Date published: July 20, 2022
Catherine Watchorn new Shared Lives Ambassador for Wales
Shared Lives Plus is delighted to welcome a new member to our team of Shared Lives Plus Ambassadors. Catherine is our first Ambassador from Wales and is looking forward to supporting our development work, promoting Shared Lives to commissioners, politicians, NHS and social care staff.
It is vital that the voices of people who are living a Shared Life are heard, so that their story is told first hand about what a good Shared Life is like. Catherine has lived with her Shared Lives carer Liz and Liz’s family for the last 13 years.
Catherine explained what was important to her, and what she would change about her own Shared Lives arrangement, and the first thing she said was “Don’t change a thing”.
“In this new role, I’d like to tell more people about Shared Lives so that others can have what I have here with Liz and her family. A lot of people I speak to have never heard of Shared Lives or don’t understand it.”
The role will mean Catherine will work alongside the Development team at Shared Lives Plus to raise awareness of this unique model of care, attending meetings and webinars, helping people to understand what a Shared Life is really like.
“I love living with Liz, my Shared Lives carer. Sometimes we do things together or by myself – like gardening, I’ve got a dog, so taking him for a walk, shopping, going to the beach, just normal things. I’ve talked to Welsh Government about Shared Lives. I really like living with Liz, she’s careful, funny and always there when I need her.”
““My Shared Life is perfect, I don’t want it to change. Liz is fantastic. I can do the things I enjoy and have freedom to live the life I choose, not be told I must go to bed at a certain time every night, eat at the same time each day. This is family life and it’s perfect””
Listen to Catherine in conversation with Shared Lives Plus Wales development manager, Kathryn Morgan.
