Staff at Wrexham care home and founder of inclusion focused football club honoured at national awards

Staff at a local care home and the founder of an inclusion focussed football club in Wrexham have been celebrated for their “inspirational” work during the coronavirus pandemic.

The St David’s Awards, now in its eighth year is a chance to acknowledge the extraordinary achievements of people in or from Wales and recognise the great deeds and contributions made by people from all walks of life, during an exceptionally difficult year we have faced.

Staff at the Cherry Tree Care Home, based in Coedpoeth, were crowned the winners of Critical Worker award at a virtual ceremony earlier this week.

Orchard Care Group’s homes stopped visits early on as a coronavirus precaution but realised that there was always the risk of staff going home and bringing it back in.

This led to the brave and selfless decision taken which saw staff saying goodbye to their families and locking down in the home with residents for nine weeks.

Care home owner, Dave Atkins said: “Because we had a few residents we were particularly concerned about we knew that we couldn’t take any chances.

“We are so proud of our amazing staff for making such a difficult decision and helping in this kind and selfless way.

“We did everything we could to make it as comfortable as possible for them and thank them properly but it must have been so difficult to be away from their families for so long and we really appreciate what they have done for our residents.

“This award is for them and their families.”

Cllr Joan Lowe Lead Member for Adult Social Care on Wrexham Council said: “It’s a well deserved award for all of the staff that have gone above and beyond in the most amazing way.

“The carers went above and beyond to protect others, sacrificing their time with their own families to provide reassurance to those in their care and to reduce the risk of infection.”

Delwyn Derrick, the founder of Bellevue Football in North-east Wales – a multi-ethnic and inclusion focussed football club, won the Culture and Sport award,

Delwyn uses sport to bring people from diverse backgrounds together, including refugees, asylum seekers and those people with mental health issues or learning difficulties.

Speaking at the virtual event, the First Minister said: “This year’s St David Awards finalists are an inspiring group of people that we are lucky to have living and working in Wales.

“The past year has been incredibly challenging time. The coronavirus pandemic has brought much sadness and heartbreak – but it has also brought out the best in many people.

“The winners tonight are just a small proportion of those who have gone above and beyond the call of duty and are a true inspiration to us all.”

The First Minister also announced that Professor Keshav Singhal MBE as the recipient of the First Minister’s Special Award.

Professor Singhal is the Chair of the Covid-19 Risk Assessment group, established at the start of the Coronavirus outbreak, which led to the development of the All-Wales Covid-19 Risk Assessment tool.

The list of winners of the St David Awards are:

Bravery: John Rees, Lisa Way and Ayette Bounouri
Business: Little Inspirations
Community Spirit: Denbighshire Dial a Ride
Critical Worker: Cartref Gofal Cherry Tree/ Cherry Tree Care Home
Culture and Sport: Delwyn Derrick
Humanitarian: John Puzey
Innovation, Science and Technology: SBRI/ Welsh Ambulance Service Trust
Young Person: Molly Fenton – Love Your Period campaign
First Minister’s Special Award: Professor Keshav Singhal MBE