Jan Millward has worked in care for the last 14 years, most of which she spent working as an activity coordinator in a home in Dorset with an outstanding CQC rating. She recently made the decision to go freelance and now works at numerous local homes offering activities sessions with a strong focus on reminiscence. She also recently joined The Daily Sparkle team in an essential capacity as an advisor, sharing her activities experiences and working with us to develop and improve our resources. We are so excited to have her on board. Today she is sharing with us her passion for activities and her vision for the future.
When the home I used to work at was recently sold to a group – and they naturally brought in lots of change – it felt like the right time for me to follow a long-held dream to reach other homes and residents using reminiscing and poetry to unlock memories. This, alongside a large personal collection of memorabilia, provides a unique way of empowering residents with comfortable and familiar stories, using items such as washboards and carbolic soap to promote a bit of fun, in what can be a long day in care.
The years working towards providing an outstanding level of care has taught me to respect and learn from the residents, and has given me a passion to provide opportunities for them to still lead a rich and fulfilling life.
I have used the Daily Sparkle in my role for many years and it has helped me realise the power of reaching into the past to stimulate memories and promote conversations.
To have the chance to work for the Sparkle team is an awesome opportunity to continue to develop new ways of supporting activity coordinators. Where I can help is in the way I really understand the pressures and the frustrations of the role, and I can use this in my work for The Daily Sparkle.
It is quite scary to go from a safe salaried job to self-employed, but the response I have had from the homes I have visited so far has been wonderful – and that has inspired me to work on new and exciting projects. I am also offering advice to activity coordinators, and this has made me realise how little support and recognition there can be for the role.
I feel very strongly that the activity coordinator job needs to be recognised nationally as a professional role; and there also needs to be national guidelines for budgets.
So many ACs I talk to have little or no money available for activity provision, while others have understanding management who recognise the value of providing for the mental wellbeing of residents, as well as the physical.
My personal view is that the only way we can change this is when the CQC ask management at inspection what percentage of the budget is earmarked for activity provision, and what training and support are they giving the AC for their development. Until this is in place we cannot move forward.
