Joe tells us about his visit
‘I had a really great time while in Botton Village. It’s so massively different to anything else I have experienced whilst working in social care. All of the supported people I met in Botton were so happy and also very productive, everyone has something they can do and that they enjoy doing.’
‘We went to Pam and Pierre’s (Shared Lives carers) house for lunch, which was some delicious home made pizza. What I thought was nice, was how many people were there having lunch, even if they don’t live in that home. It gave a real sense of community. There was me, Simone, Stuart, Pam (carer), Pierre (carer), Tracey (person we support), John (person we support), Fiona (person we support), Jan ( support carer who works at the farm), Charlotte (volunteer) and Pauline, who runs the painting group. The people we support were very involved in prepping everything for the meal and cleaning up after it together with everyone. We did say some form of grace before and after the meal, but it didn’t feel religious, maybe just a moment of reflection and being thankful for the food, which was nice.’
‘I got to learn a lot about Botton’s different workshops around the village, like the woodworking, the herb garden and the chickens. Tracey was very passionate about keeping the chickens comfortable and clean.’
Joe's second day in Botton
‘The next day I went to another one of the homes of the people we support called Stormy Hall, with Becky from the North Yorkshire PSS team. There I met Elise (carer) and Lucinda (person we support), who I chatted to about quality checking. Elise is really interested in getting involved and I’ll be getting back in touch with her. Elise said that she already wanted to chat about Shared Lives with other carers outside of Botton. Elise said that the other person she supports, Frank, would be great at this as he is a big chatter. Lucinda was unsure if she wanted to join as a quality checker, but did chat to me about how important it is for everyone to be healthy.’
‘Lucinda was passionate about this and said the Government are not great at it and we all need to do more. I think Lucinda would be a great champion of a healthy eating movement for PSS, especially coming from Botton where everyone is eating so well and walking everywhere!’
The woodwork shop
Joe went to the woodwork shop and was lucky enough to get a tour from Pierre.
Joe said: ‘It’s incredible what the carers, volunteers and people we support are making in there, which includes really intricately designed lamps, unique spoons and bowls. I bought a few spoons to bring home with me and love them.’
‘Pierre was passionate about getting everyone involved, for example John is able to sand and make chopping boards, he loves doing that. Whilst another person we support like Tracey was chiselling away on a log to create a lamp. Pierre said he loves the sense of community in the woodwork shop, with everyone chatting and also helping each other. I got a real sense of that, everyone was very welcoming.’
‘One thing Pierre said that I really loved was that even though more money from sales means more equipment for them, if someone ordered 500 spoons for example, he would say no as he does not want anyone to feel pressured in there to complete orders, he wants everyone to go at their own pace. He also talked about a local store that they sell the items in, and how it has items from over 80 different local crafters, but they were the only one to have items made by people with learning disabilities.’
Recruiting quality checkers
Quality checkers are people with lived experience of social care, they work with PSS to make sure we’re giving the best support possible across all of our services. They help us shape how we support people at PSS, because they know what high-quality support looks and feels like, by using their own experiences and knowledge of PSS. Quality checkers will go out to our different services and ask other people being supported how everything is going, what they like and don’t like.
Joe said: ‘While in the Botton office, I chatted online with David (carer) and Russel (person we support) who live in Harrogate. I did a mini quality check, and asked them if they would like to be quality checkers. They are both up for it and will be getting back in touch soon. I’ll be sharing the results of their quality check with the team in North Yorkshire, but David and Russel had nothing but nice things to say about Ruth and Becky (PSS staff), which was nice to hear.’
‘I also had a chat with a person we support called India who lives in Botton, she was very excited to get involved in quality checking. India came back to the office the next day to ask more questions. I think she’ll be great at helping people open up, as she is so smiley and will help put people at ease.’
Taking in the atmosphere at Botton Village
Joe said: ‘I also spent a fair bit of time with the team in North Yorkshire, and it was great to see and meet them properly. They are a great team who are creating positive relationships with the people we support and the carers. I think they are going to be even more amazing for PSS and the people we support across North Yorkshire.’
‘I was able to have a little walk around Botton in the afternoon, and it was nice to see everyone walking about either going to somewhere for a workshop or lunch. They also have cars they can use if they need to travel further, or if the weather is really bad, but for the most part everyone is walking about.’
‘Overall, I loved visiting Esk Valley Camphill Community in Botton Village and will definitely be going back, Pierre has already offered me a place to stay which was really nice of him. I think it’s such a unique place. When you speak to and see the people we support in Botton you realise how happy they all are, and the huge sense of community there is incredible.’
‘They might seem to be isolated living in the middle of the North Yorkshire Moors, but they are so connected to each other and have a great social life in the village. It was also an amazing visit for quality checking, with two or maybe three people we support getting involved and two carers. PSS have not had the Shared Lives contract for very long at Botton Village, it seemed to me that they have really warmed to us, which is a testament to the work everyone at PSS has done with the whole community.’