Activities at Westwood House Care Home
As Activity Coordinator at Westwood House I am fully committed to organising activities for all of the residents. This includes activities within the home such as reminiscence sessions, and planning events such as the Summer and Christmas parties. We have also provided some very successful trips out to local places of interest in our minibus and have monthly visits from entertainers and musicians. We are always encouraging local schools to get involved and have recently managed to get a local charity 'Spare tyre' working with us very successfully.
It is important to me that each individual who we support can get as much from these as possible, so we try our best to arrange activities that reflect their interests and capabilities as best as possible, and encourage them to participate in any way they can. We also encourage relatives to join with activities and events as often as they can.
Liz Wickers
My name is Liz and I am the lifestyle coordinator at Westwood House. I have always lived and worked in Southwark and Lambeth boroughs. I spent 25 years within the education sector before deciding to try new roles. As well as teaching I have also had the privilege of being a personal carer in Dementia. I am so happy that I have been welcomed into the Westwood House family where I can continue to grow and develop.
I aim to offer a range of varied and tailored activities and group sessions that are meaningful to each of them. I am thrilled to be supporting the team in delivering fun, engaging and interesting activities for our residents.
I look forward to meeting you all!
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 Westwood House Care Home
A Royal Celebration
Residents really enjoyed watching Her Majesty’s celebrations and the Trooping of the Colour on Saturday. They also baked a delicious cake for the occasion. There were lots of different ideas that were discussed, but in the end, we went for a traditional design, incorporating all the important parts that we agree Her Majesty would be proud of.
A Sweet Donation
We received a lovely cake from Joanne, a relative of one our residents, with the beautiful message: "I just wanted to say a big thank you to each and every one of you for being so kind and welcoming to me. So, just as a little gesture, I had a cake made for you all to show my appreciation."
VE Day
On VE Day, we celebrated with a traditional supper menu, which all the residents enjoyed. Robert, our host, and Eve, our Lifestyle Coordinator, did some research into what sort of meals would be eaten at that time and replicated them as closely as possible. Some of our residents also gave us ideas too!
The meal was received well and everyone appreciated the effort we made. We also had VE decorations displayed around the home with lots of Union Jack flags, and some old pictures for VE Day. On the day, Eve and Robert spent a lot of time with the residents reminiscing about the day.
More Messages of Kindness
These are some of the cards and letters that we have received from children at St James the Great Nursery & Primary School in Thornton Heath. We displayed them so that we can move them from around the home for everyone to see.
Messages of Kindness
These cards and pictures and stories have been sent in to us by lots of pupils at St James The Great Nursery and Primary School in Thornton Heath. They made contact with us through one of their staff members, Nicole Duffy, who knows the home. They were really keen to make contact with our residents and keep them cheerful throughout this very difficult time when they are socially distanced from their loved ones.
Everything we have received has been absolutely delightful and has cheered us all up so much. The residents are really pleased to know that there are children out there who are thinking about them. There are some amazing pictures and stories that we have all read and they are displayed throughout the home. We will be sending thank you letters and cards back to the children when we can and will also be inviting them into the home later in the year to say a very special thank you to them all.
What a wonderful school to think about us all here. Please keep sending them!
A Budding Artist
Lauren is a founding member of of our Parent & Child Group, which is held at Westwood House every Friday morning from 10am-12pm. This is a photo of her beautiful daughter, Rana, painting a lovely picture for all the residents and staff at Westwood House. We all know Lauren and Rana very well now and Rana now has a handsome new brother called Freddie, who will be coming to meet us all later in the year.
