Activities at Marriott House and Lodge Care Home

On Sunday 12th March, Marriott House and Lodge celebrated the 5th Anniversary of Cedar Ministry visiting the home.

Cedar Ministry started visiting the home on the first Sunday of every month back in 2012. They are a team from Chichester Baptist Church who visit local care homes in the Chichester area. It is their aim to share God's love and serve the people in local care homes.

Marriott House and Lodge celebrated Nutrition and Hydration Week with wholesome food and thirst-quenching beverages.

The whole team at the home work together with hospitality staff to ensure that each resident’s dietary requirements and care needs are met. Increasing knowledge of the importance of nutrition and hydration among residents and staff is something that is key to maintaining and improving a person’s well-being.

During the week, the home devised an exciting, challenging and fun programme of activities.

On Monday, we focused on mouthcare matters with a visit from the oral health nurse. Residents, staff and visitors were given information about the importance of oral healthcare.

On Tuesday, we held a nutrition and hydration quiz morning, which many people attended. The afternoon was dedicated to tasting different foods from around the world. These included foods from the Caribbean, various European countries and the United Kingdom.

On Wednesday, we held a Welcome Wednesday Tea Party, with members of the local community joining residents, visitors and staff for refreshments and a chance to talk about the importance of nutrition and hydration.

Thursday was ‘Thirsty Thursday’. This day involved getting everyone to taste new drinks and included information about the importance of remaining hydrated.

We finished the week with ‘Fruity Friday,’ where staff dressed in bright colours, we hosted a themed fruity quiz and everyone got a chance to enjoy some smoothies.

Chefs always speak with the residents they cook for to learn about their likes and dislikes and are keen to suggest new dishes and ingredients for them to try. 

On Thursday 16th March, Marriott House & Lodge celebrated its staff by presenting a number of awards to them, including Employee of the Month awards and points vouchers for a variety of reasons.

Nurse, Rudo Chavul, was awarded Employee of the Month for January, Sharon Crowe, Senior Care Assistant, was named Employee of the Month for February, and Housekeeper, Kyar Trusler won the March Employee of the Month Award.

Staff, residents and visitors nominated these people for a number of reasons, including their friendly and helpful approach, their dedication to their roles, the ability to lead and work well within a team, and their caring attitudes.

Other staff were also rewarded using the new Barchester Rewards points scheme; staff were nominated by their Heads of Department and in conjunction with the General Manager. These rewards are designed to recognise the contributions and achievements of individuals in a variety of ways.

On Friday 24th March, staff, residents and visitors all helped to raise money for Red Nose Day.

Staff arrived at work and ‘wore something funny for money’. Their outfits included some bright clothes, mismatched clothes, wigs and, of course, red noses!  

During the morning, the activities team helped residents to make some special cupcakes that were decorated with red noses. These were enjoyed as part of the afternoon refreshments.

During the afternoon, everyone joined together for the drawing of the raffle and also a community bingo session with funny prizes. Refreshments were also served.

We raised a grand total of just over £50.00, which will be donated to Comic Relief. 

Marriott House and Lodge continue to hold monthly community bingo sessions on the third Wednesday of the month. Everyone is welcome to join us for this event. There are prizes to be won and refreshments will be served during the afternoon!

Marriott House and Lodge marked this year’s Pancake Day with an afternoon of pancake tasting with a variety of toppings. The activities team at the home put on their chef's whites and helped residents make and flip pancakes before serving them up for everyone to try. After tasting a variety of different flavours, including traditional sugar and lemon, maple syrup, and ice cream & fruit, residents eventually decided that their favourite was the traditional sugar and lemon!