People living and working at Ty Dol have the summit of Snowdon in their sights for April 2025 – less than a year after taking up weekly walks. This impressive ambition is testament to the dedication of the Deputy Home Manager Corina and Practice Lead Laura, as well as the willingness of people they support to set and exceed goals.
Opened just two years ago, Ty Dol is a modern residential home of 12 self-contained flats. A committed and experienced team provides specialist support for adults with learning disabilities, mental health and additional complex needs. In January 2025 the home received a glowing report from CIW inspectors, rating the care Good in all areas.
The catalyst for taking up walking was when Sam, a person who moved to Ty Dol in May 2024, expressed an interest in seeing the waterfalls in the Brecon Beacons. However, in the same breath, she said: “…but it’s not for my sort of person.”
Making it happen
Like many people living at the house, Sam had little self-belief or confidence. Corina and Laura saw an opportunity to help Sam and her housemates open up with different conversations while walking. Not only would the walking be good for mental health, but it would also help with physical health and Sam’s wish to lose some weight.
The team were well aware of the benefits to mental health of walking and being in the outdoors. Mental and physical wellbeing are cornerstones of our Wheel of Engagement person-centred support model, as are hobbies, interests goals and dreams.
Corina and Laura were determined to make the walks as fun as possible while gently broaching subjects that people had previously not been able to talk about. The first gentle Saturday walk took place in May, in a secluded setting to allow everyone to feel comfortable.
As the weeks progressed they succeeded in longer, more challenging walks with the incentive of a sausage roll from the bakery to eat in a picturesque place! The countryside around Swansea provided plenty of beautiful spots along a variety of routes such as Four Waterfalls in the Brecon Beacons and Three Cliffs on the Gower Peninsula.
Helping each other
Lead by Corina and Laura, participants in the walks varied. Sometimes it would be a female-only walk. On these Sam and Daisy felt able to be more open about their emotions and discuss women’s health, for example peri-menopause and menopause. On other occasions housemates Jake, Sam and Craig might join them, together with other team members. Corina says: “I think they shocked themselves about how they’ve opened up. For example, Jake and Paul have been talking about all sorts of subjects that they wouldn’t have thought they would.
“They have all experienced secure settings and never had this experience anywhere they have lived before. It has made a huge difference to all of them. As well as helping with mental health – especially if they have had a bad week – their team-building skills have massively improved as they are helping each other. They all have different experiences and can tell each other about these, motivating one another. Craig has invested in walking shoes and sticks to ensure he gets maximum enjoyment and benefit from his new hobby. It’s helped him to overcome drug and alcohol misuse and he no longer needs the incentive of a pint at the end of the walk. A lemonade hits the spot just as well!
“Additionally, everyone has learned strategies to cope with their emotions such as taking themselves off and coming back when ready to be with others again.”
Breaking down barriers
New medication and treatment for arthritis enabled another housemate, Paul, to join the Four Waterfalls walk. He described the experience as ‘like touching angels’ wings’ and was delighted to have achieved it. What’s more, the group could measure their progress against other members of the public on the walk, seeing others stop at the same places to catch their breath.
Corina explains: “We never wanted failure, so we research and walk routes in our days off to test them out. Each walk is adjusted to suit the people taking part.”
By September, the group was ready to tackle Pen y Fan and managed the chosen route in six hours. Corina recalls: “It broke down so many barriers when they realised that my and Laura’s fitness was not great. We were finding it hard, too.”
Just a month later, Sam ‘flew’ through their second Pen y Fan walk in four hours. “It was an emotional day, realising how much progress she had made,” says Laura. “She expressed how happy and free she felt.”
The camaraderie and communication of the walks has extended to home life. There is an evident community spirit in the communal lounge as a direct result.
Multiple benefits
Each person supported has gained their own particular benefits from becoming a regular walker. Sam’s self-belief has increased while her anxiety has reduced. She says: “I believe that I have gained a lot of confidence from going for these walks. By being with other people supported in the group, I have been able to communicate with everyone better. It has been reflected in other aspects of my life, like going for my haircut alone, going shopping, walking to the shops alone and being more independent in general.”
“Participating in these walks has helped me become very self-aware and, understanding myself, I am able to understand my moods. Now I know when I am feeling overwhelmed by situations, communicate it with my Support Workers and take myself out of situations that might trigger me.”
Jake usually likes to keep himself to himself and spends a lot of time in bed. Hearing about the walks, he decided to join in and has got to know his housemates. His social skills and communication with team members have improved and he now visits the lounge to play pool.
Hard but rewarding
Daisy says: “I have loved getting out of the house and spending time around the countryside. When I started, I found some of the walks hard. But I have stuck with it and my fitness has got so much better.
“The walks make me feel really good about myself and I have managed walks I never thought would be possible. I am looking forward to walking more as this has helped build my confidence with what I can do and not worry about the things I perhaps struggle with. I have also liked having the women-only walks as it’s not always easy to talk about personal things at Ty Dol because it can be very busy there.”
Dedicated training continues for the Snowdon walk, with an interim goal of also summiting Cader Idris in the New Year. We look forward to hearing more from this inspiring group of achievers.
