Rochelle spends a day in the life of a Life Practitioner at Tigh Abaid

In our second instalment of the ‘Day in the life of’ series, where members of our Executive Team join teams from around the business to experience what it’s really like, George Allan and the team at Tigh Abaid welcomed Rochelle Dunkerley, People Director, for the day.

Here’s what Rochelle had to say about her experience…

On a very chilly morning in November, I arrived at Tigh Abaid to spend the day with the team there. I stepped into a very cosy home bustling with activity, and it was lovely to receive such a friendly welcome from the team. What was immediately evident was how strong the bonds were with each other and the people we support.

The team had prepared an action-packed day and I must admit I didn’t fully appreciate the lengths that our Life Practitioners go to when the children are in the school setting, so that the home is ready and welcoming for them when they finish at the end of the day.

The smell coming from the kitchen throughout the day was mouth-watering to say the least and when I popped my head around to see what was cooking I was delighted to see Mandy the cook taking so much care to prepare healthy meals for the different diets the Children have.

I spent a lot of time getting to know the team and some of the agency workers that were supporting at Tigh Abaid, too, which really got me thinking about how we can better support people who might be a bit apprehensive taking on the diploma. It’s something that colleagues in Children’s Services have to do as part of their role due to our regulatory requirements, but I’m a big believer that learning should be fun and accessible for everyone. What really opened my eyes was the challenges around having dedicated time to study towards the diploma and access to technology to do this.

The care of the young people at Tigh Abaid really impressed me and this is testament of the strong bonds the team have built with the people we support. For part of day I joined the team on the mini bus to and from school, and on the return journey one of the young people needed additional support with their transition and the team showed such empathy and calm. They really impressed me as they were very quickly able to support this young person.

After school it was time for messy play and, wow, was this fun. To set the scene, there were two huge containers, one filled with cornflakes and the other custard! As you can imagine the children absolutely loved this, what a wonderful way to spend an afternoon.

The whole day was fantastic, I really loved it and I’m proud of the team at Tigh Abaid and the connections they have built. It was such an insightful day and one of the key takeaways for me, alongside the diploma, was around how we can share what the job is really like more with the community so we can attract more people who want to build a career with us.

I’d love to come back and do the day all over again in the future, maybe next time I’ll pick a day when they are having an aromatherapy session, instead!

Rochelle