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Ian's Experience of Life in the WFT Skylarks Respite Care Centre |
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Compiled in March Year 2001 |
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Visit my homepage of inspirational_ian |
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Photo Album |
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Click here for WFT website and Information on Skylarks |
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Click here for Page No: 2 of Skylarks |
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I first met this girl Verety (Vez) Hill at Skylarks in February 1997 where she was a Care Assistant there; and we've been friends ever since |
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About Skylarks |
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Refurbished in 1997, Skylarks is a holiday respite care centre run by Winged Fellowship Trust, located on the outskirts of West Bridgford, Nottingham, at the end of Adbolton Lane, about a quarter of a mile from the National Water Sports Centre at Holme Pierrepont, certainly within walking distance. Built I think in 1976, Skylarks accommodates 36 guests in any one week and even more volunteer helpers to assist the guests with their personal needs each day of the respite care / holiday. For statistical details re: Skylarks (Which can be subject to change) visit the website of Winged Fellowship Trust at www.wft.org.uk which will also lead you onto the site for Skylarks. I have included a photo album of Skylarks - just click on the appropriate links to view the pictures |
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Here is Lyn in 1992 in the old bar area of Skylarks which is now where the Managers office is, before the building was re-furbished throughout in 1997 |
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Skylarks Rules :- |
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The Staff |
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The Management at Skylarks have adopted a policy of not allowing the use of cell phones in the building; they claim that cell phones are a health hazzard and could very easily upset the function of heart pacemakers any guest may have. When using one once to contact my diver to arrannge transport home, which was essential, I was man-handled outside the building my a member of staff Jackie, saying - "Read the Notice" on the front entrance door. There are only two pay phones located in the front entrance, non of which are private, everyone can hear conversations and they are in use a lot of the time.
Their first health conscious priority should be with smoking as it is allowed in the bar area and the smoke filters through into the lounge - that is a major health hazzard !!!!! I ended up in Queens Hospital Nottingham at 3.30am one Saturday morning with broncial problems brought on by people smoking. There are many other guests who suffer from Asthma and / or other related breathing problems and reckon smoking ought to be prohibited inside the building
In the year Y2K Skylarks installed a soft drinks machine in the foyer of the building. In the years leading up to it, I suggested such a thing to the management - Oh no they said - not economically viable - costs too much to maintain. Also, low coffee tables were replaced by ones of wheelchair height, now enabling guests to sup their coffee / tea without bending double to reach them - something I suggested continuously on my questionnaire form handed out after most holidays |
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I first started going to Skylarks in April 1992 : A lot of Staff have come and gone since then. The first Manager I met was Andy Pinnock , a very enthusiastic chap dedicated to the job; stood for no nonsense by the volunteers and ensured all the guests had an enjoyable stay. Andy was charismatic and hosted a lot of entertaining cabarets, on Friday party nights, involving other staff for the benefit of the guests; guests had the opportunity to participaste in their own sketches if they wished. Andy's first deputy was Marianne who later became his wife, then in later years ..... he had a gorgeous leggy blonde girl-friend (bit of fluff on the side!!) called Rowena who became part of the establishment - a care assistant. Andy left in 1999 under not so clear circumstances, (a lot of guests thought he should have stayed!) and Rowena vanished and took up a high level job in computing, so I heard. David Gamble took over as manager for a short while, but he found the job stressful and left soon after; the then deputy, Craig Rees replaced him on a temp basis, was unsuccessful in his application for permanent manager and moved to Southport later 1999 to become deputy of Sandpipers on the seafront - Fairway. At the date of compiling this page - March 2001, Lynne Wilson is the current Manager, up from Crabhill in Essex with Lou as her deputy and the popular Claire Winzer (who's been at the centre from it's beginning) as the assistant deputy manager. Jen Ward is the secretary and has been for as long as I can remember. There are a number of care assistants as members of staff, the numbers change as people come and go - it's hard to keep staff as Winged Fellowship Trust don't pay good wages. There is a good nursing team headed by Jude, Pauline and Debbie and there is night care available for those who need assistance throughout the night. The cleaning staff are really nice, there's Carol, Joan, Margaret and a gorgeous, lovely French lady called Fatima Nadia (who I had my picture taken with in February 2001). They go around all the rooms each morning and do a very good job keeping them clean. The kitchen staff provide excellent meals, usually two cooked meals a day with packed lunches for daytrips and a buffet on a Sunday evening. There are two official drivers for the two coaches Claire and Rachel who are very good and give a smooth enjoyable ride (the previous driver Karen kept jerking the bus and used the brakes and accelerator heavily). The best driver ever was Dean who drove the "T" registered DAF coach in the early days and had wheelchair clamping to a fine art. These days it can take up to 3/4 hour to load and around 35 minutes to unload a full bus with wheelchairs. |
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Skylarks Volunteer Helpers |
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Day Trips from the Centre |
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Skylarks needs it's volunteer helpers in order to survive!! They come in three different categories ;- The very good enthusiastic ones - these are individuals who really want to help. The not so good ones - these are a minority of people who come as part of a course working towards a qualification or a training course
And the Absolute hangers on - thankfully not many these days - from the Princes Trust Volunteer Scheme who come as a team with a team leader doing community service in order to complete a project to obtain a recognised certificate of qualification to help with future employment and an opportunity to get back into society after possibly committing a crime - yes, it has been known for offenders to be among the group. I had the unfortunate experience while at Sandpipers in 1995, being cared for by a Princes Trust Volunteer to have my credit card stolen by him. He and my card were eventually traced to Cardiff, but not before the offender drained my current bank account of all my savings. I was informed the person had a criminal record - I questioned why such a person was put in a position of responsibility looking after disabled people : I did not get a satisfactory reply. When talking to other guests, I learned of other acts of theft had occured by volunteers from the scheme on disabled people not able to report it at the time. Each Friday evening is a party night and after the evening meal the management and some guests makes speeches thanking everyone for a good week including the volunteers, who quite honestly the centre cannot survive without. I have to quietly laugh because the speeches are so hypocritical - during the week, guests often complain about the lack of response / help from the volys; they stay up so late at night socialising with one another, drinking, and some male volunteers try and get the young female ones to sleep with them, resulting in the morning, they're too tired to assist the guests in getting up for breakfast - this does happen, not only at Skylarks but at other Winged Fellowship Centres. The staff are aware of it but helpless to do anything to prevent it from happening. Some volunteers leave their rooms in a total mess at the end of the week with (from what the housekeeper Sandy often complained about) the un-mentionable plastered over the walls. It has to be said, there are really good reliable volys, who often return time after time. Skylarks have a list and phone them for help to cover when there is a shortage. Over the years, I have met some really good volunteers, my all-time favourite was Lyn Oatey - photo opposite side of page - aged 18 during my first visit in April 1992. She came for work experience in order to gain knowledge and experience to work as a social worker after getting her necessary qualifications from College in Worcester. She is now a team leader in a day centre for people developing social skills. The ones I remember - In 1992 there was Debbie from Cheshire; in 1994 Sandra Root from Cheadle, Cheshire; in 1995 Jane Lambert from Kent ; in 1996 Joanna from Poland; then also Marianne from Holland; early in 1997 there was Takeshi Toto a student learning English from Japan (I helped him alot), we still write by letter. One of my volunteers who became a good friend seduced a care assistant Diane who later emigrated to Spain to live with him in the late 1999!! He also had an affair with another voly, lucky chap!! Sue just before - All in the life of a volunteer!!! |
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There are daily outings from the Centre; the regular ones include ;-
- The Sea-Life museum in Birmingham
- The butterly sanctuary
- The pig farm
- The Bass Brewery Museum in Burton-on-Trent
- The Museum of Science and Technology in Sneterton
- Shopping in Meadowhall, Sheffield
- Shopping in Nottingham / castle / lace museum
In the past there has been a trip to the
- Royal Armouries in Leeds and the
- Medical Museum in Leeds |
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Hanky-Panky in the surgery - oohhh!! |
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Pubs in Nottingham |
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The Lady Bay pub is just down Adbolton Lane opposite the school and near the post office. Landlady is Pat. It sells very good beer including my favourite ice cool Draught Guinness, each time I visit Nottingham there's a new bar maid there. The Trent Inn Arms near the river pulls a good pint and the pub across the bridge - used to be called The Avery has now changed name to Casa, used to be nice inside, I bought the care assistants Verety and Sally a few pints there in 1997 |
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