Phil Jameson is the son of Kim Clarke (who is a member of our housekeeping team). On the 3rd September he is swimming the full length of Windemere in the Lake District on behalf of our charity. Windermere is the longest lake in England – a huge 11 miles in length.

Phil says “I used to do triathlon events in my early 20’s but after a few years of little exercise due having a young family and Covid lockdowns I bit the bullet and entered an event which is a massive challenge for me. About 5 years ago I supported a swimmer who did the event by kayaking the 11 miles next to him and I was really inspired as there were all shapes and sizes doing the event and I thought I would love to try it. The swim distance is like running an ultra-marathon for 60 miles so it really will be a physical and mental challenge. Training has been going well and I have been able to train with my dad for some of it. We are triathlon coaches for our family business and we have helped support people in their own personal aims and now it’s my turn to follow a programme so that hopefully I turn up to the event in the best position for me. I am raising money for Charlotte Straker and Elswick Community Pool as they were hit by COVID and they are vital for their community and support some well deserving people.”

If you would like to support Phil in his long (and chilly!) challenge – please visit his JustGiving page https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/phil-jameson

– or you can email sally.urwin@charlottestraker.org.uk to organise a cash or postal donation.

We’re very grateful to Phil for deciding to fundraise for our charity – and we’ll be posting more information and updates on his training programme.

Despite the soaring temperatures, our residents and staff are keeping cool, helped by a visit from Tyne Valley Ices! We also made sure our regular “hydration station” was fully stocked with fresh fruit, juice, drinks, and iced water to ensure everyone kept their fluids topped up during the rocketing temperatures. We’re all looking forward to the cooler days, but rest assured we’re keeping a very close eye on everyone to make sure that all our residents keep healthy and safe during the heatwave.”

We have had two nursing students working with us as part of their second year nursing studies at the University of Northumbria.

Cassandra and Shukria were mentored by our registered nurses Angela Chisholm and Jackie Kellett and were given practical experience in caring for the elderly. Shukria alsochatted with residents as part of a reminiscent project to learn how about how their previous lives before our care home helps inform their current care.

Paul Storey, Practice Education Facilitator at Northumbria University commented, “I’m delighted that our second year nursing students are able to gain placements at Charlotte Straker Project. The students are able to learn from their very experienced nurses, and gain a true picture of what community care involves.”

Pam Crawley, our Registered Manager, added “we’re always keen to have nursing students join our team, as it’s a great way for our very knowledgeable nurses to pass on their knowledge to the next generation. It was great to see them interacting with our residents and leading the reminiscence sessions.”

Muriel told us that “I enjoyed chatting with Shukri and Cassandra. They’re so young! It’s nice to see different people”.

A dog from “Pets as Therapy” has started visiting our residents again, and everyone was overjoyed to meet Tarka and Carl (Tarka’s owner) last week. Tarka is a beautiful flat coated retriever and is very friendly and enjoys all the pats and strokes from our residents (and staff!) She visits everyone who wants to see her, and takes the time to have a chat and cuddle with each one. John B loves her visits and enjoyed reminiscing about his own dogs. Muriel said “she’s a beautiful dog. Thank you so much for bringing her in.” Thank you to Tarka and Carl for visiting us each week.