Jackie breaks new ground as our Project Development Officer

Jackie breaks new ground as our Project Development Officer

Jackie Robinson from Southampton has recently (May 2022) joined our team as our new Project Development Officer.

We are thrilled to have welcomed Jackie to the team, she will be doing some groundbreaking work in developing ways of involving people in our community to design services for the future.

We have been exploring possible avenues for help for unpaid carers with a diagnosis of dementia and Jackie will be working closely on this. She will be helping us to establish the needs and wishes of Southampton residents who are unpaid carers of people living with dementia, researching other types of support available and aiming to extend the activities we provide to match the desires of the community, if resources allow.

Jackie’s role is particularly important as we have recently had Dementia Action Week.

Dementia Action Week was started by the Alzheimer’s Society and encourages people who are worried about dementia to confront their worries by addressing dementia directly and getting information and support.

There are currently 920,000 people with dementia in the UK and the number is set to rise to one million by 2024.

Jackie said: “I am thrilled to have joined the Communicare team on a three-month basis in the role of Project Development Officer.

“I have wanted to work with Communicare for several years. It has complete integrity and does everything possible for the people it supports and its volunteers. My values align with those of the charity, as it has an ethos of inclusion and respect for all. I am delighted to be part of such an amazing team.

“My other duties as part of my new position include researching and developing targeted surveys for everyone who is associated with the charity and our services, including volunteers, service users, families, carers and statutory organisations and other voluntary agencies. I will also be building on and strengthening all of these existing relationships and networks.”

Jackie, who was born in London, but has lived in Southampton since 1983, studied at the University of Sussex for a BA and PGCE in Psychology before studying at the University of Southampton for her MSc and Diploma in Social Work.

In her spare time, she enjoys gardening, birdwatching, walking and supporting charities with various fundraising projects.