Far from winding down since arriving at St Saviour’s Court in August of 2007, Gwen Carne (60) and her mother, also called Gwen Carne (89), have found a new lease of life. Shopping, taking a tram for the first time and even the occasional game of darts are just some of the things that the younger Gwen has enjoyed in her first three months in the new flat. She says, ‘It’s not like sheltered housing here, it’s just like a happy home. Where we used to live in Bermondsey we tended to be quite self-contained but here we’ve been mixing with people a bit more. Last week they had a darts competition in the communal lounge, and it was so comical. I even had a go myself and I’ve not had game in years!’

Whilst mother and daughter loved their old flat in Bermondsey, they worried that the area was getting increasingly noisy and incidents of anti-social behaviour were increasing. With the older Gwen having been married in St Gertrude’s church on Christmas Day 1938 with thick snow on the ground (in an impressive-sounding wedding costume complete with fur coat and hat worn at an angle) their roots in the area went deep, but both knew it was time for a change.

So when the younger Gwen spotted an advertisement for St Saviour’s in the local Southwark News, she applied straightaway. She says, ‘I sent off for the brochure and when I got it back I thought “that’s beautiful, we don’t stand an earth’s chance of getting in there”. However, the pair were soon accepted and invited to come and view the flats on offer. ‘We came through the door of this flat and just fell for it, didn’t we mum?’ says Gwen, to which her mother smiles in agreement.

The flat also met the approval of Gwen’s two older brothers, George and Arthur. ‘They really encouraged us to come here,’ says their sister, ‘it’s made a difference to their lives knowing that we’re safe and happy.’

'We just keep pinching ourselves to make sure it’s real,’ says the older Gwen. ‘We just feel so safe and happy.’ So safe in fact that whilst Gwen might have worried about leaving her mother home alone in their old flat, she now feels confident enough to go out shopping knowing if her mother has any difficulties help is close at hand from the on-site warden.

Says Gwen, ‘There’s a big Tesco up the road which is excellent and it’s just two bus-stops to Croydon, which has some beautiful shopping. I’m more adventurous now than I’ve ever been. I just feel happier in myself and want to experience more things.’

Gwen and Gwen are also full of praise for the help St Saviour’s provided leading up to their move. Says the younger Gwen, ‘There were points when I wondered if I had the courage to go ahead with it but St Saviour’s really helped me. They provided things like a timetable – telling you when you needed to book a removals company, when you should apply to get your post redirected and all that.’

And now they are here Gwen and Gwen can think of nowhere they would rather be. The younger Gwen sums it up by saying, ‘I used to think that sheltered accommodation was for really old people. But here you’re left to live your own life. But you can also include yourself if you want to; everything is on offer if you want to take it up.’