Celebrating life at Barchester

Visit by His Majesty King Charles III to Myerscough College Farms on the 9th February 2026 was a private visit to Duke of Lancaster Myerscough Estate where Andrea Gardner, Margaret Baxters daughter and Director of Farm Operations turned up part of the farm to demonstrate regenerative farming to students. 

The visit included new plots of rounded woodlands, hedge planting, herbal leys, willow plantation, in field trees and woodlands. Laurel Bank was proud to accompany Margaret on this unique opportunity to see Andrea hosting this historic visit.    

We were delighted to welcome ZooLab, who brought along a variety of fascinating little creatures for everyone to meet. While a few residents were a bit nervous about getting up close with the tarantula, many embraced the experience and had a fantastic time saying hello and learning more about these amazing animals.
It was wonderful to see so many smiles, curiosity, and even a little bravery on display! 

Every Thursday we are able to take our residents to places of interest. We are lucky to have a Barchester bus for the residents use every week.

We often go to different garden centres, record shops and sometimes to community coffee mornings. All the ideas of trips are put forward in our resident meetings.

Every Thursday we love getting out and about taking residents to a variety of places of interest. Thanks to the Barchester Minibus we are able to enjoy these regular adventures. From garden centres to community coffee mornings, all of our trip ideas are suggested by residents, making sure everyone has something to look forward to. 

Our latest minibus was to a local garden centre, exploring the colourful seasonal flowers and fresh vegetables. It was a lovely trip filled with fresh air, conversations and smiles. 

We were treated to a truly wonderful afternoon when the Ketton Bell Ringer joined us, filling the room with beautiful traditional songs. The residents were delighted to take part as the group kindly taught everyone how to ring “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”. 

There were lots of smiles as residents had a go and enjoyed being part of the music making.  

Near Valentine’s Day, residents enjoyed an informative and engaging session led by Karen, our retired nurse volunteer.

Karen shared helpful advice on maintaining good heart health, including the importance of a balanced diet, relaxing activities such as tai chi, recommended weekly alcohol limits, and the benefits of walking. She explained how the heart works and spoke about her experience witnessing open-heart surgery. The residents found this fascinating. Residents even had the chance to learn how to check their own pulse at the wrist and neck, making the session both practical and empowering. 

A big thank you to Karen for an interesting and educational talk. 

Marriott House & Lodge was delighted to host a highly successful networking breakfast this month, bringing together professionals from across the local health, care, and community sectors. The event created a vibrant space for meaningful conversations, new connections, and shared ideas focused on supporting older adults and strengthening collaborative working.

Guests enjoyed a warm welcome from the team, a delicious breakfast, and the opportunity to learn more about the home’s approach to personalised care and community engagement. The morning was filled with positive energy, with attendees exchanging insights, exploring partnership opportunities, and discovering ways to work together for the benefit of residents and the wider community.

Events like this reflect Marriott House & Lodge’s commitment to being an open and connected. We look forward to building on the relationships formed and hosting future gatherings that continue to bring professionals together.
 

We had a fantastic day at Mount Tryon for National Pizza Day. This morning, we made our own muffin pizzas, and our peri chef, Giles, entertained us with a fun pizza-making demonstration. 

After that, we sat down to eat our homemade muffin pizzas while taking a pizza quiz, and this evening, we savoured our chefs' pizzas for supper.       

Each month, Barchester Healthcare put on a virtual live event for all of our homes to watch. This month was live Harp. This encouraged us to invite Luc and his harp to come in to play live for us. We had a wonderful afternoon.   

We would like to say a big thank you to Carol Webb and her wonderful therapy dog for their lovely visits to Flowerdown.
Their time, care, and kindness bring so much joy and comfort to our residents, and it is always truly appreciated by everyone here.
Thank you both for making such a positive difference, we always look forward to your visits!