Innovative Ways Care Homes Supported Dementia Action Week 2021

Across the UK, care homes and nursing homes supported Dementia Action Week by arranging lots of exciting activities for their residents!

The aim of Dementia Action Week, led by Alzheimer's Society, is to take action to improve the lives of those who are living with or are affected by dementia.

Read on to find out what our Partners got up to during Dementia Action Week!

St John's Nursing Home, Amica Care received a visit from miniature ponies, Lollipop & Moomin!

The two therapy ponies who live locally brought comfort and joy to St John's residents. Pony therapy can help to ease the symptoms of Alzheimer's whilst stimulating a positive social response.

Jacqui Harris, Home Manager at St John's said: "Pony therapy is an excellent support tool for those living with dementia. Our residents enjoyed meeting with Lollipop and Moomin and it was great to see the positive impact their visit made."

Vivien Butler, one of St John’s residents, said: ‘I loved having the ponies in, they are in my head, my thoughts, it’s the smell of the ponies I love, I have missed that smell. Ponies are my second love, my husband being my first’

Park House, Black Swan Care Group took part in an intergenerational quiz!

The intergenerational quiz, organised by Friend in Deed was enjoyed by residents at Park House Care Home and pupils from Norwich School via video call.

Black Swan Care Group has also adopted a brand new dementia training resource and shared it with their elderly care home registered managers. This is a collaboration between the UCL team and Marie Curie and teaches Carers how to effectively help someone who is living with dementia eat and drink, from diagnosis to end of life care.

Dean Wood, Bupa had a week packed with exciting activities!

Dean Wood had a wide range of activities planned throughout the week including sensory promotion, move to music, Dean Wood choir and promoting senses with nature in the outdoor gardens.

Julie Mullen, who works at the home said "Person first, dementia second. We recognise the person for who they are as an individual, not by their illness. Every day we bring our community together through activity. Dean Wood cares."

Heritage Manor's homes enjoyed dressing up, dog walking & lots of games...

The Lawns Residential and Nursing Home, Kempsey Worcestershire brightened up yet another cold and wet Mayday with a Cannes Film Festival photoshoot. Residents dressed as dapper gents and glamourous ladies, from flapper girls to Queen Victoria and loved thinking of ways to stage their photos, to fantastic effect as you can see. So many memories were shared of dressing up for parties and special occasions in their lives. And this event made even more special memories.

Newstead Nursing Home, Hereford took part in the Dementia UK Dog Walking Challenge raising money for Dementia UK. Our Lifestyle and Wellbeing Coordinator at Newstead has a therapy dog Mollie, who accompanies her to the home each day. Great company and cuddles for residents and lovely for them to have a dog to walk in this charity challenge. Residents are also involved in knitting baby blankets for the local hospital baby unit.

Astley Hall, Stourport-on-Severn, Worcestershire have marked Alzheimer’s Awareness Week, learning more about how people with dementia perceive the world, what we can do to support them and build their confidence. Residents had a coffee morning and a week of games, quizzes and craft, with a forget-me-not theme.

Westgate Healthcare's care homes enjoyed a variety of activities...

To celebrate the end of an incredible week of dementia themed activities, Ashview Nursing Home concluded with a wonderful collage designed by the residents! The collage is made up of many ‘Forget Me Not’ flowers in recognition of Dementia Action Week!

Westgate House took part in 'Denim for Dementia Day’ and are so pleased to have raised £175 for The Alzheimer’s Society....together we can make a difference.

The team at Riverdale Care Home were delighted to take part in Dementia Action Week, helping to spread awareness and raise money for a significant cause close to their hearts! To kickstart Dementia Action Week, they made Forget Me Not cards!

Byron House created a beautiful relaxing under the sea themed sensory afternoon for residents and staff to enjoy in aid of Dementia Action Week. They had sensory lights, scents, textures, sounds, moving imagery and edible sand! They will be taking the idea forward and creating a different themed sensory room each month!

At St Paul's, everyone got involved in Dementia Action Week from residents to staff, and they created a display in reception detailing what it is all about for visitors. They all wore purple in solidarity on Wednesday and most of the residents wore a purple ribbon.

"The Depths of me." is the name of a lovely and fitting poem for Dementia Action Week, written by residents and staff at Kingfisher Care Home. They made their own "Forget me not" flowers and small copies of the poem for all staff members to keep.

Ryeview Manor, B&M Care held a 'Cuppa for Care' event...

Last week, Ryeview Manor held a ‘Cuppa for Care’ event to support Dementia Action Week. Ryeview Manor's staff participated by wearing denim and their residents enjoyed an afternoon tea with fruity scones, clotted cream and strawberry jam. A selection of sandwiches and of course a nice cup of tea was also enjoyed!

Brendoncare Stildon, Brendoncare enjoyed a 'forget-me-not' tea...

For Dementia Action Week, Brendoncare Stildon had lots of forget-me-not flowers displayed around the home and enjoyed a blue-themed afternoon tea!

Greensleeves Care has launched an 'Advice Centre' offering advice surrounding dementia...

The newly launches advice centre supports people with advice around dementia, particularly for people who are caring for loved ones at home. Greensleeves Care's Admiral Nurse, Steve Mason, is heavily involved and the centre was put together using his expertise. As part of this, Greensleeves Care has issued some cartoon style videos on their website aimed at children, such as one which explains dementia in child-friendly language.

Steve Mason, Greensleeves Care’s Admiral Nurse, said; “For many people living with dementia, and their families, it is important that they can stay within their own home for as long as possible. However, this decision must consider a significant number of changes within the home environment. Prioritising a loved one’s safety, considering new challenges they might face due to dementia, is vital to ensuring they can stay in their own home for longer.”

In terms of activities that went on at Greensleeves Care's care homes for Dementia Action Week, residents at Harleston House wrote down some fond memories which they all placed in a memory bank for safekeeping. The prompt was 'Something I want to remember' and the residents enjoyed reminiscing over happy memories whilst 'locking in' the memories for a reminder later on in their journeys.

Henley House in Ipswich has launched a 'forget-me-not' scheme whereby residents with dementia who might need extra support with communication have a forget-me-not on their bedroom door which was adopted by Alzheimer's Society as the symbol of dementia.

Emma Mackenzie-Bedford, Home Manager at Henley House, said: "In line with Alzheimer’s Society’s ethos, and to aid others in remembering that every person with dementia has a story to tell, Henley House has adopted the Forget-Me-Not as our symbol to show colleagues, other residents, and visitors that some of our residents need to have extra support and that their stories should never be forgotten.”

Signature's care homes took part in a wide range of exciting activities...

Staff members at Signature at Bentley House took part in a 'Walk a Mile a Day' challenge!

Residents and staff at Signature at The Beeches put their creative hats on while painting plant pots and taking part in other arts and crafts.

At Signature at Parklands Manor, residents and staff enjoyed a week of games, culminating in a glow in the dark disco on Friday night!

The residents at Signature at Pembroke House devoured a delicious 'Silver Service' afternoon tea.

Signature at Reigate Grange organised a Dementia Friends Information Seminar for residents and staff members.

Last but not least, Signature at Rosebery Manor took part in 'Wear Denim for Dementia' in association with Alzheimer's Society. The team welcomed a new Head of Dementia to the home!

Country Court Care's homes enjoyed seaside-themed days and supported Denim for Dementia...

Residents and staff at Neale Court Care Home in North Hykeham swapped their uniforms and regular clothing for a day of denim wearing in support of Alzheimer’s Society.

Residents enjoyed a creative craft activity decorating a pair of jeans with beads and embellishments which Senior Carer Kayleigh modelled. Chef Gary made some special cupcakes decorated with forget-me-nots for everyone to enjoy with their afternoon tea.

Becky Exton, Home Manager at Neale Court Care Home said “We see the impact of dementia on people and their families every day at Neale Court. We are passionate about supporting people living with dementia to have the best quality of life possible for as long as possible. We are always keen to raise awareness both inside and outside our homes."

Residents and staff at Oakview Lodge Care Home in Welwyn Garden City enjoyed a seaside themed day to mark Dementia Action Week. Everyone spent a morning reminiscing about seaside holidays enjoyed with their families. Using props and photos, residents remembered playing on the beach, donkey rides and walking along the pier.

The afternoon was spent enjoying seaside games, music and a sing-along. The seaside themed afternoon tea featured seafood to sample, including squid, muscles and rollmops, authentic Mr Whippy ice creams and of course, plenty of tea and cake! Staff joined in the fun by holding a baking competition, there were plenty of impressive seaside-inspired cakes for the residents to judge. The winner was Home Administrator Kezi Charalambous with a jam sponge cake decorated to resemble a beach, complete with sea, sand and deckchairs.

Rachel Davies, Wellbeing Coordinator said “Our residents thoroughly enjoyed their seaside-themed day. Many of our residents are living with dementia so we see the impact that this can have on people and their families every day. Holding themed days where we can immerse ourselves in a particular topic is very beneficial for person-centred care and enables us to get to know people better. Our residents are very keen to go on a day trip to the seaside so we thought that this would be the next best thing. We heard all sorts of interesting stories and memories”.

Avery Healthcare's homes enjoyed many fun activities from webinars to decorating a memorial tree...

Day 1 of Dementia Action Week saw Jo Crossland, Avery Healthcare’s Head of Dementia Care, lead a dementia awareness webinar that covered the different forms of dementia, the facts and myths and how to support people living with dementia to live life well. The webinar was greatly received, and participants were delighted with the session, with one commenting, “I could have sat for hours listening. It was such an informative and insightful way of putting it all across.”

Throughout the week, residents got involved in some dementia awareness activities, including life story work, preparing personal memory boxes and personalised playlists. Residents at Avery Park prepared their engagement boxes, which helped generate conversation amongst the group. At Bourn View, staff prepared an abundance of activities for the residents, including lighting candles and sparklers in the garden and decorating their memorial tree, all in a bid to pay their respects to those lost to dementia.

And at Aran Court, residents prepared their life stories and proudly displayed them in frames around the home. Photos of their work were shared on Facebook, where one friend commented, “What a wonderful thing to do. It’s great to get all those memories on paper and preserved.”

Fountains Care Home, Barchester Healthcare enjoyed a virtual presentation by Dementia Connect

Fountains in Shirley hosted a virtual presentation by Dementia Connect, from Alzheimer’s Society as part of Dementia Action Week and invited the community to attend. It was an excellent presentation by Kate Sweet (Services Manager) and despite a few technical issues and losing a few along the way it was very well attended with a varied audience from business owners to family members caring for a loved one living with dementia. All who attended learnt about the range of support available, how Dementia Connect can help, how to access the support as well as learning how we can all get involved and support the National Campaign.