Activities at Claremont Parkway Care Home

Yesterday we had a demonstration from Inspired inspiration on the tiny tablet. Stewart kindly told us all about the tablet and chose relevant apps for the residents to try out depending on their needs and their likes!

We weren’t sure who was more impressed the staff or residents but we were all in agreement it would be amazing to have the device in our home. 

Residents of Claremont enjoyed a fabulous day celebrating St Patrick’s Day. We had a relaxed morning colouring Irish themed pictures and visiting residents in their rooms for a St Patricks day photoshoot and discussing all things Irish. June one of our residents treated us to a lovely song while in her room. In the afternoon we were delighted to welcome the Reynolds Academy of Irish Dance, who performed some lovely routines for us, which were thoroughly enjoyed by all.  A big thank you to the dancers that gave up their time to perform for us. One of our residents partners kindly read out a poem for us about Ireland, which sounded beautiful and was followed by refreshments made by one of our chefs Vera and we tasted some Irish soda bread. The day was rounded off with a quiz all about St Patrick’s Day and a general chat about Ireland.  A fun packed, if somewhat tiring day was had by all.

Today at Claremont we listened to the beautiful voices of The Weekley Singers, who entertained both residents and staff. The Weekley Singers explained that they were to perform a concert the following week, and therefore this was their rehearsal, and they didn’t disappoint. The residents joined in with the songs that they recognised and some had tears of joy in their eyes, it was simply amazing. Mary a resident at Claremont voiced “It was beautiful, I absolutely love this, and they have brought back many memories for me”. One member of the choir visits his partner within the home and his partner was delighted to catch up with the members as she herself had been a member of the choir. It was a beautiful afternoon and we look forward to welcoming back the Weekley Singers to Claremont in the near future.

For World book day at Claremont we invited the local Nursery Busy Bees, which have visited the home before and it has always been a great success of interaction between the residents and the children. The afternoon was started with a story of the ‘Smartest Giant in Town’ which the children interacted with well and it brought a smile to their faces. Karen one of the activities team dressed as the giant from the story which also went down a treat with the children. Afterwards the children chose a book to share with the residents and for the resident to read it to them, which produced an abundance of smiles to everyone. Refreshments were given out, which led quite fittingly to the story of the ‘Hungry Caterpillar’ with a visual aid for all to see. The afternoon was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone and we look forward to welcoming the children back again for the Easter egg hunt.

At Claremont Parkway we are always looking for new ways to keep active and help keep the residents bodies moving. During February we welcomed Tom from G-Fitness who joined us for a free demonstration to see if the residents would enjoy a regular visit each month to help with their exercise. We had a warm up to start the session, followed by strengthening exercises using an elastic stretch band and a foam football, which all of the residents excelled at and the exercises were made fun and adapted for those with mobility issues. All the residents agreed it was a wonderful afternoon and are looking forward to the next session and with some practise between Tom visiting we would be find the exercises getting easier to do.

During February we started a Knit and Natter group as a few of our residents had expressed how they used to enjoy knitting. Karen one of our carers who also helps out with activities was more than happy to set this up and volunteer her own time to set the group up and help with the knitting. We were also lucky enough to be joined by Nikki who kindly volunteered to come in and help us with our project of making a blanket. As a group we had a natter about the history of knitting and what people had knitted before. Derek informed us that he had knitted a twin set for his sister and would ask if she still has it so he can show us all. Una’s son showed off the socks she had made for him. We also chatted about how relaxing it was to knit and or crochet and how it helped with our fine motor skills and general wellbeing. A lovely cup of tea was had during the session and some amazing cakes and short bread biscuits were consumed that had been made by our lovely chef Vera. The knit and natter group will be held each Tuesday between 10.30 and 12pm if anyone would like to come along and join us.