We had such a lovely morning together! 🥰 Everyone enjoyed a warm breakfast 🥐☕ and then got stuck into some gorgeous Christmas crafts 🎄🎅🎁 There was plenty of chatting, laughing, and learning something new 💬✨ The crafts looked amazing and the room was full of festive cheer! Groups like this make such a difference ❤️ They help people:
⭐ Feel less isolated ⭐ Build friendships ⭐ Learn new skills ⭐ Boost confidence ⭐ Have fun together
Thank you to everyone who joined us — you made the morning special 🤗 Can’t wait for the next one! 🎨💖
Yesterday we visited the University of South Wales for another brilliant session with the TRAC team.
🎭 Hannah took on the role of Geraldine, who is non-verbal, has a learning disability and Williams syndrome. 🧡 Christy played the role of Geraldine’s support staff. 💥 Nat played a patient who had a fit and knocked herself out, bruising and cutting her head.
The students were amazing! 👏 They asked thoughtful questions about the best ways to communicate with someone who is non-verbal and explored what medical checks and support Geraldine would need for her constipation. They also worked brilliantly as a team supporting Nat’s scenario. The feedback was fantastic — it’s wonderful that TRAC students get the chance to teach, share real-life experiences, and help future nurses learn in such a meaningful way. 🌟 Well done everyone! 🌟
Today’s Reconnect Through Music session was another brilliant get-together! 🌟 The room was filled with singing and friendship as our talented members performed an amazing 25 songs. Everyone showed confidence, enthusiasm, and joy — it was a day to remember. 🎶💫 Every performer gave it their all, and the support from the audience made it even more special. 👏🎤✨
Our members gave some incredible performances that had everyone smiling and clapping along:
🎙️ Natalie sang Why by Annie Lennox — such emotion and power! 🌈 Matilda brought energy and confidence with Naughty from Matilda the Musical. ❤️ Mandy gave a beautiful version of If You Don’t Know Me by Now by Simply Red. 💰 Adrian had us all moving with Money, Money, Money by ABBA. 🔥 Theresa performed Eternal Flame by The Bangles. 💞 Anthony sang What About Us by Champaign and wowed everyone. ☀️ Ellysia lifted the room with Mr. Blue Sky by ELO.
A big thank you to Christy, Cheryl, and Helen for preparing the delicious sandwiches and sausage rolls. 🥪🌭 We received some lovely feedback from those who attended:
🎧 Jason said he loved the music and singing. 💬 Vicky shared that she enjoyed mixing with people. 🤝 Rebecca said she loved meeting up with everyone again. 🗣️ Rachel enjoyed talking with new friends. 🌟 Anthony said it was an excellent day. 💪 Judith said the session helped build her confidence.
It was wonderful to see how much these sessions mean to everyone — not just for the music, but for the chance to connect, make friends, and feel part of something special. 💞🎶Today reminded us why these sessions matter so much — music brings people together, builds confidence, and fills the room with joy. 💖 A huge well done to everyone who took part, helped out, and made the day unforgettable. 🥰
What a brilliant day at our Meet and Make sessions yesterday! Our members made gorgeous snow globes ❄️⛄ — and they looked absolutely amazing! Our members did a great job learning something new and getting creative. 💙✨
🕙 Session Times:
Morning: 10am – 12pm
Afternoon: 1pm – 3pm
Location: Bargoed YMCA
⭐ How we made our snow globes:
1️⃣ Fill a clean jar with water 2️⃣ Add glitter or fake snow ✨ 3️⃣ Glue a small decoration or figure to the inside of the lid 4️⃣ Screw the lid on tightly 5️⃣ Give it a shake and watch the magic happen! ❄️💙
A huge thank you to Deb and Louise for another fantastic Multiply session 😊 Everyone had fun, learned new skills, and made something special to take home. Can’t wait for next week!
On Friday we cooked up an amazing feast! 😋 Our members made sausage bake, tuna bake, and ham & cheese – all served with warm garlic bread 🥖🧄 and a lovely fresh salad 🥗 prepared by our fantastic team. We had tomatoes 🍅, lettuce 🥬, cucumber 🥒, red onion 🧅 and spring onions – absolutely delicious!
A huge thank you to Mark, Rees, Nat, and everyone who worked hard in the kitchen 👏 Big shoutout to Sarah for doing the quiz and helping to serve lunch 🧠🍽️ and Ffion for sorting the register ✅ We all had a brilliant day eating, chatting, and socialising together 💛 See you all Wednesday for Reconnect Through Music 🎶💃🕺
✨ What a fantastic day at Caerphilly People First! ✨ We started the morning with our Breakfast and Belonging session 🥐☕ where everyone enjoyed a warm cuppa, fruit, pastries, crumpets, and a good chat.
This was followed by our very first craft session delivered by Deb and Louise from Multiply 🎨✂️ Our Meet and Make with Multiply sessions will run for the next six weeks with two groups:
🕙 10am – 12pm 🕐 1pm – 3pm
Today everyone enrolled and introduced themselves. The theme was to pick someone in the room and draw a portrait of them! 🖼️👀
Both our morning and afternoon members did an amazing job — and there were plenty of giggles with a fun game of “Guess Who?” once we revealed the finished portraits! 😂🎭 📸 Check out our designs below and see if you can guess who’s who! A big thank you to everyone who joined us today — what a brilliant start to the project! 💛🙌
Today’s Reconnect Through Music session was a spooktacular success! 👏🕸️ The hall looked incredible — decked out with Halloween decorations that transformed the space into a fun setting. From cobwebs to skeletons, every detail added to the atmosphere. 🎃✨
Our members truly embraced the Halloween spirit — everyone looked amazing in their costumes! From witches to devils, and everything in between, the creativity on display was fantastic. 🧛🧙♀️🧟♂️
We enjoyed an incredible 29 songs today and each performance was filled with energy and enthusiasm. 🎵💫🎶 Here are just a few of the highlights:
🕺 Joshua thrilled us with “Thriller” by Michael Jackson 🌞 Hywel took us on a “Summer Holiday” with Cliff Richard 💃 Anthony impressed with “Help Yourself” by Tom Jones 🔥 Ffion and Amy rocked “Highway to Hell” 🦁 Chris delivered a powerful “Circle of Life” by Elton John 👻 Elizabeth got everyone singing along to the Ghostbusters Theme 🎸 Sean shook the room with “Jailhouse Rock” by Elvis Presley 🧙♀️ Nat wowed with “Babooshka” by Kate Bush
In the middle of the session, we got everyone up to dance — and what a sight it was! The floor was full of movement, laughter, and fun. 🕺💃 🎂 We also celebrated Andrew’s 30th birthday 🎉 with a delicious cake and a singalong of “Happy Birthday” 🥳 and everyone joined in to make his day extra special. To top it all off, we enjoyed a lunch of hot dogs, prepared by Christy and Cheryl — thank you both! 🌭💖 A huge thank you to everyone who helped make today’s Halloween-themed session such a memorable, musical, and magical day. 🎶🧡👻
On Friday we enjoyed a yummy homemade lasagna with lots of fresh vegetables prepared by our wonderful members! 🥕🥦🍅 A big thank you to Nat for doing the quiz 🧠🎤 and Sarah for running bingo! 🎉👏 And of course, a huge thank you to all our amazing volunteers who worked so hard today — you’re the best! 💪💚
It was lovely to see some new faces joining us — we welcomed three new members who really enjoyed today’s session! 🥰🙌 We can’t wait to see everyone again on Wednesday for our Halloween-themed Reconnect through Music session! 👻🎶 Don’t forget to dress up and choose a spooktacular song to sing! 🎤🧛♀️🕸️ We’ll be serving hotdogs and cakes too! 🌭🧁
Today’s Reconnect Through Music group was full of energy, laughter, and incredible talent. In total, our members performed an amazing 28 songs 🎤✨, and each performance brought its own magic to the room. 🌟
Matilda shone with her powerful rendition of Believe by Cher 🌈, while Ffion and Amy teamed up for a lively performance of Rehab by Amy Winehouse 🍷. Sean had everyone smiling and moving along to My Boy Lollipop by Bad Manners 🍭, and Ellysia wowed us with her version of Crazy by Gnarls Barkley 🤯. Natalie brought a touch of pop sunshine with Flowers by Miley Cyrus 🌸, and Jackie gave a heartfelt performance of Back for Good by Take That 🎶.
As the performances flowed, everyone gathered together to enjoy a delicious hot dog lunch 🌭 lovingly prepared by Christy, Cheryl, and Helen 👩🍳👩🍳👩🍳. This provided a lovely opportunity to relax and chat with friends. We’re grateful to Sharon and Libby 📝 for helping with the paperwork, and to Pete the caretaker 🛠️ who made sure everything was set up and ready before we even arrived.
The feedback we received today really shows how much the group means to people. One member shared, “I made more friends” 🤝, while another said, “I love singing and seeing friends” 🎵. We also heard, “I wish it was every week” 📅, and perhaps the best compliment of all: “You can’t improve this session – I love it” 💖.
Overall, today was a truly joyful session filled with music, friendship, and community. Thank you to everyone who contributed to making it such a success! 🎉
