Activities at Kirkburn Court Care Home

Kirkburn reached a very important milestone this month – the long awaited return of a music concert! Previous to the restrictions, we had a live music concert every week so it was absolutely brilliant that we have now been allowed to host our very first outdoor concert. We were all hopeful that the Peterhead weather would hold out and thankfully it did! Calum McDonald was a regular performer here at Kirkburn so we were pleased to welcome him back – along with his range of sing along classics! Our patio area around the back of the building was used as the stage and our residents watched from room windows, the lounges and some even braved the elements and sat outside to watch! It was an amazing sight, seeing our residents singing, dancing and waving arms along all the windows of the building. Claire Burden, Activities Coordinator, said “It is difficult to put into words just how amazing this concert has been – music is such a big part of life here at Kirkburn and we have missed our concerts so much, it was actually quite an emotional afternoon.”

This month we have been touring the home with the ‘Kirkburn Claik’ Newsagent Trolley. We have visited all the residents with a complimentary array of reading materials with something for everyone including fishing, cars, football, crafts, gardening and lots more. We also had a lovely selection of sweeties which went down a treat! We even had some extra help along the way in the form of some residents lending a hand pushing the trolley! Claire Burden, Activities Coordinator, said “It has been great seeing everyone get involved and all the residents were delighted with their new goodies.”

Some of our lovely ladies have been spending time creating decorations for our dining room tables. They selected a range of fresh flowers and arranged some in jars and other as small posies. Everyone agreed that they really brightened up the tables. It was a great effort by the ladies. One resident, Sally, said “they look beautiful.”

Staff and residents at Barchester’s Kirkburn Court were treated to a photographic tour and talk about the era of ocean travel by V&A Dundee Curator, Charlotte Hale.  The presentation forms part of a series of six talks and virtual tours that V&A Dundee is hosting for Barchester Healthcare’s care homes and private hospitals across the UK.

V&A Dundee is Scotland’s design museum, it showcases Scotland’s outstanding design achievements and features world-class exhibitions alongside the permanent Scottish Design Galleries, and a changing programme of commissions, events and activities.  

Staff and residents at Barchester’s Kirkburn Court were treated to an armchair work out courtesy of the Green Goddess, Diana Moran, and Shackleton’s furniture company, followed by a mindfulness session led by Shackleton’s Emma Raybould.

Diana rose to fame as a glamorous fitness guru on BBC’s Breakfast Time in the 1980’s and has made an outstanding contribution to improving the health and wellbeing of people in the UK. She now brings that experience to Shackletons as their Health and Wellness Adviser.

During April, we have also celebrated National Tea Day. As a beverage we consume a lot of here at Kirkburn, we felt it was important to celebrate this day! We began by having a tea tasting session and working our way through a few different varieties of tea – with residents displaying a thumbs up or thumbs down to give us their verdict – although, often it was the facial expressions that gave it away! We also had a few games of tea bag toss and tea bingo to continue our tea themed activities. We of course, rounded things off with a good cup of Tetley and a piece of cake! One resident, Margaret, said “this is the best day I’ve had!”