Guild Care chief executive discusses how to support the charity’s Worthing Cares campaign and brighten Christmas for those spending it alone

Of course, Guild Care has been no exception. We have had to make myriad difficult decisions and changes. To name but a few examples, we had to place restrictions on family visits to our care homes, at times shutting their doors completely, and we had to pause our popular Friendship Club, which offered people aged over 70 an environment to make friends, relax and enjoy themselves.

However, thanks to the ingenuity of our staff and the kindness of the Worthing community, there has been light in the darkness. For instance, when our care homes could not receive visitors, digital messages of support were sent to our residents in the hundreds through our Facebook group You’ve Got a Friend in Me. Also, when many of our services for older people had to be closed, our staff set up a new Better Together service to call our members, making sure they had someone to chat to.

Many of us will see Christmas as a light at the end of the tunnel – something to look forward to during these difficult times. But it is important to remember that Christmas can itself be a difficult time for some. Although many of us have the good fortune to have family to spend the holidays with, albeit with the occasional snipe about raiding the Quality Street tin for the best picks, others will not be so lucky.