Stella shortlisted for prestigious award » Housing » 24dash.com

A Sanctuary Care employee is in the running for a prestigious National Care Award.

Stella Charman, who works at Ashley House care home in Bordon, Hampshire, is a finalist in the Care Activities Co-ordinator category of the care sector’s premier annual awards event.

She was nominated by her manager Margaret Powell, for making an exceptional contribution to the lives of the residents through the provision of activities.

The nomination follows Stella’s outstanding work for the NAPA Breath of Fresh Air competition, where the National Association for Providers of Activities for Older People asked homes to think of creative ways to bring fresh air to residents.

Stella helped organise a day at the beach with a difference, where residents could experience the joys of the seaside - in the home’s own garden!

She persuaded a builder to donate two tonnes of sand and managed to find a mobile farm which brought two donkeys along.
Residents helped paint a backdrop of the sea and children from a local school built sandcastles. There was also Punch and Judy show and candyfloss and ice cream.

Stella’s efforts were greatly appreciated by residents and secured the home second place in the competition.

Stella said of her role: “We focus on residents’ strengths and what they can do. It’s not just about playing bingo, it’s about the small things that they used to like doing and bringing these things back into their everyday lives.”

Stella’s appointment has been part of a pilot project. It has been such a success that it will be rolled out across the whole of Sanctuary Care – with other homes benefiting from dedicated activities co-ordinators.

She will attend an awards ceremony at The Hilton Hotel in London on Saturday, 29th November, where she will find out if she has won.