CARTREFI CONWY
Together SPRING EDITION 2020
These are strange days for us all and heartbreaking for the thousands of families that have lost loved ones to the Coronavirus. At the same time there are many uplifting stories in our communities and across the entire country. We are all in this together. From our frontline NHS staff, Police and Fire Service and Carers to the essential key workers keeping our shops open, delivering essential supplies, responding to emergencies and to us all for keeping our social distance and staying home to save lives.
We’ve loved seeing your support for our NHS. Let’s keep showing our love to them.
We also hope you are doing something every day that makes you feel good - dance, sing, laugh, gardening, exercise, baking and staying in touch with your family and friends. Most importantly, make plans for the future as this time will pass.
We’re sharing what we do to make us feel good on our
GET INVOLVED AT CARTREFI PAGE Visit our Facebook page now to open up a world of get involved opportunities during and after lockdown and: take part in exciting activities in your community meet other likeminded people have your say in how we run Cartrefi Conwy 1
@getinvolvedatcartrefi Plus, for the next 2 months we have new competitions every two weeks with chances to win prizes for you and your family. Our first competition gives you the chance to win £100 simply by liking and following the page by the 15th May Good luck from the team, Owen, Lydia, Megan, Laura, Emma, Matt and Nerys!
Audio and print copies of this newsletter are available. Call 0300 124 0040. Email enquiries@cartreficonwy.org All calls with Customer Services may be recorded.
We’re here to help and so are others Keeping you safe and well is very important to us, especially during the Coronavirus Pandemic and lockdown. That’s the reason we have set up a Wellbeing Team who can offer you help with essential shopping, collecting prescriptions or be a friendly voice at the end of the phone.
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We have nearly colleagues from across the business contacting tenants to let them know we are #heretohelp
We have made over 2500 calls to tenants to check if they need our help.
Another prescription successfully delivered in Rhos on Sea. Our tenant Carol said she could not thank Cartrefi Conwy enough for what we had done.
So please give us a call if you need us on 0300 124 0040 or email There are lots of other groups offering help in our community, delivering care and offering services to keep us safe and healthy. So, if you or someone you know needs help or support give our customer service team a call and we can get this information to you. During self-isolation and lockdown, particularly if you live alone, loneliness can be a very real and difficult experience. It’s important 2 to stay talking and stay in touch. 2
enquiries@cartreficonwy.org
Stay motivated & ter f a k o lo o t d e t c e n n stay co eing b ll e w d n a h lt a e h r you Use technology if you can - Telephone, Emails, Facetime and WhatsApp can help you to feel connected to people Write letters and send photos Tune into the radio and watch TV for chat shows or programmes you’re interested in Several charities and organisations are offering befriending or check-in services over the phone for older people in self-isolation 0300 124 0040
How are you feeling?
It’s natural to feel overwhelmed, frustrated and anxious during this time but you can find ways to support your emotional wellbeing and mental health. You can try breathing, meditation and mindful exercises. There is a lot of help online or by phone and we have our own colleague Lydia helping tenants with this throughout the year. Our tenant Sheila said “The classes teach me to be kinder to myself and the more I do the better I get. So now I’m confident I’m going to have a very healthy life in the future.”
Try something new! Did you know the Open University has 1,000’s of free courses:
Lydia’s running weekly exercises online at the moment. So if you want to join in connect through the link on the get invovled at cartrefi Facebook page or call 0300 124 0040
Every Mind Matters an NHS campaign to help
you look after your mental health. Check out the quiz and get your own mental health action plan.
www.nhs.uk/oneyou /every-mind-matters
www.open.edu/openlearn/free-courses/ full-catalogue
Creating Enterprise
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We’re delivering a series of online training courses for anyone looking to brush up on their skills and get job-ready. Our team can also give you 1:1 sessions over the phone for support to find employment. Booking is essential – simply send us a message on Facebook: @creatingenterprise or email: sioned.williams@creatingenterprise.org.uk to reserve your space. www.cartreficonwy.org
We’ve been fascinated by the stories we’ve been hearing. Jill (pictured above) who normally volunteers on our reception is transcribing documents for the Smithsonian Institution whereas Incomes Team volunteer, Amanda (pictured right here with her Work Buddy, Katy), is starting an Open University IT course.
Keep Busy
If you are looking for some ideas on keeping you and your family entertained during lock-down check out the chatterbox blog which has everything from virtual museum tours and free e books to how to learn to play the guitar. It’s well worth a look!
www.chatterpack.net/blogs/blog/list-of-online-resources-for-anyone-who-is-isolated-at-home
Money Saving tips
#HERETOHELP My name is Dan and I manage the Money Support Team at Cartrefi Conwy. Some of our tenants are worried about paying their rent. Some may be on zero hour contracts and don’t have any hours so don’t have an income. If you are worried about how you are going to cope financially we are here to help! Give us a call on 0300 124 0040 (ask for the money support team) or drop us a message on facebook and I will ask one of my team to give you a call as soon as possible. 4
You can pay still make a payment online through My Cartrefi.org or by calling our payment line on 0300 124 0060 or 0300 124 0040 to set up a direct debit. You can find great Coronavirus and looking after your money tips on Money Super Market and Money Saving Expert, & the best deals for gas and electric at Uswitch: www.moneysupermarket.com/money-made -easy/coronavirus-and-family-finances www.moneysavingexpert.com www.uswitch.com
0300 124 0040
Getting in touch with us Remember you can get in touch on the MyCartrefi website www.mycartrefi.org You can also make payments over the phone 0300
124 0060
We are constantly updating our Facebook page so please make sure you are following us to keep up to date
Friendly neighbours rallied together to help a tenant who could not leave her house to get wool to knit. The wool was passed down through their gardens until it was eventually delivered to our tenant. Lovely teamwork. X
We ask that you look out for your friends, family and neighbours through this difficult time and to get in touch if you have any concerns.
Keeping you safe in your home IMPORTANT – there are some
#HERETOHELP
Hi - my name is Ricky and I’m a Gas Engineer with Cartrefi Conwy. My job is to keep your water warm and your heating on. Every year we have to check your gas appliances to make sure they are safe. I know that some tenants who have visits coming up are worried about letting us into their homes and I understand it completely. But to reassure you, we are following social distance advice from the Government. It is our job to keep you safe from harm, so please do let us into your homes. 5
essential repairs and maintenance checks we have to do by law. This includes annual gas safety checks and electrical testing every 5 years. Even if you or someone living with you is self-isolating we still have to do these checks. We will delay them if we can but we can only delay up to a certain date before we have to complete the checks. We’re taking extra safety measures to do this as safely as we can to protect you and our front line colleagues. We will give you instructions to follow before we come into your home. www.cartreficonwy.org
Looking after your home We know many of us will be generating more rubbish and recycling during lockdown. So it’s important we make the most of our general rubbish and recycling bins to keep on top of this as best we can. Conwy, Denbighshire and Gwynedd councils are running their normal bins and recycling collection services at the moment except Denbighshire who are not collecting garden waste. If you live in Conwy the new garden collection has started and is run by Bryson Recycling. Remember you need to sign up for this service. It costs £35 for the year and this includes the delivery of the bin. You can order up to 3 extra bins for an extra £20 per bin. You can sign up for the service online at www.brysonrecycling.org/gardenwasteonline or by phone 01492 555898.
Please think of your neighbours and do not burn garden or general waste. Think about composting and keeping any extra general rubbish bags (it should not smell if you are recycling properly) to one side and put in your bin once it’s been emptied. Burning garden and general rubbish puts yourself and others at risk and could add to the strain on our emergency services.
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0300 124 0040
Lots of us might be getting round to doing jobs we haven’t had the time to do or that we’ve been putting off doing. But, please keep any items you don’t need or want to one side and get rid of these when your council’s bulky item collections restart or household recycling centres reopen.
Message from North Wales Fire & Rescue North Wales Fire and Rescue Service offer this basic advice on what you can do to stay safe in your home and help them to protect our communities. • Test your smoke alarm – look after your alarm so that it can look after you. • Many fires start in the kitchen, just one distraction is all it takes so take extra care when cooking. • Smoking is a common cause of fires – so put it out, right out. • With a full house, make sure your electrical sockets are not overloaded. • Switch off everything you can before you go to bed - many house fires start at night.
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They also urgently appeal for us to think hard about the consequences of our actions. Follow North Wales Fire and Rescue Service on Facebook and Twitter for more advice on what you can do to stay safe in your home and help us to protect our communities. www.cartreficonwy.org
Beware of Fraudsters There has been a massive increase in fraud reporting since March. Please take care. You can sign up to ‘Action Fraud Alert’ to get regular updates on fraud activity in your area.
If you think you’ve been scammed, report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 and if you need advice, call the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 0808 223 1133. If you are in immediate danger, contact the police on 999. Contact your bank if you think you have been scammed.
There is never an excuse for domestic abuse, no matter what the circumstances are. For anyone who feels they are at risk of abuse, it is important to remember that there is help and support available to you, including police response, online support, helplines, refuges and other services. You are not alone. 8
www.cartreficonwy.org/tenants/ domestic-abuse Call the Freephone, 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline 0808 20 00 or visit www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk Call 999 if you are in an emergency 0300 124 0040