Quest Spring 2022 by Quarriers

The power of caring, and how you help

The children really connect with the idea of this

Wee shy mouse. Page 10-13

Care in the pandemic • Page 2 Mental health in schools • Page 7 The Quiet Mouse • Page 10

Spring 2022

Report: rising to the challenge As we approach the two-year anniversary of the pandemic in the UK, we are extremely proud to report on just some examples of the massive efforts of Quarriers teams to provide frontline care and keep people safe and supported over this time. We are glad to have been there.

help! r u o ...with y

Working to keep services open, no matter what Across two years, 31,240 staff days were lost due to staff selfisolating or having COVID. But only two Quarriers services had to close, and for only 13 days.

We are

OP EN

31,240

staff days lost vs

of 13 days service closure

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Working to keep the show on the road: Christmas 2021 2021 was in many ways even more challenging than 2020. We worked to keep up with the snowballing impact of the pandemic on mental health, and to adapt to ever-changing government guidelines. Just as it seemed we were over the worst, the Omicron variant brought unprecedented levels of absence during the festive season, as Quarriers staff were forced to be absent either due to infection or self-isolation rules.

I can’t thank my team enough. They have come in on their days off, they have stayed later if needed. It’s humbling.

Our teams’ focus on the people we support was inspirational, as staff who could work picked up shifts, reorganised rotas and missed out on their own Christmas celebrations in response to the crisis.

Coping with staff absenc 120 100 80

Amanda Quarriers Supported Living team leader

e, Christmas 2021

Total isolations Shielding Positive

60 40 20 0

August

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September

October

November

December

January

Quest Spring 2022 • Page 3

Working to keep people safe in care homes and supported living residences

million gloves used since the start of the pandemic

Going above and beyond When two people we support had to isolate, Senior Support Worker Meriem moved into the service for eight days, missing her daughter’s 16th birthday celebrations. It is just one example out of hundreds of moments when staff were there for people we support in extraordinary ways.

nurseries

Working in schools Working in nurseries, primary and secondary schools, Quarriers teams have provided mental health support for children and young people, both in school and at home or in the community during times of social distancing. Catch up on two services and their efforts on pages 7-13. Page 4 • Quest Spring 2022

primary schools

16 secondary schools Over

2700

children & young people supported

Working in the community 2021 saw teams in youth homelessness, family support, fostering, epilepsy support, carers support, head injury support, drug and alcohol support, and our Family Resource Centre working with people through socially distanced means using digital resources, some made possible by donations to Quarriers digital appeal.

404

emergency planning meetings held by Quarriers senior management

Corporate news Thanks to Loch Lomond Group As the pandemic began, independent distillers Loch Lomond Group began manufacturing their own hand sanitiser, which was used by frontline services all over Scotland. They kindly donated 144 bottles of hand sanitiser to Quarriers – a whopping 61,200mls – which allowed our frontline teams to continue to support the people we care for safely. We would like to say a special thanks to them. Having already supported our annual fundraising event the Noel Lunch for two years – donating miniatures for table gifts and incredible prizes of tickets and hospitality to prestigious golfing events the British Open and the Ladies Open – they have continued to support the Noel Lunch during the challenges of 2020 and 2021. (continued overleaf) Quest Spring 2022 • Page 5

(continued from page 5)

When we were forced to cancel the Noel Lunch in 2020, they donated numerous bottles of their luxury malt whisky for the online auction we held in place of the event. In 2021, the whisky and gin tasting bar they provided was a great hit with our guests! We are incredibly grateful for their kindness during what have been challenging times for charity events. Donations from Loch Lomond Group have helped us raise vital funds for services providing mental health support for children and young people, and for our work developing support for people who have experienced trauma.

Ladies Lunch T he party starts here! Sunday 24 April at voco Grand Central Hotel Glasgow

Get your dancing shoes ready for the annual Quarriers Ladies Lunch on Sunday 24 April at the voco Grand Central Hotel Glasgow. The fabulous Barbara Bryceland will once again be performing and keeping the dancefloor full. Join us for a glass of fizz while shopping at beautiful gift stalls with candles, clothes, jewellery and more to tempt you, a two-course lunch, and entertainment followed by Barbara’s performance and dancing. There are also some amazing prizes to be won in our prize draw on the day. Tickets cost £400 for a table of ten guests and £40 for individual tickets. If you and your friends and family are ready for a fun afternoon out, please get in touch with us: ladieslunch@quarriers.org.uk

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No Borders to Resilience Two years is a long time in the life of a teenager, and the pandemic has challenged teenagers to cope with lots of change during an important time in their development. Quarriers Resilience for Wellbeing Service is focused on helping young people to improve their mental health. Service Co-ordinator Angela Freeman reflects on two years of service provision like no other.

We closed our office on Friday 20 March 2020. As a school-based service, we had been working with young people face-to-face in school, but we knew the service would have to change to be delivered digitally and that had to happen quickly. Luckily, students in the Borders had recently been issued with iPads and within 48 hours of the schools closing, we were able to offer virtual sessions via Microsoft Teams. Since then, our focus has been on empowering young people not only to cope – but also to thrive.

Helping young people cope with their personal challenges The young people we support access the service because they’re finding it difficult to cope with their mental health and wellbeing. Page 7 • Quest Spring 2022

Angela and her team organising care packs, Christmas 2021

COVID has added lots of extra pressures. Young people have missed chances to socialise and lost big milestones like end of term parties or school trips. For some young people, the return to school following months Quest Spring 2022 • Page 7

15,661 one-to-

at home has added more anxiety around socialisation. Some children have missed the respite and routine that being at school could provide. Understanding the challenges young people face, our Resilience Practitioners support them with practical, personal mental health support.

Helping young people cope with difficult events

one support sessions for young people delivered since March 2020

8,500

(Over of these were delivered virtually) Helping young people cope with

Sadly, during this last year, we have expectations on achievement had to offer our support and guidance We became aware that some young to four school communities following people were feeling worried and the sudden and unexpected death overwhelmed by issues from the of a young person. We supported changes being brought about by the school staff on how to share the news, pandemic to assessments of their connected with young people at dropwork for qualifications like Highers, in sessions, and in one case we carried so we devised specific support out groupwork for friends of a young sessions via Microsoft Teams for all person who had died suddenly. young people in S4–S6. Topics included We supported them to write How to Fuel Your Brain, Study vs a letter to the young Self Care and How to Make the person and gifted Most of a Night’s Sleep. Working in those letters to the young person’s all secondary Empowering young mum. It helped.

The team delivered personal packs including socks and hot chocolate in 2020 and Christmas stockings in 2021.

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schools across the Scottish Borders

people to thrive

Over the two years, we have sent out a total of 965 care packs for young people and families. It’s about sending important messages of care to young people, as well as providing activities and – in the case of the Christmas packs – providing the treats for families that many of us take for granted.

In the summer of 2021, we organised a range of fun activities for young people. They were able to meet up with each other, build their confidence and connect with nature, as well as benefiting from getting out and about and moving.

What it means to people we work with Thank goodness we have your service. Pastoral Teacher

Alpaca Trek in Peebles

I was surprised in a good way about how much it helped me. I wouldn’t be where I am now without them. Young person

Please accept our heartfelt and sincere gratitude. You helped so much to save our boy. Parent

Tennis with Rachel

This has been the

best summer. I wish we could do these things all the time. What’s next? We know reaching young men is a challenge. We hope to connect with more young men by working with local sports clubs. Watch this space for an update! Page 9 • Quest Spring 2022

Quest Spring 2022 • Page 9

The Quiet Mouse The impact of the pandemic is still to be fully understood, but one Quarriers service has engaged a furry friend to help very young children who have spent their early years in lockdown to find their voice.

Anyone who has picked up a child from nursery knows the rowdy atmosphere of a room full of highspirited wee ones. But not every child thrives in that environment, and for some children it is hugely challenging. Quarriers Opt-In Early Years service works in nurseries to support children where there are concerns about their readiness for primary school. Opt-In Early Years Transition Worker Elizabeth Logan says “Children struggle for different reasons. They may be dealing with big issues at home, some may have English as a second language. We see children with selective mutism, which is often a result of trauma. We work with these children all the time but after the lockdowns, nursery staff reported a much higher number of children with poor language skills and lack of social confidence. We knew there was a need for something to specifically address those issues.” Elizabeth and her colleague Catherine Hunter got to work devising a new programme to help the quiet child – the child who doesn’t speak up, who plays alone, who sits back from the group. The programme has a focus on empowering children to find their Page 10 • Quest Spring 2022

voice and their confidence to take part, and is called The Quiet Mouse. The mouse in the title is a cuddly toy that Opt-In workers bring into the nursery, alongside a story and a programme of interactive activities to help children think about themes such as shyness, social anxiety and speaking about feelings. Elizabeth says “The children really connect with the idea of this wee shy mouse. When they are first introduced to him, we make him be quaking and nervous – he won’t come out of his house. We ask the

children to voice their ideas for why he might be feeling like that, and of course often the ideas they come up with are the reasons they themselves feel nervous and shy at nursery. “As the sessions go on, the mouse becomes more confident. He starts to come out of the house, and the children can hug him and pat him. They say ‘He’s getting braver’, and when we ask ‘Why do you think that is?’, they say ‘Because he knows us now’. We can talk to them about the process of meeting new people, making new friends, and how everyone feels shy sometimes, it just takes time. “Eventually the mouse brings some friends, and that allows us to talk to the children about friendship.”

There once was a quiet mouse who lived in a little house. The m ouse liked stay i to nside h is hou when se, he ca me o he wa u tside ss found o shy he it har d to l at an ook yone.

All the signs are that The Quiet Mouse is working. “Official assessments are showing that children are benefitting,” says Elizabeth, “but of course

i am brave today

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Quest Spring 2022 • Page 11

the biggest sign it helps is when children feel more able to speak up and join in within the nursery environment, and it’s brilliant to see children come out of their shells. One day I went into the class and an incredibly shy wee girl screamed ‘It’s Miss Elizabeth, and she’s brought her MOUSE!’” The programme is still developing, and everyone is feeling more and more connected to the mouse. “He’s taking over our lives!” Elizabeth says. “I’m hoping to get him a tiny miniature hairdryer soon!”

Ada & The Quiet Mouse Four-year-old Ada’s parents had recently broken up, her dad had moved out, and her maternal gran had died. Her mum was struggling, feeling tired and unmotivated. Ada was deeply affected by so much change and was very withdrawn at nursery. She had no interest in activities or playing with the other children, and when staff tried to talk to her she would clam up and become even more quiet. Page 12 • Quest Spring 2022

Ada came along to The Quiet Mouse programme. Slowly, she started to open up. In assessments, the nursery rated Ada’s emotional and social development as a one out of four, and as primary school was on the horizon it was a real concern. Ada came along to The Quiet Mouse programme. Slowly, she started to open up. Sometimes she would use the mouse’s voice to talk about her feelings. Sometimes she’d put her hand up and then become too shy to speak, but then she’d get to feed, pet or hold the mouse. The Quarriers team also made a referral for Ada’s mum for counselling and signposted her to other support, and throughout it all they gave Ada’s mum resources they used in the programme so that Ada and her mum could talk about feelings at home.

Talking about feelings with your pre-schooler Knowing what’s going on for your child emotionally is important, and it’s never too early to start those conversations. The team at Quarriers Opt-In service has five top tips. 1. Ask them to tell you one thing that went well in their day and one thing that didn’t Asking for the thing that didn’t go well lets them know it’s ok if there are difficulties in their day, and it helps them to get used to talking about difficult emotions without it being a big deal. 2. Don’t worry about eye contact It can be tempting to push for eye contact but in fact they may open up more if there’s no pressure on that. An activity like colouring in is a great chance to talk to them while they’re relaxed. 3. Give them something to hold Make a drink and biscuit – we all feel more relaxed with a cup of tea in our hand, and it’s a welcome distraction. Or you could give them a favourite toy, a fidget toy or a pencil or pen.

Ada started to connect more with the other children and stand back less. After the programme her assessments were revised as a three out of four for both emotional and social development.

4. Use other ways to start the conversation without needing words You could ask the child to draw an emoji or look at emojis on your phone. Even asking for a thumbs up or down helps them think about their feelings. 5. Be yourself Your child knows you! Don’t be afraid to have a laugh with them or be cheeky – just be however you are with them usually. You can’t get it wrong. As long as you’re chatting, it’s good.

squ eak !

The Opt-In Early years team carried on their work with Ada in the next programme, helping her to build her confidence and feel less anxious to make friends during the big step to primary school.

Quest Spring 2022 • Page 13

Supporting Stars giving

Caitlyn

something back Brilliant fundraising efforts by patients and their families will help provide patient care at The William Quarrier Scottish Epilepsy Centre (WQSEC). Epilepsy can often be misdiagnosed, leaving people struggling with ineffective medicine and mismanaged seizures. The WQSEC is the only centre of its kind in Scotland. When patients stay, they are closely monitored through video, audio and telemetry equipment so that clinical staff can see seizures and monitor brain activity as they happen. It leads to much more accurate diagnosis. The centre also provides mental health support, with psychotherapy, groupwork and wellbeing classes all helping people to process the complexities of their condition. The WQSEC

Ceecee’s charity climb Caitlyn Cameron, known as Ceecee to her friends, has set herself a challenge – to climb Ben Lomond on Purple Day, the International Day of Awareness of Epilepsy, on 26 March. She’s doing it because she understands the devastating impact of the condition. In June 2020, she was sent for an MRI scan on her brain after being admitted to hospital from several seizures and black outs. By the time the 23-year-old was admitted to The William Quarrier Scottish Epilepsy Centre in March 2021, epilepsy had put her life on hold. “I was taking up to 12 seizures some days. I was even crawling to the bathroom because I was too scared to stand up,” says Caitlyn. During a four-week stay at the centre, Caitlyn’s epilepsy was accurately diagnosed and medicated, and she accessed specialist counselling and support. “I was able to see a therapist, and for the first time it was as if someone really understood,” says Caitlyn. “I remember getting back to my room and sobbing for hours because for the first time in two years, I was able to express everything I had been feeling.”

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Natasha and Kirk raise over £1,500

Ben Lomond

Caitlyn’s epilepsy is now managed through medication, and she is setting herself a real challenge to climb Ben Lomond. She hopes to raise funding, but also awareness, and says “People don’t understand epilepsy enough and need to realise the severity of it.

Natasha’s brother Oliver went from having multiple seizures a week to one every couple of months following his stay at the WQSEC. Her heroic friend Kirk took on the sponsored challenge of running from Glasgow to Edinburgh in a day and Natasha kindly donated profits from her café, Ocho. Natasha said “It’s not been an easy ride, but Oliver has been granted the utmost gift, of confidence and security in his diagnosis. It is life-changing, not just for him, but for his family. I hope that the money raised goes towards changing other families’ lives in the wonderful way Quarriers has changed ours.”

I want to give something back to the place that helped me to regain my life. Caitlyn

“I’m going to very strongly attempt to do this hill to give something back.” We are right behind you Caitlyn. You are an absolute inspiration! Read Caitlyn’s full story or sponsor her at www.gofundme.com/ ceecees-charity-climb

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Oliver, Kirk and some of the Ocho team

Choose your outfit !

Kiltwalk 2022!

Join thousands of other people on this wonderfully inspiring event

Choose your

Glasgow • 24 April

The Wee Wander 5-6 miles

Choose the Quarriers service you would like to fundraise for.

date

Aberdeen • 29 May Dundee • 21 Aug Edinburgh • 18 Sep Scotland’s Virtual Kiltwalk • 7-9 Oct

distance

The Big Stroll 12-15 miles

cause

The Mighty Stride 23-26 miles

For more information: events@quarriers.org.uk 01505 690 875 Quarriers is a registered Scottish Charity – No. SC001960. Quarriers Head Office, Quarriers Village, Bridge of Weir, PA11 3SX. Tel: 01505 612224/616000

Everyone raises 50% more Thanks to the top up from the Hunter Foundation