A home care provider in Surrey has launched a new book of poems designed to support older people living in the community.
The teams working for Bluebird Care Guildford & Waverley and Bluebird Care Rushmoor & Surrey Heath wanted to recognise older people in the community facing isolation and loneliness. Loneliness has also been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, with lockdown and shielding guidelines for older and more vulnerable people.
The poems in the book were a result of a poetry competition. It was open to all ages and, initially, Bluebird Care was only going to select one winner. However, due to the quality and quantity of the poems submitted, they separated the results into age categories and selected four winners. They also gave a prize for special recognition.
Poems were written not only by Bluebird Care customers but also members of the community. The theme of the poetry book was ‘What Does Care Mean to You?’ and the poem book was handed out to all Bluebird Care customers in the region. Poems were written about caregiving, isolation, lockdown and giving thanks to our NHS, amongst other emotive and poignant topics.
Entrants to the poetry competition ranged from 9 years old to 94 years old. Winners included Amy, aged 9, 16-year-old Libby, 34-year-old Hannah Marie, 92-year-old Bill, and the special recognition prize was awarded to 94-year-old Peggie. The four winners each received a £20 Hobbycraft voucher and the special recognition prize was a £10 voucher.
Jade Grigg, Care Manager at Bluebird Care Guildford & Waverley and Bluebird Care Rushmoor & Surrey Heath said: “We were overwhelmed by the response from our community and the emotive content of the poems we received. We decided to extend the deadline as poems kept coming in and, in the end, we simply could not decide on one winner!
“We would like to extend our most heartfelt thanks to all that participated, you are all champions to us – you have expressed care for all of us who work in care and, in doing so, you have redefined what care is all about.”
