Jersey charities use art workshops to help residents plan for future care and support
Alex Spiceley went to meet some of the islanders taking part in the workshops.
Jersey Hospice Care and local charity Les Amis have come together for a new initiative which helps residents plan for their future care and support.
The project, called 'Non Barriers Here', uses arts-based methods, such as drawing and loom-making, to encourage conversations about things like medical treatments, funeral arrangements and how they'd like to be remembered.
By using colour, texture and symbolism, residents can make their personal wishes known and recorded.
Gail Edwards is Jersey Hospice Care Nurse Champion and says conversations like these are important: "We plan our holidays, we plan our finances, we plan what we'll do over the weekend but this is a scary subject so we stay away from it.
"It doesn't matter where we are, whether we're in good health, poor health, whether we have a learning disability, whether we've got a terminal illness - it doesn't matter - we should all be thinking about it and recording it."
The project started in Stourbridge in the UK during the Covid-19 pandemic and, if successful in Jersey, more workshops will take place throughout the year at Les Amis.
Alison Brolly is Les Amis' Registered Manager and says the project is proving popular: "For our residents, who have a range of care needs, the workshops empower them to talk about and understand a challenging topic, so they can make important decisions about their own care.
"It empowers our residents to have their choice and their say."