‘Celebration Day 2025’: My Home Life Northern Ireland celebrates 86 care home leaders!
Our colleagues at My Home Life Northern Ireland recently hosted a very successful ‘Cohorts of 2025’ Celebration Day!
The event, hosted at the historic Titanic hotel in Belfast, celebrated 86 care home leaders from 73 care settings who have all completed a My Home Life programme in Northern Ireland over the last 12 months.
The Department of Health in Northern Ireland has been funding the My Home Life Northern Ireland Leadership Support Programme for the last 5 years, delivered by Ulster University. Overall, the programme has now reached 365 care home leaders!
Minister for Health for Northern Ireland, Mike Nesbitt, led a series of speeches, saying it was a “privilege” to be part of the celebration:
“Ulster University’s delivery of the My Home Life Leadership Support Programme for care homes, has been one of the key drivers in improving the quality of life for people living in care homes, their relatives and staff, across Northern Ireland.
The My Home Life Programme provides crucial support to care homes, and it remains important that the HSC continues to support and fund quality initiatives such as this. The tools, frameworks and significant knowledge of best practice provided creates confident, accountable teams who are equipped with practical, evidence-based insights to enhance the quality and reputation of their services.
The programme has brought many benefits, including increased resilience for staff, meaning they are less at risk of burn-out resulting in reduced staff turnover and sickness.
Care home staff are empowered to drive forward their own quality agenda, resulting in improved relationships with people they support, their relatives and external agencies. You as care home managers have developed key leadership and communication skills, improved professional confidence and personal resilience and I have no doubt you will continue to build on this”.
Professor Assumpta Ryan, Director of My Home Life Northern Ireland, added:
“We are delighted to be celebrating another year of our My Home Life Leadership Support Programme and the very positive impact it has on care home staff, people who live in care homes and their families. Alongside this, the programme has also directly influenced the Department of Health’s adult safeguarding policy and its reform of adult care and support.”
Our Research Fellow, Dr Bethany Morgan Brett, also attended the day, and presented on our ‘Thriving in Residential Care’ research, sharing examples of how the research is influencing care practice in England.
It was a joyous event, with care leaders sharing the impact of their My Home Life programme, including reflections on how they are now approaching leadership situations differently, and putting the My Home Life frameworks into action.
Care leaders also shared impressive stories about the quality improvement projects taking place in their care homes, including enhancing meaningful connections, supporting transitions into a care home, modelling positive ways to manage complaints and supporting community engagement and reminiscence activities.
Congratulations to our Northern Ireland colleagues for a wonderful Celebration Day, and of course to all the care leaders on their fantastic achievements!
Meet Cohorts 23-27:
And our My Home Life Northern Ireland colleagues!
