If you have been keeping an eye on our social media channels over the past few months, you may have seen just a few of the wonderful and diverse sessions that have been on offer. From DJing to dancing, pottery to photography, and everything else in between, the wellbeing programme has something for everybody, and is always aimed at beginners.

The most recent session of the programme was a furniture upcycling workshop led by artist Gemma Longworth, host of Channel 4’s Find It, Fix It, Flog It. The session, which ran over two days, served as an introduction to upcycling where staff could bring in small furniture items from home and transform them using Gemma’s expert tips and tricks.

One member of staff that has benefitted from the session is Rachel Wardle, who works in the Physiotherapy department as a Specialist Paediatric Physiotherapist. We sat down with Rachel to ask her a bit about her role at Alder Hey and how the wellbeing programme has had an impact on her own wellbeing. Rachel told us: “My role at Alder Hey is as a Specialist Community Respiratory Physio, where we look after children across Liverpool with the most severe disabilities, classed as needing high-level support. I am the only full-time member of staff in my team, and so as you can imagine that can have its challenges and prove quite stressful.”

Rachel also told us about the positive difference that attending the creative wellbeing sessions have made to her wellbeing, saying: “I’m naturally quite a creative person anyway, as that is how I prefer to relax and unwind, so these sessions being made available were absolutely perfect for me. I enjoyed being able to socialise with colleagues from across the hospital, as well as the satisfaction of being able to make something and take it home at the end of the day, it was such a fun experience. It has had such an impact on my wellbeing, as the nature of my job is very reactionary and filled with decisions to make, and so the opportunity to spend the day relaxing and doing something creative was so beneficial.”

The Wellbeing Programme is set to run until September this year, with plenty of activities still on offer. Rachel herself told us that she has already booked onto the photography and visual arts sessions and is on the lookout for more. “I will definitely be attending more sessions”, said Rachel, who has been keen to spread awareness of the sessions to her colleagues across the hospital: “I have recommended them to all of my colleagues as I think it is such a brilliant programme which all staff members and volunteers should take advantage of if they can.”