Accessibility
Bringing to life Chris’ dream to be a podcast host! Chris wrote a letter to our CEO asking for the opportunity to work for Aspire with his new project. Well here it is! Chris’ Chats!
Revisit our episode ‘Aspire and Aspirations’ from 29/09/23, where Chris discusses his hopes for the future of the podcast.
If you have a topic you’d like us to discuss, email jodie.linley@aspirecbs.org.uk
Transcript:
Chris’ Chats.
Episode 1: Aspire and Aspirations
CC: Welcome to Chris’ Chats
[upbeat music]
CC: Hello everybody, my name is Chris and you can call me CC. And my role in Aspire is going into all roles, I almost can’t talk because there’s a lot. I’m a part of the Customer Council, I’m involved with everything else and most meetings. Over to Felicia, what’s your part of Aspire?
FA: Yeah my name is Felicia and I’m one of the Customer Involvement Co-Ordinators. And my role in Aspire is to support the customers to attend meetings and to be the voice of the customers. We do meetings with them, we listen to them, whatever issue they have we take it to the management. Today I am here to support Chris in his podcast.
CC: So this podcast is, well, my podcast, is sponsored by Aspire. Now Aspire is a big, big, massive team, I have a person right next to me, who is behind the camera, we have other people in their own fields, where they represent. I will obviously be representing the West [side of Leeds] and um, I think I’m running out of what I’ve got to say, so Felicia would you like to add?
FA: Yeah, Chris is one of the customers, or one of the Aspire customers. And Aspire is a company that support people with learning disabilities and we offer different services, we have day services. And our day services we have three main hubs, big ones. We have one in Bramley, one in Rothwell and one in Potternewton. And we have some small bases, like in leisure centres, in libraries all across the town. We have Supported Living, in our Supported Living we support the customers in their own home, we have some of them that have 24 hour support and we have some of them that just have visiting support (like tea support, or supporting them with their morning or to do their shopping and going out into the community). We also have Respite all over the city, so people who are still at home can have respite- maybe they have respite from their parents or maybe their parents have respite from them. And this is like a big one, in fact, when our customers are going on Respite they tell us that they are going on holiday because they enjoy being in Respite. So, we have the Respite all over and we have Emergency Respite as well.
FA: Hey Chris, where did you get the idea of this podcast from?
CC: Well, the podcast, I didn’t want people to feel left alone, but where you can actually talk to someone. So even if it’s doing a live phone in or anything else. Over Covid, everything else just stopped and you couldn’t do it. I mean, through Facebook, the weather I was doing, it was through technology. And obviously on Respite, she started it up and I carried it on, I mean now we have been branching out and I am still carrying it on doing it. There was no like, phones so I thought is there any way I can upload this, and I thought we could do this on a, like, podcast. I mean, the audience right now is just absolutely amazing. I mean you’re not on your own, you’ve got a lot of people, um you’ve got a lot of people to talk to. I mean you’re not just talking behind a camera, or on a phone, or anything else. You could come on the podcast if you wanted to. You could talk on the pod- [stammers], on the podcast, excuse me for stammering [laughs]. We can use the podcast, we can use staff, use anything. And I think, um,
FA: That’s good!
CC: Yeah I think so
FA: Yeah
CC: Yeah it’s a good job you said that cause my mind completely went blank like this ha!
FA: In this Chris’ Chat, what do you want to achieve?
CC: To achieve? I want it to be like it’s about our audience, so what they would like is what I would like. I mean, uh
FA: So you want to talk to them and you want to hear what they want? You want to know what the audience wants.
CC: Yes, what I want is to know that the audience wants and to send messages out. The message that I want to promote is that it’s okay, you are not on your own. We are here.
FA: Hi Chris, in this Chris’ Chat what are the topic you want to talk about?
CC: Ooh there is quite a few, stuff I would like to discuss, including Mental Health and events! And so yes, this is an official podcast and I don’t just want it to be my podcast, I want it to be our podcast. Us we will work together as a team, our partners and Aspire. And I would also like it to go out into the community, so we can do anything you would like to discuss. And I’m almost out of words, so Felicia is there anything you would like to say?
FA: Chris, who would you like to talk to?
CC: Well I would like to speak to the bases, I would like to talk to the lady who’s behind the camera, I don’t know if I can mention or say any names.
JL: You can say my name! Hi, I’m Jodie, I’m sat behind the camera at the moment, and I work for the Engagement and Communications department. Cheers Chris!
CC: Alright! And we also have a very good, very good friend of mine, who does the Positive Changes. He’s in the next room and his name is Ian Graham and he would be a great candidate to interview.
This episode is for Aspirations and… Aspirations and …
FA: Can you remember?
JL: [whispers] and Aspire!
CC: And Aspire! Felicia what’s your aspiration?
FA: Yeah, my whole aspiration is that I want to be the best Customer Involvement Co-Ordinator and to be the best to promote everything about Aspire and help the customer to have the best life! [Laugh]
CC: So my aspiration is this! This is to be yours and mine! This is my aspiration, talking to you, having this podcast is my aspiration.
FA: Hi Chris
CC: Hiya
FA: If you think this podcast is about Aspirations what is your Bucket List?
CC: Bucket list for me? Um, maybe my bucket list is um, to go on with my Sign Language and whenever I’ve passed everything I want someone else to do it and for this to carry on. Lots of other things that I can say, other things like animation, cartoons, maybe role play. Everything else it would be amazing if that can happen!
FA: So that’s good! So like the Live Facebook Chat that, cause you had an amazing Live Facebook Chat during Covid, where like this, you are communicating with the rest of the customers and other communities would you like that to continue in this podcast as well?
CC: Absolutely! I would love to carry on with this podcast! I mean this podcast now is my life! I mean, this is new, this just started today and this is my life now, I have a great team, I’m going to carry on building this team up and this podcast is absolutely my life.
Felicia what’s your bucket list?
FA: My own bucket list is that I want to support to be able to give you the best support as much as I can do. And to know that for you, for this podcast to be successful. So yes, that’s one of my bucket lists.
CC: I would also like to thank my special guest who brought me here this morning- sorry this afternoon, not this morning. Felicia, thank you.
FA: Thank you Chris for giving me the chance to support you.
CC: Pleasure! So next time, join me next time where I will be sat next to Dramarama who were the voices from last year. They were singing. And I will be having an exclusive interview with them. I will also be interviewing some others, but if you want to know you’ll have to join us next time because I’m not telling you!
