Activities at Tyspane Care Home

At Tyspane Care Home we value the experiences and life stories of every person in our care, and learn so much from discussing their lifetime hobbies and achievements. One of the ways to find out about our residents is to spend time with them and their families completing our Get To Know Me booklets. It was while completing Geoff's Get To Know Me Booklet that he stated he was missing his hometown, especially being able to watch his favourite Birmingham City Football Club (The Blues) play live football on the weekend. As a  'Brummie' Blues fans see themselves as one big community, one large family and as a result attending football matches on a regular basis is akin to meeting family and friends. Another ritual for Geoff when he attended the Blues stadium was to buy a burger and onions at half time, this was almost a religious experience, a soulful accompaniment to watching the football. He stated that when you eat a tasty dish at a stadium that day becomes more than just about the scoreline.

As a result of hearing Geoff's wishes Tyspane Care Home Activities discussed with  Amy Austin  (Chef and Hospitality) whether a special meal could be created to rekindle Geoff's memories of being at Birmingham City Football Stadium, eating his favourite half time food of a burger and onions with lots of tomato sauce washed down with his favourite tipple!

Geoff was salivating at the thought of his burger and onions and could not contain his excitement when it arrived. He felt so happy he was compelled to tell a joke;

"A man spots a sign in a grocery store stating helicopter crisps for sale. He enters the building and asks to buy a packet of helicopter crisps. The shop keeper stated he could not buy a packet as they only had plain (plane) ones left."

Whilst chatting and eating Geoff was elated and stated he couldn't wait to come to the activities lounge to participate in his other passion of bingo.

“At Tyspane Care Home we have a fantastic Hospitality Team, they are always on hand to ensure that our residents can enjoy the best dining experience in a welcoming and pleasurable environment. Providing excellent hospitality within Tyspane Care Home is vital for the well-being of residents, families and friends. Therefore, it is wonderful to welcome Amy Austin as Chef and Hospitality at Tyspane Care Home. Amy is to an established Chef and outstanding individual who demonstrates passion, commitment and the teamwork needed to make a real difference to those living within our home.”

Aime Bown – General Manager

Amy Austin has shown her skills today by creating a special menu for residents, friends, family and staff to celebrate St George’s Day. St George became a legendary figure in English history due to his courage and bravery despite never setting foot in England! The country adopted him as its patron saint, with April 23rd being chosen as the date of celebration to mark his death.

Amy created bespoke recipes taken from traditional English dishes after reading the Spring Activities Team newsletter. Residents couldn’t believe their eyes as she served up a menu of; creamy fresh carrot soup, toad in the hole, consisting of plump meaty sausages in Yorkshire batter, cod mornay served with cauliflower and for desert creamy white rice pudding. Simply mouth-watering and scrumptious. As they say now, fit for a king!

Thank you Amy, for joining Tyspane Care Home Hospitality Team.

Tyspane Care Home fully understands that a career in health and social care is one of the most rewarding, valuable and in-demand professions. As a sector, health and social care is one of the largest in the country and covers a huge range of roles in a wide variety of settings. Workplaces include hospitals, care homes, schools and nurseries with jobs ranging from midwife to speech and language therapist. So, with this understanding, it is wonderful to welcome Sam Thorne to Tyspane Care Home, Sam will be with us for two weeks educational placement. He is currently studying at Petroc College for his level three in Health and Social Care.

In addition to Sam, we have welcomed back Tom and William from Braunton Academy. Tom and William have chosen Tyspane Care Home to complete their volunteering section of the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh award.  Their aim being to become empowered young adults, learn new skills whilst overcoming any obstacles, and build confidence and resilience.

Tyspane Care Home believes that mixing young and old individuals can have significant benefits for both age groups. When children regularly interact with older people, they experience improvements in language development, reading, and social skills. Intergenerational interactions help combat loneliness and isolation among the elderly. These connections contribute to better health, care, and overall quality of life for older individuals.

Furthermore, inviting children and young adults into Tyspane Care Home breaks age stereotypes and encourages lifelong learning; children and young adults who get to know “real, live, old people” look beyond ageist stereotypes. They learn that older adults have diverse interests, skills, and hobbies.

We therefore welcome volunteers of all ages at Tyspane Care Home, we are one big family.

During the pandemic, many older people turned to digital devices to stay connected with friends and family, but are they still using digital technology in their everyday lives? ABSOLUTELY

Some believe that it is hard for the elderly to use modern technology, however, with a little patience, gadgets such as mobile phones for older people can dramatically improve the quality of life for seniors. Technology can save lives; help build relationships or occupy time. It can also support intellectual inquisitiveness, provide greater security and offer assistance.   Tyspane Care Home residents often share images and videos of their happy moments with families, friends, staff and each other. Sharing these moments can liven up life and reduce boredom.

Therefore, it was wonderful to connect Patricia by ZOOM with her life partner Ray. The smiles were endless and they chatted effortlessly, they could have been seated next to each other.

Ray was so delighted and could not wait to book another ZOOM call for next week.

It could be argued that live music is a shared experience, there’s a lot of evidence that what people value in a live performance is feeling like they are sharing the experience with other people in the room, both the performers and the rest of the audience.

So today, it was wonderful to welcome back David, Roger, Keith and Jim to Tyspane Care Home and as expected their performance was electrifying, they energised and excited residents, families, friends and staff.

The atmosphere was buzzing as David, Keith, Jim and Roger played a medley of music that included everything from quieter more emotional vocals all the way through to an Irish jig.

Thank you so much and see you soon!

Tyspane Care Home held the 2024 Academy Awards, commonly known as Tyspane Oscars in the beautifully decorated Activities Lounge. The star studied event was attended by residents, families, friends and staff who walked the carpet in an array of beautiful gowns and statement jewellery.

Special guest Tamsin Ball delivered an epic live performance of songs from classical musicals such as Les Misérables, Beauty and the Beast and Frozen.

Tamsin is an outstanding vocalist who has the most bewitching and captivating voice that is guaranteed to give you goose bumps. Tamsin is the ultimate ‘Classical Crossover’ artist, blending Classical Music with other genres such as Folk, Musical Theatre and Contemporary. 

As a result of her amazing performance Tamsin was awarded a Tyspane Oscar, simply spectacular.

Tamsin posted on her Facebook Page www.tamsinball.com, “Umm well I wasn’t expecting to win an Oscar, I didn’t have a speech prepared”

Thank You Tamsin for an awe-inspiring, jaw dropping performance.