This week we attended our second workshop with Groundwork Wales. We planted onions and lettuce, and learnt about different types of mint and tiger nuts. We planted the onions and lettuce into small pots, and we will transfer them into the ground when they begin to grow. We also took some cuttings from two types of mint plants (mint and strawberry & mint and pineapple) and planted the cuttings into hanging baskets, so they will have plenty of room to grow. Rachel showed us the grapes they are growing in the polytunnel, and they tasted delicious.
On Friday 16th September, Ffion Poole and Christy Taylor attended the Student Learning Disability Conference at the University of South Wales, the theme of which was ‘It’s Good To Be Back’. The conference began with Professor Ruth Northway’s presentation on ‘How Learning Disability Nurses Can Contribute to the Welsh Government Learning Disability Strategic Action Plan (Including COVID Recovery)’.
This was followed by Ffion and Lynne from TRAC, along with two student nurses – Marie and Lisa – talking about what the TRAC (Teaching & Research Advisory Committee) team does. TRAC is a group of people with a learning disability which meets monthly to share their knowledge, thoughts and feelings about key issues that affect them daily. Ffion said that she was very nervous before giving her presentation, but was proud of herself once it was completed.
After the break, six student nurses talked about their experiences of their nursing course, and the challenges of studying during COVID. We also heard presentations from the University of South Wales Nursing Society, the Hiraeth Team from the Aneurin Bevan Health Board, and Dr Ruth Wyn Williams, a nursing officer for the Welsh Government.
The morning finished with Professor Ruth Northway presenting The Paul Wheeler Award to learning disability nurse Clair Gabbidon. This is an annual award given to a third year learning disability student, in honour of Paul Wheeler, a senior lecturer who passed away in 2008.
This week we met with Groundwork Wales to begin our eight week gardening course at TARAGGAN Educational Gardens & Nursery. During the first week of the course we learned how to sow seeds, and planted garlic, spinach, spring onions and radish. We finished the session by digging up the remainder of our potatoes we planted many weeks ago. We look forward to meeting with Rachel and the team again next week.
During the afternoon we attended our first yoga session with Michelle from Sweetpea Yoga, Reiki & Guided Meditation. We’d like to thank everyone who attended – it was lovely to see some new faces from our community. We all enjoyed a lovely relaxed yoga session with gentle exercise, followed by tea, coffee and cake. This event was kindly funded by Caerphilly Cwtsh Community.
Ffion and Christy recently attended the Cwm Taff People First VIVA (Vision Inclusion Voice Advocacy) Festival at the Swallow Barn in Treharris. Ffion ran her relationship course where she talked about LGBTQIA+, what is a good friend, what is a bad friend and how to make friends. Other organisations such as Gig Buddies, All Wales People First, Learning Disability Wales, and the Welsh Ambulance Service were also in attendance, some giving presentations. For the evening entertainment we enjoyed a comedian, live singer and a disco. It was great fun and we did not stop singing or dancing.
On Monday 5th September Ffion Poole and Sam Evans delivered a Safeguarding training session to staff at the Islwyn Park Coffee shop. It was great to be back out in the community delivering our sessions, and we’d like to thank the group for for having us. We can’t wait to do more training in the future, so if anyone would like us to deliver training on Safeguarding, Learning Disability Awareness, or Ambulance Training, please get in touch.
We recently did some filming alongside Cwm Taff People First at the University of South Wales simulation suite. The film will be used to educate medical staff, using the experiences of patients in hospital. Ffion and Natalie dressed up and played the role of Paramedics, and Christy acted out the part of Dr Strange. Although this is a very serious subject we had lots of giggles during the filming.
As usual, the Focus Group spent Tuesday morning at Taraggan Educational Gardens, and this week was spent harvesting beetroot and potatoes. Beetroot can be harvested from early summer through to mid-autumn, depending on time and variety, and are rich in folate which plays a key role in controlling damage to blood vessels, which can reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.
The afternoon session was spent making chocolate shredded wheat cakes. These are easy to make and taste delicious. We melted the chocolate in the microwave and mixed it into a bowl of shredded wheat. We then spooned the mix into the cupcake cases and popped them into the fridge to set (except some didn’t make it to the fridge). Thanks to Amanda from The Parent Network for helping out and supplying the ingredients.
This week, some of the members of our Tuesday Focus Group attended a Bee workshop run by Lorne East at Libanus Lifestyle in Blackwood. Members found the workshop very interesting and it was great seeing the Bees in action, and learning more about what they do. Thank you to Karen and the team for a warm welcome, as always.
This week the group made their weekly visit to the garden plot at Taraggan Educational Gardens, and although the weather was too hot to do much physical work, the group dug up some of their potatoes and took them home. One of our volunteers, Morgan, sent us a picture of the meal he made that evening using the potatoes.
During the afternoon the group welcomed Geraint, Tracey and Kelly from All Wales People First. Geraint did his SATV (Self Advocacy TV) roadshow with the group, and we covered subjects such as: what we want that we haven’t got now, day centres, and COVID. We then played Family Fortunes and Wheel of Fortune, answering general knowledge questions, which the group really enjoyed. We also sang happy birthday and presented a birthday cake to Chris, Anthony and Morgan who share the same birthday. Happy Birthday, boys!
