Our programme of activities
Each month at Abberton Jonathan, our activities coordinator puts together a month of activities for residents, with his team of helpers. We leapt into January 2018 at the same pace as which we left 2018. To beat the January blues, we ensured there was a full program of events. February has continued with the same gusto.
Here are a few of the things we have been up to …
A is for Art
Caroline has arranged some fantastic art club sessions, often themed, with one being around the four seasons. These sessions are also a chance for a good natter and are very much enjoyed by staff and residents alike. You can see from the pictures, that somehow Vera managed to turn one session into dance club!
B is for Brownies
The Brownies always spread joy when they visit our residents. It is is lovely to hear their news and chat about the Brownie badges they are working towards. With World Thinking Day in February, Brownies were thinking about their Brownie Promise which includes to serve their community, help others and be true to themselves. Our residents love to listen to their news and hear their laughter and play games together. Their little bit of Brownie magic is a real boost to our residents.
C is for Chinese New Year
Jim Cooper helped us all celebrate Chinese New Year,in his own undisputed and well loved style – lots of props, including a dragon puppet, and a lot of laughter.
D is for Dignity Action Day
Dignity Action Day is a national awareness day on 1 February. It was a chance to catch up, reflect and share. We held a coffee morning for our residents, their families and friends. We encouraged people to write on a leaf what dignity meant to them, and stick it to our Dignity Tree. There were some truly inspirational words.
E is for Entertainment
We have had a fantastic month of singing entertainment provided by Les Swaffer (accompanied by John and Caroline’s dancing), David Padwick, and Brian Mann. Brian has not been to the Manor is quite some time due to his very busy singing schedule, but he went down incredibly well and he has agreed to come back in early March. We really are so very grateful to him for his generous offer.
F is for Friendship
You just have to look at this picture to see the bond of friendship between some of our residents. It is lovely to live and work in such a warm and happy family.
G is for “Getting to Know”
Each month we are asking someone at Abberton 20 questions about themselves, to get to know them better. This month it was Dariusz Stolarek.
- What is your name? Dariusz Stloarek
- What is your position at Abberton Manor: Head Chef
- What is your favourite colour? Grey
- What is your favourite food? Carpaccio
- What is your favourite film? Contact
- What is your favourite place? Norway
- Who is your favourite person? My wife
- What is your favourite book? The Lost Civilization Enigma by Philip Coppens
- What is your favourite song? Diamonds by Rhianna
- Who would you like to meet? Rhianna
- What do you hate? A lack of common sense
- What are you scared of? War
- What is your favourite possession? My car
- What could you not live without? Food
- Who is your hero? John-Paul II
- How do you like to relax? In the gym
- What is your favourite season? Autumn
- Can you play a musical instrument? (If so, which one) No
- Do you like sport? (If so, which ones) Yes – bodybuilding
- Please give us one piece of advice: Be good to each other
H is for Hairdressing
Thank you to Wendy and Heather who turn our clinic room at Abberton every Wednesday into a hair salon. Our ladies especially love this weekly pampering.
I is for Input
At Abberton we are always striving to improve and for that we love to receive your feedback. We have a very good “open door” policy so please le us know your thoughts, feelings or ideas. We welcome your feedback and now there are even more ways to do this. You can leave a review on:
- Google https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=abberton+manor+nursing+home
- Facebook https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=Abberton%20Manor%20Nursing%20Home
- or via the leading care home review website https://www.carehome.co.uk/carehome.cfm/searchazref/20001030ABBZ
J is for Jim
Jim Cooper has provided us with his weekly entertainment sessions and is always a hit with our residents. His re-written version of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” performed earlier in the year was a huge success with his three comedy ghosts – past , present and future. In his adaptation, the ghost of past retold the events of Abberton Manor over the course of 2017 and the ghost future gave an insight into our planned events for 2018.
K is for Knitting
A massive thank you to our activities coordinator, Sylvia, who crocheted this beautiful cover for our hallway table. Just one example of the talent we have at Abberton.
L is for Love
We marked Valentine’s day with a Valentine’s tree adorned with messages to loved ones and we had a Valentine’s quiz with Jim. It was also Shrove Tuesday, so lots of pancakes tossed and eaten. An action packed day at Abberton.
M is for Muddy Boots Forestry Adventures
We welcomed 17 toddlers from Muddy Boots Forestry Adventures. It is a delight for our residents to be among all the little ones, hold their hands and listen to their stories.
N is for Nonsense or Not: Surrealism!
We spent an afternoon discussing the merits of surrealism and ended up sharing stories of the RAF, living in Sussex, how to tame a polar bear, how to make a call with a lobster-telephone and an impromptu game of eye-spy! Just another regular day at Abberton Manor!
O is for “One to Ones”
With so much going on, we do make sure we have time for One to Ones with our residents. This is so we can get to know them better and make sure that our activities are tailored to what they like. It’s lovely to hear about what makes our residents happy, their hobbies and interests, likes and dislikes, favourite foods, favourite seasons, favourite music, listening to their memories and stories from their lives. This ensures that our care is person centred.
P is for Prettygate
Through the FaNs network we have forged a link with Prettygate Infant School. FaNs is a charity which has set up connections between older and younger generations so that they can mutually benefit eachother. For more information, please click this link https://www.fansnetwork.org/
Our residents love the chance to spend time with children and were enchanted by their carol singing at Christmas. They are very much looking forward to seeing the children of Prettygate Infant School again later this month.
Q is for Quiz
Jim enthuses and entertains us all with his Tuesday music and quiz mornings. The latest one was Jim’s Movie Quiz, with costumes and props. We are looking forward to the Animals and Wildlife quiz and the St David’s Day quiz too.
R is for Rest Days
Sometimes it is lovely to not have things planned – to have time to rest and relax, or pursue individual hobbies. Some of our residents enjoy crosswords or jigsaw puzzles. Others like to catch up on favourite television shows. We are looking forward to the weather warming up so we can sit out in the gardens here and soak up some sunshine.
T is for Tartan
We made sure that we celebrated Burn’s Night with tartan, haggis, an attempt at playing the bagpipes and some Robert Burn’s poetry.
U is for Unwind and Unravel
We were delighted to receive for Jacky Mercer some fabulous Twiddlemits. Jacky runs a knitting group through the Now Charity called The Independent Knitting Group and they have made for us these Twiddlemits. They are a woollen muff, perfect for keeping hands warm but also have lots of fiddly attachments, such as buttons and bows. They have been proven to help calm and reduce anxiety for people with dementia. A huge thank you to Jacky and her team of knitters.
V is for Vintage Sing-along
It was fantastic to have an afternoon of singing and dancing with Janine from Vintage Scene. Residents and staff joined in, with music from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s. A really uplifting afternoon!
W is for Sue Wiseman
Sue was a wonderful lady who lived with us at Abberton and who is very much missed. In her memory, we have had a Wild Science day for our residents. It was so lovely that some members of her family came to join us.
Sue’s daughter, Sarah said “I’ll never forgot seeing Mum relaxed, enjoying stroking the beautiful rabbit. She was always a huge lover of animals, domestic and wild. She would’ve loved seeing the children enjoying the animals – except the snake of course, which Chester is still talking about! He used to hide toy snakes in her bed!”
X is for eXcursions
We have our own minibus at Abberton and love to get out and about an have a change of scene. Wrapped up warm, we have had trips to Abberton Reservoir and Fillpots Nursery.
Y is for Yoga
Thank you to Caroline for coming in for chair yoga sessions. Yoga poses are modified so that they can be done whilst seated. This make yoga accessible for people who cannot stand easily and helps improve flexibility and increase circulation.
Z is for Zoo
We have welcomed Wild Science to Abberton with their array of cute (and some not so cute) animals. You can see from the pictures that the day was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone.
And all in a month at Abberton. A huge thank you to everyone for your dedication and hard work. It is hugely appreciated!