Roar lands top award for helping our old folk
Caring organisation is honoured at Age Scotland Awards
22.03.2018 A health and wellbeing organisation that supports the elderly in Renfrewshire’s communities has picked up a national award.
Roar – Connections for Life has been acknowledged for helping older people combat loneliness and isolation.
Through its lunch clubs and various other groups and services, Roar helps ensure older people stay mobile and connected.
At the Age Scotland Awards, the team was presented with the charity’s Services for Older People Award.
Roar helps more than 1,000 people each year throughout Renfrewshire, with projects ranging from arts and film clubs to help with preventing falls.
Broadcaster Jackie Bird presented general manager Nicola Hanssen with the award at the Age Scotland annual conference in Glasgow on Tuesday.
Nicola works with more than 10 staff members and 160 volunteers to reach out to people at risk of isolation and help them stay mobile and participate in their communities.
The group was set up 10 years ago and is now a charity and social enterprise.
Nicola said: “Our mission now is to stay mobile and stay connected because you can’t possibly be as socially connected as you wish to be if you are not mobile and can’t leave your home.
“We have everything from art groups, film making groups and cinema groups to men’s groups and health and wellbeing lunch clubs.
“The main thing that people tell us is the companionship, the friendship, the somewhere to go – and that’s our volunteers and service users.
“We’re absolutely delighted to win the award. We’d like to help other parts of Scotland recognise that staying mobile and connected is not just a way of reducing hospital admissions but fundamentally a way of bringing a richness to older people’s lives.”
Service user Helena Pieraccini said she cannot fault the services on offer.
She said: “Coming here, I feel it’s brought me back to life again.”
Brian Sloan, chief executive of Age Scotland, said Nicola and her devoted team really are changing people’s lives for the better.
“It’s truly inspiring to see the difference that Roar’s staff and volunteers make in their community,” he said.
“The organisation does a fantastic job of bringing people together and helping them stay mentally and physically active. Projects such as Roar play a vital role in combatting loneliness and isolation, and can significantly improve people’s health and well-being.”