An innovative social care leader has come up with a clever recipe to help people with learning disabilities spend quality time with their families.
Rob Hayward from Neath, who works as a peripatetic service manager with social care company M&D Care, has introduced a “Family Sunday Dinners” concept at his service.
Rob has been nominated in the Leading Practice in Learning Disability category sponsored by Home Instead, while the overall sponsor for the awards is Meddyg Care.
The awards are organised by Care Forum Wales to pay tribute to the frontline heroes of social care.
The ceremony will be taking place on Friday, October 17, at the Holland House Hotel in Cardiff.
Rob has been nominated in the Leading Practice in Learning Disability category sponsored by Home Instead, while the overall sponsor for the awards is Meddyg Care.
He is on a mission to change that by introducing his Family Sunday Dinners at the organisation, which provides residential, supported living and domiciliary services to adults in Neath, Port Talbot, Swansea, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire.
Colleagues say Rob’s Family Sunday Dinners concept has completely transformed the way families engage with their loved ones in the service. Historically, due to perceived risks and behaviours which can challenge, many people across services in Wales have been unable to share mealtimes with their families in a relaxed and inclusive environment.
By applying Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) principles, Rob worked with staff to understand and reduce the triggers that previously made shared mealtimes challenging. Rob introduced structured support strategies, sensory adjustments, and meal preparation routines that helped the people in the company’s care feel comfortable and in control.
He was nominated by Abbi-Lee Bevan, M&D Care’s business development director.
She said: “His deep commitment to improving the lives of not only the people we support, but also their families.
“Many of the people the company supports have never had the chance for a Sunday dinner with their families because of their complex needs and challenging behaviour as a result of their Learning Disability which impacts how they are able to effectively communicate.
“The people we support have often spent significant periods of their life within hospital settings or experiencing placement breakdowns, so they often haven’t had the opportunity to develop these key and lasting memories
“The outcome of Robs’ initiative has been truly life-changing.
“For the first time, families were able to sit down together and enjoy a meal with their loved ones in a homely, welcoming environment.
“What was once considered ‘too risky’ became a cherished tradition, strengthening family bonds and creating a true sense of belonging for the people Rob supports.
“Rob believes that no-one should be denied the joys of family life because of their disability.
“Through Family Sunday Dinners, he has proven that with the right support, people who were once isolated from shared mealtimes can now laugh, talk, and enjoy a meal together – just like any other family.”
Rob, who has been involved in the care sector for 18 years, said his Sunday dinners idea came up as part of the organisations commitment to make the services it provides more inclusive to families.
He said: “Some of the people we support have needs that are so complex that they haven’t been able to go for a Sunday dinner with their families within the community, often spending significant periods of their life within Hospital Settings.
“So we came up with the concept of doing it in-house.
“We book two families every month to come to us to have Sunday dinners with their loved one.
“It is something that they may have never done before.
“We have two separate tables set up in the communal dining room, so each family and each individual have their own table and the chefs come in to make the Sunday dinners.
“We try to create a really communal and family feel environment for people to share these memories within.
“It’s going well, it’s really beneficial and it includes the families a lot more, allowing them to do something they weren’t able to do before.
“One of the mothers said to me it was the first time she had ever sat down and had a meal with her child.
“We’re just trying to elevate the services we provide, come up with ideas and concepts that haven’t been done before, both within our organisation and throughout social care in general.
“We had a Care Inspectorate Wales inspection a couple of months after we introduced the Sunday dinners and they were really impressed with that outcome.”
Rob said he absolutely loves what he does and feels he has found a career for life. Rob was delighted to be put forward for a Wales Care Award.
He said: “I started off as a PBS practitioner when I first joined the company and then had the opportunity to progress into management.
“I am currently a peripatetic service manager so within my role I go to any of the specialist homes to support when needed.
“We have four specialist homes at the moment and there’s a fifth opening next year.
“I was shocked at first when I heard I had been nominated for an award.
“It is a real privilege for your hard work and the dedication you give to be recognised.
“I was really grateful for that.
“I am really passionate about what I do and I love the feeling of making a difference in someone’s life and that’s why I do what I do. The people we support are incredible and I feel so fortunate that this is my career. The collegues I work with are all so passionate and are always on board with any plans to really improve the quality of life for each person we support.
Mario Kreft MBE, the Chair of Care Forum Wales, said: “Care Forum Wales has been working tirelessly for more than 30 years to promote the social care sector.
“We established the Wales Care Awards to show our appreciation to the workforce and the wider sector for the remarkable and vitally important contribution everybody makes, day in day out.
“The event underlines the importance of the social care sector. It is the glue that binds our communities together, both socially and economically.
“Our mission is to be the voice of social care in Wales to advocate on the sector’s behalf, holding truth to power in order to secure a fair deal to recognise the dedication of our frontline heroes and heroines across our nation.
“If you don’t value the people who do the caring, you will never provide the standards that people need and never recognise the value of the people who need the care in society.
“Every single one of our finalists is a winner and will be presented with a gold, silver or bronze award.”
The awards are organised by Care Forum Wales to pay tribute to the frontline heroes of social care, with the ceremony taking place on Friday, October 17, at the Holland House Hotel in Cardiff.
