Activities at Archview Lodge Care Home

Team members and residents at Archview Lodge Care Home in Dalkeith had an outing to the local Mining Museum, which brought back memories and opened up discussions about past jobs. 

A small group of residents took advantage of the warmer weather to visit the Edinburgh Botanical Gardens with a group of students who have been with the home on work experience.

The students from local school, St David’s High school enjoyed the trip where they took in the delights of the garden and memorial for the Queen Mother which has been made from natural materials including shells and acorns.

On June 28th Archview Residents and ex-servicemen and women attended the homes successful open day, where they spent time reminiscing about World War 2 with uniforms and jeeps supplied by a local enthusiast.

Everyone who attended spoke about their memories of that fateful day when Britain declared war on Germany, two days after Hitler’s forces had invaded Poland.

Guests took advantage of the sunshine, enjoying a delicious spread of tasty treats prepared by the homes Head Chef from hot dogs and hamburgers and ice creams which were enjoyed throughout the home which had been decorated with flags from around the world

Residents of Archview love the great outdoors and took advantage recently to enjoy the last of the summer sunshine as they showcased their blooming good gardening skills by sowing seeds and growing vegetables, as part of the home’s gardening club.

From ripe tomatoes to delicious strawberries, residents – who have always had a love of gardening, have been busy coming together to create their very own gardening oasis as part of the popular club, 

As part of the annual pantomime planning, staff raise funds through an array of activities. This year over £300.00 was raised as Mary, long serving activities coordinator braved the gunge in front of residents, relatives and colleagues.

The pantomime is an annual tradition and performed by staff and residents who have joined the homes drama group and will be performing ‘Carry on Steamie’ over the coming weeks.

General Manager, May McCondichie said “We’re very proud to have raised so much money through our Gunge the staff fundraiser.  “Everyone has had a good laugh pledging the cash and then watched Mary get gunged – the atmosphere has been fantastic.”

Residents enjoyed a visit from some exotic visitors as they welcomed these special animals to the home to take a walk on the wild side. Everyone enjoyed meeting the special guests, which included giant African snails, tarantulas, rats, millipedes and a corn snake.

To the residents’ delight and for everyone who was brave enough they were given the opportunity to stroke or hold the animals, with many asking for more information about the creatures’ diets and habitats. One Resident commented: “I enjoyed stroking the lizard the most, as it was much cooler than the other animals.”

Pet therapy is excellent for our residents as it can help reduce stress, anxiety, and depression. It can also increase self-esteem and improve social skills, so everyone was absolutely delighted to have them along.