On Friday 12th October the Blackpool Tower provided a spectacular backdrop for the finals of the Great North West Care Awards, where the nineteen category winners were announced.
The Great North WestCare Awards, supported by the Department of Health, are part of the Great British Care Awards, a series of regional awards which celebrates excellence in social care and pay tribute to those who work in the sector throughout England. The awards are all inclusive, bringing together the statutory, independent and voluntary sectors, as well as unpaid carers; promoting joint working.
The Great North West Care Awards have received nominations and support from all corners of the sector. Sector support includes the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS), the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE), Skills for Care, Ceretas and the English Community Care Association. Local Authority support and commercial organisations are also supporting the awards. Care Talk magazine is the media partner.
There were a total of nineteen award categories available for nomination, which represent all areas of the care sector,whether it be older people or specialist services and from frontline staff such as care workers and care managers to people who have made an impact in other ways such as training, specialist care in areas such as dementia and innovation.
Nominations came in from all corners of the sector and region and successful candidates were invited for interview for infront of a panel of sector experts. Thegala award evening started in style with a champagne reception, followed by a superb gourmet dinner and the awards presentation with Jujlie Hesmond-Halgh and David Neilson (Roy and Hayley from Coronation Street!) and dancing into the night.
Winners from the awards will be invited to attend the national finals for either the home care or care home sector which will take place in April and June 2013 at a prestigious venue in London.
The awards support a chosen charity; The Care Professionals Benevolent Fund is the registered charity for the Care Sector and are here to support current, former and retired care professionals, by providing assistance to relieve financial hardship or sickness.
Lisa Carr, Director of the Great British Care Awards said,
“We are delighted to be staging the Great North West Care Awards for the third time. The care awards are going from strength to strength with this year’s regional events. The support from sector partners has been overwhelming and the quality and sheer nominations has been astounding.
These awards recognise and pay tribute to the efforts and dedication of all those who work tirelessly to ensure that so many people are able to live independent lives in their own home. They are the perfect showcase to reflect on best practice in the social care sector. A sector where people truly dedicate themselves to their work and take pride in their achievements.
The people of the North West are incredibly fortunate to have such dedicated people caring for the vulnerable and elderly members of their communities. Congratulations to everyone this evening – everyone here is a winner!”
The winners of the Great North West Care Awards, together with the judges comments are detailed below:
The Care Employer Award
Claire Fryer – Mosaic Community Care
The judges were very impressed by the standard of nominations clear that training is seemed an essential investment and that continued improvement is down to all staff buying into high standards and strong values. Claire stood out as an entrepreneurial character who places her staff right at the centre of her business and business plan.
The Care Home Worker Award
Denise Birmingham – Russley Care Homes
Passion for care was clearly shown throughout the questioning. Denise demonstrated how she goes the extra mile for her residents and in promoting her own development via the training available.
The Home Care Worker Award
Christopher Nolan – Affinity Supporting People
Christopher demonstrated a clear passion and dedication to his role, he exhibited a creative approach to working with people – for someone so young he was truly inspirational.
The Care Newcomer Award
Deborah Richardson – Mosaic Community Care
Deborah has displayed a great empathy and nurturing quality to the way she cares for the people she supports. Deborah has already been promoted to field supervisor and displayed a keenness to develop herself professionally and also maintain contact with clients.
The Care Home Registered Manager Award
Martin Holmes – Community Integrated Care
Martin shone as a remarkable individual who pushed the boundaries taking manageable risks with his innovative ideas and through supportive leadership he made them a reality making a huge difference to people’s lives. In his own words ‘a heart surgeon saves lives, we give a meaningful quality of life’.
The Home Care Registered Manager Award
Stephen Penketh – Affinity Supporting People
Stephen demonstrated a positive, caring and approachable method to leading a difficult cultural change within an ever demanding field. Never losing sight of the hopes, dreams and aspirations of the people being cared for.
The Care Home Nutrition & Hydration Award
Shirley Roberts – MHA
Her passion and care for the residents shines though. They are her family not just part of her job. Shirley has an understanding of their needs and how nutrition plays a part in their day to day lives.
The Dignity in Care Award
Nicholas Barnett – Care 4 you
A hands on carer who is passionate about his role in providing dignity in care for people with mainly high dependency needs within their own homes in the community.
The Dementia Carer Award
Paul Cylok – Buckshaw Retirement Homes
Paul was a joy to talk to, his passion and enthusiasm shone through. An inspiring person who has embraced change – well done Paul!
The Care Team Award
Montrose Hall Care Team – Ideal Care Homes
A team united in their ambition to deliver fabulous care. All roles are valued and all team members developed. The team are integrated into their community and want to change the world for people living with dementia.
Care Home Activity Organiser
Gemma Baker – The FED Heathlands Village
Gemma is a capable, dedicated care professional, very person centred. She has promoted her role extensively in such a short period of time which clearly shows her genuine care for residents.
The Ancillary Worker Award
Steve Davies – Maria Mallaband Care Group
Steve’s enthusiasm and personality shone through. Clearly a genuine caring person displaying real dedication and instinctively person-centred approaches whilst seeking to involve residents and make a positive difference.
The Care Trainer Award – Emma Stanton – The Learning Box
Emma is a passionate individual wanting to make a difference within care for her company, the staff she trains and for the residents and their families. Always wanting to discover new skills and make improvements along the way.
The Care Innovator Award
Sharon Wood – Meridian Healthcare
Sharon was able to demonstrate a clear passion for making and implementing positive and real change. Supported by real daily working practices and tools and driven by her own strong foundation in care provision.
The Frontline Leaders Award
Ben Markham – Buckshaw Retirement Village
Ben is a leader who through infectious enthusiasm, commitment and a love for his work inspires his team to deliver outstanding creative support for residents.
The Home Care Co-ordinator Award
Michaela Heaton – CLS Care Services
An extremely enthusiastic caring person always willing to put people first. Michaela also volunteers her free time to continue to care for others – a true inspiration to the care industry.
The Putting People First Award
Dorothy Chennell – The Lady Verdin Trust
The judges felt that Dorothy showed great personal development coupled with the use of her own unique personal journey all whilst developing an outstanding gateway service to putting people and their own development first – truly inspirational, well done Dorothy!
Unpaid Carers Award
Doreen Roberts
Drawing on her personal experience Doreen has worked tirelessly for over 10 years to help improve support for carers of people with mental illness. As well as training carers on how to cope better with their caring role, she has also helped give carers a local voice and change the understanding of health and social care professionals about supporting carers. Doreen is a great ambassador for carers.
The Outstanding Contribution to Social Care Award
Stiofan O’Suillibhan – Halton Borough Council
Stiofan has with his exceptional leadership and entrepreneurial skills, revolutionised how Halton Borough Council provides day services for adults with a learning disability. Through sheer gut and determination Stiofan has achieved the impossible by dismantling barriers to enable people to have access to the world of employment and training.