Wythenshawe Good Neighbours 2015-2016

The core work of Wythenshawe Good Neighbours (WGN) is to provide social and creative opportunities forpeople in the Wythenshawe community who are 50yrs of age and over. WGN help to improve the social networks of older people and signpost them to activity and social spaces within their own community. To do this WGN have employed the equivalent of a.9 paid post to coordinate the services and to recruit, train and support a number of local volunteers who deliver the services on offer. Ultimately, WGN support older people to engage with their community, be it as a service user, as a volunteer or simply helping an older person to live an independent life as long as they are able, and want to, in their own homes.

As an older person is anyone from 50yrs upwards that can mean responding to the needs of three generations of older people. Presently, we have a membership whose ages span between 52yrs to 101yrs old. We use cafes, pubs,restaurants and elderly accommodations to recruit, meet and train our volunteers, to host lunches and to hold information sessions and seasonal celebrations.

WGN work collaboratively with other Manchester good neighbour groups too, (Burnage, Chorlton, Didsbury and Levenshulme Good Neighbours, Withington Assistand Ladybarn Community Centre) and they make joint bids for grants, support each other and share good practice. WGNalso work with a range of healthcare professionals who refer older people to their services for a range of health and psychological reasons. This could be the local GP services, integrated health teams alongside mental health, occupational health andlocal care companies. We support older people with complex physical and mental health care needs and will signpost members, their carers and family members, to other agencies when the needs of the older person become difficult and beyond the remit of our volunteer companions.

A new trend has emerged where WGN,and indeed other good neighbour groups, have beenasked to provide volunteers, at very short notice, to be at the home of an older person who has been discharged from hospital. Older people with no family or friends nearby. Failure to find an agency to meet the older person at their home can mean that the older person is not discharged from hospital.This is a moral and ethical dilemma and one WGN cannot respond to without a significant rise in volunteer recruitment and staff capacity.WGN are also asked to provide companionship for older people who have been lifelong recipients of mental health care and who have been discharged now they are approaching older age. Two of their service users referred via this route, are in the early 50s and one is early 70s. More and more WGN,and the other good neighbour groups, are being asked to fill in for services that were once provided by the social services and local government. In response to this WGN have a referral page on their website which outlines their process of referralclearly.

Services

WGN are able to provide a range of volunteer led services with a small team of volunteers and two part-time members of staff.

  • Volunteer training and ongoing support
  • DBS checks for volunteers and staff
  • Befriending
  • Telephone befriending
  • Ad hoc shopping
  • Reading and writing letters
  • Price comparison for utility bills
  • Advocacy
  • Escorts to health appointments
  • Weekly community lunches x 2 venues
  • Trips out x 8 per annum
  • Seasonal celebrations including IAG
  • Participatory Research projects

In order to deliver the above services WGN are required to recruit and select appropriate local individuals to train as volunteers. All volunteers are interviewed and DBS checked and attend training for their particular role. WGN website has a volunteer section where the process is clearly explained. WGN are only as good as the volunteers they engage and the people who support them, in kind and through grants and funding. WGN devise, design and deliver discrete training to match the volunteer roles. WGN also access more formal training for staff and volunteers funded by specific grants. To date, 2012-2016, WGN have trained and DBS checked 87 volunteers and they have 25 active volunteers including directors and governance. To date WGN have helped227older peoplewith intense one to one support and their 2015- 2016 data base holds 97 older people who access one or more of their services outlined above. WGN also have a waiting list of older people who would like to access their befriending services and they have been asked to provide an occasional sitting service for carers wanting some time away from their caring responsibilities. These are areas of development and depend on increased funding being made available.

Owing to the nature of the support WGNoffer it is stressed that volunteering is a multi faceted role and the responsibilities associated with volunteering mean that it is a rewarding experience where the potential for challenge is extensive.Many of the older referrals are in crisis, they have let their health and hygiene slip and many have not been out socially in their community for weeks, months or even years. It takes a volunteer with great communication skills, who can react quickly and precisely to situations and can think on their feet and have plenty of common sense, to be an effective volunteer. It is not a volunteer opportunity for a couple of weeks it requires commitment and continuity. Older people need to know a volunteer will be there for them, will turn up to arranged visits and will not make promises they cannot keep.So, it is with a heavy heart I have to say WGN find it very difficult to engage volunteers.

Today Wythenshawe Good Neighbours is a community interest company with 3 directors, a chair and friends of the group. WGN employ one coordinator at 10 hrs per week (25 hrs per week voluntary contribution) and one assistant coordinator at 18hrs per week (14+hrs per month voluntary contribution.) As you can see WGN depend very much on the good will and voluntary contributions of their staff and as such volunteer hours outweigh paid hours) to deliver the services which are requested. WGN main income is from grants and a range of small funding applications.

Some highlights of 2015-2016

Auto Trader Christmas Party/Lunch

In December WGN were invited to a Christmas Party with Auto Trader as part of a Forever Manchester grant. Sixty three older people were taken by luxury coach into Manchester and enjoyed a three course meal and the company of other groups of older people from around Greater Manchester. The party goers had the services of "table elves" (employee volunteers from Auto Trader), who served their meal and poured their drinks. They listened to seasonal music, a choir and watched short films about the projects who were invited, so they all got a sense of who they were and where everyone was from.

Community Lunches

The Thursday Community lunch members celebrated Christmas at The Firbank Pub and Kitchen too and enjoyed carol singing from the local primary school. WGNcontinued the community lunches into the new year and celebrated some significant birthdays, 97yrs, 99yrs and 100yrs of age. WGN also said goodbye to two loved members of their group who passed away this year. One young lady, 99yrs, moved to a care home in Bolton but, still manages to visit the lunch when her granddaughter is available to bring her. WGN helped Lancaster University and MMU with their research into diverse media and social eating. This research included Skyping India and speaking with students to helpimprove their English language skills. WGN also tookpart in a forum for MMU and received £10 book tokens for theirefforts.

Knitting Neighbours - Lil Ted Project

As WGN are reliant on fundraising they tend to be creative. WGN have a few neighbours and friends of the group who knit teddy bears for them, which they sellto raise money for the group. Using the same simple pattern but, different size needles and thickness of wool,the knitters were able to produce a range of designs.When they reach 50 teddy bears they hold a bear sale. WGN ask for a donation of £10 for each bear to reflect the many hours of work that go into knitting and building the bears. The bear comes in its own bag with a "knitted by Wythenshawe Good Neighbours" tag and a rationale around the fundraising Lil Ted project.

The Firbank Pub and Kitchen - Tough Mudder Challenge

The Firbank Pub and Kitchen football team endured the Tough Mudder challenge and raised £1000 for Wythenshawe Good Neighbours. Simon and Rachael Delaney, the Managers of the pub, invited the team and the project to a cheque presentation to raise awareness of the work WGN do and the thoughtful act of the football team in raising money for their group.

Trips Out

WGN continued with trips out this year and they visited Chester, Llandudno, Blackpool Lights and Cleveleys, for a fish and chip supper. WGN are all set for their last trip of the year which will be to Skipton Christmas Markets on December 11th. WGN are arranging trips for 2017 and will be publishing a programme of destinations and dates on their website, these will include York Minster, Chester, Southport, Lytham St. Anne's for shopping expeditions and including seasonal markets.

Befriending

WGN continues with their befriending, either face to face or telephone contact. WGN promote independence and encourage the older people they befriend to access the other services such as the lunches and trips out and the wider services available for older people in Wythenshawe. For those who cannot get out and about, and this can be for a range of reasons, from lack of confidence to illness and immobility, they engage the older people in home activity. This can be scrap booking, recording memories, looking through photo albums, encouraging discussion around memories and experiences. Volunteers use ipads for online searches to compliment and extend this activity.

MCFC Home Games

An older gentleman, who is a lifelong supporter of MCFC, would try to get to matches on his own and would get lost. His sister asked if WGN could provide a volunteer to accompany him to home matches. He loves the tram trip and the whole atmosphere of travelling to and from the game with the other supporters. If he goes to a match he seems to settle for the rest of the week. It's not a massive thing but, the impact to his life is.

Extended Activity

Last year WGN collected several pre war and post war stories, anecdotes and memories from the elderly group and Marie developed and directed a play based on them, "Aspects of Ageing." The memories covered, life as a land army girl, post war stories of settling in Wythenshawe and observations from present day relatives about caring for great grandparents. The play was performed at Manchester History Museum as part of Manchester History week and at Greater Manchester Fringe Festival. An extract from the play will be performed today by David Allen and Chelsie Kinsley members of the original GM Fringe cast.

New Opportunities 2016-2017

PROJECT AGE FRIENDLY WYTHENSHAWE

Wythenshawe Good Neighbours, in partnership with The Courtyard Café at Wythenshawe Park, are collaborating on facilitating an age friendly forum. (Working title - Retired Volunteer Professionals) WGN are looking for early retirees and retired people with skills and life experiences from Wythenshawe and surrounding areas to participate in an Age Friendly Wythenshawe Community Forum.WGN are asking questions. Are you retired? Would you like to support your community to continue to build its capacity? Are you looking for a way to share your skills to the wider community? Would you like to influence solutions for later life issues? Are you active and willing to give some of your spare time to others?Older people who have retired early or have been retired for some time often miss the everyday challenges employment bring. They miss decision making, using their skills, the routine of full time employment, their friends and colleagues and the financial cushion a full wage offers. As one of our biggest challenges is about engaging the right calibre volunteer we feel this group of people are ideal for us to tap into. Engagement is more to do with informing a community of ageing and the difficult later life challenges many people face. Something we are all heading for and will allexperience.

With that in mind we have organised an age Friendly Wythenshawe Community Forum, starting on Friday 27th January2017 andheld weekly at the Courtyard Café from 12.30-3pm.The message we want to share is, that we would like to utilise the skills of retired people to continue to build an Age Friendly community here in Wythenshawe.Over a hot lunch we would like to discuss the many ways that the retired community can help each other. This could include community research, both conducting and participating in, volunteer driving, making up and delivering information packs, hosting events and speaking at conferences on behalf of the older community, starting pressure groups and sharing theirparticular brand of knowledge and skills, but above all representing the older people of their community.

LONE STAR DINING - SOCIAL EATING MODEL

Many older people find dining out a lonely affair. When they have no family or friends nearby they miss out on nutritional meals and socialising, things we all take for granted.How good would it be for older people in the community to be able to drop in to their local pub, cafe or restaurant and be met by welcoming staff who make a fuss of them? We are asking local pubs, cafes and restaurants to register for this scheme so that elderly people in the area can experience eating out on a regular basis in a social setting. Of course there are benefits for the business too. They will increase their number of paying customers and their membership to the Lone Star Dining Scheme will be recognised as a pledge byAge Friendly Manchester Older Peoples Charter. Additionally, the participating business will receive a certificate to show they are actively supporting the age friendly network in their area.

We are often told how older people miss visiting a local cafe or going out for a Sunday Lunch. They feel too embarrassed to enter a cafe, pub or a restaurant on their own. They miss dressing up and making it an occasion. Eating out when you want to, where you want to, and with the company you choose, is just as important as the meal itself.

Challenges

Funding

We cannot depend on grants, fund raising and donations. It is good practice to have 2/3 of income to be generated by sales and other revenue and 1/3 to be donations, small grants and fund raising. As a not for profit community interest company we are required to generate an income and this is something we are striving for as we move into 2017. As you can see from the Introduction pack we have developed a subscription approach but, this only works if people will pay. I have to say it has not been successful. It is difficult to turn someone away from services because they cannot pay or refuse to pay so, we do have a dilemma. It would make sense for the health care agencies e.g. social services, independent healthcare companies, NHS services - GP practices, district nurses, integrated health teams, physiotherapist and occupational health teams and the hospital discharges etc, who refer to our services, to pay the subscription fee.

On a positive note we are writing a funding bid with six other good neighbours groups to the Give more Get More fund - Although among some big players we have got through to the next stage and Marie will be attending a work shop, funded by Nesta, in London 15th November. The idea is to work with older volunteers on short, sharp, community projects. The Lone Star Dining social eating initiative is the WGN offer to Nesta.

Volunteer Recruitment

Is the greatest challenge for WGN. The support offered does attract considerable risk and trust on both sides. The WGN profile of a volunteer has to be someone who can work on their own initiative, who is good at talking to older people and putting them at their ease. Someone who takes their trainingseriously and looks back at the training material for help andguidance. Who will send regular volunteer activity emails to update the coordinator. A person who is trustworthy and loyal, who turns up to appointments on time and builds a good rapport with their older person. A volunteer who can make decisions on the spot and follow up with a well written report. Above all someone who actually has an interest in their role and their elderly companionand who is in it for the long game and not just to enhance a CV or gain experience for a job. These are laudable reasons for volunteering but, WGN requires more commitment and continuity is really important.