An inclusive day trip for people we support

The people who live at The Coppice, FitzRoy’s residential care home in Cheshire, had a wonderful day out together at Southport, thanks to Charles, brother of Henrietta who is one of the residents.

Charles has always had lots of brilliant ideas for his sister and her fellow residents for day trips. Any trip requires meticulous planning and lots of thought, as the people supported at The Coppice have a wide variety of different needs and abilities. This time we chose to go to Southport beach, as it was something that people of all abilities could enjoy.

Seven residents along with Charles, his wife Sarah, and four members of staff, went out for a day of sunshine and sand. The tide was out at the beach, so everyone got onto the sand for a long walk to the shore. Some of the more able residents were able to walk on the sand and get their feet wet in the sea, and others could bask in the fresh sea air in their wheelchairs.

Gifty, one of the Support Workers who went on the trip, told us more.

Andy, who we support, is a wheelchair user and communicates by writing things down or using Makaton sign language. He started taking his feet off the foot plates of his wheelchair on the beach, so I asked in Makaton if he would like to feel the sand. He said yes, so we took his shoes off and poured sand over his feet. The smile on his face told us that he loved the sensory experience of feeling sand between his toes.

It was nice and sunny and it was great to see everyone with big smiles on their faces chatting and laughing together all day. When we got home everyone was tired from the long walk but feeling happy having had a brilliant day out.”

A wonderful story of staff and family members going the extra mile to plan the perfect day to cater to a wide range of needs. Well done to everyone involved for creating a memorable and inclusive experience.