Inform Newsletter - February 2019

Newsletter | Issue 28 February 2019

SONGS OF PRAISE A DAY AT THE RACES MEET WOMBLE THE HORSE CHINESE NEW YEAR AT RIVERDALE COURT

CREATING COMMUNITIES Our Vision for Avante Care & Support is ‘Communities where everyone has a vibrant and fulfilling life’. And so, it was wonderful to see residents from Court Regis, in Sittingbourne, feature on the BBC’s Songs of Praise, in a programme entitled ‘Love Thy Neighbour’. The programme was broadcast on 13 January and included a visit by presenter, Aled Jones, to the Oasis Academy Dementia café on the Isle of Sheppey.

Emma Ansley, Activities Coordinator at Court Regis said, ‘We were delighted to be part of this event. The residents from Court Regis and I are very keen supporters of the Oasis Academy dementia café and have been for a number of years. The residents always enjoy going there and were so excited to see Aled Jones and to know they may be featuring on Songs of Praise. It was a very special day and we will all be tuning in!’

For the episode, Aled also visited Blue Town's Criterion Theatre and Heritage Centre which is another regular destination for the residents at Court Regis. Arranging visits like these is typical of what we do across our homes and home care services, offering residents and service users the opportunity to get out and about in their communities.

This is very much in line with the Eden Alternative, our philosophy of care. The Eden Alternative is based on the core belief that ageing should be a continued stage of development and growth, rather than a period of decline. Our aim through the Eden Alternative is to create communities where life is worth living.

We achieve this through companionship, through giving as well as and receiving care, and through variety and spontaneity in everyday life. Trips out to the cinema, beach, community events or just to the local shops are some of the ways in which we put this into practice.

All our new staff are introduced to the Eden Alternative as part of their induction programme and we encourage

staff to qualify as Eden Associates by going through a more intensive three day course.

Studies show that implementation of the Eden Alternative is a powerful tool for improving the quality of life and quality of care for those living in care homes, including significant decreases in the use of medication. Also, care operators that have adopted Eden as an organisational-wide philosophy have found that there is improved staff satisfaction and retention.

Our aim is that all our care homes and Home Care services become Eden Accredited, and so we were delighted that in December Riverdale Court in Welling was accredited as an Eden Alternative registered home.

The evaluation went well with staff demonstrating how they are working to the principles of Eden Alternative through their care delivery. During her visit, the assessor spoke with staff, residents and visitors to assess everyone’s views on how the Eden

Alternative was being delivered in the home. Staff were positive about starting their experience of Eden and spoke about the need to put residents at the centre of day to day decisions about their care. Residents also gave positive feedback, as did all the visitors. The assessor commented that she was impressed with what she saw throughout the home, saying that independence is clearly encouraged, with assistance from staff available when it was needed.

Riverdale Court is now the sixth Avante Care & Support care home to be accredited by the Eden Alternative.

I would like to thank all of our committed staff for their hard work, and our volunteers and relatives for their input to creating communities where everyone has a vibrant and fulfilling life.

Stuart Cross Managing Director Avante Care & Support

NEVER ENOUGH CAKES Residents at Pilgrims View preparing some fresh cakes for their monthly Coffee Morning at the home, making sure to give them a nice topping of icing and decorations!

WOMBLE THE HORSE Parkview care home were treated to a very special visit by Womble the Horse and his owner Carly.

They both spent the afternoon with residents, who loved petting him and giving him treats!

A DAY AT THE RACES Northbourne Court had a fun day at the races, with residents sporting some very fancy hats for ‘The Northbourne Court Grand National’.

Residents and family were treated to a very special day, with a live music, some fun betting, pimms, wine, canapés and cakes! There was also a strange jockey and his horse who gave everyone a good laugh! (top left)

HOME MADE SOUP Residents on Roxbury Suite at Puddingstone Grange have started a cooking group where they discuss all things food, and suggest and prepare certain dishes such as cakes, soups and other delights.

The first dish created by the group was a vegetable spaghetti soup, and everyone enjoyed the finished results! There will be plenty more cooking and preparing to come...

ROCKLIFFE MANOR PRIMARY SCHOOL Year 2 pupils at Rockliffe Manor Primary School visited Puddingstone Grange in October. The pupils completed surveys with the residents, asking them what they liked and what made them happy, with one resident saying, “You visiting me!�.

The Year 2 pupils made a second visit a few weeks later bringing with them things the residents said they had liked and that made them happy, such as flowers, playing board games and making iced cookies.

Amherst Court visit Rochester Cathedral

Residents Gwen, Phyllis, Joan and Cyril from Amherst Court made a special visit to Rochester Cathedral, England’s second oldest cathedral. Residents enjoyed walking around, admiring the architecture and ambience of the historic building. After a morning well spent, the residents took a break to catch a spot of tea and lunch at Elm Court CafÊ.

AFTERNOON TEA AT RUXLEY GARDEN CENTRE Home Care and Support carers, Michele Lawrence, Pauline Sheedy, Joan Smythe and Laura Lee took 4 service users out to afternoon tea at Ruxley Manor Garden Centre for lunch and a spot of Christmas shopping.

One Service user was so happy as she was able to buy her daughter a gift instead of relying on others to get it. Another service user had a wonderful time, as she had said she very rarely had the opportunity to get out and about. She said really enjoyed the trip and the

WHAT DO PEOPLE SAY ABOUT OUR HOMES A selection of recent reviews on carehome.co.uk

Riverdale Court After being very nervous about selecting a care home for my nan, we were so pleased to find Riverdale Court. Nan moved in August 2018 and I have been so pleased with how well she is doing. Staff are friendly and care about each resident, understanding individual needs.

There is always an activity going on which are fun and enjoyable for all. Riverdale Court has completely changed my view of elderly care and my nan could not be happier or in a better place.”

- Nicky (Granddaughter of Resident)

Puddingstone Grange My mother went to live at Puddingstone Grange. Mum was not keen at first but settled in and was happy and comfortable.

The carers and staff made every effort to help Mum socialise and take part in daily activities. The carers and staff were kind and considerate. The staff were always friendly to us as a family and would always let us know if there were any concerns.”

- Denise (Daughter of Resident)

Bridge Haven The most caring home you could ever wish for. The staff genuinely care about the residents. It's always spotlessly clean. The food is of a high standard. The facilities are plentiful with a cinema, pub and tea rooms and the staff go above and beyond for all patients and their families.”

- Helen (Granddaughter of Resident)

SONGS OF PRAISE FEATURED RESIDENTS FROM COURT REGIS On Sunday 13 January Songs of Praise, presented by Aled Jones, featured their recent visit to the Isle of Sheppey where they visited the Oasis Academy Dementia café.

The 47-year-old presenter, famous for singing Walking in the Air as a teenage chorister, spent a day on the Isle of Sheppey with a TV crew from the BBC. The episode showed Aled’s visit to Blue Town's Criterion Theatre, Heritage Centre and the Oasis Academy's award-winning dementia café.

Emma Ansley, Activities Coordinator, Court Regis said, ‘We were delighted to be part of this event in November. The residents from Court Regis and I are very keen supporters of the Oasis Academy dementia café and have been for a number of years. Everyone at the café make us very welcome when we visit and the residents always enjoying going there.

There is some amazing work taking place at the café and I hope the recent visit from the BBC will showcase all of this hard work and dedication. The residents were

so excited to see Aled Jones and to know they may be featuring on Songs of Praise, it was a very special moment, and we will all be tuning in this Sunday!’

Paul Murray, Community Coordinator said, ‘We had around 80 guests on the day of filming from all over Swale including the Mayor. We had five care homes in attendance too, including Court Regis care home in Sittingbourne who are regular supporters of the Café. Aled Jones spent the whole time with students and guests interacting wonderfully with everyone and was very kind and showed great patience with all. It was a lovely afternoon and Aled was very complimentary to the students about their work and to the guests. He had lots of kind words. We were very proud to host the event and Aled was thrilled to see all the activities on offer.

As well as singing and dancing there were memory boxes to make and flower arrangements to put together and take away’.

RESIDENTS AT RIVERDALE COURT CELEBRATE CHINESE NEW YEAR Residents and staff at Riverdale Court joined together to celebrate Chinese New Year with a day packed full of Chinese themed activities including music, crafting lantern and dragon decorations, and vast array of Chinese cuisine on offer for residents to sample.

Nicolas Kee Mew, Home Manager of Riverdale Court, said: “Our residents always show a regular interest in learning more about the world and different cultures. I thought this was a great opportunity for residents to learn about the Chinese New Year and take part in the celebrations by holding our own party in the heart of Welling. Other activities included Chinese horoscope and practising Chinese calligraphy.

RAISE DONATIONS FOR AVANTE CARE & SUPPORT WHEN YOU SHOP ONLINE

How does it work? easyfundraising could turn your everyday online shopping into free donations for Avante Care & Support. How? Just start your online shopping first at easyfundraising, then shop as normal. Our retailers will then make a small donation to say “thank you”.

We have 3,601 retailers to choose from and so far we've raised over £25 million for thousands of community groups, schools,

Visit:

www.easyfundraising.org.uk 1. Get started Join for free.

Visit the easyfundraising website and choose a cause to support

2. Start shopping Visit retailers and then shop online as normal

3. Raise donations Your cause receives free donations

Avante Care & Support homes and services Amherst Court Bridge Haven Court Regis Northbourne Court Parkview

Pilgrims View Puddingstone Grange Riverdale Court Weybourne Avante Charitable Fund

Avante Home Care and Support - Kent Avante Home Care and Support - Bexley

If you would like to find out more about Avante Care & Support please call us on 01795 597400 or visit our website at www.avantecare.org.uk