The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the way in which The Wilf Ward Family Trust operates. Many of the individuals who are supported by the Trust have underlying health conditions which has meant that our care homes and many of our supported living services entered their own lock-down prior to that implemented by the government. We did this through discussion with colleagues and relatives and saw this as a necessary precaution to protect both our staff and the individuals we support from the devastating impact of the virus.
Since March 2020 we have followed and adapted the advice from the government, Public Health England, the Care Quality Commission and our Local Authority partners to ensure that we are supporting and protecting our staff and individuals we support as best as possible. To minimise the spread and impact of the Covid-19 virus the Trust has:
- Created, reviewed and followed a Pandemic Response Plan
- Closed its café Mr Wilf’s and its two holiday lets to the public until further notice
- Developed and continually updated a series of Covid-19 related policies and procedures
- Sourced and developed easy read documentation to explain the situation to the Individuals We Support
- Implemented a COVID-19 payment scheme for all staff to ensure that staff who have needed to take time off work and to self-isolate due to COVID-19 have been able to claim up to 14 days contractual pay
- Supported and remained in touch with staff who have been advised to medically shield
- Introduced new shift patterns for some offices to facilitate social distancing
- Continuously searched for and ordered supplies of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to help keep our staff safe
- Moved all meetings, staff recruitment, staff induction and training on-line to facilitate social distancing
- Arranged infection control training for all our staff
- Encouraged regular communications with relatives, health professionals and colleagues
- Used our Facebook page to highlight how our staff and the individuals we support have adapted to living with COVID-19
We continually have the situation under review and have begun to explore the lessons that we have learned so far during this pandemic. We have also been in touch with all relatives to offer them the opportunity to discuss the care and support their loved one has received during this pandemic and to discuss how we can ease out of lock-down. The Trust remains committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of its staff and the individuals we support, and we remain vigilant to the threat that is posed by the COVID-19 virus.
The Trust is very grateful to its staff, Individuals We Support, relatives and other key stakeholders for their support during this pandemic. We are especially grateful to all the individuals and organisations that have donated PPE, equipment and food during this challenging time. If you require any further information on our work or if you would like to know more about how we have adapted what we do over the past months please do get in touch at: communications@wilfward.org.uk
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