{"id":3025,"date":"2024-03-28T20:05:41","date_gmt":"2024-03-28T20:05:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/?p=3025"},"modified":"2024-03-28T20:36:54","modified_gmt":"2024-03-28T20:36:54","slug":"our-easter-feature-25rw-isnt-your-average-mental-health-care","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/our-easter-feature-25rw-isnt-your-average-mental-health-care\/","title":{"rendered":"Our Easter Feature: 25RW Isn&#8217;t Your Average Mental Health Care"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"bsf_rt_marker\"><\/div><p data-sourcepos=\"3:1-3:347\">A bit of a chill in the air as I stand outside 25RW. The lawn&#8217;s neatly trimmed, not a blade out of place, and the front porch looks smart. Sunlight catches on those freshly cleaned windows, promising a bit of warmth inside. Even before I go in, there&#8217;s this feeling that this place has a purpose, like it&#8217;s ready to help folks find a fresh start.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"5:1-5:248\">The door opens, and it&#8217;s proper warm inside \u2013 not just the heating, but a welcoming feeling. This isn&#8217;t some sterile place, it&#8217;s a home, buzzing with life. I&#8217;m here for a story, but it&#8217;s clear the residents and staff have their own tales to tell.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"7:1-7:274\">Sitho, my guide, starts with a noticeboard. It&#8217;s all emergency contacts, little notes, reminders \u2013 the organised side that keeps things running smoothly. Upstairs, she explains, are the bedrooms. &#8220;Five of them,&#8221; she says. &#8220;Four up, one down, each floor with its own bathroom.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"9:1-9:322\">The kitchen downstairs is where the action is. Cupboards labelled with the residents&#8217; names, their favourite foods tucked inside. Even the fridges and freezers are personalised. &#8220;They enjoy cooking,&#8221; Sitho says. A telly on the wall showing a cooking programme, hinting that this lot share a passion for a good meal.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"11:1-11:269\">There&#8217;s a surprise off the kitchen \u2013 a fifth bedroom, with access to both the kitchen and a massive backyard. They&#8217;ve put in a clothesline for one resident who loves doing the laundry. Little touch, but shows you this place is about the individuals, not just a group.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"13:1-13:232\">Back in the staff office, I meet Antoinette and Koly, such a kind pair. Later, the Mental Health Deputy Manager pops in, and you can tell he&#8217;s proud of his team. By the window, I spy an award: Special Recognition Award for 25RW.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"15:1-15:120\">&#8220;We cover for each other, sort things out as they happen,&#8221; Koly tells me. &#8220;It&#8217;s about being there for the clients, isn&#8217;t it?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"17:1-17:206\">Turns out, that award&#8217;s well-deserved. The Deputy Manager tells me how busy they&#8217;ve been, the way the staff handled everything with care and a smile. This team, they live up to that recognition every day.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"19:1-19:175\">&#8220;We know each resident&#8217;s routine, how they like their meds,&#8221; explains Antoinette. &#8220;It&#8217;s about respect, letting them do what they can for themselves, while we keep them safe.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"21:1-21:410\">We talk about food, and Sitho, who&#8217;s clearly in charge, makes a good point. &#8220;It&#8217;s not just about eating,&#8221; she says, &#8220;It&#8217;s that feeling of &#8216;I can do this.&#8217; Simple things, like chopping tomatoes, matter loads when you&#8217;re facing mental health troubles.&#8221; They do risk assessments, of course, but focus on what the residents <em>can<\/em> do. One with difficulties has pre-sliced veg, and she&#8217;s beaming over her cooking.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"23:1-23:185\">The message is clear &#8211; 25RW isn&#8217;t about fixing people, it&#8217;s about giving them the tools and the belief to build their best lives. That award? Proof that this team does it brilliantly.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"25:1-25:182\">&#8220;Trickiest bit is when they refuse their meds or appointments,&#8221; says Antoinette, a bit of worry in her voice. &#8220;We explain why it matters, but in the end, it&#8217;s their choice to make.&#8221; The staff see the residents as folk on a journey, not broken bits. They work with them, not dictate to them.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"29:1-29:200\">Conversation flows like tea here, the clients sharing stories that paint the picture. &#8220;They open up to us, about their lives, their dreams&#8221; Koly reveals. It&#8217;s more than a job, this \u2013 it&#8217;s a community.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"31:1-31:184\">25RW, and Queensway Homes as a whole, have got a proper ethos: making clients feel understood, valued, and able. For anyone touched by mental health struggles, this is a hopeful place.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"33:1-33:182\">Whether you&#8217;re looking for help, or wish to experience a new environment for your care journey. At Queensway Homes, it&#8217;s more than care; it&#8217;s empowering lives, one person at a time.<\/p>\n<p data-sourcepos=\"35:1-35:137\">Come see the warmth, the care, at 25RW. Every little detail is about love, and every chat is a step towards independence and happiness.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A bit of a chill in the air as I stand outside 25RW. The lawn&#8217;s neatly trimmed, not a blade out of place, and the front porch looks smart. Sunlight catches on those freshly cleaned windows, promising a bit of warmth inside. Even before I go in, there&#8217;s this feeling that this place has a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3027,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45,25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3025","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-newsletter"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3025","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3025"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3025\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3030,"href":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3025\/revisions\/3030"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3027"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3025"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3025"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.queenswayhomes.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3025"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}