Activities at Leeming Bar Grange Care Home

Residents at Leeming Bar Grange in Leeming Bar have been discovering all things Antipodean in celebration of Australia Day, which took place on Friday 26th January.

Residents took part in Australian-themed activities throughout the day including a ‘Waltzing Matilda Sing Along’, Aussie baking, and a quiz to test their knowledge!

The favourite activity of the day was however a visit to the outback for some bush tucker trials! Residents nominated team members to tuck in to a variety of exotic challenges, from 'snake eyes' and 'pickled larvae', to 'kangaroo unmentionables'; with team members earning special treats for residents for every challenge devoured! Including a classic Aussie sweet treat called fairy bread, kindly made by residents.

We have been celebrated the new year in the best way possible; with friends, feasting, frivolity, the fandango, & an abundance of fun!  The bubbles were flowing as we celebrated the past year and the meaningful moments we have created together! Here's to many more in 2024!

To celebrate what would have been Elvis Presley's 89th birthday we held our own fundraising danceathon in which we aimed to shake, rattle, & roll all our way to 89 hours danced collectively! Even Elvis himself was in the building to help us reach our danceathon target!

We are very pleased to announce that after two full days of dancing our blue suede shoes off we completed our goal of collectively dancing 89 hours!

Funds raised from our danceathon will go towards supporting Barchester's Charitable Foundation which helps older people as well as working age adults with a learning or physical disability or mental health issue across England, Scotland & Wales.

Please consider donating at https://www.justgiving.com/page/leemingbargrangedance All donations will be very gratefully received.

In January we took the opportunity to celebrate National Cheese Lovers Day with a fondue soirée!

Residents enjoyed a range of crudités dipped into rich & creamy melted cheese, paired with sherry, port, and fizz. Along with delicious homemade cheese and tomato pinwheels.

Team Leader Tracey couldn't resist joining the fun following her shift; which of course led to an enthusiastic sing along rendition of Shirley Bassey's 'Hey Big Spender'.

A big thank you to lovely residents June & Kathleen who spent the day busily preparing this evening's savoury treats.

Across our services residents had a fantastic time during a special live virtual event, led by Emilia from Medical Detection Dogs. Emilia took us on a journey to discover how the organisation began training dogs to support people with complex health conditions, saving their lives on a daily basis.

Using their amazing sense of smell, these dogs can identify odour changes emitted prior an episode and alert the person to take preventative action.

We were introduced to the wonderful dogs and the science behind the sniff.  It was a delightful experience for everyone, especially our canine-loving residents.

Wishes came true this festive period as residents Margaret and Lynda at Leeming Bar Grange Care Home had their wish granted in partnership with Wensleydale Railway.  Always looking to prove the age old adage ‘it’s never too late’ the home created an initiative named ‘Wish Upon A Star At Leeming Bar’, which support residents to live life to the full and continue to make meaningful memories.

Margaret had always spoken fondly of steam locomotives with Margaret’s father working as a train driver. When the friends were speaking about how much they would love to take another ride on a stream train the team got to work in making this wish a reality. When Senior Activities Coordinator Kim Calvert reached out to Wensleydale Railway they were only happy to oblige in making the ladies wish a reality with an invitation to take a journey on the most magical train journey of their lives; The Polar Express!