North and South Sefton Care Home Group Conference – declared a resounding success for the care sector!

Picture : Joanne Dawson and Joanne Cunningham who organised the conference day

What an incredible launch event! Wednesday 25th September saw the inaugural conference of the North and South Sefton Care Home Group for Sefton’s Care Home managers and owners. Launched within the magnificent venue of the Atkinson Centre in Southport and attended by 103 delegates it was deemed a fabulous start by the founder and chair Jonathan Cunningham MBE. Jonathan said ‘I didn’t expect so many care managers to attend. Today has demonstrated that this group has a bright future. This is the only independent forum for care homes across both North and South Sefton. Launched to provide a common voice for the social care sector it has already demonstrated that working in joint collaboration is the only way ahead. All care homes need to be part of the group.’

The event saw an impressive line-up of 11 care sector related speakers including Care Quality Commission, Skills for Care, the Clinical Commissioning Group, Southport and Ormskirk Hospital, NHSi, Public Health England, Northwest Ambulance Service and Sefton Council who announced available grants for dementia related improvements for care homes. A presentation on BREXIT and the preparations that care homes should be making for a no deal BREXIT was delivered by Sefton Council Social Care lead Deborah Butcher. The message from the whole day was clear, care homes must work in collaboration to ensure they deliver higher quality care for their residents. Jonathan reminded the group of the three ‘c’s that the group represented; Care for our residents – Connect with each other and Collaborate with our wider care partners. CQC reinforced the message that it was those care homes that chose not to engage with this care forum was where their concerns would rest. All care homes should make genuine efforts to attend and be part of this group.

Sefton Care Homes wishing to join the North and South Sefton Care Home Group to contact Jonathan Cunningham on jonathan@birkdalepark.co.uk to be added to the mailing list. Next event is the Registered Managers Forum on 11th Dec ‪1000-1230‬ hrs (Venue TBC).