Taunton Care Home Resident Celebrates 102nd Birthday During Restricted Visiting

A resident at The Willow reablement unit at Oake Meadows care home in Taunton has celebrated her 102nd birthday in style despite restricted visiting at the home.
Maud Tearls is a former factory worker at a factory which made ammunition shells during the Second World War. She joined the Oake Meadows family on 14 April, just in time to celebrate her birthday on 23 April.

To celebrate her special day, the home gave Maude a bunch of flowers, a balloon and sang happy birthday whilst presenting her with a birthday cake, as well as lots of cards from family and friends. Maud also FaceTimed her son, daughter in law and granddaughter and spoke with her daughter over the phone.

When asked about her secret to a long life, Maud said: “good, clean living, that’s what I always tell them.”

Katrina Ball, home manager at Oake Meadows, said: “Maud is a lovely lady and we’re lucky to have her company at Oake Meadows. We hope she enjoyed celebrating her special day as much as she could!”

Ombudsman Issues Guidance to Councils and Care Providers

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has today (Monday) issued guidance to those working for local authorities and care providers about good administrative practice and handling complaints during the Covid-19 crisis.

Available on the Ombudsman’s website, the guidance sets out the basic principles the Ombudsman expects organisations to use to underpin their work during this crisis. The Ombudsman will use these principles when it considers complaints about actions during the Covid-19 crisis.

Michael King, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said: “The new guidance is designed to act as a compass for local authorities and care providers, and I hope will provide reassurance about how they should be working during this crisis.
“While we recognise the unique pressures currently placed on councils and care providers, we still expect them to respond appropriately to any complaints during this time of national emergency.

“We understand their responses may look different to those we would normally expect, but councils and care providers should still pay close attention to urgent and serious public concerns.”
The Ombudsman suspended all casework activity that demands information from, or action by, local authorities and care providers in March to allow those organisations to concentrate on their response to the crisis. It is working with key stakeholders to monitor the situation and will reengage with councils, care providers and complainants when it becomes appropriate, and government guidance allows.