Celebrating life at Barchester

We celebrate life through everything we do, from our thoughtful experiences and activities to our delicious food. We offer the latest technology as well as sensory engagement to nurture the wellbeing of our residents. With a wide variety of tailored activities and events we make sure our residents have the best physical, mental, spiritual and social stimulation, all bespoke to them. Take a look at what we’ve been up to…

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Barchester Care Awards – Divisional Winner

Melbourn Springs has been nominated as divisional winners in three categories:
 
. Carer of the year
. Resident Ambassador of the year
. Volunteer of the year
 
Our divisional winners will join winners from across the UK at a special awards event in October to 
celebrate their outstanding achievements and see if they’ve won a national award. Huge congratulations!

Trip to Hitchin Lavender Fields

What a fantastic afternoon we had at Hitchin Lavender Fields!
 
The lavender was beautiful and the calming scent filled the air. The gift shop had lots of lavender gifts to purchase. Our ladies bought lavender bags for their draws & fragranced soap.
 
Of course we sampled the cafe for a refreshing cup of tea. A great place to visit, highly recommend visiting.

Something for Everyone at Burwood Grange

Residents Living their Best Lives!
There was something for everyone at Burwood Grange from a gentle exercise class, mini golf in the garden, a minibus outing to M&S and special birthday celebrations!

Mad Hatter's Tea Party

Step into a World Of Whimsy!
 
This week our wonderful residents got into the party spirit at a Mad Hatter's Tea Party, filled with colourful hats, delicious afternoon tea, laughter, music and plenty of smiles. From quirky decorations to fun games, everyone embraced the spirit of Wonderland!

Alpacas visit brings comfort, curiosity and fun!

We had some very soft and special visitors recently - two wonderful alpacas, Caramac and Liquorice.

Our residents, family and friends enjoyed meeting them as they visited every area of the home, including residents' rooms, making sure that everyone had the opportunity to spend time with them.

Alpacas are gentle, calm and curious animals, with incredibly soft fleece, which makes them wonderful, comforting companions. We were as curious as they were, so their visit caused a lot of conversation, petting, and fun!

Celebrating creativity and nature with clay

A small creative group of our residents explored the work of Somerset sculptor Ian Marlow, taking inspiration from the natural world around us. 

Joy created a beautiful flower-shaped trinket dish, Pat and Greta made pressed flower hanging decorations, and Jo crafted a lovely butterfly decoration featuring pressed lavender. 

It was a lovely, relaxing and enjoyable session celebrating creativity and nature, and it was fun to try model making, with some great results.

Valuing our residents unique life stories

At the heart of our Memory Lane community is getting to know the person behind the diagnosis, and Niamh, our Activities Coordinator, always makes time to get to know our residents.

She recently spent some lovely one-to-one time with Susannah, a former geologist and editor for a renowned educational publishing house. Susannah shared fascinating stories from her career and gave Niamh a masterclass in creating eye-catching magazine layouts and engaging copy. Niamh also encouraged our new resident Mike to give us a beautiful piano performance. Completely self-taught, Mike plays entirely from memory, without sheet music.

These personalised moments help us celebrate each resident's unique life story, supporting wellbeing, memory, and meaningful connections.

Games in the Garden

Our residents enjoyed some target-based games in our beautiful garden recently with plenty of laughing, cheering and friendly competition. It's always lovely to see everyone having fun together and encouraging each other.

We're fortunate at Crandon Springs Care Home to have such a spacious and accessible garden with comfortable seating and shaded areas, making it the perfect place to enjoy fresh air, gentle exercise and time together.

An Afternoon of Poetry

Requested by our residents, our poetry afternoon offered a chance to share favourite poems, discover new verses and enjoy meaningful conversations together. A wonderful activity that encourages reminiscence, creativity and connection