As you can imagine, December is a busy month in our specialist residential care homes. Where possible, we support service users to stay with their families, or visit for the day, over the Christmas period. Alternatively, family members and friends are welcome to visit their loved ones in our homes. We always try to make the festive period as fun and enjoyable as possible, and this is what’s happening this year.

We’ve been making decorations and putting them up along with Christmas trees in all the homes – special thanks to our Arts & Crafts lady, Sallie Maris, for her creative skills! There’s also carol singing, Karaoke, disco evening and games planned.

Christmas is often about tradition, and we like to create our own traditions in our homes. At 144 Boughton Green Road, our home for long-term rehabilitation for men with acquired brain injury, one of our service users always dresses up as Father Christmas on Christmas Day. It’s great fun for all the guys and the staff!

We have lots of trips organised to see the pantomime “Cinderella” at The Royal & Derngate in Northampton, as well as a trip with Mencap to see Jack & The Beanstalk at the Deco in Northampton.

The service users from all six homes, along with the staff, come together for a big Christmas party. There’s good food, music, dancing, and a wonderful atmosphere for everyone to enjoy. In addition, we have:

• Headway Christmas lunch
• Rock Club Christmas lunch at the Marriott Hotel
• Christmas lights switch-on in Northampton town centre
• Christmas shopping
• Festive afternoon at Headway with coffee and mince pies
• Visits to Duston, Wellesbourne and Stoke Bruerne Christmas food and gift markets
• Workbridge craft fair with crafts, music, tombola and festive fun
• Christmas fair at Kings Park Tennis Centre
• Christmas parties at Brookside, Mencap
• Bowls continues at The Richardson Mews hall on Monday afternoons

 

New kitchen at The Richardson Mews

To celebrate the completion of the new kitchen at The Richardson Mews, we had a joint early Christmas lunch for service users at The Mews and The Coach House. Thank you to Caroline, Mandy and Teresa who cooked an amazing Christmas dinner (and to Dexter and his team for our lovely new kitchen). We were joined by the Admissions team, Maintenance guys and some of the MDT. During the meal Northampton Ukulele Band played and sang carols – we had a great time!