Through the hospital, Barbara was referred to Care & Repair and caseworker Christine Beadsworth went to visit her and saw straight away the problems being faced. She said: \u201cWhen I saw the condition of the windows and doors, I wondered how our funds would ever cover the cost of the work on that scale. I could see how concerned she was about them, as they were letting in extreme weather and were a security risk. The front single pane window was almost falling out!\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara lives in a 1960s dormer bungalow, which was in a very poor, dilapidated condition. Barbara said: \u201cWhen it snowed and there was wind, the snow used to come in through the back door. The window I had in the front lounge was old and not in a good state, I was worried when my grandson was here in case he went through it. It was dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n
Care & Repair arranged the removal and replacement of three disintegrated wooden windows, and a front and back door, which were a security risk and letting in the cold and damp.<\/p>\n
Christine got quotes for the work and investigated what grants were available to help. She said: \u201cWhen the quote came through, it exceeded our normal resources by a long way. However, after some advice and much juggling, I was able to piece various grants together. I ended up covering a window by one grant, one and a half doors by another, until it was finally all funded by 7 grants!\u201d<\/p>\n
The state of Barbara\u2019s home was only going to make her health worse, so securing the home and eliminating draughts was important. Barbara explained: \u201cI had an old gas fire and an open chimney. I feel much better now that\u2019s been taken and away and boarded up \u2013 there\u2019s no draught coming there any more. I have arthritis, so being warm is a good thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The work is ongoing, and Barbara still needs the conservatory demolished, and her bathroom changed to a wet room, as her mobility is not as good as it used to be. Christine explains: \u201cI referred the bathroom to our occupational therapist and Barbara will be having a level access shower, including a full bathroom upgrade. Because I was able to maximise her incomes, she has been able to purchase a riser recliner chair and may be able to fund some decluttering, which might be our next project. We are still in touch after 18 months of work in progress.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Caseworker role is vital and incredibly rewarding for Christine, she said: \u201cEvery day I feel satisfaction for what I have achieved and the privileged role I have as a caseworker. I enjoy providing tangible and emotional support to our clients and their carers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara now has a much warmer and safer home. \u201cI feel more secure now the work has been done. They\u2019ve done a great job, and always cleared up any mess they made. I had nothing to clean up after them.\u201d Barbara said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
#Welsh coming soon.# Barbara\u2019s home, near Bridgend, had rotting windows, a dangerous gas fire and a conservatory that needed to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":1034,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1033","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n