Community Integrated Care Shortlisted for four 3rd Sector Care Awards

Community Integrated Care has been shortlisted for four top accolades at the 3rd Sector Care Awards, taking place tomorrow in London! These recognise our efforts to deliver integrated services, promote equal citizenship, and deliver person-centred support.

The 3rd Sector Care Awards celebrate and showcase the innovation and excellence of the not-for-profit care and support sector. They are organised by Care Management Matters magazine, and supported by a host of care sector bodies, including: National Care Forum (NCF), The Care Provider Alliance (CPA), Housing and Support Alliance (H&SA), Mental Health Providers Forum (MHPF), and Voluntary Organisations Disability Group (VODG).

Our charity has been shortlisted for the Citizenship Award, after co-producing with the people we support an innovative guide to supporting people to vote at the 2015 General Election. Promoting Our Voting was developed by three of our Peer Reviewers, along with our Head of Communications and Marketing, John Hughes. It described why politics matters to people who access services, and how their support teams can use person-centred practices to enable them to vote.

The guide was shared with all of Community Integrated Care’s services. It also reached over 250,000 people online, was featured in publications such as Learning Disability Today and Enable Magazine, and received acclaim from sector figureheads, such as Andrea Sutcliffe, Chief Inspector of Care Quality Commission.

We have been shortlisted for the Innovative Quality Outcomes Award, alongside our partners at Halton Borough Council and NHS Halton Clinical Commissioning Group. The award recognises our partnership to transform the home into a centre of excellence for dementia care, enhancing the living environment at the home and introducing a specialist approach to care.

The approach sees Community Integrated Care’s specially trained support staff work side-by-side with clinical specialists from the local NHS every day – including GP’s and the local mental health team. By having this clinical input in St Luke’s, residents are supported to stay in the home through challenges with their health, avoiding the need for hospital admissions. It is also supported by social care experts from Halton Borough Council.

Kelly Henderson, Team Leader at Carlingwark House, is also shortlisted for the Creative Arts Award – recognising her efforts to use music, arts and creativity to enhance the lives of the people she supports. Kelly has pioneered the use of Playlist for Life, an innovative approach to music therapy for people who live with dementia, which was developed by the broadcaster Sally Magnusson. In June, Kelly and her colleagues welcomed Ms Magnusson to their home, who commended them for their person-centred approach to support.

Finally, our Deputy Chief Executive, Cath Murray-Howard, has been shortlisted for the Leadership Award. Cath has been recognised for her support of Community Integrated Care’s ambitious five year strategy, which has the aim of us becoming The UK’s Leading Health and Social Care Charity.

Her business development achievements have seen our charity grow to become a £105m organisation – enabling many more people receive our support, and she has been instrumental in developing integrated models of care, which have reduced demand on NHS resources and offered people better outcomes.

These awards are the latest in a host of successes for our charity – with our services, colleagues and initiatives being shortlisted for eleven awards this month, at events such as The National Care Awards, National Dementia Awards and Laing Buisson Awards.

Neil Matthewman, Chief Executive of Community Integrated Care, says, “These nominations recognise both the successes of the people we support and our colleagues, who have achieved fantastic things this year. They represent just some of our successes at enabling people to lead full and happy lives, and making a positive contribution to the communities that we work in. I would like to pass on my sincere thanks and congratulations to all of our 3rd Sector Care Award nominees.”