Matron named as award finalist

The manager of The Cedars Care Home in Bourne Helen Brewster has been named as a finalist for the Lifetime Achievement Award in the National Care Awards 2017.

The award will be made to an exceptional person who has committed a significant portion of their life to working in a care home or in care and has made a substantial difference to the quality of life of the people they have worked with.

Helen has been the home manager for more than 21 years and is proud of her background as a nurse.

Helen said: “I am flattered to have been nominated and then to be named as a finalist for this Lifetime Achievement Award, but any award really should be for the whole team here and what really matters and makes the job so rewarding is the relationships we have with our residents and families, the support we have from them and the wider community and the lovely comments we get.”

The Care Quality Commission rates The Cedars as good overall and good against all of its core inspection themes of being safe, caring, providing effective care, being responsive to residents’ needs and being well-led.

The Cedars is one of the most recommended care homes in the region according to carehome.co.uk and under Helen’s management, the home achieved accreditation for the Gold Standards Framework, which is a quality assurance system for giving people the best experience.

The Cedars has also been awarded The Beacon status, which is the highest award in the Gold Standards Framework programme, and works with hospices to create an end of life care pathway.

It has a long association with local charities and support groups and has previously received a Dementia Friendly Community Award.

The Cedars is run by care group brighterkind and Kerry Angeloni, regional support manager, said: “Helen is a dedicated person who cares deeply about the people living in the home, their relatives and the care team. She leads by example and in return receives enormous commitment from the team in the home.”

Helen will find out if she’s won at a ceremony in November.