26th January 2024 was National Activities Professionals day, so what better way to celebrate than to hear about what our activity professionals, me (Emily), Tom and Beccy love the most about our job, which activity we enjoy the most and why we feel like it is the best job in the world.
Tom Morris
What’s not to love about working at Pennine Mencap! As one of the activity coordinators,I get the opportunity to lead and get involved in a variety of fun and accessible activities! From Monday morning dancercise to Tuesday Creativity Club, Wednesday social, Thursday Drama to Friday Cook Along, it’s a week jam packed with laughing, singing and being creative with the best bunch of service users and colleagues! If I had to choose one session that I love more than anything, it has to be The Rhodes Bank Choir! Not only are they an amazing bunch of service users to work with, but their talent oozes out of everything the put their heart into! Over the last ten months, that I’ve worked at Pennine Mencap, I have seen the choir grow and learn each week. We looked at vocal technique, vocal health, warmups, new rep, recorded in a recording studio and performed all over Greater Manchester! When people ask me why I love my job, the answer is easy! It’s the smiles on the faces of the service users, it’s the pride they feel for themselves when they’ve achieved something they didn’t think possible. People like to label people with learning disabilities, but I absolutely love smashing those preconceived ideas every day! Our service users are amazing! They take things in their stride, no matter how difficult and I am proud to play a role in helping them explore the world through a creative Lense at their own pace!
Emily Trelore
I have worked for Pennine Mencap since July 2021. Previous to this I worked within funeral care, very different I know! Throughout my life I have always had a passion for anything that allows me to express myself, especially through dance. I have danced since I was very young, starting with disco and rock n roll, and then moving on to Ballroom and Latin dancing and competing around the country. I love playing with the choreography of different styles of dance, in performing arts and dancercise and adapting it to make it accessible for our service users, without making it to easy. I like to challenge them as I know that they are more than capable of achieving it. I don’t think there is any other job in the world that would allow me to laugh every day, be creative and feel so proud about the work I do.
Beccy Gittings
I always say I have the best job in the world because who else can say they spend their Monday mornings dancing and Wednesday afternoons doing karaoke and playing bingo. There really is never a dull moment. But the thing that makes it the most fun is the people and the sense of community we have at Pennine Mencap. In our activities, we're not afraid to be silly and we don't care what the outside world thinks. We celebrate the big wins as well as the small. I love helping people but my favorite thing is seeing the people I've helped learn to help others too. I can't imagine doing any other job but then it doesn't feel like a job at all. It feels like meeting up with your friends to have fun everyday.
Emily Trelore, Beccy Gittings and Tom Morris. 29th Jan 2024
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