Baycroft's activity coordinator shortlisted in Great British Care Awards

06 Aug 2021


Baycroft Activity Coordinator, Lu Lawrence was recently nominated for the ‘Care Home Activity Organiser Award’ at this year’s Great British Care Awards. The Great British Care Awards are a series of regional events, across the United Kingdom, that look to honour individuals who have demonstrated excellence within their field of work.

Lu’s role as activity coordinator at the Bedfordshire care and support scheme, which specialises in residential and dementia care, is to develop and oversee an active living programme for each resident – tailoring plans to support mobility, social contact, independence and most importantly, fun – enabling each and every one of them to thrive and live life to their full potential.

Previously working as a care assistant at a dementia and end of life specialist home, Lucy’s passion for the care sector runs deep, though, the nomination came as quite a surprise:

“I just felt that it all came quite naturally, that this is what I should be doing - ensuring that the resident’s feel engaged and that their loved ones feel connected, especially during the pandemic. The nomination was overwhelming, and I was in disbelief thinking ‘but I’m just doing my job’. I thrive when I’m supporting vulnerable individuals, being able to contribute on such a large scale to a person’s life, enabling them to maintain their independence and quality of life - I find it incredibly rewarding”.

A collaborative effort

When compiling the activity schedule, Lu works alongside the nursing and senior staff to assess the strengths and capabilities of each resident - devising simple and safe activities to encourage movement, maintain joint flexibility and the functional use of hands and fingers, with the aim of assisting daily living.

The pandemic has provided a series of challenges, which has seen Ms Lawrence taking on extra duties - such as ‘resident hairdresser’ and manicurist, in addition to organising and maintaining social contact for the residents with their friends and relatives through video, phone calls and the homes social media page.

Lu prides herself on her ability to find fun and unique ways for the residents to celebrate birthdays and special occasions/national celebrations, using her initiative to fulfil additional duties and taken different approaches. Lu has also been recognised for her work on social media posting a time lapse video on LinkedIn of a 1:1 activity she provided for a resident, living with dementia, which reached a staggering 2.5 million views.

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