It’s A Spring Thing!
Spring will be starting soon (thankfully) – we can’t be the only ones who are getting fed up with this awful weather we’ve been having. The doors to our beautiful garden have been closed for quite some time and we can’t wait to open them again. Although it is used less in these colder months, we still like to spend time in our summer house when the sun shines. Even if we’re out there with our coats on and a cup of tea in hand, it can be very relaxing to listen to the birds for a short while. But of course we can’t wait for the weather to warm up a bit so we can spend even more time there. The doors to our beautiful garden may be closed more often, but that doesn’t stop us from seeing it through our big picture window and watching it come back to life in the Spring. There’s always lots going on here at Heaton House and Spring is no different. In fact, we love the transition of the seasons and it means we can all enjoy a variation of things. Like watching birds fly into the garden, collecting twigs for their nests and feeding their young. Over the years, Heaton House has seen some interesting animals visiting. But one of our favourites has got to be the sheep who came to see us last Summer. It is around this time of year that lambs are born and we can just imagine them skipping through the green fields. The magnolia tree outside our front door will be blooming soon and we can’t wait for that burst of colour to be welcoming visitors. It has always proved to be popular so as soon as it is blooming you can expect a photo to be posted on Sally’s social media. One of the main things associated with Spring is Spring Cleaning. It is a tradition that dates back to the days before central heating. Efforts were made to stop the heat from escaping during winter, but as the weather got warmer, and the fireplaces were being used less people used it as an opportunity to air the house and do a deep clean. Here at Heaton House we are constantly cleaning and if any of our residents want to get involved, we have no objection and will happily hand them a duster! We hope that you all have a great spring time and get outside into the fresh air – we certainly will be!
Kick Starting The New Decade With Amazing Day Care Feedback
We cannot believe that it is the end of the first month of 2020 already. We are kick starting this new decade off with some great feedback from a relative of an occasional day visitor here at Heaton House. Although we receive regular visits from the Care Quality Commission to inspect our home and make sure that we are providing the best care we can, it is always lovely to receive personal feedback from the family members of the people in our care. We can receive feedback in a variety of ways, in person, on review websites (such as Google and carehome.co.uk) as well as email (care@heaton-house.net). Just recently, our manager Sue Lamb and our owner, Sally Neil-Smith received a touching email from a relative who really appreciates the care we provide. More specifically, the email was sent from someone who is a full-time carer to their mum and aunt. In the email, they expressed that their role as a caregiver is ‘a struggle everyday’ and finding us ‘has been wonderful’. In fact, they went as far to say that they wished they had done so ‘over a year ago’! Here is a snippet of the email Sue and Sally received: ‘Dear Sue and Sally I felt I must write to say how delighted I am with Heaton house, I am the only full time carer for both my Mum and Aunt (94,98). It is a struggle everyday so to find you has been wonderful, wish I had over a year ago. The service you provide on a DAY CARE basis is just what was needed, the staff are incredible so much care and patience, the food, entertainment, hygiene and comfy surroundings are perfect, I can leave them and not have to worry at all….’ We know that although very rewarding, becoming a full time carer to a loved one can be hugely demanding and often leaves the carer with very little time to do anything for themselves. In many cases, the carer has to take a break from work to spend more time with the people they are caring for. This can create financial difficulties and make living difficult. A situation like this can become very desperate and leave the carer feeling completely overwhelmed with their new full-time responsibility. That’s where our day care facilities come in; we can take care of your loved one, giving you time to take care of other things like the shopping and housework. Or maybe you just need a bit of ‘you time’, to give yourself time to relax and unwind for a while. Whatever your circumstances and whatever the reasons, we are here to help – just ask! What a day may look like at Heaton House Of course there’s no ‘typical day’ at Heaton House, but here’s an example of what one of our days may look like: 8:30am Arrive to a lovely welcome, have breakfast then settle with friends. 10:00am Morning activity such as indoor bowls or a visit from our partner nurseries.If the weather is particularly nice we may enjoy time outside in the garden or in our summer house. 12:30pm Lunchtime! Time to enjoy a home-cooked lunch. 2:00pm Music session or film time. Please remember that this is only an example of what a day may look like for someone who comes to join us; therefore it is highly flexible and we are happy to accommodate the needs of the person who is coming to stay with us for the day and their carer. Visit the about us page on our website to find out more about the day care service we provide. Or you can call us on 01903 700251 to arrange a visit to find out if we’re a good fit for you and the person you’re caring for.
What A Month!
December is a busy month for most people, everyone is busy preparing for the big day on the 25th and it was no different for us at Heaton House. It wasn’t just Christmas Day preparations that kept us busy, it was the jam-packed activity calendar too! The first half of the month saw us taking part in poetry sessions, craft sessions and even watching a magic show from Robbie The Magician. On top of all of this, we also had our regular activities such as exercises with Michelle every Sunday morning and a music session every Tuesday. All residents are given the choice to take part in the activities and having them scheduled in means that there is always something going on at Heaton House. Like most people in the UK, many of us headed out to our local polling station to vote in the General Election. It is so important for us to use our vote and some celebrated whilst others were sad when watching the results come in the following morning on the TV. As you can see from the picture on the left, Daphne enjoyed using her vote. Towards the end of the month we really started to get into the Christmas spirit with St John’s Church Choir. The singers came to Heaton House to sing Christmas carols with us and enjoy a buffet supper. Unfortunately, a few of our residents were not well enough on the day to join everyone in the lounge, so the Christmas spirit spread far and wide as the carol singers and father Roger visited these residents in their bedrooms. By the time Christmas Eve came around, it was almost like we had written our own 12 Days of Christmas Lyrics! On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me… 1 magic show 2 nativity plays 3 fun quizzes 4 poetry sessions 5 mince pies (each!) 6 different outings 7 Christmas cakes 8 flower arrangements 9 chair exercises 10 intergenerational sessions 11 sing alongs 12 carers caring The diversity of activities really shines through when you see the month’s activities all together. We are always open to other activity ideas and the monthly schedule does change to make sure as many people as possible have fun.
Heaton House awarded ‘Outstanding’ status from CQC
We are delighted to have finally been awarded an overall rating of ‘outstanding’ from the Care Quality Commission (CQC). This was not done without a fight from our owner, Sally Neil-Smith though – as she appealed for the CQC to review its initial report. We were initially pleased with a successful visit from the CQC. The inspector had made positive comments during the visit and seemed impressed with the quality and attentiveness of the care, the activities and community links, plus the surroundings and cleanliness of the home. However; when the report arrived, we were disappointed to receive an overall rating of ‘Good’. Granted, aspects of the report were graded as ‘Outstanding’, but we were disheartened with the overall rating of the report. Believing our home to be better than shown in the report, Sally made an enquiry with the Care Quality Commission, asking them to rethink the rating that they issued the home. After revisiting the report, the CQC agreed to change its overall rating of the home from ‘Good’ to ‘Outstanding’. The whole team are now delighted. Heaton House prides itself on providing the best quality care it can to its residents. Receiving the rating of ‘Excellent’ reflects the hard work and dedication that all staff members show on a daily basis. “Sometimes you just have to fight for what you believe,” said Sally. “Heaton House more than meets the CQC standard for an outstanding home and I wanted to show Sue, our manager, and all the staff who work so hard that their efforts were not in vain. Achieving the outstanding standard puts us in the top 3.5% of care homes in the UK. We won’t sit on our laurels however, we continually strive to make our home better every single day. We use new technology and forge strong links with local groups such as Little Elms nursery with whom we have established a fantastic relationship based on mutually beneficial intergenerational activities.” View our Outstanding CQC report here
4 to 94: Everyone Has Fun At Heaton House
Did you know we are a local leader in intergenerational care? At Heaton House we’ve been running intergenerational sessions for two years. In fact, last year, we changed our daytime activities calendar to ensure that more regular visits from our local nursery were scheduled in. Through the Encounter Project, we built a relationship with Little Elms, the nursery just around the corner from us, which enabled multiple generations to meet and what a joy it is! The happiness we see on the residents faces when interacting with the little ones is just amazing to watch. We notice a lot of our residents stay positive throughout the remaining day; staying talkative and cheerful. Not only are the benefits great for our residents, but for the children too. Age UK states that taking part in intergenerational activities helps to create more positive attitudes towards older people. Sowing the seeds of elderly positivity early on in a child’s life can really impact them for the better when they’re older. When Little Elms nursery visits, we notice that the carers are often young themselves and have no problem with interacting with our residents. This enriches the intergenerational sessions as we can have up to four generations all interacting at the same time! The success of our partnership with Little Elms has lead us to work with two other local nurseries and actively seek out other types of intergenerational activity. For example; we had a young dancer perform for us recently who is 15. The residents were enthralled with her performance of both singing and dancing. The young dancer was even joined by her friend, Summer, who performed a duet to the residents! Having that interaction across generations is great to see and is a pleasure to have in our home. It’s fantastic to see that intergenerational care has been getting more publicity in recent years; with news articles and other homes opening up the discussion about it. We hope to continue our partnership with Little Elms, other nurseries, schools and community groups to bring joy to all generations. Read our other blog on intergenerational care here.
Heaton House named in top 20 care homes in the South East
We are hugely proud to have been named as a top 20 care home in the whole of the South East of England! The website carehome.co.uk based its rankings on the independent reviews it receives from site visitors who have actually been to the homes. Only two homes from Worthing were named in the poll and we are one of the smallest homes also. Our registered manager, Sue Lamb said, “to be named as a top 20 care home in the South East of England is brilliant. The region is saturated with care homes and the website lists 2950 in the South East, so being placed in the top 20 is fantastic!” “What makes it all the more genuine is that our ranking has been based on the reviews that we received from actual visitors to our home,” continues Sue. “We have a lot of visitors, not just family and friends of residents, we have children’s nurseries over to interact with our residents and many others who provide activities such as music, poetry and crafting.”
Building Bridges Between Generations
A recent addition to our daytime activities calendar has been regular visits from the children’s nursery around the corner from us, ‘Little Elms’. Our manager, Sue, approached a local care activities and training company called Lovejoy Centre to see what they could do for Heaton House residents. Anne-Marie from Lovejoy Centre suggested joining ‘the Encounter Project‘ which works to get different generations, especially younger children and older people in care homes, meeting up. Little Elms thought it was a great idea for the children to visit the residents at Heaton House and the visits began. At first the older children aged 3 and 4 came along to show the residents pictures, read stories and sings songs. Now the younger 2 and 3 year olds come along too (separately) and we have play toys in the garden and bulging dressing up boxes! Our Manager Sue Lamb says, “The children have such a positive effect on our residents every time they come. They love showing off their pictures and singing nursery rhymes together, it is really fantastic to watch them interacting and it’s such fabulous stimulus for our residents. Even those who can be somewhat withdrawn often open up to the children. What’s more they all remain positive even after the children have left too. We’ve built the relationship with Little Elms now so that some of our more able residents have been to the nursery and some have even visited the nursery’s allotment as well.” We’re very thankful to Anne-Marie and all the staff and children from Little Elms the smiles those children bring to our residents faces are priceless and the staff love having them here too. Everyone gets on and has a whale of a time – I can see us doing this for a very long time to come. We have also been featured in the Worthing Herald about the project and you can read that article here