Our Service User Council have the festive feeling

Service User Ambassadors at Exemplar Health Care act on behalf of the residents in their homes on the Service User Council. They meet every month and get involved with decisions impacting their life and the running of our homes.

This year our Service User Ambassadors had the opportunity to celebrate together for a festive Service User Council Christmas party. Since the pandemic started, this is the first face-to-face meeting for our Service User Council.

Rachel Calladine, Business Development Director shared, “After missing out on our Service User Council Christmas parties for the last two years due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, I was delighted to celebrate the start of Christmas with our Service User Ambassadors and colleagues last week.

“There was Christmas fun, sparkly outfits and laughter in abundance. I was lucky enough to spend time with every Service User Ambassador at some point during the day and everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves.”

At the event, our Service User Ambassadors were presented with certificates and a gift, including a stocking with their name on, to say a big thank you for their contributions during 2022.

The Council get involved in important decisions about how our homes are being run, company projects, giving feedback and identifying any areas that can be improved to support their wellbeing and quality of life.

The Council also lead on planning our company-wide competitions such as Exemplar’s Got Talent or season specific competitions. Whilst celebrating the festivities at their Christmas party this year, they also came together to decide which competitions and team events to hold in their homes across the 2023 calendar year.

One service user said, “This has been the best day, to actually be able to see other Service User Ambassadors face-to-face and catch up with them properly has been brilliant, we can’t wait to plan the next event”.

Hear from one of our Service User Ambassadors

Sue lives at Exemplar Health Care’s Eastlands care home in Nottinghamshire.

After moving into Eastlands following a severe fall at home, Sue became a Service User Ambassador because she wanted to help out and help others in her home.

She shared “I love this role and it adds to my sense of purpose and belonging.”

You can read Sue’s story or find out more about our service user engagement here.