Suffer in silence

One of our customers who said she would be “heart-broken” if an activity-based community day centre closed certainly didn’t suffer in silence in her own personal bid to keep it running.

That’s because Lesley Gibson raised over £200 after doing a 24-hour silence in aid of the Caremark Redcar and Cleveland ‘Safe Place’ initiative.

Lesley, who receives homecare from Caremark and is a regular visit to Safe Place, decided to take action after learning that service was under threat due to rising costs related to running it.

Safe Place is a not-for-profit service and even though there is funding from the local authority, with factors like an increase in the national living wage, it is starting to cost Caremark money to keep going.

Safe Place is a weekly social event held on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at Redcar Football Club for people who would benefit from activity-led, social interaction. The aim is to provide people with an opportunity to leave their home for a few hours to meet new people and hopefully make some new friends.

Lesley volunteers at Safe Place, assisting a dedicated Caremark team to put on a range of activities, including games, crafting, cookery and exercise. Caremark’s therapy dogs also visit regularly, along with other creatures all great and small, including a duck called Flappy.

Part of Lesley’s 24-hour silent marathon happened when she was at Safe Place and so she used the Makaton sign language she has learned to communicate with staff and customers.

Lesley, who lives in Redcar, said: “Safe Place gets me out every week and I would be heart-broken if it had to close, so I just knew I had to do my own bit to help.

“People who know me know being silent isn’t easy, but I was determined to do it and the Makaton definitely came in handy.

“I was overwhelmed by the donations made by staff and people who use Safe Place and I would like to thank everyone for their support.”

Oriana Wilcox, who leads the team which deliver sessions at the Safe Place, said: “We are thrilled that Lesley raised so much money for Safe Place.

“Her help as a volunteer is invaluable and both the staff and customers who attend Safe Place are grateful for everything she does to support the service.”