SHARED LIVES
Mary is a companion for me and it’s
the best thing I ever did. I’ve enriched
Mary’s life and she has enriched mine.”
‘I LOOK FORWARD TO IT’
Yvonne Lovell, of Greenford, is a respite
carer for Shared Lives. Two years
ago she was ‘matched’ with Geoffrey
Cottrell. Geoffrey has Asperger
syndrome which affects his ability to
interact socially. He is intelligent and
speaks five languages (as he proved
during our visit) and loves playing, and
winning, at dominoes – as you can see
in the picture.
He lives with full-time carers but stays
with Yvonne when they go on holiday.
He also goes to an organised activity
every weekday – and Yvonne looks
out for him twice a week when she
supports him at the Albert Dane Social
Group at Hanwell Community Centre.
Yvonne, who used to be a social
worker, said: “He looks forward to
coming to the community centre
because he is part of a group and he
gets so much out of it.”
Geoffrey loves playing dominoes
She is keen to point out the two-way
nature of the relationship.
“I think I may even get more out
of it than Geoffrey,” laughed Yvonne.
“I look forward to it. I am a people
person and empathetic so I enjoy the
one-on-one support I give and the
relationships I have built. All my
family know Geoffrey now.”
Councillor Hitesh Tailor, cabinet
member for health and adult services,
said: “There are many positives to caring
for an adult with learning disabilities, and
Shared Lives benefits everyone involved.
Carers, and those they support, all tell
us what a great difference it makes
to their lives, and it provides a good
alternative to residential care. Our
carers are critical to its success and we
are hoping to recruit more. I would
encourage anyone who is interested to
find out about the allowances, training
and support that we offer.”
MORE INFO
■
Visit www.ealing.gov.uk/
sharedlives
■
Call 020 8825 5436
■
Email [email protected]
Yvonne and Geoffrey
around ealing
Autumn 2014
27