Category Archives: News

Annual Health Check Video Launch

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✨ This morning we were joined by Clair, Leah and John from the Primary Care Learning Disability Health Team for the official launch of the Annual Health Check video we’ve been working on together! 🎥💙

We talked about what an Annual Health Check is — a free check-up offered every year to people with a learning disability to help them stay healthy, spot any concerns early, and make sure they get the right support from their GP 👍🩺

The new video will now be used to train doctors, helping them understand how to make health checks easier, clearer and more accessible for everyone 👏

A huge thank you to the team for the delicious pastries and juice 🥐🧃 Everyone who took part received a voucher and certificate for the fantastic job they did featuring in the promotional video 🎉🎖️ We’re proud of everyone involved and we’re already looking forward to working together again in the future 🤝✨

✨ Breakfast & Craft Yesterday ✨

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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! 🎨💖

✨ Another Fantastic Day at USW in the Simulation Suite! ✨

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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! 🌟

Reconnect Through Music

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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. 🥰

✨ Craft with Deb & Louise from Multiply ✨

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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!

🎉 Reconnect Through Cookery 🍽️

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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 🎶💃🕺

✨ Another Fantastic Day at USW with TRAC! ✨

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Yesterday Ffion, Natalie, and Gethin attended the University of South Wales as part of the TRAC (Teaching & Resource Advisory Committee) project. TRAC gives nursing students the chance to learn through real-life scenarios, helping them build confidence, empathy, and the practical skills they’ll need in hospital settings. 👩‍⚕️👨‍⚕️🏥

Our members acted out different hospital scenarios brilliantly:

🗣️ Ffion played a non-verbal patient
🍺 Gethin had “fallen after a night on the pop” and sported a black eye
🤕 Natalie presented with a grazed, bleeding head

They were amazing as always, and the student nurses did a fantastic job too. ✅ The feedback was brilliant, and everyone worked together with professionalism, care, and a lot of enthusiasm. Nurses—especially Learning Disability Nurses—play a vital role in ensuring that people with learning disabilities receive safe, dignified, and person-centred care. Their understanding, communication skills, and compassion make a huge difference in every hospital environment. 💙

We are proud to support projects like TRAC, where lived experience helps shape better healthcare for the future. 🌟 Well done everyone — we loved the experience! 🙌😊

Breakfast and Belonging / Meet and Make with Multiply

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✨ 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! 💛🙌

🎃 Trunk or Treat Fun with The Parent Network! 👻

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We were recently invited by the Parent Network to attend their famous Trunk or Treat event 🚗🍬 — and what an amazing day it was! The displays were brilliant 🌟 with so much effort put into designing and crafting creative sets. The children absolutely loved it — almost as much as we did! 😄 Everyone looked fantastic in their costumes 🧙‍♀️🦸‍♂️🧛‍♀️ and had loads of fun while also learning about the support networks available in the community 💬🤝

Events like this mean so much to families with children ❤️. They give everyone a chance to come together, make memories, feel part of the community, and learn about help that’s out there for them. It’s all about connection, inclusion, and fun! 🎈 A big well done to Amanda and her team 👏 for another huge success — we loved being part of it! 🥰

💙 Lived Experience Training at USW 💙

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On Thursday Ffion and Amy went to the University of South Wales 🎓 to talk to student nurses 👩‍⚕️👨‍⚕️. They shared their own stories about using health services 🏥 and what is important to them when seeing doctors or nurses. They said it helps when:

🗣️ People use easy words
⏰ We get longer appointments if we need them
👀 Staff talk to me, not just my carer or support worker
💡 We are told what will happen before our appointment

They also talked about:

✅ Reasonable adjustments – small changes that make things easier
❤️ Person-centred care – treating everyone as an individual and listening to what matters to them

The students asked great questions 🙋‍♀️🙋‍♂️ and learned how to make health care fair and friendly for everyone 🌈 👏 A big thank you to Amy and Ffion for doing a brilliant job and representing Caerphilly People First! 🌟💙