Our call to care

There are currently over 170,000 families and individuals in the UK without a permanent home and many more at risk. Matt had his own short experience of being homeless and as a result he’s passionate about making homelessness a thing of the past. In this conversation he shares his perspective on how and why attitudes need to change, the impact of the digital divide and why caring for human connection lies at the heart of the partnership. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Becca is a single mum of two boys. She’s worked throughout lockdown at the local GP surgery and held things together at home despite having to lose a day’s work a week to look after her kids while the schools were closed. In this conversation we touch on just some of the things that have helped: resilience, humour, family and small but significant acts of care. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As part of her every day work as a therapist, Augusta's job is to enable human connection, often with people who may not always find it easy. She talks about how she approaches that aspect of her work, what it means to connect and how we can individually help to make it happen.http://www.augustaannesley.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Zoe, a Detective Sergeant in Wales and Susie, who works for Angus Women Aid in Scotland, both received phones and airtime from Tesco Mobile to help their organisations. They talk about the crucial role that phones give in helping victims to regain control and the critical need for connection in isolating times. What’s not surprising - given that their work includes supporting women and children who’ve become victims of domestic abuse - is that they’re both hugely experienced and compassionate people. What might come as a surprise is their resourcefulness, creativity, the source of their inspiration and their extraordinary optimism. See the YEG video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXIUXcyMLEw&t=4s Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anna leads regular sessions for the British Red Cross in London for young refugees in which they create a safe, welcoming space for young people to meet, talk and learn about how to succeed in adapting to their new life in the UK. Anna talks about the challenges these young people have faced to reach the UK, the importance of creativity when it comes to self-expression and how important connection is to develop confidence and skills.For the video mentioned: https://www.migrationmattersfestival.co.uk/2020/compass Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rob works with Addiction NI in Belfast - a harm reduction charity that supports people dependent on drugs and alcohol. Rob describes not just how the phones we’ve donated have made a difference, but his own personal journey too and the unique perspective it's given him when it comes to supporting people whose habits control their lives and reducing the stigma attached to addiction. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mental health is something that affects so many of us. Kirsty Bowker, from our customer care team, talks openly about why listening is such an important part of caring. She offers her own perspective on kindness, reveals who listened to her when she needed someone and shares how she gives herself the time and space to rejuvenate. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jon has been in isolation for seven weeks due to Covid-19. His response to being alone has been to connect people in his community to helpful local resources, to raise money and to help others who need it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Over these last weeks helping feed the nation has been an urgent call to care. When our Phone Shops temporarily closed, our colleagues stepped up to help in Tesco stores across the UK. Amanda Mclaren and Peter March were two of those colleagues. In conversation with Karl, they shared just some of their stories and perspectives. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If you enjoyed Kirsty's contribution to the Care Homes & Connection podcast and you want to hear the whole conversation between her and Karl, here it is. We talk about all kinds of things including hostage negotiation, why she turned up late for the Conference in February at the Roundhouse and a whole bunch of other stuff. One for any real fans of Kirsty.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.