Care worker raises funds for clients to have post-lockdown party with sponsored head shave!

A support worker at a Wigan health facility lost all her locks in a bid to raise enough money to put on a spectacular event to mark the end of the coronavirus crisis.
Steph Buckley, a support worker at Berkley House mental health care unit, Wigan,  proudly shows off her new hairstyle after she was sponsored to have her head shaved to raise funds for residents to have a party after the Covid-19 lockdown has endedSteph Buckley, a support worker at Berkley House mental health care unit, Wigan,  proudly shows off her new hairstyle after she was sponsored to have her head shaved to raise funds for residents to have a party after the Covid-19 lockdown has ended
Steph Buckley, a support worker at Berkley House mental health care unit, Wigan, proudly shows off her new hairstyle after she was sponsored to have her head shaved to raise funds for residents to have a party after the Covid-19 lockdown has ended

Steph Buckley, who works at Berkeley House in Pemberton, has so far raised £750 after she sat in the barber’s chair and had her hair shaved off on Easter Monday.

The Ellesmere Road unit, which looks after people with learning disabilities, mental health conditions and acquired brain injuries, is hoping to throw a massive party for staff, residents and their families once the current lockdown and social distancing measures are able to be eased and the threat of Covid-19 has passed.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Steph is the second support worker to brave the shave as her colleague David Wheeler has already had his locks chopped.

Steph Buckley, a support worker at Berkley House mental health care unit, Wigan,  proudly shows off her new hairstyle after she was sponsored to have her head shaved to raise funds for residents to have a party after the Covid-19 lockdown has ended. Rebecca Murphy does the deed!Steph Buckley, a support worker at Berkley House mental health care unit, Wigan,  proudly shows off her new hairstyle after she was sponsored to have her head shaved to raise funds for residents to have a party after the Covid-19 lockdown has ended. Rebecca Murphy does the deed!
Steph Buckley, a support worker at Berkley House mental health care unit, Wigan, proudly shows off her new hairstyle after she was sponsored to have her head shaved to raise funds for residents to have a party after the Covid-19 lockdown has ended. Rebecca Murphy does the deed!

Between them the two employees have raised almost £1,000.

Staff say spirits remain high at Berkeley House although the coronavirus has meant major changes to usual routines, including employees having to wear scrubs and masks and all visits by relatives being stopped.

Occupational therapist assistant Gemma Melling said: “We wanted to bring everyone together while maintaining social distancing. We set up a GoFundMe page and people have been commenting and getting involved, it’s a bit of a community event.

“When everything gets back to normal we want to get family members, service users and staff together so they can be reunited.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“We’re all trying to raise spirits and keep people in a positive mindset.”

Home manager Lindsay Green said the team looking after the 36 service users have been well supported by the company.

She said: “We got all our equipment very early on, we’ve had no issues at all. We’re very lucky.

“We’ve got the same concerns as any healthcare provider but our priority is the safety of our patients and reducing the risk for them.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“It’s been hard for some of them to understand why they can’t see loved ones but we’ve kept those links with Skype and by sending letters and photos.

“The head shave was a very off-the-cuff remark with someone saying about shaving their head with the barbers’ not being open. We all said we would sponsor him and it escalated from there.”

A message from the Editorial Director, Gillian Parkinson:

Thank you for reading this story on our website.

But I also have an urgent plea to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality local news on this free-to-read site and in print, please purchase a copy of our newspaper as well.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on our town centres and many of our valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you buying a copy when you pop out for your essential shop or subscribing for delivery.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Our journalists are highly trained by the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards anywhere in the world. Our content is universally trusted - as all independent research proves.

As Baroness Barran said in a House of Lords debate this week on the importance of journalists: "Not only are they a trusted source of facts, but they will have a role to play in rallying communities and getting the message across about how we can keep ourselves and our families safe, and protect our NHS. Undoubtedly, they have a critical role."

But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis. In return we will continue to forensically cover the local news - not only the impact of the virus but all the positive and uplifting news happening in these dark days.

We thank all our readers and advertisers for their understanding and support - and we wish YOU all the best in the coming weeks. Keep safe, and follow the Government advice. Thank you.

HOW TO SUBSCRIBE:

You can subscribe for delivery by contacting us at [email protected] or calling us on 0330 4033004 for details of a participating newsagent near you.

Related topics: