Category Archives: News

💙 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! 🌟💙

🎃 Reconnect Through Music – Halloween Special 👻

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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. 🎶🧡👻

Reconnect Through Cookery Update! 🍝🎃

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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! 🌭🧁

🎶 Reconnect Through Music 🎤🍕

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What a fantastic day we had at today’s Reconnect Through Music session! Over 40 people joined us to enjoy great singing, friendship, and a delicious pizza lunch. 💃🕺🍕 The room was filled with music and smiles from start to finish.

✨ Ellysia set the festive mood by singing the first Christmas songs of the year – it might be early, but we all loved it! 🎄
💋 Natalie rocked the room with her version of Leader of the Pack by The Shangri-Las.
👑 Elizabeth got everyone singing along and swaying to Dancing Queen by ABBA.
🎭 Matilda brought Broadway energy with a song from Hairspray the Musical.
💞 Anthony melted hearts with a beautiful rendition of Perfect by Ed Sheeran.
🚗 Sean made us all smile with Driving in My Car by Madness.
🎤 Finally, Ffion and Amy closed the performances perfectly with Stuck on You by Lionel Richie – a lovely duet to end on!

While we enjoyed the performances, we tucked into a tasty pizza lunch, prepared by Christy and Helen – thank you both for the delicious food! 👩‍🍳👏 A huge shoutout also goes to Pete the caretaker for setting everything up so smoothly 🛠️, and to Sharon for keeping track of the paperwork 📋.

The feedback from today’s session was full of warmth and positivity:

💖 “It was fun!”
😊 “I love seeing my friends.”
🤝 “I like meeting new people.”
🌈 “Everyone is friendly.”
⭐ “All staff are amazing.”
“I liked dancing in my chair.”
💪 “It builds my confidence.”
🏠 “I always love it here.”

Today’s session was filled with laughter, great music, and friendship. 🎶 Thank you to everyone who joined in and helped make it such a happy, confidence-building day. We can’t wait to see you all again next time! 💕🎤🍕

Today’s Session Update! 🌟

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Today we were joined by Emma and her team from the Mental Health and Learning Disabilities team to learn all about the Community Advocacy Service. 💬 We had an informative presentation about advocacy — what it is, how it helps, and what it means to us. 🧠💚 We also learned about the amazing support that Dewis Advocacy provides, including:

✅ Helping people have their voice heard
✅ Supporting individuals to make their own choices
✅ Standing up for people’s rights
✅ Providing independent advocacy for adults with learning disabilities and those experiencing mental health challenges

A huge thank you to Emma and her team for such a great, engaging session! 🙌💙 Everyone really enjoyed learning more about advocacy and the important work Dewis CIL do in our communities. 💪🌈

Reconnect Through Cookery

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On Friday our members made a classic sausage & mash with fresh vegetables and onion gravy. Everyone worked together to prepare cauliflower, broccoli, and carrots — it smelled amazing!

A big thank you to Theresa and Judith for running the quiz and to Sian for hosting bingo – you all made the session full of fun, laughter, and teamwork. The dinner was delicious, and all the feedback from our members was positive — everyone LOVES our Friday Cookery sessions!

Safeguarding Level 3 Training

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Last week Christy and Ffion joined Jackie Hughes from Person to Person Advocacy and Citizen Advocates from across the Caerphilly Borough to take part in Safeguarding Level 3 training with our trainer Gareth. Gareth was very kind and detailed, listened to everyone’s stories and experiences, and made sure we all understood. There were lots of good conversations, lots learned, and new friendships made.

What is Safeguarding Level 3? Safeguarding means keeping people safe from harm, abuse, or neglect. Level 3 training helps you:

Spot signs of abuse or neglect
Know what to do and who to tell
Work with others to keep people safe
Understand your role and responsibilities

This training is for people who may need to report concerns or support others when something doesn’t feel right.

GAVO Volunteering Awards 2025

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Last week, we were honoured to attend the GAVO Caerphilly Volunteering Awards 2025, held at Blackwood Rugby Club. We’re thrilled to share that Caerphilly People First was nominated in the Community Advocate category — and we were absolutely delighted to be awarded the Runners-Up Prize! This recognition celebrates our contribution to volunteering and the positive difference our members continue to make across the community. The award was presented to us by Jane Mudd, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Gwent — thank you, Jane!

The evening celebrated so many inspiring individuals and groups across Caerphilly, with categories including:

Sport and Leisure
Health and Wellbeing
Environmental
Food Sustainability

It was amazing and uplifting to hear about the many great projects happening throughout our county — run by people of all ages and backgrounds, all making a real difference. A huge well done to everyone who was nominated — your hard work and passion shine bright! And a big thank you to GAVO for hosting such a wonderful and inspiring evening. We’re so proud to be part of this amazing community.

Breakfast and Belonging

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Last week marked the second get-together of our Breakfast and Belonging group, and what a lovely morning it was! We were delighted to see so many regular faces, along with friends we haven’t seen for a long time. A wonderful group of twelve members came together to share good food, laughter, and conversation. The room was filled with smiles, stories, and the warm feeling of reconnecting with one another.

We tucked into a delicious spread of breakfast treats — including bagels, croissants, waffles, pancakes, crepes, and fresh strawberries, helping everyone start the day off in the best possible way! The morning was all about belonging, catching up, and sharing our lives. Members chatted about what they’ve been up to, made new connections, and rekindled old ones. It was a perfect reminder of why this group exists — to bring people together and start the day with positivity and friendship.

A big thank you to Cheryl for leading today’s session, and to Amy for being such a brilliant help throughout the morning. We’re already looking forward to our next Breakfast and Belonging meet-up on Tuesday, 4th November. We can’t wait to see you all again for another morning of food, friendship, and fun!

Reconnect Through Music

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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! 🎉