A mum-of-four from Bargoed who draws on her own personal journey of caring for a son with neurodiversity to help inspire adults with learning disabilities has been shortlisted for a national award.

Support worker Kelly Jones, 41, has been assisting adults with learning disabilities at Springfield Residential Home in Gilfach, Bargoed, Caerphilly, South Wales, for the past nine years, and before that as a care assistant in nursing and residential homes.

As a busy working mum, the care worker attributes her endless patience and natural empathy down to her experiences raising her 13-year-old son Kolbi, who has autism, ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) and an audio processing disorder, which allows her to step into the shoes of the people she supports to truly understand their perspectives.

Kelly, who grew up and still lives in Bargoed and has worked in social care for 18 years, is now in the running for one of the industry’s most prestigious accolades – a Wales Care Award 2025.

The awards, sponsored by sponsored by Meddyg Care and organised by care industry champions Care Forum Wales, pay tribute to the frontline heroes of social care, with all finalists guaranteed to come away with either a gold, silver or bronze prize in recognition of their achievements.

Nominated for the Care Practitioner in Residential Care Award, Kelly will discover her fate at a glittering awards ceremony to be held at Holland House Hotel in Cardiff on Friday, October 17.

The social care worker, who is employed by My Choice Healthcare, and was recently promoted to the role of manager working between the company’s Victoria House and Luk Ros House residential homes, said: “I was shocked but honoured to be put forward.

“I’m proud to have been recognised for the job I do but without the team I couldn’t have achieved what we’ve achieved.

“Everything we do is in the best interests of those we look after to enable them to have a good quality of life and to give them plenty of choice and opportunities.

“I’ve been interested in health and social care since I was at school. From about the age of 14, I’d go to the Gateway Club in Bargoed on Wednesdays to help people with learning disabilities, sometimes working in the shop and at other times helping the other staff in the pool.

“I’m patient and caring, and I care about people living their life to the best they can. One of many rewards of this job is seeing the people we look after living as normal a life as possible and mixing in society, enjoying everyday life as much as they can and getting out to do the things they enjoy.”

Alongside continued on-the-job professional development, Kelly said her personal experience of caring for her teenage son had enhanced the way she responds and cares for her residents.

“Kolbi’s nearly 13 now and I knew from a young age there was something different about him. It took a long time for answers, but we finally got there,” she said.

“He has been diagnosed with ADHD and autism and an audio processing disorder. Sometimes, it can be challenging but I’ve learnt a lot from what I do in my job to enable me to help my son as well.

“I understand him and his needs and how his brain works. I’ve done so many courses over the years. If I didn’t have that experience from my job, it would’ve been one hundred times harder to cope. Having that knowledge that I do has made it so much easier but equally, it has allowed me to help others. I still learn day to day from my job.”

In the six months Kelly’s son has attended a specialist educational facility for neurodiverse children, she said he had achieved two qualifications, proving that anything is possible with the right encouragement and support – a philosophy she avidly employs in the workplace.

“I always say to him that you don’t have to be brainy or be able to put pen to paper to be able to get anywhere in life,” said Kelly, who also has a 23-year-old son, and two daughters aged 16 and nine.

“A lot of my knowledge has been hands on experience. If you put your mind to it, you can achieve anything and by removing barriers, it enables people to achieve their true desires. This is a really rewarding part of my job.”

One of Kelly’s passions is sourcing new community-based activities for her residents to engage to give them a sense of belonging, freedom and purpose and to enhance their quality of life. This includes a new music group where the residents can interact with other members of the community over a shared love of music.

Through these activities, Kelly has helped to reduce social isolation and promote positive mental and physical wellbeing.

According to Springfield Residential Home’s manager Claire Taylor, who nominated Kelly for the award, nothing is ever too much trouble for the social care worker, and she will often come in on her days off to take part in activities she knows the residents enjoy.

“I’m so proud of her, I can’t think of anyone who deserves it more,” she said.

“She takes everything in her stride and just embraces her day and is amazing with the residents. There’s not a single shift where she doesn’t give it her all.”

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 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 front line heroes and heroines across our nation.

“If you don’t recognise 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.”