praised.

‘She’s a summmmmma GAL,’ cgualazzi said.

‘Absolutely love the mower,’ josh_barker92 shared.

Elsewhere in the slideshow of pictures and videos, she showed a close up of her in the black bikini with a drink in hand, laid out on the sofa, fresh produce and summertime meals and another photoshoot in a blue and grey dress.

Needless to say, it seems as though soaking in the rays has agreed with Cat.

Especially as she seems to also be enjoying a new romance with  Charlie Coleman who she was spotted cosying up to at Lewis Capaldi’s BST Hyde Park show earlier this month.

The blossoming connection comes after a year after her split from husband of 13 years, Patrick Kielty.

About how her and Charlie were behaving together, an onlooker told The Sun: ‘The pair were all smiles, laughing and animatedly chatting.

‘At one point, Charlie touched Cat’s bare back affectionately, and she was also tactile with him as they sipped on drinks in paper cups.

‘They seemed very relaxed with each other and shared several jokes.’

It’s been many years since Cat has been on the dating scene, so when she forayed back into it last November, it was quite different to what she remembered.

As a source told Closer: ‘Cat’s dating again, but she can’t believe the difference from the old days. It’s a whole new scene, and all about dating apps. She finds it all quite funny and surreal.’

Earlier that year, she and her husband had released a brief, joint statement, confirming their separation.

‘We have taken the decision to end our marriage and are now separated. There is no other party involved,’ they said.

Eight hours is said to be the magic recipe for restful, restorative sleep. But how many of us actually get it? Just one in five of us, according to the latest figures. 

Many – those working early shifts, insomniacs and new parents – regularly function on around half of the recommended amount of sleep and live to tell the tale.

The Prime Minister of Japan is one of them. Sanae Takaichi – the nation’s first female PM – revealed earlier this month that she’s slept a maximum of three hours a night during her nine month spell in power. 

She’s far from the only high-powered figure to adopt a restless routine. 

Former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was said to have slept four hours, while Winston Churchill managed a maximum of five. 

Studies show that chronic sleep deprivation can fuel a range of potentially deadly conditions including heart disease and dementia.

But how much sleep do we actually need to function and at what point do the late nights and early mornings become dangerous?

Here, experts reveal the alarming impact of too little rest – and exactly when you need to worry.

How many hours of sleep can we get by on?

Sleep serves many vital roles for keeping the brain in optimum health, experts say.

Deep sleep is vital for strengthening memories and storing new information; hence why exam performance is better after a good night’s rest. 

It is also essential for the functioning of the so-called glymphatic system, which clears waste products that are linked to dementia. 

Brain cells also benefit from a boost in energy during sleep, including the receptors responsible for hormones involved in mood like dopamine and serotonin.  

It takes several hours for these processes to be completed, says Dr Tom Chambers, a sleep medicine doctor and chief medical officer at Theta Sleep.

But, he adds, the widely touted ‘sweet spot’ of eight hours per night is ‘not based on science’.

‘Some people do not need it and can function just fine without eight hours of sleep.’

 However anything below six hours is unhealthy.

Former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher got by on roughly four hours per night

‘Sleep duration and need are a bit like shoe size; everyone is different,’ says Dr Chambers. ‘It’s normal and healthy to be at extreme ends of a sleep spectrum. The extreme lower end being six hours and the extreme higher end being nine hours.’

Sleeping three or four hours, in the short term, is unlikely to cause long-term problems, he says – apart from impairing your ability to function on day-to-day tasks during these periods.

‘We can cope pretty well with short periods of much less sleep when life demands it,’ he says, adding that new parents are a ‘good example’.

Dr Eidn Mahmoudzadeh, a sleep doctor and co-founder of The Sleep Project, adds: ‘Many people go through periods, up to a couple of years even, like this without any long-term ill-effects.’

Experts also recommend a hack to protect against some of the effects of short-term sleep deprivation.

‘A regular, consistent sleep pattern is more protective against cardiovascular diseases and death than having an optimum sleep duration,’ says Dr Chambers. 

In other words, going to bed at the same time every night and getting out of bed at the same time is more important than the number of hours you sleep, according to a 2023 UK study involving 61,000 people.

Years of bad sleep may send you to an early grave

Ms Takaichi could be spared the dangerous effects of her exhausting routine if it lasts for less than a couple of years, experts say.

But anymore than that and she’s putting herself at risk of diabetes, obesity, dementia, heart disease and stroke, as well as psychiatric illness like depression and anxiety.

Dr Chambers points to something called a ‘U-shaped curve’ to explain the phenomenon of health risks linked to sleep deprivation.

‘The curve shows that if you’re sleeping much less than six or seven hours, or much more than nine to ten hours, then there is an increased risk of illness and mortality. Both extremes are risky.’

Some studies suggest that a lifetime of regularly sleeping for less than six hours can increase the risk of dementia by 400 per cent.

According to one research review, getting less than five to six hours of shut-eye a night could lead to a higher risk of metabolic syndrome – a group of conditions including high blood pressure, raised blood sugar, excess belly fat and unhealthy cholesterol. 

Together, these increase your risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and stroke.

‘The effects tend to build gradually and over a very long period, so a few bad nights or even a few bad months are neither here nor there really,’ says Dr Mahmoudzadeh.

‘But over years and decades there’s no question that there is a strong association with so many long term health problems and an increased mortality risk, aka, dying younger.

‘And don’t rely on naps to “cancel out’” the effects of ongoing sleep deprivation.’

‘Although broken sleep still counts, solid, consolidated sleep is usually more restorative because the brain has time to move through repeated cycles of light sleep, deep sleep and REM sleep.’

He advises keeping naps under 30 minutes and in the early afternoon to avoid depleting sleep pressure – your natural urge to sleep – at night.

Are some people super sleepers?

Some people carry DNA that makes them both survive and thrive off much less sleep than the majority of the population.

‘Less than one per cent of people are genuine “short sleepers”, as we call them,’ says Dr Mahmoudzadeh.

‘They might sleep only around four to five hours and still wake refreshed, function normally and have no long term issues as a result.’ 

Sadly it’s not a trait you can develop, but due to rare genetic variations.

Dr Mahmoudzadeh adds: ‘The vast majority of people who are sleeping that little amount are in fact sleep deprived and doing themselves harm, whether they feel it or not.’

Dr Chambers is clear that sleeping three or four hours a night is not doctor-recommended. 

‘Sleeping zero to three hours a night is a dangerous thing to do. I would never recommend it at scale for the vast majority of people on the planet.’

DETROIT (AP) — The jokes practically wrote themselves as an eclectic group of progressive pastors, imams and a rabbi walked into a room, finding their seats around a table to talk about religion and politics.

Though there was no shortage of levity, a sense of urgency filled the Detroit meeting room as Abdul El-Sayed, a former gubernatorial candidate who is running as a Democrat for the U.S. Senate in Michigan, began speaking about how his Muslim faith informs his progressive views.

The public health researcher asked the group of faith leaders ahead of Tuesday’s primary, “What does the inspiration of holding yourself accountable to something bigger than you mean for what you do for the people around you?”

El-Sayed added, “If you can’t eat food and I have something to do about it, I better do it.”

Progressive Democratic politicians have won major electoral victories across the country in recent months amid growing frustrations surrounding inequality, affordability and potential threats to job security posed by artificial intelligence. As the economy becomes a flashpoint for the November midterms, many of these candidates and voters who support them are citing religion as a justification for their positions.

“We’re in an era of historical inequality,” El-Sayed told The Associated Press. “Most faith traditions — certainly the Abrahamic faith traditions — put a lot more burden on the wealthy.”

The interfaith roundtable took place days after a high-profile rally for El-Sayed, who has made “Medicare for All” a fixture of his campaign and is running against the more moderate Rep. Haley Stevens. It featured speeches from progressive heavy hitters like Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.

Though not a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, El-Sayed is being endorsed by liberal allies, many of them members of the DSA, while being criticized by Republicans and centrist Democrats for being too far left to be electable in a swing state.

If elected in November, he would be the first Muslim senator in U.S. history.

Representatives for Stevens, who is identified in congressional profiles as a Protestant, did not respond to requests for comment.

Progressive ideologies carry different connotations for different generations

Religious support for progressive economic and labor movements is not new, even if it has ebbed and flowed in the U.S. over the centuries. Pope Leo XIV’s recent encyclical was in many ways an ode to “Rerum novarum,” Pope Leo XIII’s seminal 1891 text on labor, wages and unions that helped shape Catholic social teaching.

This embrace of religion isn’t unique to the Democratic Party’s progressive wing. More moderate candidates like James Talarico, the seminarian running for the U.S. Senate in Texas, also highlight their faith. But as left-leaning Democrats and democratic socialists like New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who is Muslim, score wins in local and national races, Republicans have repeatedly decried the party’s progressive wing as communists devoid of religion.

“Republicans and conservatives believe in natural rights that flow from a creator. I think communism rejects that. It espouses a very atheistic, centralized sort of secular view of society,” said Douglas Blair, a spokesperson for Heritage Action for America.

Megan Romer, a DSA national co-chair and ordained ruling elder within the Presbyterian Church (USA), conceded socialism is a troubling concept for some people of faith.

“People’s idea of it is, ‘Oh, that’s when you’re not allowed to have a religion, right?’ Which has been true in some socialist projects,” she said.

But experts say that narrative carries less weight among many younger Americans who have no memory of the Cold War and the anti-religious associations it begot.

Theology informs more than just faith

Though there are more Democrats unaffiliated with religion than Republicans, many people of faith do not see progressive ideologies like socialism as contradictory to their beliefs. They cite Black religious activists who were outspoken critics of capitalism, including Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and W.E.B. Du Bois, as models for their thinking about the relationship between religion and politics.

The Rev. Andrew Wilkes, who co-pastors the Double Love Experience Church in New York City, became interested in democratic socialism more than a decade ago after presiding over a funeral for someone whose insurance wouldn’t cover a critical operation. “It was not God that sent him home but an unjustly organized healthcare system and economy,” he said.

“There’s an increasing recognition, I would say, connecting socialism to a sense of a moral compass,” Wilkes said, adding that religion can bring optimism and creativity in a time of pessimism. “There’s a level of world-building that faith can speak to.”

Romer, who joined the DSA in 2018 in part because of Sanders’ unsuccessful presidential run two years earlier, thinks there is a theological component to why Christianity in particular has thrived among conservatives.

“That flavor of Christianity is a very individualistic one. They talk a lot about your personal relationship with God,” she said. “My interpretation of Christianity is one that, I think the early Christians — they were not communists in the modern sense, but they lived in communal situations.”

Attitudes toward capitalism are changing, and religion is playing a role

This faith-driven economic focus is not limited to elections.

Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice is a nonprofit organization that works with congregations throughout Southern California to support workers’ rights. Earlier this month, it facilitated a visit to Live Oak United Church of Christ in Brea, California, to support efforts to unionize a local grocery store chain.

“We just feel very, very overworked,” Luis Cueva, a Mother’s Market employee, told members of the congregation after their Sunday service as he asked for support.

“Jesus was a socialist,” Cueva said after the meeting, citing his teachings about it being difficult for rich people to go to heaven. “It means a lot to know that the church is willing to help.”

About half of U.S. adults have a positive view of capitalism, according to a poll last year from Gallup, down from 61% in 2010. Democrats have driven part of the shift, but favorable views of capitalism have also declined among independents.

President Donald Trump and other Republicans have cast these attitudes and candidates as being fundamentally at odds with religion.

“These are hard core, godless communists,” Trump said recently during a speech to the Faith & Freedom Coalition. “All communists are godless. They don’t believe in God.”

Faith can be both a political asset and a liability

Although there are myriad points of contention within the Democratic Party, such as support for Israel, El-Sayed considers economic issues a top issue for his campaign.

“I talk about taking money out of politics because it’s the reason life is not affordable,” he said. “People are realizing that politicians on both sides of the aisle really are being paid off by the same people.”

The son of Egyptian immigrants, El-Sayed is aware that his Islamic faith can be weaponized or misunderstood. But since having a religious experience in college that followed a rebellious childhood, he takes seriously the implications of his faith.

“If you put your morals on a mantel, they’re not morals. They’re just, you know, things that you can admire and then you give yourself the permission to step away from them when it’s convenient,” he said.

As the roundtable concluded, leaders from each faith took turns praying. Their heads lifted, but the Rev. Horace Sheffield chimed in with one last request on behalf of El-Sayed.

“I don’t think y’all were specific enough. So I’m gonna say it real simple,” he said. “Lord, let him win.”

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

The driver tried to outdrive police and then ran away from his car after crashing it into a building

A young man narrowly missed pedestrians after crashing into a city centre building. Mohammed Halani, 19, was driving an Audi S3 at around 1pm on May 24 when he failed to stop for police in Lincoln Road, Peterborough.

He sped off and ignored bollards and no entry signs and drove dangerously in a busy area. Officers had to slow down their driving to avoid pedestrians.

Halani continued driving dangerously before losing control of the vehicle. He crashed into a building in Westgate, causing two people to jump out of the way.

The 19-year-old ran from the scene, dashed through the Queensgate shopping centre, and attempted to hide in a restaurant in Westgate. Officers found him sitting at a table in the restaurant and arrested him.

Halani, of Audley Gate, Netherton, admitted to failing to stop, dangerous driving, and driving without insurance. On Tuesday (July 28) at Peterborough Magistrates’ Court, he was sentenced to a year in prison, suspended for two years.

He was also ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work and 15 days rehabilitation activity. He has been disqualified from driving for two years.

PC Martyn Chapman said: “This was a shocking incident that could easily have been far worse. Halani narrowly missed multiple pedestrians when he collided with the building on what was a busy Sunday over a bank holiday weekend.

“A matter of milliseconds was the difference between at least two people being seriously injured – or worse. It is remarkable nobody was hurt.”