Year: 2020

At the end of what has been a particularly difficult and challenging year for everyone, we would like to wish our Empanda customers, website visitors, our partners, supporters, suppliers, colleagues, family and friends a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year.

Thank you for your support this year and we look forward to working with you again in 2021.

A huge thank you to the Canaries COVID-19 Community Support Project for putting a smile on the faces of our tenants, respite guests and staff at Oak Trees in Attleborough when they recently dropped by to deliver some special goodies, including a signed Norwich City Football Club shirt, a delicious cake and some drinks.

At a time when many of our tenants and respite guests with learning disabilities feel very isolated from the world, a gesture such as this means so much. As soon as we are able, we will get the shirt framed and have already agreed on where it will be hung with pride. It will be a constant reminder of all those caring people in our community who are thinking of others at such a challenging time and who bring a smile to the faces of so many.

The Canaries COVID-19 Community Support Project has been set up to support people in Norfolk to respond and recover from the crisis.

Norwich City Football Club players, senior staff, owners and directors have each donated to the project, raising over £200k plus gift aid which is being used in a number of ways to provide support to the community, working with several partners.

The project has three core objectives:

• Supporting fans where necessary and undertake community engagement initiatives
• Support the most vulnerable in their wider community by working with local charities and local authorities and community groups
• Support the NHS and carers to help them do their job

We are extremely grateful to be one of the beneficiaries of the Canaries COVID-19 Community Support Project. The gifts meant so much to us all. Thank you.

 

We are delighted and proud to re-open the Denny Day Centre today, Tuesday 10 March.

After a long period of closure and a few hiccups along the way, our new care staff team, led by Day Care Services Manager Laura Edgar, welcomed new customers to the Centre.

Within a safe environment, they will be able to enjoy stimulating day care and the opportunity to have fun and take part in activities, which will help them to maintain skills whilst offering family carers a well-earned break.

Most importantly, the Denny Centre aims to help combat isolation, promote independence and improve wellbeing and will give those using the service the chance to socialise and make new friends.

On our first day, it didn’t take long for our new members to get into the swing of things. Pool was the activity chosen by Sheila, whilst Chris and Margaret opted for baking biscuits.

After a busy morning, our new members sat down to a lovely roast chicken lunch, followed by lemon cheesecake and cream.

Afternoon activities involved jigsaws and puzzles and before home time, we celebrated our first day with a fantastic cake made by Senior Catering Assistant Sue.

Care and Support Assistants Liz, Alicia, Harriet and Julie had a great first day and we hope that we gave our new members an enjoyable day and one to remember. We are looking forward to seeing everyone again and to welcoming new members.

If you would like more information on the Denny Centre, or if you, a relative or friend would like to spend time with us, please call Laura Edgar, Day Care Services Manager, on 01379 641064, or email her at daycare@empanda.org.uk.

 

 

 

Empanda Care & Support’s services for adults with a learning difficulty have been rated ‘Outstanding’ by national regulator the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

As a registered provider, Empanda offers short respite stays to over 100 adults each year at Oak Trees in Attleborough, Norfolk, as well as personalised care and support to adults living in their own homes across Breckland and South Norfolk.

The service, which was inspected in December 2019, was rated ‘Outstanding’ for being safe, caring and well-led and ‘Good’ for being effective and responsive, giving Empanda an overall rating of ‘Outstanding’. This is only the second time the service has been inspected since Empanda took over in April 2016 (in 2017 we were rated as ‘Good’ across all five key lines of enquiry (KLOEs)). We had hoped that we might achieve one ‘Outstanding’ this time round, but not three! We are overjoyed at the Oak Trees team’s achievement.

The CQC report said that people were provided with flexible, responsive and person-centred care and praised staff for the high quality of service, their commitment, dedication, compassion and creativity; their open and inclusive ethos and well-established relationships of trust and support between staff, service users and their families, enabling people to stay safe.

Respite service user James Morgan (pictured left) said, “For the past few years that I’ve been going to Oak Trees, I have loved and still love every time that I get to go there. Ultimately, I feel really safe and protected when I’m there. Congratulations to Oak Trees Respite Care in Attleborough for receiving the highest of praise from the CQC.”

James’ mother, Jane added, “Oak Trees provides a welcoming home from home environment and my son loves staying there as he is well cared for and treated with respect. He always has a fun time and the bonus for us is that we don’t have to worry while he is away.”

A relative of supported living service user Adrian, said, “Oak Trees is a unique service where they are totally committed, treating everyone as a family member. My brother has not just been looked after by this amazing team, but has grown as an adult, has learned how to live with his wife almost independently, been encouraged to make his own decisions and helped to follow his dreams. They treat everyone using the service as equal citizens, value their opinions and their requests are met wherever possible.”

Jemima Burnage, CQC head of inspection for adult social care in the central region, said: “Inspectors saw Empanda Care & Support delivering care that was safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led at Oak Trees in Attleborough. People deserve to receive good care that meets their individual needs from staff who are compassionate when they use services, and it is clear that is what this service is doing.” She added, “The hard work of the staff working at this service is making a real difference to people. This is why we have rated it Outstanding.”

Kerrie Good, Director (Learning Difficulties) said, “I am extremely humbled and proud and want to thank all our tenants, our respite guests, their families, the Oak Trees staff team and all those professionals from health and social care who supported us during our most recent inspection and throughout the years. I would also like to thank all Empanda colleagues and volunteers for your continued support and we could not have done it without you. You are all such amazing people and we will continue to work hard to maintain, and maybe even exceed this incredible rating.”

If anyone is interested in finding out more about staying at Oak Trees Respite Service, please visit www.empanda.org.uk.

The full CQC report is available at www.cqc.org.uk