Activities

Activities make up the most important part of all our days and at Barchester we ensure a variety that reflects the interests and capabilities of all the people we support. We have specialist activities staff and volunteers at all our homes and an expectation that as many staff as possible will get involved in activities work on a group and an individual level. All group and individual activity is designed to not only mentally and physically stimulate the people we care for but to enhance their life skills and feelings of purpose and self-worth.

Below you can view some of the ways we enrich the lives of our residents:

View our Life Enrichment brochure

We also work in collaboration with NAPA, the National Activity Providers Association, with whom we are also registered.

Here are some examples of popular clubs and interests at a number of our homes:

• Art clubs
• Gardening
• Exercise and movement
• News quizzes and discussion groups
• Visits and care for pets and farm animals
• Baking
• Arts and crafts
• Cards, word and other games
• Entertainers
• Work linking with local schools
• Trips and visits within the local region on the care home’s minibus

Spa treatments such as manicures, facials and complementary therapies are on offer in many of our homes. Music therapy services are also available at our care homes.  We also work to keep up people’s links with family and with local communities; we are increasingly building homes with coffee shops and bars that encourage community contact.

Together with Music Partnership

Barchester are proud to be partners with ‘Together with Music’ (TwM), an intergenerational membership platform centred around connection, community and music!

“We know from years of experience that engaging with music and with young people has a profoundly enriching effect on the lives of our residents. We’re certain that this wonderful project will be hugely beneficial to everyone involved.”

Pete Calveley, CEO Barchester Healthcare

Together with Music is an intergenerational campaign created to encourage and inspire community connections both now and in the future. Through music and the act of music making we are working together to establish and sustain creative connections with children to build stronger, healthier and more integrated communities for years to come.  Intergenerational music acts as a conduit for the sharing of cultural heritage, providing a physical and emotional bond and enhancing individual identity for the young and the old.  As partners our homes have opportunity to connect with schools and intergenerational groups in their local area to provide a variety of stimulating social connection for celebrate life within Barchester Healthcare. Click here for more details on the project.

Barchester Virtual Live Events

As part of our unique Life Enrichment Programme at Barchester we are now providing a number of live virtual events for all our residents to enjoy on a regular basis either in groups in a communal area and one to one settings.

Over the Christmas period of 2020 we provided programme of Virtual Christmas Festival events where we collaborated with a range of companies from English National Ballet, Blenheim Palace, The Royal Army and Yorkshire Sculpture Park to name a few and the events ranged from workshops, talks as well as music and dance performances.

In 2021, we are continuing to host our virtual events programme with twice monthly events to provide a selection of interesting and entertaining live talks, performance and demonstrations to supplement our varied activities programme for our residents, partially providing talks from geographical areas far and wide to enhance the connection to places of interest and spark memories from the past. So far for 2021 we have events planned with Historic Environment Scotland, Blenheim Palace, V&A Dundee, Five Sisters Zoo, Blooming Haus the master florist, Hereford Cathedral, SEA LIFE Centre London Aquarium as well as planning to partnering with English National Ballet again to name just a few of the events and live sessions we have confirmed at this stage.