Activities at Orchard House Care Home
Our home is always full of life, and we can thank our wonderful Activities Coordinators for this. Dedication to creating a unique and interesting activities programme is what sets us apart from other homes. We always take into consideration that some people would prefer to pursue their own interests, which is why our team strive to incorporative activities that cater to a wide range of tastes and hobbies. Our trips out are always fun and exciting as well, and residents are guaranteed to return with stories to tell their loved ones!
Katalin Schlepp
Hello, I’m Katie Schlepp, and my job as the Head of Lifestyle is more than a career; it’s my passion. Every day, I have the pleasure of enhancing lives and creating moments of joy for our residents. It’s a privilege to be a part of this community where we celebrate life in all its richness, from organizing engaging activities to fostering connections and ensuring our residents well-being, I’m dedicated to making every day extraordinary. Our residents happiness and comfort are what drive me, and I’m committed to ensuring that your time at Orchard House is nothing short of wonderful.
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 Orchard House Care Home
Christmas Trees
Orchard House looks very Festive with its lovely Christmas trees. There are 5 within the home, and the residents really like the lights when the dark evenings draw in. The arrival of the trees have put all the residents in a very Christmassy mood.
Just to add to the festive cheer, the maintenance crew have added some lovely bright lights outside of the home too. Christmas has well and truly arrived at Orchard House.
Residents Dazzled by Scottish Country Dancing
We were very pleased to welcome the Caledonian Society who very kindly gave residents an amazing display of lively dancing. Residents had lots of great things to say about them, especially the energy that the dancers had and that they really liked the kilts.
Poppy Display
Orchard House commemorated the signing of the Armistice Day agreement on the day that the guns finally fell silent. They joined the rest of the United Kingdom in holding a two-minute silence at the eleventh hour, on the eleventh day, of the eleventh month.
As well as marking Armistice Day by wearing poppies and observing the national two minute silence, residents took part in therapeutic art activities. Residents painted poppies to make their own wreath, made paper plate poppies and hanging poppies. They painted the bottoms of bottles to create their own poppy garden, whilst reminiscing about the significance the day had for them.
Halloween Celebrations
Residents at Orchard House in Newport have been celebrating Halloween in style over 3 days.
We held a competition asking the community to deliver their best carved pumpkin to the home, and then residents got to choose their favourite. The winner was Amy Greenwell and she won a lovely Halloween Hamper, for which she was very grateful.
On Saturday we welcomed the fabulous singer, Annie Daffern, in to the Home to entertain the residents with her wonderful voice, and she sang a nice selection of songs, residents enjoyed singing and clapping along with her.
Following Annie we had a Halloween High Tea. The tables were decorated with black lace table cloths, helium balloons, spider web place mats and stunning orange lustre wear china from the 1950’s, which rekindled some memories. Our residents had made some beautiful floral centrepieces that graced the tables for our High Tea. Head Chef Claire Daffern created some mouth-watering Halloween fayre for our residents to enjoy – which they did!
On Sunday we held the Halloween Olympics Each resident had a series of activities to complete, such as pin the spider on the web, spooky skittles, eyeball toss, cauldron capers and witch hat hoopla. We also learned about some traditions dating back to the 9th century which was the precursor to today’s trick or treating. We played Halloween bingo and had a Halloween quiz.
Private Dining
Orchard House are pleased to be able to offer families the chance to have a 3 course meal or a High Tea in a private dining room with their loved one. Families have been booking to spend some extra time with their family members in a relaxed setting away from the hustle and bustle of the Home.
We provide a private dining room and deliver a delicious freshly prepared 3 course meal.
Mexico Day
Residents of Orchard House had a wonderful time taking a wheelchair trip to Mexico. For Mexican Independence Day, residents 'travelled' to Mexico, where they sipped on Mexican shandy and tequila. They watched a fascinating virtual tour and decided that they would like to travel there for real, as it has so much to offer. They love the little touches, such as getting a stamp in their 'passports' on arrival.
After the tour, they made Mayan masks, learned about Mexican painters and admired their work, took part in a quiz all about Mexico, and learned some interesting facts.
The kitchen joined in the fun by creating a delicious spicy bean soup, followed by a not too hot chilli for the residents' lunch.
The activities team dressed up in Mexican style outfits to help create the right atmosphere.
