MONDAY 21 MARCH - Time to reflect

The 12 hour flight from Auckland to Los Angeles gave me time to reflect on the experiences of the last three weeks. It has been a busy schedule of visits and meetings during which I have met and caught up with colleagues, relatives and friends in Australia and New Zealand.


My city hopping tour in Australia took me to Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, Nambour and Sydney. I visited ten aged care villages and care complexes operated by six leading provider organisations. I gained an insight into great work on storytelling and research into ageing being undertaken at several of these sites and in particular from my time at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image and at the Queensland State Library and the Queensland University of Technology. I caught up with family and friends in Brisbane and in Sydney. I was also able to gain an insight into the Australian Aged Care public policy scene at a time when potentially radical changes to the funding and support system are under active consideration.


In New Zealand I saw at first hand the devastation of the once beautiful city of Christchurch and witnessed something of the spirit of determination amongst it's citizens to pick themselves up and rebuild their city as their way of dealing with the tragic loss of life and property caused by the 22 February earthquake. It was uplifting to be in New Zealand at this time and to experience the way in which the whole country is responding to the traumatic events at Christchurch and is showing support for the city. The way in which the aged care sector of the country rallied to support those care operators whose residents and sites were affected has lessons for us all in terms of emergency response and disaster preparedness.

New Zealand has much experience to offer the world in the development of retirement villages. The nine sites I visited operated by three leading aged care and retirement village operators were all highly attractive and welcoming places where residents enjoy a high quality of retirement life. The country faces tough economic challenges in the years ahead, in common with the UK, and I found many people expressing concerns about the sustainability of current public aged care funding and support policy.

in all my visits and discussions I have been exploring my Winston Churchill Travel Fellowship theme of the "Arts and Older People" and especially my interest in storytelling as a means of helping people to maintain dignity, self esteem and personhood in old age. My time for exploration of the oral tradition amongst indigenous populations has been limited but I am convinced that western cultures have much to learn from such groups and populations as we look to strengthen community and family ties, and to search for ways to bring younger and older generations closer together. This is one key element in meeting the demographic challenges of ageing populations.

The creative art form of digital storytelling is being pursued by committed groups that I have encountered is all my travels in the UK, Canada, USA, Australia and New Zealand. The use of digital media, and what is now readily available technology, offers ways to connect generations, strengthen families and communities and to offer older and disabled people a powerful means of expression of personality and personal testimony. My hope is that ways can be found, through promotion and awareness, to extend the benefits of storytelling throughout our western care services as a core component of truly person centred care.

My travels have been enriching and rejuvenating. I have met and had the pleasure of the company of many wonderful, committed and caring people in the countries I have visited and I have enjoyed tremendous hospitality and friendly welcomes everywhere. This has made the journey truly memorable and the help I have received from so many people is greatly appreciated.

The links and contacts I have been able to make have been made possible through my involvement with the International Association of Homes and Services for the Ageing. This trip has proved for me the great value of this international network and fellowship of aged care professionals across the world. Connecting people and the sharing of knowledge and best practice in ageing services is the noble ambition of IAHSA it does offer great potential for personal and organisational development and growth through involvement in the worldwide global ageing network.

The support of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust has made my trip possible and I am sincerely grateful to the Trust for the award of my Travel Fellowship. This has provided the funding for my trip and has brought me into contact with another group of energised and committed professionals who are also exploring the expanding world of the "Arts and Old People". It is wonderful news that the WSMT has decided to extend their support for this particular area of study by awarding further fellowships in this category over the next three years. I hope many others will pursue the tremendous opportunities offered by the Trust to travel, to explore other cultures and systems, and to develop professional understanding throughout the world.

Now in the cool but sunny Californian spring weather I eagerly await my imminent rendezvous with my wife Anne who is flying in from London for the start of our two week holiday, making our way on what I hope will be a relaxing, iconic road trip to San Francisco. We have booked the convertible, downloaded the Beach Boys onto the iPod, and we're good to go!

Location:Los Angeles

MONDAY 21 MARCH - Tour Finale with Selwyn

My three week study tour of Australia and New Zealand concluded today with my last visit. I met up with Duncan McDonald early and we set off to visit the Selwyn Aged Care village at Pt Chevalier. Set beside the sea at the western edge of the city this is the largest site operated by Selwyn in the Auckland Area.

As one of the country's largest, not-for-profit providers of services to the older generation, The Selwyn Foundation is uniquely experienced in occupation right agreements, rest home, hospital and dementia care services across nine villages in the upper North Island. With a strong Anglican tradition the Foundation has served older people of New Zealand for more than fifty years. An originator of retirement villages and rest home care in the country, it remains New Zealand-owned and operated.


We did not have a lot of time as I had to head for the airport but I much appreciated the guided tour of this large and complex site with Duncan....


...... And a chance to meet and discuss New Zealand Aged Care with members of the Selwyn senior team. We then headed off to visit Selwyn Heights, a major redevelopment site that the Company has recently acquired and which is a part of their major expansion programme aimed at meeting the growing demand for aged care services throughout the upper North Island.


Then it was off to the airport to return my rental car and in time to catch my flight to Los Angeles.

Location:Auckland

SUNDAY 20 MARCH - The City of Sails

The Auckland metropolitan area in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with 1,354,900 residents, 31 percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world. In Māori Auckland's name is Tāmaki-makau-rau, or the transliterated version of Auckland, Ākarana. The 2010 Mercer Quality of Living Survey ranked Auckland 4th equal place in the world on its list, while The Economist's World's Most Livable Cities index of 2010 ranked Auckland in 10th place. In 2008, Auckland was classified as an Alpha-City in the World Cities Study Group’s inventory by Loughborough University, the only one in the country.

Known as the City of Sails Auckland is surrounded by large expanses of sheltered harbours, islands and inlets that make it a great boating and sailing centre.

Today was my opportunity to see something of this great city and the surrounding countryside. This was made possible by my host Duncan McDonald who invited me to join him on the monthly rally run of the Auckland Mazda MX5 Owners Club. On the way to the rally we called in at the magnificent modern Anglican Cathedral which is one of the sights of the city.


The rally attracted about forty MX5 owners with their multiple coloured sporty cars.


We set off on our drive in the area of the Waitakere Ranges, a hilly area of narrow lanes and forests to the west of the city. Beautiful countryside reminiscent of Cornwall. Many Auckland commuters own property in the area where they enjoy elevated positions with spectacular views and slightly cooler conditions in the hot and humid high summer season. Our rally ended with a beachside picnic at Huia Bay, and a chance to chat about the high quality of Auckland life with Some of Duncan's fellow club members.





In the evening Duncan and Julie McDonald very kindly hosted a dinner party at which I was able to meet other members of the executive Team of the Selwyn Foundation and their partners.

Location:Auckland

SATURDAY 19 MARCH - With the Storytellers of Hamilton and Cheering the Blues in Auckland

It was a very special pleasure today to be able to catch up with David and Sasha Woodcock. We had met very briefly back on 29 October 2010 at the Center for Digital Storytelling in Berkeley, California where David and Sasha were attending a course developing their knowledge of the subject. See blog entry for 29 October (posted on 1 November 2010). They had invited me to contact them when in New Zealand and once I had done so they very kindly invited me to visit them at their home. It was a great pleasure also to meet their digital storytelling partner Elaine Bliss. Elaine is currently studying for a PhD in Digital Storytelling, looking at the application of this art form in many social contexts. Over lunch we discussed our mutual interest in the subject and my research into how digital storytelling with older people can be used as a powerful therapeutic tool and a key ingredient in intergenerational linkage between younger people and their elders.


Elaine, David and Sasha.
We found we had much to share in terms of our common interests. We resolved to continue to maintain and strengthen our links and help to build the art of storytelling with older people both in New Zealand and beyond. It is a powerful, positive creative art form and medium that holds great potential for promoting the preservation of dignity, self esteem and personhood amongst older people.

From Hamilton it was back on the road again for the final leg of my whistle stop journey through New Zealand. An hour and a half later I checked into the Royal Park Motel in Auckland. Time for only a brief rest before being picked up by my former fellow IAHSA Study Tour colleague Duncan McDonald, CEO of The Selwyn Foundation. Duncan, together with his wife Julie, had kindly agreed to take me to the Eden Park Stadium for a key rugby fixture between the Auckland "Blues" and the Wellington "Hurricanes".


It was another great Kiwi experience and a chance to make some more charming new acquaintances amongst the fans on the way into the stadium!


The match was a great showcase of open, free flowing rugby and the result was a resounding victory for the "Blues".


I am now confirmed as a "Blues" fan for life and will watch with added interest when the World Cup Final is played in this magnificent stadium in September.

Location:Auckland

FRIDAY 18 MARCH - Onwards to Rotorua and Hamilton

On departing from Taupo I checked the map and found that I had just enough time to take the scenic route north to my next destination, Hamilton. This allowed me time for a brief visit to the thermal springs at the Maori site of Te Puia at Rotorua. This is the premier Māori cultural centre in New Zealand - a place of gushing waters, steaming vents, boiling mud pools and spectacular geysers. The traditional Maori warrior greeting is an experience not to be missed or to be taken lightly.








It is an essential element of the journey for any visitor to New Zealand to gain some understanding of the complexities and traditions of Maori culture. It is so strongly woven into the social structure of the country and it is impossible not to be impressed by the high degree of integration between the indigenous and the migrant cultures throughout the country. A powerful example to other parts of the world.

Location:Hamilton

FRIDAY 18 MARCH - Through Hobbit Country from Napier to Taupo

Napier is known as the Art Deco capital of the world. This is due to the style in which the city was rebuilt after a devastating earthquake on February 3, 1931. The collapses of buildings and the ensuing fires killed 258 people. The centre of the town was destroyed by the earthquake, and later rebuilt in the Art Deco style popular at that time. Some 4000 hectares of today's Napier were undersea before the earthquake raised it up above sea level. In 2007 the city was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in recognition of its distinctive architecture.

Today the thoughts all the people of New Zealand and millions of others across the world have been centred on that other devastated city of Christchurch as the memorial ceremony has taken place in Hagley Park. Prince William, along with many other dignitaries from across the region and the world, has been paying tribute to the city and its people as they come to terms with their losses. Many are beginning to think of the example set by Napier of a city that has recovered over the years and has achieved distinction as a result of its reconstruction. It will take time.

Our first visit today was to the village of "Summerset in the Bay" on the western outskirts of Napier.


As with the other Summerset villages the setting of the village is stunning. A similar mix of independent living villas and apartments is complemented by a popular community centre with many amenities for the residents and the community. On the first floor of the central building is the care centre offering residential and nursing care.





The village layout of all the Summerset sites is highly attractive with great attention paid to landscaping and floral display. Each villa has its own garden area tended by the residents. There is a great sense of pride in the presentation of the site by residents and staff alike.

It was while being shown round the site by Village Manager Allan den Boer that we had the great good fortune to meet up with two of the residents who were out for their morning exercise. There ensued one of those very special conversations that occur from time to time in aged care settings which have a powerful effect on those involved. Vic Viggers and his wife Betty have been residents at the village for several years. In conversation Vic began to tell us something of his personal story. When talking about England he volunteered that he had been stationed there during WW2. It further emerged that he had been a wireless operator on Lancasters as a member of Bomber Command. Eventually he told us that he is a holder of the Distinguished Flying Cross, awarded for his bravery in maintaining his post within his aircraft while it was under severe attack. This modest gentleman then invited us back to his apartment where he showed us his medals and told us more of his personal story. It was a very special conversation and one to be treasured. Thank you, Vic, for sharing your story, and thank you Betty for putting up with us all.


From Napier we drove inland through more spectacular scenery for 1.45hrs to the town of Taupo on the shore of Lake Taupo. There we visited the last of the Summerset villages on my itinerary "Summerset by the Lake".


At this village we were guided on a tour of the site by Village Manager Evelyn White and had a chance to meet some of the staff and residents. Evelyn was kind enough to let Richard and I use the site golf buggy as the best way to get round the village in the short time we had available.





Then it was off to the small local airport and time to say goodbye and thanks to Richard who flew off back to Wellington. I had greatly enjoyed my experience with Summerset. They can be justifiably proud of the outstanding quality of their retirement villages. It was a genuine pleasure to be able to visit them and to follow in the footsteps of our Somerset Care Manager of Frith House Vicki Mitchell. Vicki was the first participant in our staff exchange with Summerset back in 2007. I hope there will be more in the future.

Location:Hamilton

THURSDAY 17 MARCH - Somerset meets Summerset. On the road to Napier.

Richard Catto picked me up for an early start from my hotel before a busy day of visits, meetings and travel.

Our first visit was to the Retirement Vlllage of "Summerset at the Course" at the community of Trentham to the north east of Wellington up the Hutt Valley.


Located adjacent to the Trentham horse racecourse this is one of the first sites developed by Summerset. As with most of their villages the campus includes a carefully designed mix of independent living bungalows, supported living apartments and a care centre offering residential and nursing care.

Following this visit we returned to Wellington City Centre and to Summerset's head offices located in one of the tallest high rise buildings in the Central Business District. Here I was able to spend an hour in discussion with Verna Schofield, Chair of Alzheimers Wellington and formerly President of Alzheimers New Zealand. We discussed the work of the New Zealand dementia care community as well as the UK's developing "Arts and Older People" agenda being supported by the Baring Foundation and the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust.

The next meeting over lunch was with Martin Taylor, CEO of the New Zealand Aged Care Association and John Collins, CEO of the New Zealand Retirement Villages Association. Norah Barlow is also President of the NZRVA. These two organisations are the principal representative bodies for the aged care, support and accommodation sector in the country so it was very useful to be able to make contact and to discuss links between our respective national bodies and with IAHSA.

Following lunch Richard and I set off on the 3.5 hours drive north east to the Hawkes Bay area. On arrival we visited the next village of "Summerset in the Vines" at the community of Havelock North.





By the time we had concluded this visit it was almost dark so in the twilight we went on to visit the newest of the sites under development by the Company "Summerset in the Orchard" at Hastings. This village, which is about 50% complete, is similar in many ways to the other villages with independent living villas but without a care centre on site. We were shown round by torchlight in the dark so no photos were possible. Finally after a long but fascinating day we headed off for dinner and sleep to the Te Pania Hotel on the seafront in the town of Napier. By this time Richard and I had discovered that we both shared a military past so much of the evening was spent in reminiscence mode with the sharing of tales of army days gone by.

Location:Napier

WEDNESDAY 16 MARCH - Christchurch to Wellington

The train journey from Christchurch to Picton along the Pacific coast of South Island is one of the iconic railway journeys of the world. Sadly as a consequence of the earthquake the train was not running so, along with a few fellow travellers we were transferred by coach. Fortunately the road follows the railway line so the journey was almost as spectacular as it would have been by train. The road hugs the coast for most of the route and the views are magnificent. We we able to watch dolphins leaping in the sea just offshore as we travelled.





The coach journey was followed by the even more spectacular ferry crossing from Picton to Wellington. This has to be one of those special at least once in a lifetime journeys. The ferry crossing takes 3 hrs 10 minutes and it seems too short as it passes through the passage of Queen Charlotte Sound between forested islands and peninsulars before it gets to open sea. The scenery is breathtaking and it leaves the short term traveller with a longing to return to explore more of the beautiful South Island.





On arrival at Wellington I was met by Richard Catto, General Manager Operations for Summerset Retirement Villages, who kindly transported me to my accommodation at the fairly basic, but clean and adequate Harbour City Motel. From there I was collected in the evening by Summerset CEO Norah Barlow and her husband Rob. Rob also works for Summerset and it was his birthday. I much appreciated him agreeing to spend his evening with the travelling Brit.


Norah and Rob kindly gave me a tour of the city to see some of the sights before taking me for dinner at a Thai restaurant in the city centre.

Location:Wellington

TUESDAY 15 MARCH - Kia Ora! Willowbank Reserve and Ko Tane Maori Village

My second visit of the day was to the Willowbank Nature Reserve just outside Christchurch which offers a great opportunity to meet New Zealand flora, fauna and other wildlife, including in a darkened enclosure the rare and shy genuine, and very rare Kiwi. The national bird is slowly but surely being supported by breeding programmes to become re-established in the wild throughout the country.


The centre also comprises the Ko Tane Maori village where I was able to gain my first experience of the traditional Maori welcome ceremony. The intimidating greeting by a Maori warrior in full war paint and regalia was followed by a much more agreeable face to face greeting by our guide.


Sadly the eartquake has caused the tourist trade in Christchurch virtually to dry up and I, along with two Japanese teenagers were the only visitors to the village that day. Normally they would expect between 60 and 100. This gives a stark reminder of the importance of tourism to the local economy in this part of the world. Nevertheless the villagers continued to perform their ceremony for us including audience participation!

Location:Christchurch

TUESDAY 15 MARCH - Alpine View Retirement Village

Despite all the difficulties presented by the earthquake the team at Alpine View Retirement Village made me very welcome and were keen to explain how they had coped during and immediately after the quake. Their modern buildings had fared well with no structural damage despite extensive and violent movement during the 18 seconds of the main event.


I was shown round the new village, of which only the first stage has been constructed by Jeremy O'Dowd, Simon's brother. Set in a quiet suburb of the city this development is already proving popular and the 10 self contained two bedroom bungalows in the first phase are already sold and occupied. 12 more units are under construction in stage 2 and 6 of these are already sold or are under offer. There is little doubt in New Zealand about the attractiveness of this style of retirement living amongst older people and the retirement village industry appears to be thriving. The combination of high quality dwellings with close proximity to community shops and facilities and with a modern, purpose built residential and nursing care centre forming a discrete part of the campus, just around the corner, offers a lifestyle option that clearly many senior New Zealanders find very attractive.


The buildings are constructed with substantial timber frames which are designed to cope with climatic conditions as well as earthquake risk.


Once Stage 3 is complete the village will include a community centre with a general store, spa, doctor's rooms, hairdresser and other facilities. The individual properties are spacious averaging 126 sq metres, each with two double bedrooms with ample storage space and high quality kitchens and living areas.


Further details can be seen at www.alpineview.co.nz.

Location:Christchurch

MONDAY 14 MARCH - Christchurch - A traumatised city

Throughout my time in Australia I have been seeking advice on the advisability of sticking to my original itinerary and heading from Sydney to Christchurch in the aftermath of the earthquake that hit the city on 22 February. QANTAS advised that, apart from the city centre, the remainder of the Canterbury region was open for business and wanted people to continue to come. As I was preparing to leave Australia news was coming through of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Everyone in the Pacific region is highly sensitised to the recent spate of natural disasters affecting this part of the world.

So with some concern about what I would find I continued with the plan and departed Sydney early on Monday. I was met at Christchurch airport by Simon O'Dowd, Managing Director of Alpine View Retirement Village and Chairman of the New Zealand Aged Care Association. Simon could only spend a short time with me as he needed to attend a memorial service for a colleague lost in the quake. I was anxious not to be in the way.

Simon briefed me on the situation in the city before dropping me off at my accommodation, the Tudor Court Motel on Bealey Avenue. This avenue forms the northern perimeter of the cordoned and closed area of the city centre. He explained how the earthquake had affected his family, his staff and the Alpine View village. There is hardly a family in this small city of 380,000 people that has not been affected. Everyone knows someone who has suffered loss, injury or damage. The buildings at Alpine View were undamaged miraculously despite being near the centre of the damaged area, but several residents fell and fractured hips and femurs in the earthquake which struck at 1.18pm just as many were making their way back to their rooms after lunch. The care home was then without power and water for three days and as roads were cut it was not possible to get the injured to hospital or to get them pain relief medication. 6 Care facilities in the city have been closed and buildings condemned. Some 500 residents have had to be relocated to other parts of the country, some as far as Auckland. The crisis has severely tested the ability of the community to respond and the sense one gets is, that despite tremendous difficulty and a death toll now in the hundreds, the people of the city have pulled together in a tremendous way to pick themselves up and get things moving again.

I had been told before I came that people were trying to maintain business as usual in the city but in reality it is anything but. The entire city centre remains closed and cordoned off with soldiers on the street corners. There are still search operations underway but, with no further hope of survivors, the emphasis is on recovering bodies and stabilising buildings, so that slowly the city centre can be made accessible to business owners.





It is an extraordinary sight in a city that looks and feels otherwise just like an English town. The military presence is reassuring but it reminds one of Belfast in the '70s. Imagine Taunton or Wells with gaping holes in the streets and virtually all masonry built buildings destroyed or condemned.


This is the ruined church immediately across the street from my motel.....


......and this is the scene just along the street. There are piles of rubble everywhere and great mounds of silt from the extraordinary liquefaction phenomena that accompanied the quake, forcing silt through the ground and raising manhole covers etc as much as a metre off the ground. The are huge cracks and holes in the roads and many remain closed.


Most modern frame construction buildings are intact. The atmosphere amongst the people is one of determination to clear up and rebuild the city as soon as they can but it will take years. The central business district is closed so the economic impact will be huge as is the trauma at the loss of life. Tourism has dried up so there is little money coming in to the city.


There is a big memorial event planned for later this week and several of the people I spoke with said how pleased they were at the news that Prince William is coming to be with them to show support for the people of the city. I hope this will help ease the pain in this once lovely city, but it will take years to heal.

Location:Christchurch

FRIDAY 11 - SUNDAY 13 MARCH - Sights of Sydney

Time to kick back with friends and relations in Sydney after a busy schedule of visits. Thanks to my generous host Judi this was a chance to slow down slightly and to experience some of the iconic sights of the city.


The famous harbour bridge ........


......and of course the Opera House......


.....and Bondi Beach. There was also a chance to catch up over dinner at the seaside resort of Balmoral with the team from the Aged Care Channel, and to hear about their plans for the further development of the channel. In the picture are Paul Bennett, MD of ACC and his wife Linda, together with Chair of the ACC Strategic Advisory Board June Heinrich and her husband Bill.


It was a great pleasure after many years to be able to meet up over Sunday lunch with my cousin Pippa Felton and her husband David (and their son Sam) at their beautiful home in the northern suburb of Lindfield.


The weekend was a very pleasant way to conclude my two week visit to Australia. This was my first visit and I hope it will be the first of many. What a wonderful country! I have been made so welcome everywhere by many delightful people and have learned a great deal about aged care in Australia. We share so much in common but one is left with the feeling that the Australian system for care and support for older people offers many lessons for the UK and other parts of the world.

So with thanks and farewell to my Aussie mates it is off to New Zealand. What will I find in the city of Christchurch?

Location:Sydney