Activities at Westlake House Care Home
Residents enjoy playing hoopla and bocce bowls, which combine exercise with the thrill of competitive sport. We invite entertainers and musicians to visit the home on a regular basis and residents very much enjoy watching them perform.
We also have our pet therapy dog, Marley, visit the home on a fortnightly basis, and residents love petting him. They also enjoy health and fitness days, where they get the opportunity to participate in armchair exercises and target games.
We always celebrate National Volunteer Week, which we use as a chance to say thank you for the wonderful work that our volunteers do that further enhances the quality of life for those who live at Westlake.
As well as continuing with our favourite activities, such as arts & crafts, bingo, knit & natter, Scrabble, board games, bridge, quizzes, pampers & manicures, reminiscence sessions and musical memories, we always like to launch new activities for residents, which give them the opportunity to socialise with their friends and families. These could be our own vegetable patches, flower arranging sessions, a book club or anything else that our imaginations conjure up.
Cameron Harris
I joined the Barchester family in May 2024 and have instantly felt welcome and supported. As an activity coordinator, I am passionate about getting to know our residents and delivering person-centred care and activities to all residents, an approach supported by a holistic, whole-home view. I have a solid theoretical background in supporting older people with their social and wellbeing needs. I graduated with a 2:1 in Psychology BSc in 2022. Since then, I have worked as an activity coordinator and cognitive rehabilitation assistant with older people.
I am studying for a master’s degree in Psychological therapies to help me progress in clinical work. I am committed to continuous professional development and training to improve Westlake's life enrichment aspect..
I feel that the residents at Westlake House benefit most when we work together as a team to ensure that our service is delivered appropriately, successfully, and in line with high standards set by Barchester.
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 Westlake House Care Home
Treble Trouble!
Westlake House had a visit from three elves at the weekend! They unexpectedly joined the residents for an afternoon of laughter, dance and lots of fun. The residents judged the elves on their " elfishness" and although there was stiff competition!! A draw was declared and all was well in Elfland
Beautiful Violin Playing!
Today Ceskie, a talented violinist, played for our residents. and we all loved her performance. Having studied at Chethams, Ceskie moved to Berklee College of Music in Boston on a Scholarship where she developed skills in string arrangement and Music Production.
Due to ongoing travel restrictions she is staying near Horsham and we are very fortunate to hear her play so beautifully with residents commenting how moving they found her performance.
Feeling festive some residents chose to dress in their Christmas jumpers!
John Cheeny Entertains!
We welcomed a very popular entertainer today to get us in the mood for the festive season
Celebration of 25 years at Westlake House
Our Care Assistant Hazel has received a prestigious 25 Year Service Award in celebration of working at Barchester Healthcare for twenty five years.
Hazel Light, a dedicated carer, started at Barchester in December 1996, just 1 year after the Westlake House opened and has worked with residents and their relatives to ensure that their needs have been met over the years. Presented with her award by Cllr Dr David Skipp Hazel said: “I just love working here with the residents and my colleagues, we are a family.”
Jane McFarlane, Employee Services Director at Barchester said: “I’m always pleased to hear stories about the long service of Barchester staff and am delighted Hazel has achieved this milestone. It is dedication like this that ensures our residents are provided with a happy place to live.”
Kate Day, General Manager of Westlake House said: “We’re delighted to be celebrating 25 years of loyal service with Hazel. She has demonstrated her dedication and loyalty to this home and its residents year after year. I speak for all of us here at Westlake House when I say that I’m looking forward to many more years of working with Hazel!”
Local Business Networking!
Our General Manager, Kate met with Ben at Gwyns Bakery in Horsham this week to talk about local business and share ideas as we approach Christmas.
Ben also donated 10 cakes for us to give to some local children who are visiting the home to sing some traditional songs in the garden for residents to enjoy.
Christmas Decorations go up!
Decorating our Christmas trees around the home has been a team effort this week! Unpacking the decorations and choosing the bauble colours for each tree has been great fun. With festive music to accompany our reminiscence of Christmases past and what we are looking forward to this year its good to be with friends
