Page 19 - Real-Rochdale-07

“Unfortunately, for me, health visitors, nurses,
GPs, etc. were not able to connect families due to
confidentiality policies,” said Carole, “but Jolly Josh
would finally enable this to happen…”
Joshua sadly died on 27 August 2017, just
one month before his legacy, Jolly Josh, was due
to begin.
“My whole first year of bereavement was spent
setting up Jolly Josh,” Carole said.
“It was something that I needed to develop to help
me as a coping mechanism, distraction and to
create a legacy for Joshua, in addition to providing
a service to myself and others that was previously
unavailable.
“Now, I am incredibly proud of what we have
achieved over two years.”
Jolly Josh was awarded charitable status in April
2018, just seven months after opening. In May
2018, Carole was shortlisted for a Greater
Manchester Health and Care Champion Award and
in April 2019 she was named Woman of Rochdale.
To mark the second anniversary of the charity on
22 September 2019, a pirate themed family fun
day was hosted at Callaghan House, Heywood,
raising £1,800.
Speaking of the benefits Jolly Josh has brought to
the borough, Carole said: “Our families provide
each other with guidance; children are making
friendships and thriving, and their siblings gain
support too. The children learn that we are all
different and that’s what makes us special.
“Going to clinic with a poorly child is extremely
difficult, even for the most confident of people, as
emotions are heightened. When professionals visit
families at Jolly Josh, they are amongst their peers;
the children are entertained playing and the
experience is far less formal.”
Jolly Josh second anniversary family fun day
19
James and Carole Kelly with Oliver and Sophie
Carole is now set on bigger plans for the future,
including accomplishing her dream of Jolly Josh
having its own venue and building an accessible
park for those with disabilities and/or complex
additional needs in Rochdale.
“There are still many challenges facing disabled
children and their siblings and families, for example,
the need for public changing places and the need
for more accessible playgrounds in parks for those
children that do have complex medical needs.
”We have set up Jolly Josh and I have provided this
service, but there are still so many gaps that we
need to work on, tackling a lot of the services that
are missed.”
In Jolly Josh’s first year, 63 families visited the
sessions along with 23 professionals.
She concluded: “These numbers speak volumes of
how much this group was needed; it wasn’t just me
feeling the need to reach out – the gap was there.”
Carole is currently on maternity leave from her job
as a teacher of children with profound and multiple
learning disabilities after Joshua’s younger brother,
Oliver was born in July 2019.
Carole hopes she can encourage Rochdale and
other boroughs to fill the gaps that she experienced
with her family.
Jolly Josh sessions currently run on Thursday
mornings, 9am – 12noon, at Springside with
Hamer School.
www.jollyjosh.co.uk
REAL ROCHDALE - WINTER 2019