Friends of Horse Fair

Richard’s involvement with Horse Fair Care Home began when Friends of Care Homes reached out to him and his team at the church to occasionally help out with the staff and spend some quality time with the residents. Richard accepted the offer with no hesitation as he loves to be a helpful member of his community, “we want to be a positive part in the community and it is important that we respect our commitments.”

Prior to his role at the church and the care home, Richard got involved in some college catering until he realised that it was not the right career route for him. He then decided to work at the Tate gallery while he was still living in London, for around eight years before moving to Rugeley with his wife and kids.

While Richard and his team are at Horse Fair around once a fortnight, they do some reading for the residents and sing hymns together every so often, “our time consists of a simple thought for the day, one or two hymns that are chosen by the residents, and the remainder of the time is spent talking with the residents.” Richard added, “our main objective is to spend time with the residents.” While Richard and his church group are at Horse Fair, they spend most of their time chatting with the residents about any stories or memories they want to share, “it is really good because there are so many life experiences and stories, they have some really deep lives they have lived in adventure.”

When starting out in his role at the care home, Richard adapted to the environment with ease. What helped him with this is the diverse age group he has at his church, “it was nothing new to me in that aspect, we exercise the same skills with the residents at Horse Fair as those used at church.” The different age groups have helped Richard and his team to become accustomed to socialising with all generations.

Another thing that helped with the adaptation to the care home environment for Richard was the training he had to partake in before officially starting his role at Horse Fair. “I fully understood and appreciated the training we needed to do because it puts the care home at ease knowing that we have done the training.”

Richard has formed friendships with everyone at the care home, “I do feel a connection with everyone there, we go there as friends not as workers.” The most important part of Richard’s role to him is, “building good friendships and relationships with staff and residents, the blessing we get from that is equally reciprocal.”

In order to be a good volunteer at a care home, Richard believes that it requires good listening skills, awareness and empathy, “respecting others and being interested in others is important.” “Some days the residents are not feeling as good as other times and being sensitive to how they are on that day is important. Sometimes they just want space and being aware of that is important,” he explained.

Richard’s advice to those who are considering volunteering at a care home is to, “go along and see what it is like. Some people think that volunteering is a huge commitment, but just to pop in and have a chat can make a huge difference.” Richard is extremely pleased with his experience at the care home and can definitely see how his teams’ role at Horse Fair benefits everyone, “I think all of us come away more encouraged and blessed, it really is a privilege to go in.”

To build stronger and happier communities in Rugeley, a group of volunteers formed Friends of Horse Fair Care Home where they can socialise with the residents and add a new aspect into their lives.

Shelbie Haynes was encouraged by her school friend Clotilda to become a volunteer of Friends of Horse Fair Care Home in the beginning of the year. Shelbie started her volunteering journey at Horse Fair whilst undertaking her A-level exams. Despite attending school 5 days a week, Shelbie had some time on her hands which she wanted to make the most of. Volunteering at a care home was an opportunity for her to gain first-hand experience for her Health & Social Care lessons, “you can only read so much in the books and I wanted to learn more than that”, she explained.

During her first days as a volunteer, Shelbie met the residents and particularly got along with the sweetheart of Horse Fair care home – Violet. The relationship they have developed over time is a perfect example of two generations completing and giving to each other. “We have quite a lot in common”, Shelbie explained.  Both ladies have visual impairment which sparked conversations from the start and marked the beginning of strong, ongoing mutual support. “Sometimes we just go outside in the garden and listen to the birds”, she said. Shelbie and Violet have bonded over long hours of chatting about life, passions, school, family and friends. Violet enjoys telling Shelbie stories from her childhood about her very first love which has eventually turned into marriage. Violet also feels the responsibility to give Shelbie as much wisdom as she can since girls like her “are the future of this country”.

Shelbie’s experience with Friends of Horse Fair Care Home has given her a boost of confidence. Helping the residents gave her the opportunity to develop strong sense of empathy, especially toward Violet. “She lost her sight suddenly in her 60s because of Multiple Sclerosis”, Shelbie explained. “I wish I had known about Friends of Horse Fair sooner”, Shelbie has committed to volunteering at Horse Fair and cannot wait for the summer when she will be able to visit more often. She persevered for the cause and effectively, has become more patient and learned how to communicate with the residents to give both the best experience. Volunteering has inspired her future plans to work in a similar sector with children and young people.

To anyone considering volunteering, Shelbie would advise to “go for it”. “It gives you a one-of-a-kind experience that you won’t get elsewhere”, she explained. Shelbie will continue bringing generations together and giving to the community in a meaningful way.

Violet, 80, became a resident at Horse Fair in June 2015. She has always been an open and bubbly lady and became comfortable at the care home soon after was admitted and joined the Committee which she has been a member of since July 2016.

Aged only 7, Violet had to leave school and care for her ill father. Despite the hardship she had experienced, with hard work and determination she returned to school 5 years later to graduate with excellent grades. “I used to work as a chemist in Scotland. It is beautiful there, but coming down here meant I could be closer to my family”, she confessed. She has since moved to Rugeley where the care home is based.

In the same care home, a group of volunteers established Friends of Horsefair on 18^th July 2016. Volunteers have been engaging with the care home’s residents with the purpose of adding value to their lives ever since.

Violet is always thrilled to welcome volunteers visiting Horsefair Care Home, “I love the volunteers. Every time they come down I never stop talking to them”, she explained. Violet tells volunteers stories from her life including her childhood sweetheart and husband who “was the only boyfriend she has ever had”.

At the home, Violet has become particularly close with one of the Friends, Shelbie. “We clicked the minute we met”, Violet explained. Shelbie and Violet’s bond grew strong since the moment they had learnt that both ladies had lost their vision. Because of this, they get to share special moments like listening to the birds in the garden. Together, they are planning on writing a book about their experiences and the bond that blossomed between the two.

Her relationship with Shelbie strengthens each time she comes to the care home and has become a bond of reciprocated care from both, “I look forward to when Shelbie comes down, she is such a lovely child.  I love talking to the youngsters particularly, they are the future of this country”, Violet explained proudly.  Just like the volunteers look after their elderly and make sure they put a smile on the residents face, Violet feels the responsibility to take care of the volunteers, “I talk to them about school and how things are. I have the right to teach them a bit about life too. It is so important that the volunteers come and visit us. I couldn’t do without the girls, they are my life”, Violet said.

Friends and staff of Horse Fair do their best to make the residents’ experience delightful. To achieve this, alongside Live Music Now, Friends organise music workshops which Violet gets involved in, “I am a very noisy person and I may not sing as well as I used to, but I love to sing whenever I can!” she explained. Violet also believes that the staff at Horse Fair deserve more credit for their hard work as they are “extremely helpful but don’t get applauded enough”. The Wellbeing Co-ordinators arrange festive events such as Christmas Pantomime, where last year Violet stole the show as the Wicked Witch and was the only resident to star. “We pre-recorded her parts so she could perform as her voice was projected. We pimped her wheelchair and all had a great fun!” Jess, a Wellbeing Co-ordinator, explained. Violet’s grandson, who is an actor himself, saw his grandmother’s performance leaving him in awe.

Thanks to the familial relationships between volunteers, staff and residents, Horse Fair care home truly feels like home, where residents like Violet make it a delight to live in.