Tag Archives: Learning Disability

Reconnect Through Cookery Fun!

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At our first July session of Reconnect Through Cookery, our amazing members got hands-on prepping onions 🧅, mushrooms 🍄, and peppers 🌶️ to add to our delicious Mayflower chicken curry! Some preferred it plain – all served with plain or vegetable rice 🍚 and crunchy prawn crackers 🦐. YUM!
We had a sweet treat too – a slice of chocolate cake 🍰 to celebrate Reese’s birthday! 🎂🥳
After lunch, we had a brilliant time playing bingo 🎱 and testing our brains with a fun quiz 🧠 — big shoutout to: 💛 Peter the caretaker for all his support
💛 Sarah for being our bingo boss
💛 Nat for hosting the quiz like a pro!
These sessions aren’t just about food – they’re about friendship, laughter, learning new skills, reducing isolation, and having a great time together. 💬👫🧠
Thank you to our fab volunteers and members for making it all possible – you’re the heart of Reconnect 💚

Caerphilly People First Woodland Adventure!

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Our focus group went on an amazing adventure through Bargoed Woodland Park, walking all the way to Fleur-de-Lys and back via Pengam Lights! 💪 The walk took us two hours and our members absolutely smashed it! 🙌👏
We were a tiny bit disappointed there were no picnic benches on route 🧺😢 — but that didn’t stop us! We headed back to the YMCA and enjoyed our lunch together at the office 🍽️😊 while a few members made their way home for a well-earned rest. 🏡
Well done everyone – what a lovely way to stay active, social, and connected! 💚✨

Adfest 2025 – What an Epic Adventure!

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We had an amazing time at the All Wales People First conference in North Wales! 🏔️✨
The hotel was lush 🛏️, the food was delicious 🍽️, and the company was just perfect 💬💖. A massive congratulations to everyone who won a Mirror Award 🪞🏆 — so well deserved for your outstanding work and contributions across Wales 👏👏👏.
The workshops were so much fun! 🎨🎤
🎵 We learned to sing using Makaton and other signs – and totally nailed it!
💃🏽🕺 The House of Deviants brought the energy with a lunchtime drag performance that had us all smiling and dancing!
We loved browsing the information stalls 🛍️📚— packed with great resources and freebies to take home 🎁.
And the silent disco? Absolutely EPIC! 🔇🎧
The dance moves were on fire 🔥 and the laughter was non-stop 😂💃.
Huge thanks to all the organisers who made it such a fab two days 🙌💐. We’re already counting down to the next one!

Reconnect through Cookery Update

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What a fabulous (and very warm!) session we had at the end of June! ☀️
Our wonderful group made three amazing pasta bakes:
🍝 Cold tuna pasta with mayo & sweetcorn
🔥 Hot tuna bake with mushrooms, peas & sweetcorn
🌭 Hot Mattessons reduced-fat sausage bake with mushrooms, peas & sweetcorn
🧀 All topped with melty cheddar and served with fresh salad & crusty French loaf – simply delicious! 😋🥖
Our members prepared a gorgeous, colourful salad full of:
🥬 Lettuce 🥒 Cucumbers 🌶 Peppers 🌰 Spring onions 🌰 Red onions 🍅 Tomatoes 🥬 Beetroot – it was fresh, healthy and beautifully presented!
🙏 A huge thank you to:
🎟 Sarah for doing the raffle
🧠 Hayley for the fun quiz
👩‍🍳 Cheryl, Helen, Libby, Connor & Ress for all your help in the kitchen
🧹 Peter the caretaker for setting up
👏 And everyone else who supports the smooth running of our sessions
💚 The food was so tasty there was hardly any waste! Even our salad trimmings went to the horses (with the owner’s permission 🐴) on the way home – nothing wasted!
💰 All raffle money goes toward buying prizes and refreshments – thank you for your support! This project is funded by the Postcode Lottery, helping us make every session special.

Sponsored Walk at Pen Y Fan Pond

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A HUGE thank you to everyone who turned up to support Caerphilly People First for our sponsored walk at Pen Y Fan Pond yesterday!

The sun was shining, the spirits were high, and the laps were… well, many! Some of us did one, some smashed two, others powered through three, and a few even managed four laps!

Every step counted, and every penny raised means so much to us. We’ll let you know the total sponsorship money as soon as it’s all collected. Well done team – you absolutely smashed it!

Able Radio Interview

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Huge thanks to Jenny and the Torfaen People First members for inviting us to Able Radio recently! We had a fantastic time recording a show all about the Police Crime and Justice Plan, and we were also joined by Rhian, the Communication and Engagement Officer, who added some brilliant insights to the discussion

Special shout-out to Chris, who did an amazing job as our radio show host – confident, clear, and professional – we’re so proud of you!

Big thanks to Ffion and Nat for sharing how Caerphilly People First helped with the Easy Read version – such important work making information accessible to everyone! Stay tuned to hear the show soon!

Reconnect Through Cookery

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Reconnect through Cookery was a huge hit again last week! We rolled up our sleeves and made a delicious homemade lasagna, served with warm, golden garlic bread – yum! Our amazing members also prepared a colourful fresh salad filled with juicy tomatoes, crispy lettuce, zesty spring onions, crunchy red onions, cool cucumber, and tasty mushrooms – the perfect combo to go with our lasagna!

A massive THANK YOU to all our fantastic volunteers – you’re the heart of our sessions – and to Peter our caretaker for helping set up the hall. You’re all superstars! We’ll see you again in two weeks for a flavour-packed session with curry and rice – we can’t wait!

Cooking, sharing, laughing, and reconnecting – that’s what it’s all about!

Meeting about Benefits Reform

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Yesterday afternoon, Ffion, Nat, Gethin, and Amy joined an online meeting with other People First groups across Wales. The meeting was run by All Wales People First and was about Benefits Reform.

We talked about:
Changes to benefits money from the government
The Access to Work scheme that helps disabled people in jobs
Getting good jobs and being treated fairly
Health and safety at work

What is Access to Work? Access to Work helps pay for things like:
Travel to work
Job coaches or support workers
Special equipment or changes at work

We also talked about:
Making benefits easier and fairer
Getting faster help from Access to Work
Helping people move from volunteering to paid jobs

And organisations like the Equality and Human Rights Commission which:
Makes sure disabled people are treated fairly
Protects people’s rights
Helps stop discrimination

The government should:
Give money to these organisations
Listen to disabled people’s voices
Follow equality laws

We also spoke about Health and Safety at work:
Some people need changes to help them stay safe
Staff should get health and safety training
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) checks if workplaces are safe

Next steps:
Kelly will fill out the consultation form from All Wales People First. This means our group’s voice will be heard and shared!

University of South Wales Training Session

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Amy, Nat, and Gethin visited USW this morning to take part in a training session in the Simulation Suite. Today was all about being a patient!

Amy played a young lady with a learning disability, epilepsy, and a chest infection.
Nat portrayed a lady with a learning disability who lives in supported living and loves to visit A&E — she claimed to have drunk shampoo and bleach!
Gethin played a young man with a learning disability who fell into a bin and cut his head, with a suspected concussion.

The nursing students did amazing and worked brilliantly with our TRAC members. It was great to see them:

Asking for Health Profiles
Making reasonable adjustments
Using easy read language

Nat gave feedback and said the nurses did great! So proud of our team and the future healthcare professionals learning how to support people with learning disabilities with care and compassion. Great job everyone! You were all stars today!