Activities at Austen House Care Home
Here at Austen House, we like to get to know those we support, and from the day of moving in, our activities team will spend time on an individual basis learning about interests, likes and dislikes, life history and favourite hobbies.
We provide a wide range of activities, from one-to-one time, manicures and board games, through to live entertainment, prize bingo and our ever-popular cheese & wine events. Our activities team will also tailor individual activities to ensure residents can have as much or as little involvement as they choose.
In the summer months, greater focus is given to outdoor activities, such as barbecues and garden parties. In conjunction with our Chef, themed events are planned throughout the year, bringing activities and food together.
In their pink polo shirts, our activities team are easily identifiable and embrace ideas and suggestions from residents and their relatives to ensure that the activities provided keep those we support engaged, stimulated and entertained.
Iuliana Buican
Hi my name is Iuliana, I was a history teacher for 12 years before I joined Barchester in 2017. I am passionate about my job and love working with people. I enjoy planning and delivering meaningful activities which make a difference to our residents lives.
Read our brochure 'Life-enriching activities' for more information about life in our care homes.
Read our brochure
Activities and Events Partnerships
As part of our bespoke life-enrichment programmes, we host a number of live virtual events in the home on a regular basis through a number of partnerships with places of interest and world class performance companies
Life at Austen House Care Home
Arts & Crafts Workshop
Here at Austen House we use the power of the art to inspire people to get creative, connect, learn new skills and most importantly, have fun.
Participating in art and craft activities it is not only enjoyable and a great way to express themselves, it has a real impact on our residents health, wellbeing and quality of life too.
Our Arts & Crafts workshop with Cheryl and Johnny from Creative Mojo boost the residents confidence and wellbeing and recently we created a wonderful Olympic Games display.
Everyone had a great and creative time with family and friends!
Bringing Generations Together!
We were absolutely delighted to welcome the children from Butterfly Buddies Intergenerational Friendship, coordinated by Joe and Rebecca, along with children from Earleybird Pre-School, to join us for intergenerational fun, songs and games in our "Under the Sea" adventure.
Our residents spent time talking, playing and taking part in a wide range of activities with children. Norman, one of our resident said: “It makes my day when the children come”.
It's always so wonderful to see the interaction between the generations and we would like to say a big thank you for all the adventures, smiles and joy that the children are bringing to us every time.
We wish you all a very happy and fun Summer Holiday and we cannot wait to see you again soon!
World Chocolate Day!
Staff and residents at Austen House had a fantastic time celebrating World Chocolate Day on July 7, surely one of the best days of the year!
We revelled in all things sweet for World Chocolate Day with a range of chocolatey activities. Our residents enjoyed an exciting tasting experience, where they had the chance to try different chocolate bars from all over the world. Also, we took part in themed quiz, tasted our delicious treats and had a discussion about all things chocolate.
General Manager, Arturas Repkovas, said: “It wasn’t just the residents that were excited when we found out there was a World Chocolate Day, the eyes of all our staff lit up too. We all had great fun discussing our favourite types of chocolate down the years, it’s amazing how many different chocolate bars and flavours there have been!”
Janice, a resident said: “I have always loved anything to do with chocolate, I don’t think there are many people that don’t! I have eaten so much delicious chocolate today, I think this has to be one of my favourite celebrations.”
Shopping time!
Austen House residents and staff had a lovely surprise as Gemini Fashion visited the home with their mobile clothes shop. They came with a huge range of clothing, tops, cardigans, underwear, jewellery, scarves all in wonderful fabrics, lots of sizes and colours for everyone to browse and purchase items that they have liked.
Residents love having the independence of choosing what they like, without having to go into a busy town for shopping. So they found it fantastic to have the convenience of a clothes and accessories shop immediately available to them.
With the help of mobile shops like Gemini's coming to the home, it encourages residents to browse in a relaxed, non-pressured shopping environment.
Austen House residents are given the chance to browse the shop however they like, but there are also people on hand to present clothing for those who might prefer to be seated.
This was a great activity for our residents as it brings the shopping experience to the home for everyone.
Happy Father's Day!
We marked Father’s Day in style with a very special Cheese & Wine afternoon.
Residents enjoyed a delicious English wine tasting and we paired our wines with different tasty treats. Some of our residents met their loved ones, others enjoyed taking part in various activities, such as playing themed games and quizzes or spending time reminiscing about their earlier lives and talking about their fathers and children.
It was a fabulous afternoon!
National Carers’ Week!
Here at Austen House we celebrated National Carer’s Week with an afternoon party and our Head chef Ainsworth Brown had put together a wonderful spread of party food for everyone to enjoy. Family and friends arrived throughout the afternoon to join in the fun with staff and residents. Residents also gave thanks by giving handmade cards and handwritten letters to carers with a small gift of thanks for all that they do.
Alan, a resident at Austen House commented: “We’ve all had such a lovely time today, it really is a joy to be able to thank our wonderful carers for all that they do. They really are heaven sent.”
