careadmin

Open Arms

by Leave a Comment

The Open arms project continues to listen to communities who want to take action to tackle loneliness across Peterborough and Cambridgeshire. It is encouraging to see small things can make a big difference to people’s lives. This was demonstrated to me recently whilst on a visit to a local care home in Fenland. Some young mums had got together and decided to take their children to visit a local care home. To see the eyes of one of the residents who struggles to communicate light up at the sight of a child playing with their toys is special. It is a welcome reminder of the power of human connection. It is these moments that make it all worth it.

 

As we move into Winter, Open Arms is looking forward to working with the Princes Trust and the volunteer Police cadets in residential care settings in both the North and the South of the county. We are a sharing our message that small moments of connection are vital in tackling loneliness across the county during the re launch of the 50,000 reasons campaign.  We are looking forward to continuing to develop small partnerships with those who want to take action in their community. We have been looking for opportunities to bring some Christmas cheer and reaching out to those who are less well connected. If everyone plays a part by taking small actions, the result is that communities come together stronger.

Beat the stress this Christmas

by Leave a Comment

It’s nearly Christmas and all the advertisements showing the ‘perfect’ celebration can push people’s expectations and expenditure. For some it can be a demanding and stressful time of year.  In the wellbeing team we speak to some clients who find Christmas challenging – maybe they will be alone or perhaps they find it is an emotionally painful time. Here are some ideas to help reduce the stress and anxiety that Christmas can bring. You, your family and friends might find them helpful too.

1- Be careful with finances.  Money issues are a leading cause of stress over the Christmas period.  The best way to manage this is to plan ahead, buy Christmas presents throughout the year and try to limit impulsive spending.  It is important to set an affordable budget and stick to it.

2 –Manage expectations. Be realistic, help others to be realistic by explaining that Christmas is about being together and not about how many presents they get.

3 – Eat well and drink sensibly.  What we eat and drink can have an impact on how we feel.  Although it’s fine to treat yourself, be mindful about balance and moderation.

4  – Coping with loneliness.  Find meaningful ways to spend your time, such as volunteering or visiting someone else in your community who is also alone.  Do something that you love, make Christmas Day a day for you to spend doing something that is meaningful and enjoyable  – it doesn’t have to be Christmas related.  Find out if there are any local community events you can access.

5 – Stay active.  As tempting as it is to stay indoors at this time of year it will help you to relax and boost your wellbeing if you get out and about in the fresh air.

6 – Ask for help and take a break. It’s okay to ask for help if you are struggling or feeling overwhelmed or to say no when you need to. Think about the things you could do to help you relax, do something just for yourself.

7 – Have fun.  Forget how busy you are and make time to have fun.  Laughter is a great way to combat stress and to help you relax, so organise a few fun activities that you will enjoy. Re-runs of Only Fools and Horses, Fawlty Towers, Desmond’s or Morecambe and Wise can be a tonic.

Whatever you do, we hope you have an enjoyable time.

Best wishes, Kate Blackwell and Cate Winters.

Community Funding for South Cambridgeshire

by Leave a Comment

South Cambs District Council Community Chest has increased it fund to £49,000 and the criteria has widened to allow more groups to bid. Changes to the eligibility criteria of the Community Chest fund  will give more Parish Councils in South Cambridgeshire a chance to bid for funding to support their community projects – while at the same time the total funding, available to March, will increase to £49,070.

 

The Community Chest fund supports Parish Councils and other local groups in their efforts to promote active and healthy lifestyles, build inclusive communities, and enhance the natural environment – and groups can bid for up to £1,000 from the fund towards these projects.

 

Each year, the fund is split in half so that groups applying later in the year will still have an opportunity to bid before the funding has all been allocated. Applications for the second half of the pot are now being taken. Bids will be reviewed on a monthly basis until March, or until the year’s allocated funds have all been awarded.

 

Please contact sarah.b@care-network.org.uk  or mirella.t@care-network.org.uk  if you would like more information

 

More information about the new eligibility criteria can be found on SCDC website

https://www.scambs.gov.uk/communitychest

https://www.scambs.gov.uk/community-development/grants/community-chest-grants/

Whittlesey Festival

by Leave a Comment

The Whittlesey Festival has been running for 11 years and has grown immeasurably over time. Whittlesey is a market town on the outskirts of Peterborough but has always come under the Fenland District Council boundaries. The Festival is a celebration of the towns’ vibrancies and diversity and has a reputation for lots of entertainments and local talent. They expect at least 5000 visitors over the weekend.

Care Network held an information stand with Adam Fraser from the Open Arms project, Julie Jeffryes from the Healthy Fenland Team and Azanda Sithole the new volunteer lead. The weather was glorious it was a perfect early autumn day with glorious sunshine. We spent the day talking to lots of people about all of the different Care Network projects. Julie identified a number of potential new group opportunities. Adam talked to lots of people about Open Arms and Azanda identified some potential new volunteers.

We all spent time walking around the festival stalls and activities giving out our leaflets & information and talking to people we were able to see some of the varied entertainments such as the Local Pipe Band, Ukrainian Cossack Dancers and a local Children’s Theatre Group perform. There was music and entertainment all day. Lots of lovely food and charity stalls, a Photography Competition and lots of raffles and games of chance to entertain people. We would all recommend you try to attend next year’s event.

It is very important that Care Network is seen out and about it the communities we serve and this was a great opportunity to meet lots of different people.

Coneygear Seniors in action!

by Leave a Comment

Care Network has been supporting the relaunch of the Medway Community Centre in Huntingdon and our Community Navigator District Coordinators Rachel and Lorraine popped along to visit the Coneygear Seniors Group last week.

One of the group brought along some wool for the knitting table. Rachel suggested knitting squares to make a blanket for a homeless charity, thinking of similar efforts to raise funds happening in our Chatteris office. This was really popular and helped to give the knitters satisfaction that they were able to help others.  Our ladies had some lovely conversations, sharing information on various local services and activities and will be giving further support to some members, including referring to our Wellbeing service. They also met a member that is already receiving support from one of our wonderful volunteers.

Rachel and Lorraine enjoyed participating in the chair based exercise group “It was really interesting for us to experience.  A lady asked after the exercise where she could get a resistance band.  I asked Everyone Health if they could let her have a free one but they don’t have many, so directed her to Amazon or Sports Direct.  She said she would ask her son to order her one.”

One of the ladies Lorraine spoke to said she had moved to Huntingdon 8 years ago and this club was the first opportunity she had had to get out and meet new people.  She was really pleased she had made the effort and we will be working with her to explore other social opportunities.

Rachel and Lorraine are both looking forward to visiting again to build relationships and obviously to finish their knitted squares –their knitters have promised to keep going in their absence J

The Coneygear Seniors group takes place every Wednesday from 9am to 1pm at the Medway Centre. There are lots of activities to take part in along with refreshments and a 2 course cooked meal.

Help at Home – joining up the dots

by Leave a Comment

Help At Home continues to be active across Cambridgeshire, supporting those who have recently been in hospital or who are unwell at home and need a little help to aid recovery.   Our volunteers are integral to this work, providing preventative support to those who might otherwise find themselves in hospital or in crisis.   In addition to this, we have been busy piloting a new service ‘Joining up the Dots’ within Peterborough City Hospital.  This fantastic service aims to help those with more complex situations that would fall normally outside of the scope of Help at Home.  So far we have been able to support 80 people in this way.

We have also been busy spreading the word about Help At Home and Care Network, making sure as many people as possible know about the support we can provide.  We were recently invited to speak at Hinchingbrooke Hospital’s Physio department and as a result have built some great relationships and are receiving referrals from them; we were part of the Addenbrookes’ Volunteers’ Week celebrations where we were able to talk about the good work we do there, and we attend a number of Integrated neighbourhood events, Multi-Disciplinary Teams meetings and engage with other health and social care professionals regularly.

 

Lesley coordinates our ‘Joining up the Dots’ work in Peterborough.   One delighted lady wrote to tell us how she had met Lesley at the home of her friend who had been admitted to hospital a few days before.   “I knew the bungalow was in a state and was thrilled there was someone willing to tackle it. Lesley took charge, in a calm, effective manner, identifying the areas that needed tackling first and creating a sensible, efficient system to initially sort through piles of papers etc. My offer of help was accepted and because of her calm, professional approach I was able to rise above my emotions and help her sort things out. She showed a real interest in my friend, asking sensible questions and listening to the answers!

I had to leave at 12noon but another volunteer joined her and together they continued to work there until about 4.30pm.

What a difference they made! All the untidiness had been removed and the bed made up.
My friend has since died so will not see the changes, but thanks to Lesley’s help we are now able to look for important papers to ensure their final wishes are met”.