RMBI NEWS Issue 14 • Spring 2016
Satisfaction survey results revealed P4 Care homes get creative P6 - 7 New beauty salon for Mid Glamorgan Home P10
Caring is our way of life www.rmbi.org.uk
Welcome Welcome ........................................................ 3 Satisfaction survey results ............................... 4 Dementia care leaders .................................... 5 Care homes get creative ............................... 6-7 Great British Care Awards .............................. 8 Karen Salley joins the RMBI ........................... 9 New beauty salon .......................................... 10 Masonic Charitable Foundation ..................... 11
Welcome to the Spring edition of RMBI News. Our Homes have been celebrating Creativity and the Arts since the start of the year; read on to find out some of the different skills our residents have been picking up along the way. We also find out which Home has had a luxury new beauty salon built on site, and we welcome our new Care Operations Director, Karen Salley. We hope you enjoy the issue. If you would like to submit a story for consideration in the next edition of RMBI News, please email marketing@rmbi.org.uk
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David Innes, Managing Director Welcome to the latest edition of RMBI News. In this issue, we reveal the results of the recent satisfaction survey which took place in our care homes at the end of last year. The Your Care Rating (YCR) survey is the biggest national survey of care home residents, and this year it revealed that 98% of residents living in an RMBI Home were satisfied with the overall standard of care. A pilot relatives’ survey was also carried out with a total of 14 care home providers and over 8,000 relatives taking part. Overall, our Homes received an excellent response and 98% of relatives told us that our Homes are a safe and secure place for their relative or friend to live in. This is an outstanding achievement and I would like to extend my personal thanks to all our staff members, especially those that work in our Homes, supporting our residents every day.
residents said could be improved over the coming year. A big congratulations to three of our staff members - Janet Jackson, Shift Leader at Ecclesholme in Manchester, Walter Turnbull, Facilities Manager at Connaught Court in York, and Rebecca Timms, Business Administrator at Albert Edward Prince of Wales Court in Mid Glamorgan, who all became regional winners at the Great British Care Awards. This is a real credit to each of those Homes and demonstrates the high level of professionalism of our staff teams. Read on to find out more about some of the recent highlights in our care homes.
Of course, there is always room for improvement and we will be looking closely at the areas that
New brochures launched We have launched our new Homes’ brochures that now include more information about the services available at each RMBI Home. The booklets provide details about the different types of care, activities that residents can take part in, practical advice on how to apply to one of our care homes or seek further advice about your personal circumstances. If you would like to find out more about any of our RMBI Homes through our latest brochures, please contact the Marketing Team at marketing@rmbi.org.uk. You can also pick up a brochure at your local RMBI Home.
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National survey reveals top marks for RMBI Homes RMBI Homes have received top marks in a nationwide survey of care home residents. The results showed that 98% of residents living in our Homes said that they were satisfied with the overall standard of care, compared to the national average of 96%. Amongst the findings, 98% of residents that took part in the survey said that staff treat them with kindness, dignity and respect, and that the Home is a secure and safe place to live in. Of the residents surveyed, 95% said that they can take part in activities and hobbies at the care home if they want to. All RMBI Homes provide regular creative and art based activities, from flower arranging to painting and musical entertainment, to support residents’ wellbeing and to help them keep active. The Your Care Rating survey is the UK’s largest survey of care home residents. Now in its fourth year, it aims to give residents a voice by giving their views through an independent survey. It also helps care providers to see which areas they are performing well in and where they can improve the quality of care. Over 20,000 residents in 963 homes took part across the country.
98%of of RMBI residents residents said their Home 98% safe and secure place to live saidis athat they were satisfi with said thetheir Home 97% ed of residents was clean and tidy of overall standard the care home
Edna Petzen, Assistant Director of Marketing, Quality and Compliance, said: “The Your Care Rating survey is a useful tool, helping us to really understand how residents feel about living at an RMBI Home. “We are focused on providing the highest level of person centred care across our 17 care homes, which is all about treating people as individuals and working closely with residents to make sure they receive care that is specific to their needs. “We’re delighted to see such positive results and are always continuing to look for ways that help give our residents the best quality of life.” 4 RMBI NEWS • SPRING 2016
95% of residents said that they can take part in activities/hobbies if they want to
Leading the way in dementia care Nine RMBI care homes have obtained a prestigious kitemark for their exceptional dementia care services. Four of our Homes have achieved the highest level, demonstrating best practice in the social care sector. Barford Court in Hove, Prince Edward Duke of Kent Court in Essex, The Tithebarn in Liverpool and Cornwallis Court in Suffolk, have all been awarded a ‘level 1’ by leading dementia care organisation Dementia Care Matters. Staff at the care homes have been working closely with the Dementia Care Matters team to implement the ‘Butterfly Household Model,’ which places a strong emphasis on emotional intelligence. Key aspects of the model include
creating a family like environment for people living with dementia and removing institutional feature such as uniforms, medicine trolleys and rigid task-based routines. The ‘Butterfly Service’ status is a nationally recognised kitemark, awarded to care homes committed to delivering excellent dementia care and providing residents with a high quality of life. Although a significant number of care homes have now received the award, only 13 Homes in the UK currently hold the ‘level 1’ status. Nine RMBI Homes now hold the kitemark accolade, something that no other provider has achieved across its group of Homes to date.
Homes that have achieved the highest Dementia kitemark award, level 1: • • • •
Barford Court, Hove Cornwallis Court, Suffolk Prince Edward Duke of Kent Court, Essex The Tithebarn, Liverpool
Homes that have achieved a level 3 and above: • • • • •
Connaught Court, York Devonshire Court, Leicester Ecclesholme, Manchester Prince Michael of Kent Court, Watford Shannon Court, Surrey
Above: Life at Prince Edward Duke of Kent Court in Essex. A key aspect of the Butterfly Model is connecting with and occupying people in ways which are woven into all parts of the daily life of the household RMBI NEWS • SPRING 2016 5
Since the New Year, our Homes have been celebrating Creativity and the Arts and enjoying different activities. From cake decorating, to silk painting, making Chinese lanterns and Scottish dancing, residents have been trying their hand at learning new skills , getting in touch with their creative side and having fun along the way. “We all know the benefits of staying active but it can often be a challenge for some of our residents who are unable to get out and about as easily as they used to,” says Maureen Rolf, Activities Coordinator at Scarbrough Court in Northumberland. Staff at the Home has teamed up with local nonprofit organisation MIND Active, which seeks to complement and build on creative activities available within care homes. “Working with MIND Active, we support residents to attend monthly meet ups and enjoy live musical entertainment, dancing, and other activities alongside other care home residents at our local community centre. All the residents look forward to it and it really helps them to stay connected in the local community,” adds Maureen. Susan Goodrich at Prince George Duke of Kent Court in Kent also engaged her local community to bring the Creativity and Arts theme to life, partnering up 6 RMBI NEWS • SPRING 2016
with Dulwich Picture Gallery as part of their activities. Artist Ruth Dupre joined residents at the Home, and inspired by the gallery’s Dutch landscapes collection, residents used inks and crayons to experiment with mark making and colour blending to make scarves. The workshop was held as part of the art gallery’s community outreach project ‘Good Times: Art for older people.’ The project involves working with local community centres and care homes to challenge negative perceptions about ageing and dementia. It also aims to improve links between generations by celebrating older people’s positive contributions to society. In Llandudno, Activities Coordinator Gary Carr at Queen Elizabeth Court, decided to start the Home’s very own ‘wo-man shed’ with weekly creative sessions for residents such as Meccano and Lego building. “It’s a great space for residents to relax, enjoy and just be themselves. The room can be used
for all sorts of activities from building and fixing to Recent about creativity and the artson art and hook craft activities. We’re also working We believe that keeping active both mentallylike making the area feel more familiar to residents, and physically allows residents to experia workshop with tools,our books and displays on the ence wellbeing and lead meaningful lives. wall,” says Gary. From January86, toaMarch, Homes Ken George, residentour at the care have home,been celebrating creativity and the arts with various often takes part in the activities, having previously activities events for residents, friendsand andradio enjoyed aand hobby of building Airfix models staff alike. controlled boats. Princelikes George of Kent Kent “Dad to getDuke involved andCourt enjoysineverything. teamed up with Dulwich Picture Gallery as part I think that taking part in these types of activities of their activities. session, inspired by really helps him. HeDuring is verythe mentally aware and lives the art gallery’s collection of Dutch landscape with osteoarthritis, so it’s important to help keep his joints moving, especially during the winter months,” says Kath Zamojska, Ken’s daughter, who visits him regularly at Queen Elizabeth Court.
Throughout the year, our care homes will be celebrating a variety of themed activities to support residents’ wellbeing and give them the opportunity to try different experiences. From April to June, the focus will be on animals and nature and our Homes will be coming up with even more creative ideas to bring this theme to life. For more details about what activities have been going on in each RMBI Home, visit www.rmbi.org.uk or our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/thermbi.
Below: Residents at Albert Edward Prince of Wales Court enjoy a painting session
Creativity is the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns and relationships, and to create meaningful new ideas. Online Dictionary
Creativity is intelligence having fun. Albert Einstein
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Great British Care Awards We are excited to announce that three staff members have won the regional Great British Care Awards. Janet Jackson, Shift Leader at Ecclesholme in Manchester has won the Dignity in Care Award for North West England. Janet has worked at the Home for 19 years as a Shift Leader.
making a difference to the lives of his residents whilst always ensuring they are safe and secure.” We also congratulate Rebecca Timms, Business Administrator at Albert Edward Prince of Wales Court in Mid Glamorgan who won the Care Home Activity Organiser Award for South West.
She was nominated by Home Manager Beverley Niland. “Janet is really passionate about her role and is always mindful that individuals receive dignity and respect, choice and control in all aspects of their care,” says Beverley.
Rebecca has worked at the Home for six years and was nominated by Marketing and Communications Officer Maricel Foronda, who said: “From storytelling with the local librarian to sing-a-longs with schoolchildren and pie tasting, Becky creates a varied programme for residents so that everybody is able to join in.”
Walter Turnbull, Facilities Manager at Connaught Court in York has won the Ancillary Worker Award for Yorkshire and Humberside. The judges said: “Walter has shown that he is more than a maintenance man. He is passionate about
The Great British Care Awards are a series of regional events throughout England and are a celebration of excellence across the care sector. There are nine regional awards leading to a national final which takes place in April 2016.
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Karen Salley joins RMBI We give a warm welcome to Karen Salley who has joined the RMBI as the new Care Operations Director. Karen has over 30 years’ experience working in the care sector, most recently as the Head of Operations for the UK’s leading disability charity, Leonard Cheshire Disability. She has also worked in GP Practice Management and held Senior Clinical Management positions within the NHS. In her new role, Karen aims to ensure all residents receive the best standard of care. “Over the coming months, my focus will be to provide the highest possible quality of care delivered to a consistently high standard. I will be working with the Care Operations Team to ensure care provision at the RMBI is not only person centred but also fully compliant with all the regulatory requirements,” said Karen. “I am delighted to join one of the country’s leading charities; with an outstanding reputation for providing care and support for Freemasons, their families and many more in the community. I look forward to the challenges this new role will bring.”
Above: Karen Salley brings with her over 30 years’ experience as she joins the RMBI as Care Operations Director
Birthday celebrations in York Ivy Wadsworth, a resident at Connaught Court in York, received a special visit to mark her 100th Birthday. To celebrate the occasion, Ivy was presented with a card and flower bouquet by the Lord Mayor, Cllr Sonja Crisp, and the Lord Mayor’s Consort, Ian Crisp, at the care home on Friday 4 March. As part of her birthday celebrations, Ivy also enjoyed a special lunch in Escrick with relatives and requested a fish and chips lunch to have with residents at the Home. Right: Ivy is presented with a card and flowers by the Lord Mayor and Lord Mayor’s Consort, alongside Home Manager, Margaret Cade. RMBI NEWS • SPRING 2016 9
Association of Friends raise £17,500 for new beauty salon Residents at Albert Edward Prince of Wales Court are enjoying a newly opened beauty salon at the care home in Mid Glamorgan. The original salon was opened in 1973 and was in need of a major overhaul. Thanks to the Home’s fundraising efforts alongside a matched contribution by the Association of Friends of Albert Edward Prince of Wales Court, a total amount of £35,000 was raised and work to build the new salon started in November 2015. “We wanted to create an environment that was fresh and modern, yet adaptable to our residents’
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needs,” said Rebecca Timms, Business Administrator at the Home. The new-look salon was unveiled to residents, guests and staff on 27 February by Susan Jones, wife of Rt .W.Bro Gareth Jones OBE, Provincial Grand Master, South Wales. W.Bro Alan Gardener presented a cheque to RMBI Trustee Sir Paul Williams for the total of £17,500 during a special reception in the Home’s main lounge. Residents later enjoyed mini manicures alongside a musical guitarist. Left: New salon at Albert Edward Prince of Wales Court and below, Provincial Grand Master Rt .W.Bro Gareth Jones OBE, RMBI Trustee Sir Paul Williams, Sue Jones and W. Bro Alan Gardener, APGM and Chair of the Friends
Record breaking tea party attempt On Wednesday 16 March, residents and staff at some of our care homes enjoyed a cream tea party, as part of a challenge to become the world’s largest multi site tea party. “Our residents enjoy a good tea party and so we were really excited when we were asked to be involved in this record breaking attempt. RMBI Homes are located throughout the country and it has been a great way to be able to bring people together and to feel part of something bigger,” said Maricel Foronda, Marketing and Communications Officer at RMBI. The event was organised by the Homes’ catering company WhiteOaks, part of the Compass Group, which presented the challenge to its partners to help break the record. A minimum of 25 participants had to take part at each site with two independent adjudicators to witness the start time and number of people present. The current record is held by the Yorkshire Building Society, involving 667 colleagues across six locations in the UK on 25 June 2015.
Masonic Charitable Foundation The Masonic Charitable Foundation is a major new charity that launched in April 2016. The Foundation brings together the full range of centralised charitable support that is currently awarded to Freemasons and their families who have a financial, health and care, or family need. “The launch of the Foundation marks a new era in the long and proud history of the Masonic charity. It will build on the increasing collaboration between the four Charities over recent years and go one step further by providing a truly consistent, more readily accessible and highly responsive service to the Masonic Community,” said James Newman, Chairman of the Masonic Charitable Foundation.
Moving forward, the RMBI will officially be called the RMBI Care Co. However, the organisation will still operate and be known as the RMBI.
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Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution 60 Great Queen Street London WC2B 5AZ Phone: 020 7596 2400 Fax: 020 7404 2427 Email: 1enquiries@rmbi.org.uk facebook.com/thermbi twitter.com/thermbi Registered Charity No: 1163245 Company No: 1293566 April 2016