Swinton care home hailed as ‘heroes’

A Salford care home which supports people living with dementia has been voted the winner of Salix Homes’ annual Springboard Heroes Awards.

The Fountains in Swinton are this year’s winner of the coveted award organised by Salix Homes to recognise community groups and initiatives that are making a difference in our neighbourhoods.

Someone is diagnosed with dementia every three minutes, and symptoms include memory loss, confusion and for some, forgetting their own loved ones.

The effects of the brain disorder can be devastating for the patients and their families, but The Fountains are raising much-needed funds to help make life a little easier for its residents.

Staff have been raising money to create a new sensory room and purchase empathy dolls for their dementia patients and say the £1,000 Springboard prize pot will help them on their way.

Shelley Hollorn, administrator at The Fountains, said: “We do as much as we can to provide activities for our patients, but our own fundraising can only go so far. This money from Springboard will help us to improve our care by helping to create a more stimulating environment for them.”

Sensory rooms have a proven positive effect on people suffering with dementia, as they allow them to safely explore all five senses by interacting with objects, lighting and textures, while empathy dolls have been found to bring real comfort to patients.

Shelley explained: “Dementia often causes people to feelisolated, frustrated, bored and unhappy as they start to lose understanding of the world around them.

“We’re going to use the award money to create an aquatic themed sensory room for our dementia residents. They really like watching the tropical fish swim around in their tanks, as they find them really calming. The residents will love their new room and that’s what it’s all about”.

The Fountains were one of four finalists in our Springboard Heroes Awards, with close to 1,000 votes cast by the public.

Sue Sutton, executive director of operations at Salix Homes, said: “The Springboard Heroes is our way of honouring some of the fantastic work that ordinary people in Salford are doing day in, day out; and it’s projects like these that make our communities so special.

“We’re incredibly proud of our Springboard grant programme, which has provided a lifeline for dozens of fantastic groups and projects, which are really making a difference in Salford.

“We’d like to say a huge congratulations to The Fountains who are very worthy winners of this year’s award. We had close to 1,000 votes cast, and while there can only be one winner, they’re all heroes in our eyes and we’re proud to support them all.”

Each of the runners-up, which includes Peel Park parkrun, Friends of Green Grosvenor Park and The Audacious Foundation will each receive £100.