ADULTS, HEALTH AND WELLBEING
DECEMBER 2023 NEWSLETTER
A Word from Aled And that's it. Another year almost over. Where did 2023 go? Perhaps the pressure and busyness we face in our day-to-day work can make looking back and remembering what has been achieved over the past 12 months a little hazy. It is for me anyway, at least until someone takes a step back and devotes a little time to think. Like every other year you, the staff of the department, have achieved a great deal. Your dedication and tireless work has made an important contribution to supporting vulnerable individuals across the County. It may not have been possible to achieve everything you would have wanted on behalf of the residents of Gwynedd or perhaps everything has not worked perfectly but you have a great deal to be proud of in terms of what has been done. You have and are making a difference in their lives and in the lives of their families, carers etc. I would like to convey my personal thanks to you and on behalf of the senior managers of the Department for your hard work in challenging circumstances as well as thanks on behalf of Dilwyn Morgan our cabinet member, Dylan our Director and the Council as a whole. I guess I can't help but refer to the changes taking place in the Department's senior management structure at the moment. With Helen now retired, I hope that Mari will move from her current role to the post of Senior Learning Disabilities Manager on a secondment basis during January and within a very similar timeframe I am hopeful that I will also have successfully filled the position of Senior Manager of Adult Services. An element of uncertainty arises from every change but there are also opportunities. Opportunities to build on the strengths of existing services and develop them to meet future care needs. So, at the end of the year, thank you all for your work and contribution during 2023. 2024 will offer similar challenges and a few new ones I'm sure, but before 2024 arrives I'd like to wish everyone a season's greetings for you and your families. Enjoy. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Aled
Goodbye Helen by Aled Davies Having worked with us for 34 years, Helen Fôn Owen has left the employment of Cyngor Gwynedd at the beginning of this month. Helen was retiring on health grounds because her sight condition had worsened significantly over the past few months. The condition has made it very difficult for her to undertake the duties of the role/job in general and definitely in terms of the way Helen would want to do the job. As a Department and Council we have worked closely with other partners to try to give Helen all the help in terms of adaptations and support. I also know that Helen's managers, colleagues and family have tried to do everything in their power to support her. Unfortunately, despite these joint efforts, due to the condition worsening the medical guidance has led Helen and us as an employer to an outcome we had hoped to avoid. Her professionalism, expertise, enthusiasm and desire and commitment to offer support and care to some of the most vulnerable individuals in Gwynedd has been an invaluable contribution to our work here in Gwynedd. Helen's retirement will leave quite a gap in the Department and definitely in the Learning Disabilities Service. I have discussed these issues often with Helen over the past few months and I know that having to leave makes her sad but in the circumstances she feels that this is the right thing for her personally. I'm sure you and I will all share that feeling of sadness at Helen retiring. Helen has asked me to convey her personal thanks to everyone who has given her support to carry out her job over the years or adjusted arrangements etc. in response to the condition.
Helen Fôn Owen Arwres gu i'r lluoedd - un wylaidd a hael i'r teuluoedd; Annog sicr i'r bregus oedd ei nodded drwy'r blynyddoedd. Diolch! I'th waith daeth diwedd - rhoddaist d'ymroddiad a'th rinwedd annwyl, boed it nawr hwyl, hedd, a gwên, a diolch Gwynedd. Helen, daeth d'ymddeoliad - a dyddiau dedwyddwch, rhown gariad a pharch yn ein cyfarchiad i fynnu oes o fwynhad. I Helen, ein hanwylaf - a'i hwyliau'n heulog, y dirionaf a'n heilun, fe ddymunaf asbri a bri dyddiau braf. Huw Dylan
Congratulations Mari Due to the retirement of Helen Fôn Owen there was a vacancy as Senior Manager of Learning Disabilities Services. Considerable considerations have been made in order to put an emphasis on building on current strengths and of course, to plan for the future. The result of this is that Mari Wynne Jones, Senior Manager of Adult Services in the Department will transfer to the post on a secondment basis. Mari will start this work soon in the new year. There will be an opportunity for members of staff to declare their interest in a development opportunity to fill Mari's current position soon. That will also be on a secondment basis. Congratulations Mari and best wishes to you on the new challenge.
Work Opportunities Project Following the appointment of Andy, Glesni and Jonjo (Richard Henry Jones) as Work Opportunities Support Workers the project has gone from strength to strength. In the Arfon area up to 25 individuals are now employed to fulfil the maintenance agreement that the Learning Disability Service has with Caernarfon Town Council. Their duties vary from ensuring that Coed Helen park is tidy and cleaning the changing rooms for maintenance work on the wards. Examples of the work they have completed over the past few months are repairing and tidying up a bus shelter in Cadnant ward and repairing a fence over the Estuary. They are also in the process of sanding and repainting the planters that are all over the town in their workshop in Glynllifon. Once they are refreshed and the Spring flowers have been planted they will be transported back to town!
There has also been a lot of buzz in South Gwynedd. As well as getting to know different participants and employers who are already involved in the scheme, we are also busy raising awareness of the scheme in general in the area. As well as contacting various employers, early successes have seen placements being established at Coleg y Bala, Caffi Gwalia in Pwllheli and Ysgol Hafod Lon among others. We hope that this is just the beginning to develop a very successful scheme which will lead to the creation of many employment opportunities over the next 12 months and beyond!
Flu Vaccines Every year, viruses like flu spread and cause illness to many people. It is believed that around 25,000 people in Wales and England die as a result of flu every year. This is especially dangerous to people who are vulnerable to infection, such as the elderly and those with long-term health conditions. Receiving yearly flu vaccines is one of the best defenses against catching or spreading the flu. We strongly recommend that front line health and social care staff get a yearly flu vaccine. This is to protect yourselves, your families and those in your care. Who is eligible to receive a free flu vaccine? Staff in care homes Staff in nursing homes Staff in regular contact with clients Home carers Key facts on flu: Flu kills The flu can spread easily in locations such as care homes, putting staff, residents and visitors at peril The flu vaccine is safe Flu jab is the best way to stop the spread of flu In the next few weeks you will receive a letter inviting you to receive the flu vaccine, we kindly ask you to take this opportunity and arrange your vaccination as soon as possible. If you have not received an offer, let your manager know so that we can support you in arranging an appointment. Plan your flu vaccine today, it can save lives.
Ask The Director In October this year, a new way of promoting communication between the department's staff and leaders was introduced in the form of the 'Ask the Director'. Huw Dylan Owen has already addressed several important and relevant questions to the department's staff. Click here to see the director's answers to questions that have arisen so far, about topics including social workers' salaries, working conditions and the future of social services. Below, you will find an explanation and further details regarding the procedure itself, and we look forward to more answers in the new year. Your chance to ask Dylan Owen, Director of Social Services It is very important that you, as Social Services staff, have the opportunity to ask questions, or offer comments and feedback about your work and the things that are important to you.
We want to hear from you - about the things that go well and the things that don't work so well. To enable you to do this in a convenient and easy way we have opened a virtual 'comments box': How does the system work? 1. The question or comment will be completely anonymous . 2. After you have submitted your question or comment Dylan will respond through a special bulletin that will have been created exclusively for sharing all the questions and answers. Answers will not be sent personally and individually, as we will have no way of knowing who will have sent the request. Therefore, answers will be sent to everyone from the social service. 3. We will try to respond as soon as possible. We hope to collect all the questions and respond at the end of each month. 4. This will not be an opportunity to raise comments about clients or concerns about service users. Due to the confidentiality of the person receiving care. It is important that you use the appropriate procedure for reporting a safeguarding concern. Talk to your line manager for help or call 01766 771000 and ask for the safeguarding team in the Children and Family Support Department or the Adults, Health and Wellbeing Department. Any such question will be left unanswered. 5. Likewise, this is not an opportunity to report a personal work problem. Any work concerns should be spoken to your line manager or human resources. To contact human resources call 01766 771000 and ask for your department's human resources. Any such question will be ignored. Click here to ask the director! We look forward to receiving your comments and questions!
The Herbert Protocol An initiative which helps the Police to search for people who are missing and living with dementia is being highlighted as part of National Safeguarding Week. The Herbert Protocol is an initiative that encourages families and carers to compile useful information that can be used when a vulnerable person goes missing. The Herbert Protocol is named after George Herbert, a veteran of the Normandy landings, who was living with dementia. George would often go missing from his care home and the police would have to go looking for him. Carers, family members and friends can complete forms in advance, recording important details such as medical information, mobile numbers, locations relevant to the individual and a photograph. If a family member or friend goes missing, the forms can be given to the police to reduce the time spent gathering this information. The form can then be printed and stored in a safe, easily accessible place, or kept by a family member electronically. If the person is in a care home a family member should contact them initially to discuss completing the form and then they can be included in an individual care plan. The scheme is being introduced again across North Wales as part of National Safeguarding Week.
Autism Bus
by Iwan Roberts
I mentioned in the last newsletter about the autism bus training that visited the county during the Autumn. This is a type of training session provided by the company Training2Care in partnership with Cyngor Gwynedd, where there is an opportunity to virtually experience some of the difficulties that autistic people encounter on a daily basis, as well as hearing an informative presentation about autism. By now, every session has been held and we would like to thank everyone who attended, including the additional sessions scheduled at relatively short notice. You should have received your participation certificate by now, if not please contact Iwan Roberts or Carie Edwards. Hand in hand with the certificates, an application was sent for any feedback you have about the sessions. You are still welcome to send any feedback or recommendation to the individuals above. The autism team appreciate the feedback we have already received, it will surely help us create an even more beneficial experience in the future. There was widespread praise for the virtual experience that was available in the bus itself, with several individuals emphasizing how much of an eye-opener it was, and how much awareness was raised of some people's experiences with autism. We also saw praise towards the informative presentation held as part of the session, with a number of attendees reporting how interesting and beneficial it was to learn in this way. For the next sessions, the autism team wants to ensure that the constructive criticism received is also addressed. At the moment, there are no additional dates planned for Council staff in general, but we intend to hold sessions soon in the new year for families and friends of autistic individuals, and you are certainly welcome to join the these as staff if you are close to an autistic individual personally. There are no definite dates for these sessions yet, but you are welcome to contact Iwan Roberts or Carrie Edwards to be put on the waiting list. Thank you again for all your interest and we look forward to holding even more successful sessions in the new year.
Food and a Smile Since late September, students from Bangor University have been busy preparing and distributing hot meals to any members of the community in need. They have been especially targeting vulnerable individuals, such as the homeless or who are experiencing financial difficulties. We can all as members of the public be thankful that these students have made such an effort to serve their local community, and we as a council can be especially thankful that they have been preparing and distributing food to around thirteen elderly people who receive home care from Cyngor Gwynedd.
Halloween Here are a few photos from the Dolfeurig service users' Halloween party. Everyone had an amazing time with various games and then a buffet.
Mandatory Workshops Recently we conducted mandatory information workshops for managers of the department. We are now holding another one in January for those who could not attend last time – please can you prioritise this and register for the workshop below. It is essential that you as managers have completed this training – we are seeing more and more breaches and information issues and it’s important that we understand our responsibility when dealing with individuals’ information. There will be translation for this session.
GDPR Breach Over the past few months we have seen an increase in the number of e-mails being received in error from other organisations. That is, receiving an email that was not meant for you. Often there is nothing wrong with this, but sometimes the information can be of a sensitive nature. In this case we would like to remind you of what to do: • Get back in touch with the individual stating that there has been a mistake and that you intend to delete the email immediately • Delete the email Unfortunately, sometimes we can also send an email to the wrong person. In this case you will need to: • Try to block the email from being sent (follow this guide for internal emails) • Send an email apologizing to the individual and ask them to delete it immediately • Report the mistake to your line manager • Report the error to Helen Parry, Senior Statutory Information Protection Officer. Everyone makes mistakes sometimes, but by acting correctly and working together we can try to overcome this.
Welcoming Eirian Hello! My name is Eirian Daniels Williams, I’m 32 years old, I was born and bred in Blaenau Ffestiniog. I’m married and a proud mum to two girls. I have accepted a new job within the council as an Early Years Transformation Project Officer. The job’s purpose is to improve opportunities for Gwynedd’s children and families as well as workers within the field. I am proud to have joined Manon Elwyn Hughes’ team and am looking forward to working with the Adults department. I care deeply about this field and want the best possible start to Gwynedd’s children and families. I have been supporting children and families for 14 years, having worked as a support worker with Derwen right after finishing college and then onto a job as an early development officer within Dechrau’n Deg in Meirionnydd for 9 years. I have also been the leader of a youth club in Blaenau Ffestiniog. This opportunity permits me to support the area’s families in a slightly different way through working with other agencies. I am looking forward to working on this project and co-operating effectively with others in the hope of seeing positive results at the end of the journey.
Gwenno’s Success Congratulations to Gwenno Angharad Williams who was one of five shortlisted for the Valuable Partners award, Career Wales. Gwenno who works as a Marketing and Careers Development Officer in the Children and Family Support Department was nominated in the Outstanding Personal Contribution category. The awards are a way for Careers Wales to recognize and thank those who have worked with them. The awards ceremony in Cardiff was an opportunity to celebrate all the businesses on the shortlist before announcing the winners. Gwenno received a nomination for: • Showing exceptional commitment in supporting activities in schools • Her willingness to try new ideas • Encouraging others from their organization to participate • Taking concrete steps to promote their relationship with Careers Wales and schools. Gwenno said: “I am extremely grateful to have been nominated in the Career Wales Valuable Partner Awards. It has been so nice to spend time with young people, to be able to get them started and plant ideas for their career paths. When we were at School I remember getting support from various employers and I think that seeing your options is so important. It is very nice to return to Schools and that the pupils remember you and see that they have taken your advice. We were working late one night, happened to be at a Careers Wales event in Pontio, when I received an email from a young girl that crystallized exactly why we do this work. After doing a mock interview session with her and after having an information session on work experience, on her own initiative this young woman had decided to get in touch to organize work experience in one of our residential homes. She noted that without these sessions she would never have had the motivation to go for it - and that, in my opinion, says it all!"
Celebrating Occupational Therapists
From the 6th to the 12th of November there was an opportunity to celebrate Occupational Therapists and give thanks to the individuals who work in the field across the county. The celebrations of the Royal College of Occupational Therapists are annual celebrations and this year's theme for the week was 'occupation matters.' The week was celebrated in many ways - written articles, emphasis on career paths to try to recruit new individuals into the field. An interview was also organized on Shân Cothi's program where Iola Williams, Occupational Therapist in Eifionydd and Gogledd Meirionnydd was interviewed about her profession - Bore Cothi - Composer Jerome Kern's Endowment - BBC Sounds around 18:59 if you fancy listening back. A Developmental Day was organized for the Occupational Therapists over in Plas Weunydd, where there was a day of talks with guest speakers.
There were talks by David Davies from the Royal College of Occupational Therapists, Dr Gwilym Roberts and a mindfulness session by Sarah Silverton to conclude the day. It was a great opportunity to bring the Occupational Therapists together and thank them for all their work to support the people of Gwynedd.
Communication Consultation Cyngor Gwynedd’s Social Services, which includes the Adults, Health and Well-being Department and the Children and Family Support Department, have a statutory obligation to protect and promote the welfare of children and adults. The services empower residents to manage their own lives; promoting independence; support social inclusion and their participation in society; and all this while helping people to stay safe and healthy. A big part of doing this work is communicating with the public; service users, their families and county residents. Therefore, we believe it is very important to understand what they think about our current communication. In order to try to do this we have opened an external consultation in order to hear their thoughts and to understand what the best and most suitable ways for us to communicate with them in the future. You as staff are welcome to fill in this form, and for your information a consultation about internal communication will take place in the new year, but in the meantime, we would like you to spread the message about this consultation with any service users you come across. A link to the questionnaire can be found here. Closing date for collecting feedback is 22.12.23. To receive more information about any equality issue, or if you have a question or comment about this survey, please contact Sian Pritchard, the department's Public Relations and Communications Manager.
Dementia Actif Dementia Actif were fortunate to be able to collaborate with Canolfan Gerdd Williams Mathias to put on a concert at Galeri Caernarfon at the beginning of the month. It was a privilege to spend the morning with the world-renowned harpist, Catrin Finch. Forty-two members and their families attended this very special and intimate event.
What a fabulous day we had on the First of the month for Boccia League’s Christmas Party. Twenty-four teams came along in their Christmas jumpers to play boccia, followed by a Christmas party. Thank you to Caffi Seren for the food, Côr Lleisiau Llawen and Dementia Actif Arfon for the entertainment, to Father Christmas for the visit, and to Byw’n Iach Glaslyn for the support on the day.
Warm Welcome The Warm Welcome scheme was launched back in October 2022 in order to offer people free warm shelter. With the cost of living and energy continuing to bite and people having to make difficult decisions between buying essentials and being able to pay bills, it is more important than ever that there is a suitable and warm space available. Organizations or businesses can register for the scheme by going to Cyngor Gwynedd’s website which also includes a map of Warm Welcome locations in Gwynedd. The food plans and warm welcome grant is also open at the moment to help towards food and feeding plans: Food Plans Fund (lyw.cymru). Cyngor Gwynedd is working together with Menter Môn to administer the scheme and many local businesses and organizations are already offering people the chance to go there to keep warm and have a chance to chat. Some locations associated with Cyngor Gwynedd are also on the list, including libraries, Storiel Bangor and the county's leisure centres. Councillor Nia Jeffreys, Deputy Leader of Cyngor Gwynedd, said: "With winter fast approaching I encourage organizations and businesses in the county that are interested in offering people a safe and warm place to do so by registering with the Warm Welcome scheme . With electricity and gas costs continuing to be a mental pain for many people, it is so important that we come together to make the most of this community effort. I am extremely grateful to all the groups and businesses who took part in last winter's scheme and who have registered for this winter as well. So don't suffer alone and make the most of the safe and warm places available to you." One element in a wider support package from Cyngor Gwynedd in response to the cost-of-living crisis is the Warm Welcome scheme. The Council is keen to ensure that local people receive all the help, support and practical advice for which they are eligible. There is useful information on the Council's website which summarizes all the support the Council offers in one place, for example advice on benefits, information about energy in the home and contact details of other organizations that can help . Residents are encouraged to have a look over the page to ensure they receive all the help, support and practical advice available.
Thank You Thank you for reading the latest edition of the Adults, Health and Well-being Department Newsletter. If you have news that you wish to share with us, then remember to get in touch. Similarly, we would love to hear any feedback, complaint or suggestion regarding the Newsletter. The Newsletter is created by you, for you, so we welcome any comments. Contact Details Tel: 01286 679 223 E-mail: sianip@gwynedd.llyw.cymru or IwanHuwRoberts@gwynedd.llyw.cymru
Merry Christmas