Making a difference – local care home residents volunteer at Poole homeless charity

The team and residents from a local care home have gone above and beyond to help Poole’s vulnerable people. 

The Care UK team and residents at The Potteries, on York Road, organised a visit to local charity, Routes to Roots, in Poole, and helped provide lunch to 30 homeless people. 

Routes to Roots assists adults who are rough sleeping, vulnerably housed (sofa surfers or B&B guests) and newly housed (formerly homeless). They offer access to many services, including the Poole addictions team and mental health professionals, as well as housing advisors at five drop-in locations. The charity also provides basic necessities including showers, hot food, clothing, and sleeping bags.

After conversations in the home about the current cost-of-living crisis, the residents and Care UK team decided they wanted to do something to help their local community. After plenty of research they found the Routes to Roots charity and were keen to help. 

Residents, Christine Edwards and Sheila La Riviere, Joanne Da Silva and Kerry Pope from The Potteries Lifestyle team, volunteered for a whole day. The residents cooked and served pasta bolognese and apple crumble to over 30 homeless and vulnerable people of Poole.

Christine said: “I really enjoyed my time volunteering, and I would love to be able to help again at the centre. It made us realise how lucky we are to have a nice warm home to go back to.” 

Zita Turner, Home Manager at The Potteries, added: “We are always looking at ways to get involved and support the local community.

 

“When the residents and team found out about the support Routes to Roots offers homeless people living in Poole, we knew we could help.

“Christine and Sheila had a really great day helping cook lunch for over 30 homeless people. They both said the experience was eye-opening and we are already organising another visit to the shelter for later this year.”

The Potteries is a state-of-the-art care home which provides full-time residential, nursing and dementia care, as well as short-term respite care. Designed to enable residents to live enjoyable and fulfilling lives, boosts its very own cinema and hair salon. There is also plenty of space, both indoors and out, for relaxation and recreation. The home has a comprehensive activity programme, offering a mix of themed events and group activities.

To find out more about The Potteries, please call, Customer Relations Manager, Caroline Hearne, on 01202 069 835 or email caroline.hearne@careuk.com.

For more general information, please visit: careuk.com/the-potteries