Congratulations to our semi-finalists

Our fantastic mirus stars awards semi-finalists were hand picked from 151 nominations by a panel of judges.

Read the incredible reasons our semi-finalists were nominated.

You can read about our finalists by clicking this link.

TOGETHER

Alex West – person supported by mirus, Cardiff

This person received 4 nominations for representing and inspiring others.

They did a very important job representing people supported when they interviewed people for the Chief Executive position. They asked the candidates very good questions, and watched their presentation before giving feedback to the group.

Their input has made sure that the views of people supported were listened to when choosing someone to fill this very important role. They also stayed around after the day had finished to be in a film talking about their experience, which will inspire many more people to get involved in future.

They have become a representative for people supported in the area that they live in, and have been learning how to speak up for others. Their confidence has increased as they have become involved in lots of opportunities including; hosting the mirus stars awards, selecting mirus moments winners, taking part in interviews for lots of different job roles, speaking at important events with other organisations and featuring in lots of videos for mirus.

They have developed a whole range of skills over the last year; their communication skills, humour ability to interact with others and caring nature is evidence of how this person is fast becoming a positive role model for others.

Leslie Saunders – person supported by mirus, Cardiff

Before joining the social group they didn’t really like socialising and weren’t motivated to try new activities, and was quite shy especially around large groups of people. Since joining the social group, they have been to the theatre to watch a show, and enjoyed the experience so much, they are planning to attend another.

Every Monday the group meets for a meal in a restaurant around Cardiff, trying different cuisines and cultures, and now they are usually the first person to arrive!

This person’s health and wellbeing has greatly improved. They are more confident, enjoy socialising, experiencing new activities, are more independent, have met new people and are a real part of the group. The fact they enjoy the groups so much has encouraged their house mate to also start attending. His staff think they have a heart of gold and love working with them.

Adam Bartle – person supported by mirus, Bridgend

This person takes their role as a local rep for people in their area very seriously.

They feel that it is really important to speak up for other people as well as themselves, especially those who find it difficult to speak up. This person will make sure to cut through the jargon to make sure that things are easier for people to understand.

Craig Jones – person supported by mirus, Ystradgynlais

As rep for his local area this person is doing a great job of bringing together the people of their area.

As part of the panel for the CEO interviews they gave their time voluntarily to ensure that the views of the people we support were represented. They met and spoke to candidates for the important job and gave their honest feedback about them after.

They were a great representative for people we support, and their feedback has helped to ensure that we only consider people who share our values to work for mirus. They were courageous and stood up for what they thought was right.

RESPECTFUL

Sharon Badham – mirus staff member, Gwent

This person has worked at this service since it opened. They are always looking for new ideas to improve the quality of life of people supported. This person is the favourite staff member of the person they support, and because of this the person supported has much more confidence to try new things because they feel safe around them.

They regularly work extra hours to ensure that the people supported have a familiar face around. They are a fantastic role model for newer staff members or staff deployed from other houses and people feel reassured in their work because they are so confident and knowledgeable.

Amy McGee – mirus staff member, Brecon

This person only works one day a week but in that time they help me and my sister feel respected and important and encourage my sister to achieve so much.

They arranged a full day out to the Manor Park near Tenby. They drove for 2 hours and then supported my sister and another person all day, and even captured lots of pictures so we can look back on the wonderful day. They did not have to drive so far, they did it because they care and know what a difference a day out can make to us.

This person always ‘goes the extra mile’ when they are working. Never lets us down, they see the value in getting out and about not just sitting at home doing nothing. They also encourage my sister to clean up (with a little help) and ensures my sister does her weekly clothes washing and helps strip her bed. All of this they do with a great big smile. Nothing is too much trouble.

Kayleigh Sutherland – mirus staff member, Ceredigion

This person is always coming up with creative new ideas to better support people.  Although they are only work part time, they do so much in that time that they make a huge difference to the service they work in and the team.

They have created easy guides for the team to follow to make sure support is consistent. They have encouraged someone we support to get out more and be more involved with their own weekly tasks, something they hadn’t done for years – they are now doing more and more each week. People are doing more for themselves and being more independent and active.

This person also offers to support the managers when they need some extra help. They always complete any tasks given to them and will go above and beyond to support the manager and team. The team are working better together and providing great person-centred support.

Kelsey Flay – mirus staff member, Swansea

When a person supported became extremely unwell and had to go to A&E, this person remained with them all day, beyond the end of their shift. The person supported was anxious, and afraid, so this person stayed by their side to give them reassurance to help ease their fears.

This person made sure that the correct procedures were followed and that the right outside professionals were involved in order to meet the needs of the person supported. They took food and drinks and a change of clothing for the person supported.

They stayed in A&E for 10 hours until the person supported was transferred to a ward at 3am, where they felt more calm.

RESPONSIBLE

Rhys Lewis – person supported by mirus, Cardiff

This person recently had his birthday and has been very thoughtful – their only request for the day was to donate their birthday money to the Turkey & Syria Earthquake Appeal. They donated £20 which will go towards helping families and communities affected by the earthquake.

Michelle Masters – person supported by mirus, Cardiff

This person moved into a supported living service with mirus from a home environment and has handled the transition really well.

They now volunteer 5 days a week in 2 local charity shops and they are giving back to the community. The volunteer work has really widened their social circle, got them involved in their local community, and increased their confidence with engaging with members of the public.

Alison Aston – person supported by mirus, Swansea

This person is not used to letting go of things that they own, because they represent special memories and help them feel secure. However, inspired by recent office renovations, this person bagged up and donated some of their items to charity to help others.

Letting go can be hard, but this person has made a start because they have learned that our belongings don’t hold our memories, we do. You can donate objects, without losing what’s in your heart.

Todd Jouvenaar – person supported by mirus, Swansea

This person has started working with me doing gardening for people in the community. This person has been absolutely brilliant, and has turned up to work on time every day and has always put in 110%

Gardening for people in the community has given this person a greater sense of responsibility, and has put a smile on lots of people’s faces – including mine!

EMPOWERING

Mike Good – mirus staff member, Cardiff

This person is a support worker who took part in a number of meetings alongside senior managers and managers. They were brave and helped present the group work to the rest of the participants. They offered their opinions in a way that got them listened to.

This person then joined a small team of people who were tasked with making changes to mirus policies so that people we support can access their money more easily, by using pre-loaded cash cards. They shared their skill and experience and helped come up with great ideas of how things can work.

Because of them, people we support will now have a financial support plan and will have better access to their money and be able to more easily do the things that they love.

This person is a long-standing support worker of just over 25 years, which also should be celebrated. They continue to use their ‘can do’ attitude to and motivation to make good things happen for people we support.

Choi Tang – mirus staff member, Central Services

For some time now this person has been trying to juggle a lot of things – including large chunks of two roles that aren’t theirs! They are doing an absolutely amazing job.

When the previous manager left this person took over line manager responsibilities and learned a lot of new things so that they could understand and complete lots of extra tasks – all while pregnant!

They are always a fantastic team player, a support to the whole team and gets so much done – even by working on their days off and during the evenings. They are the funniest, and most kind person I know and they are always willing to help no matter how busy they are.

They keep the whole team functioning to a high standard and have really supported us to do our own jobs. It would be nice for this person to get recognition for being so dedicated and focused on what is best for the team by taking on responsibility for so many things over and above their role.

Julie Thomas – mirus staff member, Swansea

This person received 6 separate nominations.

This person is an amazing manager, and they have helped us in so many ways. They are always available to call with questions, no matter what time, have taught us loads and they always give us the confidence to do more.

They take the time to explain things to us, we always know what’s going on in the service and they make sure that we are included in everything. They are approachable and kind, and treat everyone with respect. This person even helps the team outside of work – including taking staff to their own hospital appointments!

This person makes us all feel important, and like we make a difference. They’ve really brought the team together. This person is enthusiastic about life and making sure that the people we support get to live their best lives – and their positive attitude has made the team feel the same.

Nella Pinocci – mirus staff member, Bridgend

This person supported someone to attend two CEO interviews to give valuable feedback on the candidates. They empowered the person supported to speak their mind, raise their concerns and give genuine feedback during the process.

They were clearly in tune with the thoughts and feelings of the person supported. It’s extremely courageous to put yourself and your feelings out there, but this person did it to ensure that the views and opinions of the people supported were heard and listened to.

The voice of the person supported and the supporter were both heard – and they had an impact and say in the CEO appointment.

COURAGEOUS

Stephanie Nevers – person supported by mirus, Cardiff

This person is very courageous and is a great ambassador for mirus, and always demonstrates mirus values.

They have attended mirus recruitment events, and received some amazing feedback – people were really impressed with how they interacted with everyone they met at the events. Being part of the recruitment process, has enabled this person to meet new people, take on new challenges and improved their confidence and wellbeing.

They are friendly, approachable, willingly share their knowledge and experiences and are always willing to help out. They have a positive impact on everyone they meet.

Louise Garvey – person supported by mirus, Neath Port Talbot

As a local representative for the local “Voice Choice and Control” group, this person was part of a panel of people we support who met with the CEO candidates and gave their honest feedback about them. Their feedback has helped to ensure that we only consider people who share our values to work for mirus. They were courageous and stood up for what they thought was right.

This person has achieved so much since being supported by mirus. They have done so well studying, going to a variety of groups within the community and have also done volunteering work.

This person finally has their independence back and achieved their goal of getting their own flat. They are an inspiration to all and I am very proud of them.

Andrew Pearce – person supported by mirus, Ceredigion

This person has dealt with losing their next of kin extremely well. They are now working on developing their skills to be able to do things for themselves and are stepping out of their comfort zone, even though they still feel a mixture of emotions.

Not having their next of kin to rely on, this person is learning to do things themselves and is learning to have more confidence in staff.

This person volunteers at a farm and their labouring skills along with their compassion and helpful attitude has made a huge difference to the two elderly people that they help at the farm. No job is too big of small for this person and they always go above and beyond for anyone in need.