Social care services in Wales are established on principles that focus on empowering us all as citizens to live the lives that matter to us.
That means making sure we have a voice and control, and that services work with us to respond to our, or our family’s, care and support needs.
To do this well, it means we need to support everyone to be able to communicate what matters to them.
We recently published two guides to support people who work with or care for people with dementia or learning disabilities that offer simple steps to help people communicate what they want, need and enjoy in life.
The guides are part of a group of resources we’ve created to help people working in social work and social care make sure people who use care and support are at the centre of the decisions made about their lives.
They help people feel heard, respected and understood, and help care professionals and unpaid carers provide better support that’s tailored to every person’s life, wishes and concerns.
Being able to access care and support in your own language is essential to giving people voice and control over the support they receive and to understanding what matters for people.
Some of our colleagues recently went to film two services in north Wales that have been learning Welsh to better support the people they care for.
The team visited Haulfryn Care, a care home near Mold, which looks after older people with dementia.
The home has five residents whose first language is Welsh, so the home’s staff have been working with us and a Welsh language tutor over the past 18 months to learn Welsh to better communicate with the residents.
The team also went to Elm in Denbighshire, a residential centre for young people with severely complex learning disabilities – two of whom come from Welsh speaking backgrounds.
Less than two years ago, only two of members of staff spoke Welsh, but now, after working with our Welsh language tutor, 83 per cent have Welsh language skills.
It’s a phenomenal achievement in such as short space of time and it’s had a hugely positive impact on the young people they support.
Social workers and social care workers will continue to focus on people’s strengths and skills, acknowledging they’re the experts in their own lives.
Care and support services are there to help keep people safe and improve their well-being by achieving the things that matter to them.