Five care home managers have been hailed as \u201cheroes with huge hearts\u201d after clocking up a century of service between them.<\/p>\n
The remarkable milestone was celebrated at the award-winning Pendine Park care organisation who say the team\u2019s loyalty and dedication have helped drive high standards of care.<\/p>\n
Owner Mario Kreft MBE said the quintet were a \u201ccredit\u201d not just to Pendine \u2013 which has nine care homes in Wrexham and Caernarfon – but also to the wider social care sector across Wales.<\/p>\n
Among the longest-servicing managers are Ann Chapman, Tracey Smith and Cindy Clutton, each with 26 years\u2019 service.<\/p>\n
They are joined by Tracey Cuthill, who\u2019s been with Pendine for 15 years, and Sandra Evans, who joined 10 years ago.<\/p>\n
All five believe the landmark, which comes amid Pendine\u2019s 40th<\/sup> anniversary celebrations,\u00a0 reflects the organisation\u2019s\u00a0 ethos of person-centred care<\/p>\n Ann Chapman said: \u201cIt\u2019s about loyalty, to the company, our fellow staff and most of all to the residents and their families who are at the heart of everything we do here at Pendine Park.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been a combined journey for all five of us, as professionals and specialists in our fields. We know we can draw on each other\u2019s strengths and even pass on lessons learned from our own life experiences.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have become a big extended family and as the years go by residents and their loved ones have come to know that we offer a solid support network for them in what can be hugely difficult and challenging times.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the longevity of our service is testament to the way Pendine Park has worked over the years to set the benchmark for high standards of care.<\/p>\n We have all been behind its pioneering ethos and are proud to have been a part of that journey, to have contributed to pushing the boundaries in care provision.\u201d<\/p>\n It was a sentiment echoed by Tracey Cuthill who said: \u201cThere are few other places which offer the standard of enrichment activities and engagement programmes which we run daily at Pendine Park. For us as care providers it is heartening to see the positive impact that these have on residents.<\/p>\n \u201cAs with any care role, there can be\u00a0 emotional times, sad times, but I think one reason we\u2019ve all stayed here so long is that the overriding in all our decision-making is, consistently, to improve the well-being of residents. For us to be able to play a part in that is hugely rewarding.\u201d<\/p>\n Tracey Smith said one of the first things which drew her to Pendine when she started in 2000 was the family feel it offers.<\/p>\n She said: \u201cIt\u2019s a given that this is their home and the place where residents they should feel most comfortable, so it\u2019s important for them to have familiar, friendly faces on hand, people who know their individual needs, likes and dislikes.<\/p>\n They should be confident that we are always here to support them. Pendine has managed to get that right, which is why such a large percentage of staff have worked here so many years.\u201d<\/p>\n Cindy Clutton is among them, having first started at Hillbury when she was a teenager on a work placement, following in the footsteps of her mother who already worked there.<\/p>\n \u201cPerson-centred is at the crux of everything we do, recognising and appreciating people\u2019s different personalities, accommodating their various requirements, helping them adjust to new circumstances and supporting them as they go forward.\u201d<\/p>\n Sandra Evans said she was also attracted by Pendine\u2019s focus on people when she took on the manager\u2019s role at Bryn Seiont Newydd in Caernarfon in 2015<\/p>\n \u201cFrom the newest resident to the oldest, the most junior member of staff to the most senior, everyone is treated with dignity and respect, and everyone gets a chance to have their voice heard. I think that\u2019s why we\u2019re such a successful team and why 100 years has just flown by.\u201d<\/p>\n Mario and his wife Gill were motivated to set up Pendine Park group to provide their own grandparents with the best possible care. Last year the organisation marked its 40th anniversary.<\/p>\n They opened the first home, Gwern Alyn, in Wrexham, just before Christmas in 1985 with just 10 staff and 14 residents.<\/p>\n Four decades on, the organisations has grown into a major provider with a total of 440 beds and more than 860 employees.<\/p>\n Mario presented the long-serving managers with vouchers to recognise the century of care.<\/p>\n He said: \u201cA centenary of combined service is remarkable. It\u2019s a credit to an amazingly loyal team of care home managers and to everyone within the Pendine family who works so hard, notwithstanding all the challenges which face the social care sector today.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we totted up the numbers earlier this year we definitely believed this is a landmark well worth celebrating. We wanted to publicly recognise the contribution these five wonderful professionals have made and are still making.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s also pleasing because over the last 40 years we have worked consistently to provide a supportive environment for our residents, to invest in employees\u2019 career progression, and to instil high training values. This is testament to the fact that what we are doing is working.<\/p>\n \u201cAll five have championed our commitment to the arts in general and music in particular as a way of enhancing the lives of our residents and staff alike, so that it is the golden thread that runs through daily life at Pendine.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s very unusual to have even one or two employees who have spent almost their whole career at just one company. So, we feel incredibly lucky to have inspired five such highly qualified and well-thought-of individuals to stay with us for so long.<\/p>\n \u201cThe contribution they have made to Pendine Park\u2019s success is immeasurable and will continue to be appreciated by generations to come. They truly are heroes with huge hearts.\u201d<\/p>\n