About Tŷ Hapus - Tŷ Hapus

History

Tŷ Hapus (which means ‘Happy house’ in English) is a registered charity whose aim is to offer support to people affected by Dementia and their families. Tŷ Hapus registered as a charity in 2011 and welcomed our first guests (The people who use our services) in December of the same year. Tŷ Hapus originated with the aim of offering a unique ‘Home from Home’ daytime respite service to people diagnosed with a ‘Young Onset Dementia.’ (a dementia diagnosed in those under the age of 65).

Since opening, we have extended our scope to offer support to people of any age diagnosed with dementia, not just younger people. We work closely with Health and social care professionals to tailor our support to meet your needs. Most importantly however is getting to know you and how you would like us to support you.

Aims

At Tŷ Hapus we aim to support not just the person living with dementia but their family and friends too. We recognise that a diagnosis of dementia affects everyone around the person.

We work closely with health and social care professionals and other voluntary sector organisations. We are a part of the local dementia friendly community and ensure that we meet best practice in dementia support to meet Local and National government standards and strategies.

Though based in Barry in the Vale of Glamorgan we also run a Cardiff Service in Fairwater on Wednesdays, and we aim to offer our support to people from any area.

Our support

Active engagement, social interaction and cognitively stimulating activities are the key elements of the support and respite at Tŷ Hapus. We support guests in a range of activities at our Barry and Cardiff venues, as well as using the local community resources, cafes, museums, and sporting facilities.

Our service charge

Tŷ Hapus is a FREE service, but a suggested supplementary donation of £15 a day contributes to refreshments, lunch, and seasonal activities. It also pays for trips out on our minibus and admissions to events and venues. We are not a commissioned service – we are a voluntary organisation. Our unpaid, unsalaried trustees work hard to fundraise to ensure our service continues.

Our community links

We have close links with Health and Social care service teams and liaise regularly with voluntary sector organisations. We have established links with the Counselling and Psychotherapy department at the University South Wales and are currently able to offer FREE counselling with a third-year degree student. This is available to anyone over the age of 14 who knows someone with a Dementia diagnosis.