19 September 2014
Oakwell, in St Brelade has been extensively refurbished at a cost of £840,000. The home was officially re-opened by the Lieutenant-Governor of Jersey, General Sir John McColl, and Lady McColl at an event attended by children and young people who use the home, family members and Oakwell staff.
Oakwell Children’s Respite Centre offers short breaks and support to families where a child or children within that family has a severe mobility problem or profound and multiple learning difficulties.
Improvements
The improvements to the property, include:
- a new sensory room
- improved changing areas for the swimming pool
- a new wetroom, bathroom and kitchen
- improved lighting
- a re-landscaped garden
In addition, the whole building has been raised and is on a single level, with a new ramp from the car park making all rooms wheelchair accessible. All bedrooms at Oakwell now have:
- direct access to the garden
- their own wash basins
- tracking hoist
- nurse call system
- temperature control
- TV
- under-floor heating
Funding and donations
In addition to funding from the States of Jersey, a number of organisations have made significant donations to Oakwell:
- Variety Club of Jersey donated £50,000 to further develop the hydrotherapy pool
- Lions Club of Jersey donated £25,000 from the 2014 Swimarathon
- Moore-Stephens donated £5,000 which paid for the new powered shower bed
- small investments were also made by the community as a whole
Joanne Cowen, Service Lead for Children's Short Breaks, said: “Most children just want support to do ordinary things that other children can take for granted – like getting yourself dressed, choosing what you’d like to eat, going to the cinema or going swimming. We encourage all children to be as independent as possible and to enjoy their time away from home.”
Joanne added: “Oakwell has been a much-loved home which has been used by many families over the years. What the refurbishment has done is to bring the home up to date with modern standards and requirements. All key agencies have been consulted in this project – infection control, health and safety, fire safety, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, families, children and our staff, and the architect Andrew Harvey and his team has pulled this all together to give us all a modern facility whilst maintaining that home-from-home feel.”
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