Activities at Kirkburn Court Care Home
Here at Kirkburn Court, we aim to facilitate a personalised programme of meaningful activities, which are designed to promote independence, social stimulation and cognitive function. We strive to create a comfortable and safe environment where fun, creativity and individuality are encouraged. We feel it is important for us and residents to place value on yesterday, today and tomorrow – which is why we invest heavily in getting to know residents and learning their life history.
Our inclusive, yet respectful ethos is reflected in the wide range of activities we offer – ranging from larger structured group activities to one-to-one sessions. Our monthly activity programmes are extremely varied, but some of the activities you may expect to find include concerts, crafts, games, exercise sessions, reminiscing and outings. We also have a strong relationship with the local community and often invite external guests into the home, including performers, schools, and choirs.
Claire Burden
I began my career with Barchester in December 2017. Having worked within the teaching profession for the preceding 8 years, I feel that I bring a range of transferable skills to the activities team.
I strongly believe that the provision of activities is about so much more than just structured, planned events – capturing and celebrating the little moments in daily life, such as enjoying a chat and a cup of tea together, are equally as important.
Activities, no matter how big or small, should be at the heart of every home and that individuality should be celebrated. In addition, I feel that activities should take a person-centred approach, which is why I enjoy spending time with the residents and learning about their preferences and their history.
My own interests include football, politics, crafting and drinking tea, and I enjoy nothing better than engaging with residents on these topics! I aim to bring energy, a friendly smile and a willing ear to the home each day.
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 Kirkburn Court Care Home
Kirkburn Oscars
In honour of this year’s Oscars ceremony, our Activities team decided to host their very own ‘Kirkburn Oscars’. If it is good enough for the Hollywood A-Listers then it is good enough for Kirkburn! Staff and residents made their way up the red carpet to accept their awards. Some took a bow, some made a speech and one lovely resident even went and put on a shirt and tie to accept his award! What a great afternoon, filled with applause and laughter.
Inside Cliveden
We were treated to an amazing live virtual talk and a tour of Cliveden, hosted by the house and chapel guides from the National Trust Talks Service.
The volunteers kindly gave us a tour around the famous house taking an in-depth look at Cliveden’s many stories from its 350 year history, from devilish dukes to scandalous headlines and boundary-breaking garden designs to political notoriety.
Starting with the Duke of Buckingham who built the first house in 1666, our residents met the key owners who helped shape the house and its gardens including the Orkney, Sutherland and Astor families.
The talk was accompanied by an illustrated presentation which brought to life these individuals and showed how their influence at Cliveden still continues today.
Valentine's celebrations
We held a Valentines themed café whereby residents and staff were invited along to enjoy a cuppa and a fine piece – with our finest china and table clothes looked out for the occasion! Our residents had done a great job making some decorations – including love heart wall decorations and candle holders for the tables. Our baking ladies also whipped up a batch of Valentines shortbread for our cake stands too. The occasion also gave us the opportunity for some reminiscing about our loved ones and many a funny story was shared about Valentines gifts from days gone by!
Winter Olympics
In honour of this year’s Winter Olympics, we have tried our hand at a few different themed activities. Firstly we had a few rounds of what we like to call ‘Snowman Slam’ – involving trying to knock down our homemade mini snowmen with pretend snowballs! There may have even been a few snowball fights too! We have really enjoyed watching the ice hockey and fancied trying out a game – although our version was called ‘carpet hockey’! There was great fun as residents and staff competed to score the most goals. As well as having lots of laughs, these activities have been great for encouraging movement too!
The Big Garden Birdwatch
We recently took part in the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch. We spent some time monitoring the birds which visited our gardens and kept a tally of the different types we saw. However, we quickly concluded that the most common type was a seagull! We also used the occasion to engage in some other bird themed activities including bingo, quizzes and reminiscing. Well done everyone!
Robbie Burns Day
We have had a great time celebrating Burns Day! We were lucky enough to have a visit from a great local piper who very kindly went the whole way around the outside of the building so that all the residents could hear him. Our carer, Graham, then donned his kilt to perform the address to the haggis – to rapturous applause! We then enjoyed a lovely Burns lunch before trying our hand at a seated Highland Fling routine in the afternoon. We may not be entering Strictly any time soon, but we had great fun anyway!
