insideKENT Magazine Issue 68 - November 2017 | Page 177

SPECIALFEATURE SHEPWAY LIFELINE SHEPWAY LIFELINE HAS MORE THAN 6,500 CLIENTS ALL OVER THE COUNTY AND HAS BEEN HELPING THE PEOPLE OF KENT STAY SAFE FOR MORE THAN 30 YEARS. FOR PEOPLE WHO WISH TO RETAIN THEIR INDEPENDENCE, PEOPLE WHO HAVE TO WORK ALONE, OR PEOPLE WHO MAY FEEL VULNERABLE IN THEIR OWN HOME, THIS PERSONAL ALERT SYSTEM PROVIDES AN INSTANT LINK TO A 24-HOUR MONITORING CENTRE AT THE TOUCH OF A BUTTON. “If you fall, feel unwell, or are worried about your safety, all you have to do is press the button on your pendant or bracelet to be connected to an operator,” says Angela Vince, Lifeline’s control centre manager. “They will reassure you, alert a relative or friend, or summon emergency help. Lifeline will always be there to answer your call and is a service designed to give you and your family additional reassurance if you are living independently.” A new alarm has been added to the Lifeline family Footprint is the latest addition to Shepway Lifeline, but unlike the traditional alarm, which is designed to be used in your home or garden, Footprint has an almost unlimited radius and will work anywhere that has a UK or European mobile phone signal. This makes it ideal for active people, horse riders, walkers and cyclists. Footprint can be linked to a geographical boundary that will alert family members if the wearer strays beyond the set geographical ‘fence’. “I bought Footprint for my husband who has mild cognitive impairment, but it’s not just for him, it’s for all the family. Now, we all have peace of mind knowing he is safe,” says Janet Wilson, a Shepway Lifeline user. “He sometimes goes out without telling us and cannot always hear his mobile, but using Footprint we can contact the monitoring centre and track where he is, so we no longer panic every time he goes out.” If you would like to know more, or would like a free, no-obligation quote, please contact the Lifeline team. Shepway Lifeline Civic Centre Castle Hill Avenue Folkestone CT20 2QY 01303 242615 [email protected]. www.shepway.gov.uk/lifeline 177