Activities at West Abbey Care Home

For residents at West Abbey the long awaited reunion with residents and a regular nominated family or friend became a reality from today, as visits have now been allowed to commence inside the home.

There has been much careful planning and preparation for this moment behind the scenes at Barchester Healthcare, who run West Abbey care centre since the announcement by Boris Johnson last month of lockdown restrictions being eased. Whilst some visiting continued in a specially designed visiting suite the Perspex screen divided relatives from their loved ones to keep residents safe, now meeting in the same room feels a great step towards normal visiting once again. Caroline Carter, General Manager, said: “This has been a much welcomed development in what have been very challenging times. The visits are safe and well organised, the visitor takes a Lateral Flow Covid Test and we ensure the result is negative before the visitor enters the home for the safety of all our residents and staff. Today was a lovely day to welcome in our first visitor and we will be welcoming more throughout the week."

Mr Loader, the first visitor today arrived with delighted smile, overjoyed to see his mother face to face he said: “Thank you for making it possible to see my mother, Joyce, I’m looking forward to holding her hand again very soon, you should all be very proud of what you have achieved during these challenging times”.

West Abbey has recently brought a bit of magic to residents by providing a new ‘Magic Table 360 and the Happiness Programme’ as a way to improve residents’ quality of life.

Designed and manufactured in the UK, the Magic Table 360 uses interactive games to connect residents with staff and with each other, and research shows it improves the wellbeing of people living with dementia. Using interactive light projections, the Magic Table 360, which can be played independently or in a group, stimulates movement by inviting participants to take part in all sorts of different fun activities such as popping bubbles, playing the piano, colouring in pictures, sweeping leaves or interacting playfully with fish. Games are rich in colour, movement and detail, and allow people of all ages to play in a safe and comfortable environment.

The Magic Table 360 is portable so it can be used wherever residents feel most comfortable, it can be projected onto the floor, ceiling, walls, a whiteboard or even the bed. The Happiness Programme allows for a range of games that change seasonally and have country-specific versions covering 14 different categories, so there will always be something new for residents to try.

The staff and residents at West Abbey have been flipping and turning pancakes all morning in preparation for their annual Shrove Tuesday pancake flipping competition.

West Abbey has marked this year’s Pancake Day with a whole home pancake flipping competition, involving residents and staff and of course, lots of pancakes! Andy Pippard, chef at the home, flipped more than 100 pancakes, serving them up with sweet and savoury fillings for all the eager staff and residents.

He said: “My secret to the best pancakes is all in the whipping. Give it some elbow grease when mixing the batter and you’ll get perfect pancakes every time. I like experimenting with the fillings – the residents’ favourites are chocolate spread and banana and of course, good old fashioned lemon and sugar!”

We are so pleased to offer relatives and friends time with their loved ones in our visiting suite, we just had to share this lovely email from a relative on what it means to them:

"Had such a wonderful visit with mum today. She looked amazing, she laughed and smiled all the way through the visit. I cannot explain the gratitude I have to every single person at west abbey . You all make such a huge impact on our loved ones every day. Thank you Becky for taking time out of your busy schedule to chat with me. Was so nice to chat with you . Not only is mum so very much cared for by you all, you all take the time to be so very involved and friendly to the family’s . West Abbey you overwhelm me by your care compassion and dedication".

Staff and residents at West Abbey welcomed in the Year of the Ox with a day of celebrations and activities.

Inspired by Chinese culture and traditions, lucky red envelopes were exchanged and the home was decorated with hanging lanterns. Residents learnt all about the traditions and superstitions of Chinese New Year.  Head chef Louis Buys and his team cooked up an oriental feast for lunch and residents enjoyed the delicious food washed down with pots of Chinese tea. Residents were also treated to being able to try out a homemade Chinese dragon costume, made by the homes activities team alongside the homes residents.

Caroline Carter, General Manager said: “We have had a brilliant day, the home looks absolutely wonderful decorated and we all had such fun finding out what animal we are, the associated traits and reading each other’s horoscopes.  The residents loved watching videos of traditional lion and dragon dances too, as well as being able to attempt a dragon dance of their own!

Residents recently appreciated receiving letters and cards from the local primary school, Preston CofE Primary School, who treated the residents to intergenerational fun with cards sent to the home. Residents at the home enjoyed being able to look through the cards at all the brilliant designs, as well as being able to think about the things that made them happy.

Margaret, a resident at the home was able to enjoy thinking about what makes her happy. Margaret said “It’s so lovely that we can still write and send letters and pictures to our local community. Hearing all about their days makes my day too. Today also made me remember all the times when I was younger and used to go skiing with my family! It’s amazing what simple things like this can bring back.”