Carers Week 2026: Julie Smyth reflects on care, compassion and the changing reality of care homes
To coincide with Carers Week 2026 (opens new window), Housing LIN is pleased to feature a new three-part blog series from Julie Smyth, Director at Wellbeing Designs, exploring the changing role of care homes and the people who deliver compassionate care every day.
Drawing on both personal experience and professional insight, Julie examines how care settings are evolving to support increasingly complex resident needs, the emotional realities faced by care staff, and the important role that design can play in creating healthier, more supportive working environments. Together, the blogs provide a timely reflection on the future of care and the need to better recognise and support those at the heart of the sector.
The first blog, Care Homes as Places of Compassionate End-of-Life Care: Recognising a Changing Reality, explores the growing role of care homes in supporting people through the final stages of life. Through a moving personal account of her grandmother’s end-of-life journey, Julie highlights the deep relationships that develop between residents and care teams and argues for greater recognition of the emotional and compassionate work taking place in modern care homes.
In the second blog, The Emotional Load on Carers: Who Supports Those Delivering Care?, Julie focuses on the often-overlooked emotional demands placed on care staff. She reflects on the resilience required to support residents and families through difficult moments and considers how leadership, workplace culture and dedicated wellbeing spaces can help carers manage the emotional weight of their roles.
The third blog, Designing for Carers: When Environment Becomes Support, examines how the built environment can actively contribute to staff wellbeing. Julie argues that thoughtful design decisions, from access to natural light and outdoor spaces to dedicated areas for rest and reflection, should be viewed as essential infrastructure for a resilient and sustainable care workforce, rather than optional extras.
Housing LIN would like to thank Julie Smyth for contributing this insightful three-part series and for sharing her expertise and reflections during Carers Week 2026 (opens new window).
And, if you found this of interest and would like to access a selection of other tools and resources, check out the Housing LIN’ dedicate webpages on Bereavement and End of Life Care.