The SWAPS 2007 Christmas Card was designed by a SWAPS service user following an open competion.

At a provider meeting in November 2007 a SWAPS service user spoke to the group about how living in an adult placement had changed his life positively.

An active 80 year old SWAPS service user helps out at various homes and centres across Exeter.  She received the Express and Echo’s Bouquet of the Week in November 2007 following nominations, she also knits lots of dolls’ clothes and blankets for Hospiscare and does a lot for the Dream-A-Way charity.

A SWAPS service user did a sponsored Swim for Life in aid of The Wrights Foundation Research, Heart and Lungs Activity and raised £151.  Originally nervous of water she now swims every Friday (20 – 30 lengths!) and she does a sponsored Swim for Life every year for a different charity.  She has raised hundreds of pounds whilst keeping fit, building her confidence, socializing and enjoying herself.

A research scientist from Kingsteignton raised £1099.50 for SWAPS in June 2006 by successfully completing the Welsh 3000 challenge.  A gruelling 27 mile walk over 15 Welsh Peaks. The money raised went towards organising social events for service users and providers.

A SWAPS service user with a real passion for planes went flying for the first time in a four seater plane as 50th birthday treat organised by her carer.
Quote "On Saturday we went to Dunkerswell and I had a flight in the plane we took off in Sky Hawk at 10.30am and had a very good time in it.  Can we do it again?Please let’s do it again.  We went over our house, we saw the sheep and they looked tiny and we went over the sea.  I steered the plane for a while, did you see me bring it down the runway?  Can we do it again I would love to go up as I enjoy it very much".

A SWAPS service user writes:
"After you have been at the same place for a while you find that your carer gets to know how you are feeling and is able to read the little signs in your character, for example, if you want a bit of space and to be quiet or if you need some company or need to let of steam, just little things like that.   You know there is only that one person who will be there in the morning to help get you up, wash and attend to your personal needs.  In a residential home it could be one of many people and I know I would not like a lot of strangers doing this for me.  I’m treated as one of the family, their friends are my friends and I’m included in lunch out, teas, birthday parties, picnics, barbecues, theatre outings and social evenings."

ORDINARY PEOPLE DOING SOMETHING AMAZING
(extract from Mid-Devon Advertiser, reporter Nigel Canham writes:)

A Kingsteignton-based charity which finds family homes for potentially vulnerable adults in Devon and Cornwall has said the number of hosts must double to meet demand. South West Adult Placement Scheme (SWAPS) was established in 2004 by several authorities including Devon and Cornwall County Councils. The group identifies places for people with needs such as, but not exclusively, learning difficulties.
It currently works with 100 families who have 150 people placed with them. It is the embodiment of care in the community and a chance which many more people would like to experience. The model very much fits the government’s wishes to provide tailored, very flexible and non-institutional care. It bridges a gap which nothing else does. Many who choose to provide care are couples whose children have left home although many different family set ups are involved. Being placed has great benefits for an individual’s independence and many who had spent a year or two with a family had progressed to their own accommodation. Alternatively, some people had found a home for life. Many people seem to understand the system best when likened to adult fostering. It can be an arrangement entered into with no fixed end date in mind. It can be whatever people want it to be.
SWAPS undertakes a comprehensive assessment of all those who express an interest in becoming what is officially referred to as service providers.
Personal attributes, life experience and practicalities all come into it rather than professional qualifications. SWAPS wants to make the right matches, not see the right bits of paper. SWAPS states that there are more individuals needing care than families offering it. We need diversity, a wide pool of people, many of those waiting are either in inappropriate care homes or with birth families, often older parents. Apart from the personal reward which comes from being a provider, and support from SWAPS, there is also financial help. Each person placed with a family attracts between £260 - £400 per week depending on their needs. After expenses it¹s unlikely to make anyone rich but it does allow some people to make it their full time job. Others take people in only occasionally providing periods of short-term care.
All the providers have one thing in common - they are just ordinary people doing something amazing for other people.

ONE MAN’S STORY... HOW FAMILY LIFE TRANSFORMED JOHN’S WORLD
(extract from Mid-Devon Advertiser, reporter Nigel Canham writes:) 
One man’s story. John, 62, has lived in Devon hospitals and care homes most of his adult life. Learning difficulties have restricted his ability to look after himself. Although well cared for in the past, his life changed dramatically a year ago when he moved in with a family in Teignmouth. Thanks to their support and encouragement, which is focused not on a large group as it might be in an institutional setting, John has made incredible progress. He now makes independent trips out and has become an active member of the local church where he even signs for the deaf. He also chooses his own wardrobe and helps out with the shopping. Twelve months ago all of that would have been beyond him. He is very happy with his new life.
He said "Here I’ve got my own room and more freedom. I’ve got a good life now, Anne and her family are very kind. I’d like to stay here". Smiling, Anne replied "We¹ve both got something out of it".