Celebrating Christmas at Penrose Court

We've had many festivities taking place at Penrose Court Care Home and in our local community of Biggleswade, including visits from animals, children, and even Santa.

This time of year holds many happy, special memories for our residents; from family traditions to moments shared with loved ones. It is important to us that residents can continue to celebrate Christmas and other occasions throughout the year just as they always have done.

A Special Singing Performance

At Penrose Court Care Home, we try to incorporate as many intergenerational activities into our programme as possible, as it can have immense wellbeing and communication benefits for both the younger and older people involved.

This month, we had the pleasure of a visit from the local Cubs who provided singing and storytelling for the residents with their angelic voices. The residents enjoyed the interaction and their faces lit up when listening to the children. We would like to thank the local Cubs group for coming into the home.

Christmas Crafts

Craft sessions are held at Penrose Court all throughout the year, but they naturally have a festive theme this time of year.

Our residents got very creative recently when they enthusiastically created Christmas cards and wreaths. It was a great group activity that the residents thoroughly enjoyed and there were many beautiful creations that came out of it.

Arts and crafts help stimulate the mind and gives an incredible sense of purpose. It was lovely to see residents take pride in the cards and wreaths they created, many taking joy in gifting their creations to loved ones.

Visits from Ponies and a Puppy

Residents were truly spoiled with animal visits this month, starting with a visit from two ponies, Charlie and Pickle. To help us celebrate in the run-up to Christmas, Charlie and Pickle came into our home and were very well-behaved whilst receiving cuddles and strokes from the residents.

We also had the delight of a member of staff bringing in her new puppy. Again, the residents were only too happy to give Oscar a stroke and a cuddle.

Animal therapy is a fantastic activity that all residents can get involved with, with sessions often being held in both communal areas and in resident rooms. Animals have such a positive impact on residents, improving their mood, reducing stress levels, and encouraging interaction. Our residents and relatives have thoroughly enjoyed both experiences and we look forward to welcoming more animals into the home in 2023.

Christmas Jumper Day

On Thursday 8th December, our staff got into the Christmas spirit too by attending work in their festive knitwear for Christmas Jumper Day.

The team looked wonderful in their various patterns and prints and it most certainly brought a smile to our residents faces.

One Resident's Special Outing

Christmas is a time for making wishes come true, and we were delighted to be able to do just that for one lucky resident at Penrose Court. One of our residents had a wish to go swimming again and in collaboration with Saxon Pool, we were able to make this wish come true.

With the support of a care assistant and a couple of pool floats, this resident was able to enter the pool again and spend some time in the water, something she used to love doing. We go above and beyond to be able to facilitate the things our residents want to do as it supports their independence and allows for reminiscence. It is important to us that our residents live a life filled with opportunities.

We would like to thank all those involved in making this special outing happen.

The Penrose Court Christmas Market

Despite his busy schedule, Santa made an appearance at our Penrose Court Christmas Market. Taking place within our home, staff, residents, and relatives gathered to enjoy some, mulled wine, mince pies, and hot chocolate - which went down a treat!

We also had a variety of stalls and residents got the opportunity to post their Christmas cards in a specially made postbox and have their picture taken with our very own Santa.

As 2022 draws to a close, we would like to take a moment to thank all those in the Penrose Court community for the memories, support, and hard work that has gone into this year. We wish you all a very merry Christmas and look forward to seeing many of you over the festive period and new year.