On a cold Sunday afternoon in January, Woodland View resident, Mo, along with many other residents, finally got to meet the bundle of fluff they'd heard so much about since October.

Activities Coordinator, Kevin Riley, introduced four month old Maine Coon kitten, 'George' to everyone at Woodland View. George's previous owner found she was severely allergic to her new kitten and needed to find him a new home quickly; Kevin had sadly lost his lovely ginger cat, 'Biscuit', in September after 18 years of being best buddies, so he was hoping to offer his home out to a new cat.

Biscuit always hated being in a car and it was Kevin's intention to ensure George was 'car friendly'. Woodland View, 25 minutes from Kevin's home, seemed like the perfect excuse for taking George out for a couple of hours. The residents and staff definitely approved and George is slowly adapting to being transported by car. George has, to date, made two trips to Woodland View and done the rounds at the home, doing one-to-ones with a number of residents in their rooms, as well as lapping up all of the attention shown to him in the coffee lounge.

Woodland View had a special treat in store for children attending the home's annual Children's Christmas Party.

Those attending had a festive party feast, followed by party games, which included old favourites like 'Musical Chairs' and 'Pass the Parcel'. To wrap things up (groan!), the children had a special one-to-one in Woodland View's very own version of Santa's Grotto with Father Christmas himself.

Santa had a little chat with each child about how good they had been before giving them a small gift and wishing them a very merry Christmas. Santa was, of course, given priority parking in the car park for his sleigh and reindeer on condition they were kept invisible to avoid unwanted attention by passers-by, with this being a VIP-only event.

Woodland View resident, Bert, is pictured standing proudly next to granddaughter, Clare Leach, and her choir, 'Harwich Sing', following a special evening performance at the home.

The coffee lounge was packed, as residents, friends and family enjoyed the songs, which included interactive numbers, such as 'Under the Spreading Chestnut Tree' – a long-time firm favourite of Bert's. Warm mulled wine, mince pies and plenty of other nibbles were provided to complete this very special evening.

Preparing for a brand new year, residents at Woodland View worked to create homemade calendar cards.

Residents, Mo and Daphne, seen in above photo, show off their creations. New Activities Assistant, Carol Green, is preparing a number of similar craft-based activities for the schedule over the coming weeks and months.

Ho ho ho! Santa visited residents of Woodland View on Christmas Day, accompanied by one of his little elves.

Both Santa and elf, 'T', visited each of the residents, presenting them with a gift. Santa and his little helper spent a couple of hours at the care home before heading onward with their Christmas Day duties around the rest of the world.

New Activities Assistant, Carol Green, got a bit of a surprise during one of her first days at Woodland View.

Activities Coordinator, Kevin Riley, and interactive entertainment regular, Clare Leach, plotted to 'induct' Carol into her new role. It was a very special performance of 'Under the Spreading Chestnut Tree', which, of course, Carol had never heard before. The song has a routine attached to it that residents do each week – such great exercise! This was Carol's chance to 'have a go', and she did really well! Of course, it was an additional layer of entertainment for attending residents too.

Well done, Carol, and welcome to Woodland View. You're going to do very well here!