A senior leader at Devon’s foremost health and wellbeing charity, Westbank Community Health and Care, has won a prestigious regional award that recognises the work of Care Professionals across the South West.
Andy Hood, who oversees Westbank’s Carers Services including Devon Carers, was named Team Leader of the Year at the Care and Support West awards 2024, now in their 11th year.
Andy attended a ceremony at Ashton Gate Stadium in Bristol last week (Thursday 26 September) to receive a trophy in recognition of his leadership of a team that supports more than thirty thousand...
Over the past couple of years I have been advocating for families living with dementia in addition to leading the Exeter Dementia Action Alliance.
I have witnessed family carers on their knees at crisis point, desperate, isolated with overwhelming feelings of helplessness.
At times I have felt useless, but having immersed myself into the world of dementia over the past decade I realise I have gained invaluable knowledge which I feel able to share and is making a difference. This is a humbling privilege.
Navigating the complexities of the health and social care...
Devon Carers, a free service by Westbank Community Health and Care, is this month celebrating 25 years of supporting unpaid carers across the county and is planning several events throughout the coming year as part of its landmark anniversary.
The charity provides a wide range of support services to those who look after family members or friends because they are ill, frail, or have a disability, mental health or substance misuse problem.
Over the last two and a half decades, Westbank’s Devon Carers has grown to be one of the largest charitable organisations in the UK...
Do you look after someone who couldn’t manage without your help? There are at least 74,000 people in Devon who do, and Westbank’s Devon Carers is a free service to help them, delivered by Westbank Community Health and Care, and funded by Devon County Council and the NHS.
Westbank’s Devon Carers is hosting a free Information Fair for unpaid carers on Carers’ Rights Day, Thursday 23rd November, at the Exeter Phoenix in Gandy Street from 10 am to 4 pm. Carers Rights Day - a national event - is run every year to ensure carers are aware of their rights, know where to get help and...
As UK Volunteers Week begins (1 - 7 June) , a local health and wellbeing charity is launching a campaign to swell the ranks of its existing army of award-winning helpers. Westbank Community Health and Care, based at Exminster near Exeter, relies on over 600 volunteers to help deliver a range of support services to individuals and communities across Devon.
Last year, Westbank’s Neighbourhood Friends volunteers received royal recognition for their service during the pandemic with the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. This year, the charity hopes to take on even more volunteers...
Exeter-based illustrator-animator Leo Jamelli is collaborating with University of Exeter academics Dr Siobhan O’Dwyer and Dr Catriona McKenzie on an emotive contemporary art project entitled Spotlight on Care.
He's created a hand-drawn animation of an unpaid carer from Exeter which will be projected onto the Exeter Phoenix after dark in late October. The two-storey high projection will celebrate the millions who work around the clock caring for family and friends at home. Research shows their role has been made even harder by the closure of support services during the COVID crisis...
SHOPWORKERS are being encouraged to transfer their skills to care by one of Exeter’s providers as analysts predict there will be more than 200,000 retail job losses nationwide in 2021 (January 2021).
Guardian Homecare, which provides home care in and around Exeter, says experts report high street retailers are facing a terrible year ahead with more than 15,700 store closures anticipated.
Catherine Porter, Manager for Guardian Homecare says: “According to the Centre for Retail Research (CRR), in 2020, as many as 177,000 jobs were lost from UK retail, that’s up by a quarter...
A SOUTH Devon care provider is recruiting new carers as it enters its busiest period of the year with a target to take on 100 new employees in the run-up to Christmas and into the New Year (2021).
Guardian Homecare needs carers to join its team and provide services in the Exeter area not just during the busier festive period but beyond into 2021.
Manager for the care provider, Catherine Porter said: “This is our busiest time of the year. As the weather turns potentially chillier and we’re working in either very wet or snowy and cold conditions, and elderly and vulnerable...
A LEADING home care provider is creating 100 new roles this month (November 2020) to help meet growing demand for its services in south Devon as winter begins and the pandemic continues.
Guardian Homecare, which cares for people in the Exeter and surrounding areas, says it needs to boost its staff numbers as the colder weather creates a greater need for services.
Manager for the care provider, Catherine Porter says: “We’re fast approaching winter, which is our busiest time of the year because, as the temperatures drop and the night’s close in, elderly and vulnerable people...
A CARE company in south Devon is urging anyone being made redundant from a customer-facing role in the county to get in touch as their skills are needed in the sector (September 2020).
Guardian Homecare, which cares for people in Exeter and surrounding areas, wants to reassure job seekers thinking of a care role that the skills they already have are transferable.
Manager for the care provider, Catherine Porter says: “At the moment there are many companies in the retail and other customer-facing sectors such as Marks & Spencer, John Lewis, Boots, Topshop and the Co-op...
