We’re kicking off St David’s Day in the best way we know how - getting the Welsh Cakes on the griddle!

 

From Aberystwyth to Caerphilly, down to Pernath, and back up to Colwyn Bay — many of those that live with us have proud Welsh heritage, and these cakes were a staple in their family homes.

 

Putting all our heads together, we managed to pull off a successful batch of cakes, ready for our party this afternoon. We got the seal of approval, although no one can do it quite like mother!

The people with us at Belmont House love Pancake Day and taking turns trying their hand on tossing the pancakes around each unit.  

This generated so many laughs as pancakes either didn’t flip, they fell on the floor or lap of the resident.  We were delighted when our kitchen team made us pancakes for tea.

We were delighted to celebrate 20 years’ of service for Sandra Wardle at Carmel Lodge on Friday 24th February. 

 

Sandra, started her journey with MMCG as a care assistant at Hope Green Care Home, gradually progressing within the company to become Deputy Manager at Hope Green before transferring over to Carmel Lodge as Deputy Manager, 2 years ago.

 

Congratulations Sandra, and happy 20th work anniversary.

 

We were delighted to celebrate Blessing passing her Croft OSCE exams.

The OSCE exam is an assessment of clinical competence which all nurses have to complete in order to receive a PIN number from the NMC and we are delighted that Blessing will be one of the registered nurses here at Croft House.

We are so proud of her achievement at the home and all of the team at Croft House wanted to say a huge Congratulations. 

 

The people that live with us had a very enjoyable Valentine's Day. 

They all created their very own Valentine's hearts which we joined together to make a beautiful collage. Everyone was very pleased with the end result.

In the spirit of Random Acts of Kindness Day, we reflected on our experiences of kindness through our poetry club  

 

We run our poetry club weekly - this has become more than just reading poetry; it allows those living with us to open up and share their experiences with each other, in turn building meaningful friendships and creating a space of trust. Simply reading aloud, or listening to others do so, has a sensational ability to ameliorate our self esteem and connect with others. 

It’s Student Volunteering Week.  

 

We’re so lucky to have an excellent group of Student volunteers who dedicate their time weekly to assist with our lifestyle programme, enriching the lives of those who live with us. 

 

From local school students, to students completing work placements, we run a programme to support all of our volunteers to benefit both them and those who live with us. This mean our home is always filled with friendly faces, and upkeeps a community spirit which is so important to our home!

 

We enjoyed a trip to the local pub this month at Willowdene Care Home.  

It was Friday afternoon and the people who live with us fancied a trip out to one of the local pubs called the Dun Cow in Sedgefield.  

We ordered a taxi and went to the pub for lunch picking our favourite things from the menu.  

Everyone had a great Friday afternoon, and we went back to the home, tired and sleepy from a lovely lunch but not too full we couldn’t enjoy a cup of tea and cake when we got back.  

Our Brambles unit has started the Just Bowl competition for the home this month and staff and family members enjoyed getting involved in the competition with the people who live with us.  

The plan is to have a competition in the Brambles, Hollies and Lodge and the top two winners come together to see which unit becomes the Just Bowl winners for the quarter.  

There was lots of laughs and suggestions at how to bowl the top score from relatives and staff but ultimately it all comes down to skill and our lucky winners are excited to be in the home finals.

We enjoyed a lovely afternoon in January playing the parachute game.  

Not only do the people who live with us love the game, but it also encompasses our “More” programme which embraces all elements of mind, body, and soul.  

We always play their favourite songs which always encourages singing and lifts the soul and then hand coordination engages the mind and movement the body.