Ty Dol is a 12 bedded residential service, situated in Gorseinon, northwest of Swansea and provides specialist support for adults with learning disabilities and complex needs. The service comprises of 12 individual self-contained flats that also offer additional communal spaces, and a courtyard.
People living at Ty Dol are supported to develop their skills, and to increase their confidence in leading a life of their choosing by a skilled and professional team, which includes access to an onsite PBS practitioner. We interviewed the new Service Manager, Simon duMagnee, who has previously managed five Supported Living services in the Vale of Glamorgan for Achieve together.
Simon began his career in social care in 2001. He started as an Assistant Support Worker, progressing to a Manager in 2011. He joined Achieve together in 2019 and has completed QCF’s in Health and Social Care at levels 2, 3 and 5.
We asked Simon what it was that made him decide to pursue a career in social care: “I knew someone who was a support worker, and I attended a couple of events that were held by the organisation that they worked for and this peaked my interest”.
Simon shared with us his aspirations for the future: “Ty Dol is a new home so I am looking forward to picking a staff team to best meet the needs of the people we will be supporting; it is going to be rewarding seeing people moving into Ty Dol and seeing it become their home where they will learn new skills and overcome challenges, which will enable them to achieve their goals and aspirations.”
When asked about what he enjoys most about his job Simon said: “the best thing for me is seeing the people we support achieve their goals and aspiration. Nothing beats seeing the joy on their faces”.
It is clear that that Simon takes great pride in his job and is proud to have helped so many people lead happy and fulfilling lives. We asked Simon about his greatest achievement: “On a personal level I am very proud to have won The Manager of the Year Care At Home Award at the Surrey Care Awards in 2014. I was then lucky enough to also win the Manager of the Year at the Achieve together staff awards in 2019”.
On how he hopes the new service at Ty Dol will reflect our Values Simon said: “The home will empower the people we support to be at the centre of their support and to be encouraged to make decisions about all aspects of the support that they receive. We will encourage the staff team to think outside of the box and to have a ‘Can do attitude’ ”.
Outside of work Simon likes nothing more than watching the football, spending time with his family and enjoying walks along by the sea. Simon is really looking forward to seeing Ty Dol fully occupied, and working with the team to provide high quality care and support.
