Mother of three Diane has always been open to sharing her home with others. From running a bed and breakfast in Whitley Bay to becoming a full-time shared lives carer, there’s rarely been a quiet moment.
Diane has a large family and when her kids got older, she realised she still had space to care for more people and became a foster carer.
Following the arrival of her grandchildren she knew she was ready to take a step back from fostering but didn’t want to give up her love for helping others.
That’s when she made the move into shared lives caring, and she hasn’t looked back.
Diane now has two long term placements who live with her, and she welcomes other residents throughout the year for respite.
It’s a career she says has ‘completely enhanced her life’ and something that she wishes she had known about earlier. When asked about what makes it so special, Diane said: “Supporting the clients that live with me have meaningful and fulfilling lives, seeing them develop, gain confidence and enjoy many new experiences is so rewarding.”
What life’s like in Dianes home...
Diane has two long term placements at the moment, Daniel and Jackie. Daniel is very sociable and spends a lot of his time out with his friends or at groups.
57-year-old Jackie moved in with Diane five years ago following the sad passing of her mother, father and sister.
When Jackie first came to her placement she didn’t leave the house, she wouldn’t travel on transport and liked to spend all of her time in the comfort of her home.
Five years later, her favourite things to do are visit places like York and Scarborough for the day or jet off to her favourite place, Tenerife.
Diane has built a fantastic bond with Jackie and has supported her to completely transform her life by building her confidence and helping her to experience new things.
Jackie told us that she knew she couldn’t have managed to live on her own and now she loves living with Diane.
Jackie has become a part of Dianes family and loves to spend time with her children, grandchildren and of course, their pets. Diane told us:
“She met some of my grandchildren at just a day old, now they run around and always ask where she is. They love her.”
While there favourite thing to do is spending the evenings on the sofa watching the soaps or the latest shows, they have time alone too.
Diane said: “I always cook tea, so we spend time together eating our meals with Daniel too, then we’ll both sit down on the sofa for the soaps because we love them.
“If the weathers nice, we’ll have a sit in the garden and relax or Jackie likes to spend time colouring in as she finds it relaxing.
“After a bit of time together, Jackie heads up to her room for her nightly routine of painting her nails and watching shows like The Chase – she loves it.
“That’s when I get my time, I’ll stay downstairs for an hour or so to allow them to get settled in their rooms and check that everything is okay before I head up myself.”
Often they’ll have other residents in for respite breaks too where they spend a week or two living with Diane, Daniel and Jackie.
Jackie takes a leading role in helping them to settle in, and they often spend the week enjoying the new company.
Diane’s advice for anyone considering becoming a Shared Lives Carer..
Diane told us how it doesn’t feel like a job to her. She see’s those who she supports as a key part of her everyday life.
When asked what she thinks makes a good carer she said: “I think it’s just my personality, I am chatty and love company and looking after people. I’ve always been very open and caring and that’s what I think is important.
“It can be tiring and everyone has their moments, but I love it and I get a lot of support from the Shared Lives team when I need it. They’re only a small team, but they’re always on hand if I need anything – whether it’s just someone to talk to for advice or for them to come out and help.”
North Tyneside Council is looking for more residents to open their homes as Shared Lives Carers.
The service received a ‘good’ rating from CQC earlier this year and was rated ‘outstanding’ under the caring category in the glowing report.
If you’re interested in becoming a Shared Lives Carer, please contact Martin McGregor on 0191 643 5241 or email martin.mcgregor@northtyneside.gov.uk