This month we are delighted to showcase the charity Calvert Reconnections which is an offshoot of the 40 year old Lake District Calvert Trust, best known for providing great outdoor holidays for those with a disability.
Calvert Reconnections offering is very different but shares utilising the wonderful Lake District fells and countryside as part of a rehabilitation process for people with acquired brain injury.
At PLG we know how rehabilitation can be transformative for our clients so we are delighted to hear about this truly innovative centre. We have spoken with the Chair of the Trustees, Bill Braithwaite QC who explains the need for a centre such as Calvert Reconnections.
In a recent poll, 89% of senior brain injury solicitors believed that rehabilitation standards have dropped as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, with 92% saying that brain injury rehabilitation is going to be more reliant than ever on the private and charitable sectors. So we know that the need is there.
Calvert Reconnections has adapted a lovely, old, listed barn on the outskirts of Keswick in the glorious Lake District, to provide ten bedrooms, all with their own bathroom facilities, together with lovely social space and many surrounding areas designed to allow for privacy where necessary. There are specialist riding stables for the disabled next door to the brain injury unit, and wonderful activity facilities nearby, including on Ullswater Lake. As Bill says, Everyone who comes here, just loves it!
Calvert Reconnections offer a package of brain injury rehabilitation which is based on a huge range of outdoor, and some indoor, activities including sailing, canoeing, abseiling, climbing (indoors and out), walking, fishing. The rehab is centred round whatever activity suits each individual, and of course varies during their stay. Central to all activities is the concept of brain injury rehabilitation, and the centre has a comprehensive team of therapists, and qualified rehabilitation coaches with specific brain injury training. The essence of the rehab is that each activity involves many different aspects of brain functioning, from getting out of bed to managing the morning routine, planning the activity and what is needed for it (eg clothes, equipment, food), and then taking part with many others so learning to interact, manage temper, emotional lability and frustration. All of this is designed to enable the participants to function to their best level in the real world, as distinct from theoretical application of therapies.
The Calvert Reconnections Building. The residential centre itself is located around 10- 15 minutes walk from the small market town of Keswick, providing local shops and facilities. Watch the video tour by clicking the image above.
The lockdowns have been an even greater nightmare for brain injured families than they have been for everyone else, and many of people are now desperate for some form of respite, whether that is a full rehabilitation service, or a shorter period away from home to allow family and carers a break. And we know that post Covid there is still a need to maintain some social distancing which can be achieved more readily in the great outdoors and without any apparent impact on enjoyment.
The impact of Covid has been difficult for centres such as Calvert Reconnections and they now need to fill their placements as we all recover from the pandemic. Their unique offering is something that we here at PLG celebrate as it really does offer an exciting and therapeutic approach to much sought after rehabilitation.
Read more about ‘Calvert Reconnections ‘ by clicking here (https://calvertreconnections.org.uk/)
https://plg.uk/projects/