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Inside this edition...Shared Lives South West’s teddy bear meets Paddington Bear!

We get a funding boost thanks to a local rotary club

Sylvia’sstarted drivinglessons

Day in the

life of... Claire Connor

PLUS:

Cover story: Paul Smith completes Prince’s Trust project

Newsletter May 2017

Feature: Holiday travels across Europe with Dai and Phillip

Article: Esme celebrates her 102nd birthday

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DIARY DATES AND CCG INFORMATION

Training: keep your skills and knowledge up-to-date!CornwallCourse Title Date Venue

Mental Capacity Training June 13 Trewellard Farm

Person Centred Approaches June 15 Trewellard Farm

Communications Training June 28 St Erme

Devon Course Title Date Times VenuePerson Centred Approaches May 31 10-30am- 3.30pm Kenn CentreCommunications June 6 10.30am-3.30pm Kenn CentreFinance June 8 10am- 1.30pm Kenn CentreMental Capacity Act June 20 10am-3.30pm Kenn CentreIntroduction to Shared Lives July 4 10am- 3.30pm Kenn CentreHealth and Safety and Meds July 13 10am-3.30pm Kenn CentreMental Capacity Act July 21 10am-3.30pm Kenn Centre

Please contact your local service administrators to book your place.

Contact your local Service Admin team on CORNWALL 01209 891888 DEVON 01626 882565

The next Devon CCG meeting takes place...The next meeting takes place on June 26 from 10am until 2pm at The Kenn Centre.

Cornwall CCG membersPam Bowman, Penzance 07811204501Dawn Jago, Redruth 01209 211299Clive Lewis, Penzance 01209719684Karen McClaskey, Penzance 01736 811289 Susie Sowell, Camborne 01209 711641Carole & Pete Thomas, Redruth 01209 698295 Janet Urban, Padstow 01841 521104

Devon CCG membersJonathan Haines, Torquay 01803 212439Roger & Liz Helyar, Exeter 01392 477770Sarah Malcolm, Paignton 01803 698554 Caroline O’Sullivan, Crediton 01363 82838Sarah Ridley, Cullompton 01823 681590Lesley Waller, Exmouth 01395 266119Pam Wood, Plymouth 01752 667088Nick Higgins, East Devon 01395 568074Michelle Beasor, Exmouth 01395 282929

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CELEBRATIONS

Esme celebrates her 102nd birthday!

There were big birthday celebrations for one Shared Lives family recently, when Esme Carstone celebrated her 102nd birthday.

Esme who lives with Shared Lives carer Sarah Malcolm in Paignton enjoyed the milestone birthday with friends at Roundham Court where she goes to respite for two part days each week.

The chef there made her a cake to make the day memorable.Born in London on April 27, 1915 she is the daughter of a BBC weather forecaster. Her father sadly died before she was born.For more than 40 years she worked in the laundry department for a convent in Woking.

“She’s very particularly about keeping things clean and tidy even now and doesn’t think my ironing is up to scratch,” joked Sarah.

She’s lived with Sarah as part of a Shared Lives family for 14 years. “I’m happy here,” she said.Esme likes to keep busy by creating rugs and cushion covers and enjoys watching the news.She also has a strong faith and has a home visit from Father Harry from the local parish church once a month.

“He brings a sheet along for Communion and she can recite it all the way through.”

Fancy a cuppa?As part of Shared Lives week we are asking our carers to host a coffee morning to raise awareness of Shared Lives.

The theme this year is Shared Lives Choice For All and we’re asking people to choose cake and a cuppa!

Find all the details here.

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SHARED LIVES SOUTH WEST NEWS

New team manager Mark is making waves at Shared LivesHow are you finding your new role?There's certainly a lot to learn and so far I have enjoyed meeting some of the Shared Lives carers and different members of the organisation. I am so impressed with the dedication of both Shared Lives carers and the different members of the organisation. I am looking forward to being part of such a worthwhile service. Where were you working before and what did you do there?

Prior to Shared Lives my background has been primarily working within the Statutory Sector. I have managed sensory services, day services, HIV commissioning and undertaken work within the Clinical Commissioning Group around Continuing Health Care. I have also taught health and social care at Chichester University and worked for a small lottery funded charity assisting foreign nationals. Change is an ever present factor within organisations these days so I have also been involved in service redesign in my previous roles. I have worked in many differing local authorities the majority of which have been within the South of England.

What is it that you like about the ethos of Shared Lives?The concept of Shared Lives is a great model. I have interfaced with Shared Lives

previously in other capacities, but to support people within a home situation is possibly the best means of service delivery I know. The model enables people to feel part of a family and engage within the community from a home base. Equally people who put themselves forward as Shared Lives carers are special people in my view to enable this to happen. Person centred care is paramount and a much used term, but I believe Shared Lives fully demonstrates this ethos. It's hard to consider a type of service delivery which matches this approach.

Out of work you are a keen photographer. Where has this taken you and how did you get into photographing such amazing creatures?As an interlude from my social care management role I took the position of Editor of a dive magazine. This enabled me to travel the world and get paid to do so. An ideal

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perceptions sharks tend to be wary and keep their distance from divers and you have to deliberately seek them out.

Do you think sharks are misunderstood due to media and films like Jaws etc? Absolutely! Sharks being apex predators means they tend to have small numbers of young, long gestation periods and are slow to mature. They are vital for the health of the oceans, but they are harvested at alarming unsustainable rates, primarily for the wasteful and cruel shark fin industry. Jaws was a movie of its time and the late Peter Benchley (Jaws author) often stated that he would not be able to write Jaws today as sharks are not mindless killers. In fact sharks are highly complex animals and adept at what they do. If sharks deliberately sought humans as food items then deaths would be in the 1000's. As it stands there are approximately 100 shark related incidents per annum. I was fortunate to meet Peter Benchley and we swapped shark diving stories.

What’s next on the list to photograph?l It will be to the remote area of Socorro (north of the Galapagos) to photograph Humpback whales and their calves underwater.

SHARED LIVES SOUTH WEST NEWS

combination! I have always held a fascination with sharks so have been fortunate to dive and photograph so many species of sharks in many locations throughout the globe. The great white shark has tended to be my primary focus and I have dived with these on a number of occasions in both South Africa and Isla Guadalupe off the coast of Mexico.In February I undertook a seven day voyage from Florida to the Bahamas diving with Tiger, Bull and Greater hammerhead sharks. No cages were used so it was possible to gain very close interactions and photographs of these magnificent predators. I still write freelance for the dive press and have had my images published in the BBC Wildlife Magazine.

Do you ever get scared and have you had any incidents with them in the water?I have spent many hours in the company of sharks and can only recall a few minor incidents which unnerved me slightly. Once diving off Cape Point I had a very close interaction

with a Shortfin mako shark in the blue 30 miles offshore, it became agitated at my presence and made a number of very fast close passes. As there was quite a swell and I couldn't keep track of its position I left the water quick smart and got back into the boat. On my recent trip, a Greater hammerhead of about 16ft took a gentle bite of my camera housing and scratched it. Diving off Durban I did have a Bull shark follow me very closely throughout the whole dive. That was a bit disconcerting for a while. Of all the sharks, Bull sharks are the one species I am weary of. They tend to be okay whilst they are in view, but they do command a healthy respect as they are a very powerful shark with a wide jaw. The truly scary experience was when I was lost at sea whilst diving Abu Ramada Plateau in the Red Sea. I was more inexperienced then but do remember surfacing and the boat had disappeared. It was getting dark and I was eventually found by an Egyptian trawler. I now always dive with a torch and Delayed Surface Marker Buoy. Contrary to

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YOUR NEWS STORIES

Shared Lives South West received a funding boost after being the chosen charity for the annual Kingsbridge Estuary Rotary Club swimarathon.

The fundraiser took place late last year and saw hundreds of local youngsters take part.

Thanks to their efforts, £1,250 has been donated to Shared Lives South West.

The money will be spent on carer and service user events.

We are extremely grateful and thankful for the club’s support.

Cash boost after rotary swimarathon

This role started in 2013 with a group of carers who were recruited via an application and interview process, and with some input on Safeguarding from Shared Lives Plus.

Their job was to offer a listening ear and emotional support to other carers going through a difficult situation such as a safeguarding allegation, bereavement, difficult placement ending or breakdown, or a dispute with Shared Lives South West.

Not much use was made of the role so I undertook a review in 2016 and revamped it in consultation with the CCG’s and the post holders.

Additional training was required in loss and

bereavement and communication/counselling type skills.

Four carers have completed this to date, two in Devon and two in Cornwall.

You can access this type of support via your SLC if you are struggling with any of the situations identified above. It is a confidential service with the usual proviso that serious concerns about risk of harm to individuals must be reported.

Sally Crombie-Operations Manager at Shared Lives South West

The revamped carer supporter role

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YOUR NEWS STORIES

Shared Lives South West’s Sylvia, who lives with carer Caroline Hill in Blackborough, is realising her dream of learning to drive.

She enjoyed her first driving lesson at Devon Travel Academy, Westpoint, Exeter and loves it behind the wheel.

“We’d talked about trying out new things and Sylvia said she wanted to drive and also do a parachute jump,” said Caroline.

“She loved the lesson.”

“Next time she’ll drive a racing car,” joked Caroline.

Sylvia is on the road to independence, thanks to driving lessons

Sylvia summed up the lesson, where she drove for more than 30 minutes around a practice road circuit, as ‘brilliant’.

“I can’t wait to go again soon as it’s something I really want to do,” said Sylvia.

Her Shared Lives family is now looking into organising a parachute jump at Dunkeswell airfield.

Reminder about support carers

Please ensure that your formal support carers have up to date DBS clearances, First Aid and Safeguarding Adults certificates.

Shared Lives asks that these are updated every three years. You will not be able to use someone as a formal support carer if they do not have an appropriate DBS clearance. We need to see DBS certificates after they are issued – they can be sent to the office by recorded delivery or your support carer can leave them with the carer concerned and they

can be inspected on the next SLC visit.

Certificates are sent direct to the applicant only. If no certificate is received from DBS by the person within two months of them sending their form to us, they should contact the relevant Shared Lives office immediately so we can chase.

DBS will not reissue a certificate for free after a set period and you may need to pay another £44!

There is plenty of information, event listings and details and the carers handbook all at the touch of a button in the members area on our website.

Once you’ve logged in you shouldn’t need to continue entering the password, so it makes it a fast and easy hub for information.The user name is SLSWmember and password is AmberCloud21&

Members area

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YOUR NEWS STORIES

Wonderful Woolacombe Paul along with Michelle and her son Owain have had a lovely holiday with carer Alistair Dodge in Woolacombe

They stayed at the holiday park and enjoyed all the facilities.“Paul and I won bingo,” said Michelle.“We went bowling, swimming, crazy golf

and played pool.

“Owain loved it, he enjoyed himself and he got me up on the dance floor to play the parents games.“The accommodation was brilliant the lodge was huge and we had a view over a pond.“I also took Owain for character breakfast.”

Out and about promoting Shared Lives South West

We’ve been busy over the last couple of months getting out and about at various places, spreading the word about Shared Lives and the services we offer.

SLC Becki Shepstone hosted a stand at Asda in Bodmin, SLC Sally Smith visited Morrisons in Bideford and SLC Jane Rolfe went to Tesco at Tavistock.

SLC Laura Clements also spent two days at Derriford Hospital, and SLC Fiona Glanvill, SLC Jane Rolfe and communication officer Dawn Ellis also spent two days at Torbay Hospital.

We’ve also been to memory cafés and given talks to local churches about what we do.

Can you help?

Could you

spare an hour

to help us at

promotional

events? Please

contact us.

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YOUR NEWS STORIES

Representatives from Shared Lives South West had the pleasure of giving a talk at the Lent soup and bread lunch event at St Mary the Virgin Church, St Marychurch, Torquay.

Members of the church and local community gathered for the lunch and listened to SLC

Laura Maker and communications officer Dawn Ellis talk about Shared Lives and the great work it does.

Thanks to the event and donations more than £226 was given to Shared Lives South West to help fund carer events.

Church group lunch event raises money for Shared Lives

Promoting choice: A new book is launched to help hospital patients with learning disabilities or cognitive impairment issuesA new communication book has been introduced onto hospital wards in Royal Cornwall Hospitals to aid patients with learning disabilities or cognitive impairment issues.

Those who have such conditions can struggle to express or explain symptoms, causing anxieties and concerns to become even greater.

The book covers dietary requirements, explaining consent, how to enable patients to better communicate their needs, wants, signs and symptoms.

It also shows others how to explain the specifics of the patient’s treatment or procedures.

Jane Rees, acute liaison nurse for Learning Disability and Autism, said: “It’s about promoting choice.

“The book is an incredibly useful aid that helps members of staff to build a relationship with the patient and also to give patients the confidence to communicate their thoughts and feelings while in a hospital setting.”

“The book is there for anyone struggling to express their concerns; whether they’re patients with a learning disability, a hearing impairment, an acquired illness, injury that impairs communication (conditions such as autism) , or patients for whom English is not their first language, the book is there to provide support.”

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TEDDY TRAVELS

The Shared Lives bear meets Paddington BearOne of our bears helped out driving a train to London with Clive, who is the husband of Shared Lives South West carer Pauline Milner.

He finished the journey at Paddington and got to meet Paddington Bear!

Our bear also went to Swindon with Pauline and her Shared Lives family.John and Becca, who use our services, visited Swindon with Pauline and took the bear on their travels.

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Roma enjoys a 75th birthday to remember in Dublin

TEDDY TRAVELS

If you’d like to take one our lovely trio of bears away on a special day out or a holiday. Please let us know.

All you’ll need to do is provide us with lovely photos of you and the bear on your adventure for a future edition so we can feature you in a forthcoming edition of the newsletter.

Contact Dawn at the Devon offfice, or email dellis@sharedlivessw.org.uk

Book a Shared Lives bears for your next holiday

Roma celebrated her 75th birthday in style, with her carer Teresa Walker and one of the Shared Lives bear and spent four days in Dublin.

Along the way, they visited Malahide castle and enjoyed the show Celtic Nights.

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Dart Sailability, at Noss on Dart Marina, Kingwear, exists to encourage anyone with a disability to take part and enjoy the sport of sailing or boating on the river Dart .

Purpose built boats, which can be adapted to meet the needs of individual sailors are available to enable disabled people to get afloat. A hoist is also available to safely lift wheelchair users into the boats. It aims to cater for anyone with a disability. It also has specialist equipment that enables people with physical and learning disabilities to enjoy sailing. It has no restriction on age or disability.

What you need to bring?Bring a waterproof, a hat and a change of clothes and wear sensible shoes such as trainers, sailing boots or flat sandals.Disabled toilets and shower facilities are available.

If it is expected to be very hot, bring sun cream. You might want to bring a bottle of water, and any medication you might require. Bring some cash for a tea or coffee.

Dart Sailability can help you put on life jackets and get into boats, but is unable to provide personal care so please bring an enabler with you if you need one. They sail every Saturday and Tuesday from May to September. With enough interest they could also arrange for pleasure day trips up the river in our wheelchair accessible power boats or organise a history or wildlife tour.

If anyone has any specific questions they can speak to our recruitment officer, Denise Winks on: 01803 844872 or email: enquiries@denisewinks.co.uk Find out more here: http://www.dartsailability.org

Anchors Aweigh.... New Dart Sailability season about to start

USEFUL INFORMATION

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A DAY IN THE LIFE OF...

I am part of the Service Admin team in Cornwall. I job share with Jan and together we keep the Cornwall team in check.

I joined Shared Lives South West exactly two years ago and can’t believe how quickly the time has flown by. Prior to SLSW I had an interesting career in both the private and public sector with a background in HR, Communications and Project Management. My last role within industry was to support the transition of search and rescue helicopter provision from the public to private sector.

I met my husband whilst working for the MOD and moved to Cornwall to be with him. I worked for a number of organisations in Cornwall including, the Council Adoption Service and for a couple of years was a Registrar of births, deaths and marriages.

I had for a number of years wanted to work for an organisation that made an actual difference to individual lives. I was drawn to the work and ethos of Shared Lives and can honestly say it’s been one of the best jobs I’ve had.

The part of my job I enjoy the most is meeting and speaking to our carers and service users. I have often felt humbled by their sheer determination and ability to care. I also love the day to day banter and conversation that circulates within the Cornwall office. We can go from talking about Poldark to world

A day in the life of Claire Connor...

politics in two minutes. There is no such thing as an average day at the office, general activities include answering carer enquiries, processing referrals/new carer requests, DBS checks, organising the carer training programme, organising carer events, panel, processing SLC paperwork including carer reviews/visits/meetings, setting up training courses, preparing the lunch.... and anything else that needs doing.

I live with my husband Paul, the occasional grown up child and an aloof cat. Outside of work I enjoy walking, cycling and going to the theatre.

I recently organised an 80’s disco for our carers/service users. The night was a great success and the feedback very positive. I’m already thinking about the theme for next year – suggestions will be most welcome.

Above: Claire in the office. Below: Claire dressed as a Ghostbuster for the recent Shared Lives disco.

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SHARED LIVES SOUTH WEST STORIES

Motor home adventures across Europe with Dai and PhillipShared Lives South West carers Frank and Norma have created ‘home from home’ holidays for Dai and Phillip who live with them.

They like stability, so they found a way to enjoy fun holidays by going away in a motor home with all their home comforts.

Dai and Phillip love it as much as Frank and Norma and they’ve now travelled far and wide.They leave their Exmouth home for weeks at a time to go to France, Spain, Gibraltar, Switzerland and Venice.

With a car mounted on a trailer on the back they prepare for the big holidays around two weeks before.“It doesn’t suit Dai and Phillip moving from place to place every couple of days, so we set up the motor home with the awning and table outside for around a week in each place and then use the car to get here, there and everywhere,” said Frank.

They are regulars in France and generally go off the beaten track.Thankfully as Frank used to be a driver, he’s not fazed by winding roads and dirt tracks up mountains with cascading shear drops.“I like the challenge of it all,” said Frank.“We don’t do the Costas at all, that’s not for us.”They like visiting some places and restaurants time after time and have built up a good rapport with owners of camp sites and eateries.

They’ve been to Spain countless times and been as far south as Ronda, Malaga.“That’s a different world there,” said Frank.Along the way they’ve also visited Chur the oldest town in Switzerland and also enjoyed Venice and Lake Garda, Italy.

They are also regulars at French theme park Puy du Fou.“Dai and Phillip don’t like white knuckle rides

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SHARED LIVES SOUTH WEST STORIES

but this is different,” said Norma.“Each section of the park is an era in time. There’s a Roman amphitheatre, Medieval village and another part all on Vikings. It all looks so authentic.”“There’s a wonderful 35 minute play, which they change regualrly with pyrotechinics. It’s wonderful and we all enjoy it,” added Frank.“There’s bird shows and a huge night show with a stage probably the size of 10-12 football fields and features 1,800 actors, it really is great.”

They don’t only use the motor home to go across to Europe, they also go closer to home.Frank and Norma are very family orientated and normally have a house full over Christmas.However one year, that wasn’t the case so they upped sticks and went and had their Christmas dinner on Dartmoor.

“We got the meat and veg prepared and went up to Dartmoor in the motor home and ate our dinner in it overlooking Widecombe-in-the-Moor“It was such a beautiful view and certainly made Christmas different.”

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SHARED LIVES NEWS

What’s your job role ?I’m an Shared Lives Coordinator for the East team.

When did you join the organisation? I joined Shared Lives in 2005.

What do you enjoy about working at Shared Lives?I like the interesting and funny conversations I have with carers and the people who use our service.

Where do you live?

I live on my own in a flat overlooking the Quay in Exeter. I have lovely, friendly neighbours.

What is your favourite film?Sci-Fi film ‘Arrival’ which treats aliens as peaceful, sentient beings with language and culture

Favourite food?Anything spicy! I cook with coriander, turmeric and chillies. They are my staple ingredients.

What three things would you take to a desert island? A spade, seeds to grow my own food and lastly a crate of Marmite.

5 minutes with...Sally Smith

We catch up with a Shared Lives South West member of staff each month to find out more about them.

Tommy has been praised by his carer Dawn Solomon for being a ‘star’ for helping to give their garden a make over.

Tommy loves diggers and to be able to drive in one in the confines of his garden in Liskeard.

Tommy gets to drive a digger!

I have noticed when I am out on visits that carers are getting a lot of cold calls.

I called BT and they have a new service that basically acts as a junk box, when you receive a cold/ nuisance call you call 1572 then press option 2 and it drops the number in here and they are blocked.

It takes a while to filter through all of the cold callers but at least it will start to reduce them. It is a free service and fairly new hence why I am bringing it to everyone’s attention, but you have to call BT to have it added on 0800 800151.

At one carers house in the space of just over an hour she had three cold calls!SLC Laura Clements

Cold calls could be a thing of the past!

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BBC RemArc helps with Reminiscence Therapy which assists people who have dementia, their carers and families, at home, in hospital wards or in care homes to interact and converse in a natural way by stimulating the patient’s long-term memory with material from the past.

It was created by the BBC’s Archive Development team with the help of experts at Dundee University, the University of St Andrews and with the support of Alzheimer’s Society. BBC RemArc contains around 1500 items from the BBC Archives, including around

250 video clips, 250 audio clips and over 1000 images. The material ranges in date from the 1930s to the 2000s – much of it has not been available to the public for decades.

Reminiscence work assists people with dementia to interact and converse in a natural way by stimulating their long-term memory with material from the past.

You can choose to explore the items by decade, or by themes such as Childhood, People etc. Visit: http://bbc.in/remarc

Reminiscence Therapy help

USEFUL INFORMATION

The Big Tent Festival

Tommy gets to drive a digger! There are approximately 1.5 million adults in the UK with learning disabilities and like anyone else, someone with learning disabilities has the right to choose who they want to vote for by any criteria they like. It is not up to anyone else to judge if reasons for choosing someone are valid or not.

Carers are not allowed to make decisions on behalf of the person they care for when it comes to voting.When it comes to voting by proxy, Section 29 of the Mental Capacity Act (2005) says that a

person can only appoint a proxy if they have the mental capacity to do so. Whether voting in person or by proxy, however, the vote must be cast for the candidate that the person with a learning disability chooses and no one else.

Anyone 18 years old or over (and who meets the nationality and residence criteria laid out by the Electoral Commission) has the right to vote.

Visit: https://www.everyvotecounts.org.uk/local elections.

Voting at the elections

The Big Tent Festival, a colourful abundance of music, dance, craft workshops, yoga, camping, camp fires and to finish it all off – a barn dance hoe-down.

This three day event, from June 15, is particularly for people with learning difficulties and additional needs, however everyone is welcome.

Now in its ninth year, it is run by the non-profit association Holifield Camping Events. It has proved to be a great place for carers and families to come together, finding support and fun with other like-minded people.

The Big Tent Festival is hosted by Holifield Farm Project, whose day support facility offers opportunities to adults with learning disabilities to build on their skills and aspirations from a centre based on the farm. There will be a selection of home-made meals, cakes and tea throughout the festival, with all proceeds going towards developing

our services.

The festival has a traditional feel to it, whilst incorporating acts from learning

disabled groups to promote confidence and learning, bringing a wonderful and

very inclusive blend to the event.Price:£30 for three days camping and

parking (tickets bought at the gate). Arrival from 3pm Thursday. There is no charge for carers.

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SHARED LIVES SOUTH WEST STORIES

Proud moment for Paul on Prince’s Trust ProgrammeZip-lining across a river, kayaking and assisting the fire service on an exercise were all part of a day’s work, when Paul Smith from Portreath completed a 12 week Prince’s Trust programme.

He was supported by his Shared Lives South West carer Terry Reynard (pictured with Paul on the opposite page) who said the scheme has helped Paul blossom.“He was really nervous and it took some effort to get him to go,” said Terry.“I’m really proud of him completing it. I’ve seen the change in him and he’s much more confident.”Paul agreed that he was chuffed to complete all the challenges.“It was a really good experience and I was given a certificate at the end,” said Paul.

He’s now putting his new found confidence to good use and is applying for admin jobs, and is working with Employability Cornwall.“It’s all good experience to fill in the forms and go for interviews,” said Paul.The Prince’s Trust Team Programme is a

personal development programme delivered by Cornwall Fire & Rescue Service in partnership with Adult Education. The aim is to increase confidence, motivation

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SHARED LIVES SOUTH WEST STORIESand skills and thereby enable young people to move into employment, education, training, volunteering or apprenticeships.

Throughout the scheme, the participants take part in fundraising activities to allow them to complete a community project, two weeks of work experience, an action packed residential on Dartmoor and their ‘final challenge’ week during which they fund-raise to give disadvantaged members of the community opportunities they wouldn’t normally have.

All those who completed the programme achieve a Prince’s Trust qualification in Level One Teamwork, Communication & Employability Skills.

As part of the course, he worked with his team of 12 people at Sandy Hill Academy, St Austell, painting fences and gardening and took part in fundraising activities at a local Sainsbury’s supermarket.They also went to the Eden Project to learn about fruit and vegetables.He also completed a two week work placement at New County Hall.“I was doing postal work sorting the mail,” he said.“It’s all good experience when I try to get a job.”

One of his favourite activities was helping the fire service when they tested their skills using special equipment to cut open a car.“I really enjoyed it all,” he said.“The kayaking and first aid was also fun.”

Paul moved in with Terry in October 2012 and has become part of the local community thanks to the Portreath Pantry. It was the brainchild of Terry and her friend Kim who runs a nursery and training company at Heartlands, where Paul volunteers.

The cafe was started three years ago with the aim of bringing other Shared Lives carers and service users together and get them involved with cooking, customer service and much more.“I wanted to break down barriers and for people to see their abilities,” she said. “We hosted it in the church hall and have had about 50-60 people come along when we open it once a month.“It’s purpose is about friendship and acceptance.“ We are thinking of relaunching it and doing something fresh and new.”

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SHARED LIVES SOUTH WEST STORIES

We hosted a pop-up shop at a vacant unit in Launceston.

We used the Market House Arcade unit for two weeks and Shared Lives Coordinator Laura Clements manned the store and talked to customers about Shared Lives.

We aim to use it again in August.

Shared Lives pops up in Launceston!

Sessional workers neededWe need sessional workers to come and support some of the people who use our services, while their carers complete their training courses or attend carer meetings.We also use this as a chance to consult with service users.

You should be able to travel according to the needs of the job and have a car available with business insurance. Experience of supporting people is also required.

Find out more by contacting Service Admin, call 01626 360170.

Reminder about Insurance and DBS certificates A lot of the carers that we speak to are all under the mistaken impression that we get sent a copy of their insurance, but we don’t.

We also don’t get sent a copy of DBS certificates. We need to see these certificates when they get sent to you.

Roaming support carersWe are in need of carers to become roaming support carers.The role is needed when a carer needs to go out for a short time, but their service user needs support- the roaming support carer would then help.

Pay would be negotiable depending on banding level. The support carer and carer would need to come to an agreement about payment.

Find out more by contacting Service Admin, call 01626 360170.

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SHARED LIVES SOUTH WEST STORIESDevon Carers MeetingThe next meeting will take place at Old Heathcote School Centre in Tiverton on July 10 at 10am.

Cornwall Carers MeetingIt takes place at Lanhydrock War Memorial Hall, Trebyan, near Bodmin, on June 27 from 10am until 2pm

The agenda is still a bit fluid but we have two guest slots – a speaker from iSight Cornwall who will talk about the work the charity does in the county and what help is available for those living with a sight loss or caring for someone who has a sight problem. They should be bringing a range of gadgets to demonstrate and that people can try out. We also have Emma Hill from Shared Lives Plus who will talk about what they offer to Shared Lives carers and any projects currently underway.

In addition, carers are asked to bring along a healthy eating recipe to share – ideally one that is easy to prepare. If we get enough contributions, we will look at making them into a booklet.

Please put your name on the recipe and if it’s not your own invention, please put which book or website you got it from as we can then check out any copyright issues.

Carers should telephone or email the Cornwall Admin team to let us know whether they are able to attend or not. We need to know numbers by Thursday 22nd June. If anyone needs a lift or is happy to share transport we will try and put them in touch with carers travelling from their area. If you don’t require lunch, please let us know!

Follow our newsWe are on Facebook and Twitter. On Facebook, search ‘Sharedlivessouthwest’. On Twitter our handle (name) is ‘sharedlivessw’ You can like us, follow us and share our posts.

Fun day out at CrealyWe were sent these wonderful photos of Zoe-Ann, Hayley, Robert and Nicky who visited Crealy in Cornwall with their carer Pam Bowman. It looks like fun was had by all!

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USEFUL INFORMATION

Film fans who have a disability can bring their carer to any Picturehouse cinema for freeYou can sign up for a Carers Card which will automatically discount one of your tickets, and which you can use – without a booking fee – when buying tickets in person, online or by telephone. The card will also mean that you don’t have to explain your situation every time you visit the cinema.

Ticket prices for customers with disabilities are according to their circumstances (e.g. adult, Member or student); the free ticket applies to their companion. The card must be used in conjunction with a paid-for ticket or a Member’s free ticket.

All customers for 3D screenings – including those using free tickets – will need to buy a pair of 3D glasses. These can be reused if you keep them.

Signing up for a card is not required, but we hope it will make buying tickets easier. It is personal to you, and may not be used by other people.

To apply for a Picturehouse Carer card, please take proof of eligibility to your nearest Picturehouse and a member of the team will set up your card. If you need additional information or advice please email customerservice@picturehouses.co.uk or call our customer service hotline on 020 7326 2649

The eligibility criteria are kept under review and may be updated from time to time; currently, people who receive one of the following benefits are eligible:

• Disability Living Allowance (DLA);• Attendance Allowance (AA);• Blind Person Registration;• Personal Independance Payment (PIP)• Armed Forces Independant Payment (AFIP)• Additionally, limitations placed on Cinemas by their local

licenses require children and young people under 8 years

Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service offer free safety checks

The visit takes around 45 minutes, they provide advice and fit a free smoke detector if required.

Where required they can also supply/fit additional equipment such as, CO2 alarms, Fire Retardant bedding packs and hard of hearing alarms etc.

If you would like a free home fire safety check please call 0800 05 02 999.

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USEFUL INFORMATION

The Choiceworks App The app is a picture-based learning tool that helps people complete daily routines, understand and control feelings, improve their waiting skills and make choices.

Easy to use apps to create schedules to help with waiting and to express feelings

It’s priced £6.99 and is available at www.beevisual.com

Two designated ‘Dementia Friendly’ spaces can be found in the Western Approach and Theatre Royal car parks in Plymouth.

The spaces are on entry level and close to the ticket machines

and pedestrian exits, with parking staff also receiving extra training to give them a better understanding of dementia.

There are over 3,000 people with a diagnosis of dementia living in Plymouth and this figure is predicted to rise to over 3,600 by 2020.

‘Dementia Friendly’ parking

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The deadline for the July newsletter is July 10.If you have any questions or comments about this bulletin, or any stories you’d like to share via the newsletter, please do get in touch - we love to hear from you! Telephone: 01626 360170 / 01209 891888Email: devon@sharedlivessw.org.uk / cornwall@sharedlivessw.org.ukFacebook: www.facebook.com/sharedlivessouthwestTwitter: @sharedlivessw

Shared Lives South West Suite 3, Zealley House, Greenhill Way, Kingsteignton, TQ12 3SB Registered Charity 1104699 www.sharedlivessw.org.uk/

USEFUL INFORMATION

Mencap’s Best Buddies scheme is about sharing your time to take part in social activities with a person who has a learning disability. Meet up, hang out, or do something fun!

It is here to support you with everything you need throughout your time on the scheme.

There’s lots of fun activities you can do, which may include things thatindividuals may not often get the chance to do, or have never done before. Ideas for activities include: football, swimming or other sports, going to pubs, clubs and gigs or festivals, attending local commuinity social clubs and playing computer/board games.

Visit: www.mencap.org.uk/get-involved/ volunteering

Mencap’s Best Buddies Scheme

Blue Light Day 2017- CornwallWe will be attending Blue Light Day 2017 in Cornwall on July 5 at the Royal Showground at Wadebridge.

We will also be at the Devon Blue Light Day, which takes place on June 22 at Matford Park Rd, Marsh Barton Trading Estate, Exeter.We hope to see you there!