Join us at Woodley Grange for a Free Thai Cooking Workshop!

/in , /by

We’re thrilled to announce that we will be running an exciting series of monthly community engagement events, to bring our residents, families, staff and the wider community together. We’d love it if you could join us! 

Our first incredible session will be a free Thai cooking workshop and demonstration at Woodley Grange Care Home on Tuesday 19th November, with talented local Thai Chef, Lilly Palmer.

Spaces are limited, so we recommend booking early to avoid disappointment. 

To book your place, please click here.

On the day

On arrival, you’ll receive a refreshing welcome drink of Thai iced coffee or coconut milk. 

During the event, you’ll learn how to impress at your next dinner party by making delicious spring rolls and have a live demonstration on how to carve beautiful edible vegetable arrangements. 

At the end of the session, you’ll enjoy your delicious spring rolls along with freshly prepared Thai nibbles including fish bites, Thai prawn crackers, corn fritters, chilli rice crackers, and Thai dipping sauce. Takeaway boxes are available if you want to take your delicious food home. 

Important Details

Time: 2:30pm-4:30pm. Please arrive at 2:30pm for welcome drinks. 

Date: Tuesday 19th November 2024

Location: Woodley Grange, Winchester Hill, Romsey, Hampshire, SO51 7NU

Bring an apron and enjoy this wonderful free Thai cooking workshop with some of our lovely residents.

We can’t wait to welcome you on Tuesday 19th November! 

For any questions or dietary requirements, please contact us at events@lovingcare-matters.co.uk 

Rocking Wellness: Woodley Grange Champions Mental Health

/in , /by

Woodley Grange were proud to take part in Mental Health Week from 13th to 19th May. The theme this year was ‘Get Moving’ so our Wellbeing Champion Rachel set up an engaging challenge for our staff and residents to get moving outside and enjoy the fresh air.

 

   

 

Rachel created a fun treasure hunt and hid hand-painted pebbles with our core values around our beautiful grounds for everyone to find. Each day, Rachel placed more stones for people to discover – there were eleven in total. This encouraged everyone to get outside, enjoy the glorious weather and work together as a team to find the pebbles.

 

 

 

Our residents loved getting involved, taking in the scenery and the sounds outside. It was also a great chance to spark new conversations and spend quality time with the carers and other residents.

 

 

 

We had fantastic prizes for our residents, with the winning resident on each floor winning a lovely bunch of flowers. Our incredible staff were also given badges, stickers and small gifts in recognition of their support for such an important cause.

 

   

 

Rachel said: “The staff enjoyed walking around the garden looking for the stones with the residents. Tt was great that they got to share our core values within Woodley Grange. I am passionate about mental health and this was a great way to include everyone within the home and to promote the values we all share.”

One of our lovely residents said: “The weather was lovely which made it extra special. It was nice to see the staff having fun, they work tremendously hard.”

We’d like to thank Rachel who worked really hard to capture the ethos of Manucourt’s core values, and everyone who made it such a fun experience.

Follow us on Facebook or check out our blogs for all our latest activities!

If you would like to arrange a visit to see our home in action, contact our team on 01794 337326.

Manucourt awarded ‘Top 20 Small Care Homes Group Award’ for eighth year in a row

/in , , /by

We are thrilled to announce Manucourt has been honoured with the ‘Top 20 Small Care Homes Group Award’ from leading UK care home review site carehome.co.uk, for an impressive eighth year running.

We are so proud to receive this prestigious national award, as it recognises the top-rated care homes based on over 310,000 reviews from residents, family and friends across 16,721 care homes in the UK.

Woodley Grange team & residents

This incredible achievement is a true testament to the dedication of our staff at our Romsey-based care home, Woodley Grange, and New Milton care home, Barton Lodge, for delivering outstanding care and making our homes among the best in the country.

Barton Lodge team & residents

Upon receiving the award, Manucourt’s Director of Operations, Rizwan Walji, said: “We are thrilled to have won this award for the eighth time. It is a tremendous achievement that recognises the dedication and commitment of our staff to delivering outstanding care on a daily basis.

“We would like to thank our residents, friends and family, we couldn’t have achieved this recognition without your support. It just goes to prove, together, we can achieve great things and we look forward to what the future brings.”

Our remarkable achievement has featured in the Hampshire Chronicle, please click here to read the full article.

For more information about the exceptional care we provide contact us, and keep an eye on our blogs for more information about our latest events and activities.

Woodley Grange residents, staff & relatives come together to celebrate International Mother Language

/in /by

Woodley Grange celebrated International Mother Language Day on Wednesday 21st February. The special event was organised by Woodley Grange’s dedicated care assistants, Thaieb and Pooja, with the help of all staff members, and celebrated the diverse languages that are spoken in the home.

 

It was a truly inclusive day, residents and staff were able to enjoy activities, food and drink from all around the world. A member of staff cooked a delicious curry, which went down very well and everyone was treated to snacks from different cultures. Plus, there were prizes to be won, as Thaieb arranged fun games including pass the cushion, musical chairs and a quiz, which were enjoyed by all.

 

The Indian and Bangladeshi staff lit up the room with traditional bright and vibrant dancing, which everyone loved. All of the staff wore stunning colourful saris, brought in by members of staff, and had henna painted on their hands to complete the look. At the end, Thaieb gave a beautiful speech giving real meaning to the day.

   

The feedback from residents was incredible. One resident shared: “The day was exciting and a good idea to promote diversity”, while another resident exclaimed, “I enjoyed myself, it got people together from all cultures. It was the best party I have been to!”

Woodley Grange’s Manager, Loraine Tabbner, said: “It was lovely to see the staff working together to promote such a wonderful day. Residents, staff and relatives all came together and experienced something very special. The hard work and determination as a group was outstanding. We can’t wait to host the next event!”

 

 

Woodley Grange awarded ‘Top 20 Care Home’ for the seventh year in a row!

/in , /by

We are thrilled that Woodley Grange has been recognised as one of the ‘Top 20 Care Homes’ in the South East, for the seventh year running, by leading care home reviews site, carehome.co.uk. What an incredible achievement and very well deserved!

Manucourt Ltd was also named as a ‘Top 20 Small Care Home Group’ in the UK for the seventh year in a row! To receive these awards for the seventh consecutive year, really highlights our ongoing commitment to our residents’ outstanding quality of care.

Rizwan Walji, Manucourt’s Director of Operations said: “We are immensely proud and grateful to all our staff for their outstanding efforts.”

Liliana Macieira, Woodley Grange’s Registered Manager added: “We’d like to say a massive thank you, receiving a 10 out of 10 rating from residents and families reviews is incredible and really shows how valued our staff are!”

To read the full article, published in the Hampshire Chronicle, please click here.

 

Follow us on Facebook or check out our blogs for all our latest activities!

Joan's sweet shop trip

Resident Joan relives sweet memories thanks to Barton Lodge team

/in , /by

Barton Lodge’s lovely resident, Joan Fuggett, 99, has very fond childhood memories of growing up above the family chocolate shop!

To help Joan take a walk done memory lane, the Barton Lodge team arranged a very special trip to Truffles in Lymington, home of traditional pick ‘n’ mix and delicious truffles.

Joan's person-centred activity
Special trip

On the day, Joan met owner Bev and reminisced about her time working at the family business as a girl.

Joan was so happy to see all the old sweet jars and was given a box of chocolates to take back with her – which didn’t last long!

Joan’s story

Joan was born in London and grew up in Reading where her father’s shop, The Chocolate Box, was based before it became a fish and chip shop in recent years.

She moved to New Milton with her father, where she met husband Charlie and the pair bought a house in nearby Bashley.

Joan reflects on happy childhood memories

“I really loved visiting the shop and it was amazing to see all the sweets in big screw top jars, like I remember them being. The smell in there brought back so many happy memories!

“It made me think of the chocolate bar sandwiches I had as a child. My favourites were always the Nestle milk chocolate bar, butterscotch or just a quarter of mixed sweets.

“My dad never used to let me help myself to anything there even though it was tempting! But I was always given anything I asked for and so were my friends when they came to visit.

Joan added: “It was such a lovely day out and I’m so thankful to everyone for arranging it for me. The whole thing brought back so many fond memories!”

Excellent reminiscence therapy

Barton Lodge’s Care Home Manager, Amanda Cooper, said: “Our team love to find new and exciting ways for our residents to relive their most cherished childhood memories.

“We all know how fondly Joan remembers her days living in the shop as a girl and since she’s come back she can’t stop smiling about it.

“Moving into a care home doesn’t mean you have to stop doing the things that you love and we were all delighted to arrange this for Joan.

“It’s so important for all of our residents to be able to continue having new experiences but also to be able to reminisce about the wonderful memories they have.”

For more information about the exceptional care Barton Lodge provides, please contact our dedicated team on 01425 209235.

Follow us on Facebook or see our blogs for all our latest activities!

Residents received the royal treatment at our Jubilee parties

/in , , /by

We were very lucky that the sun shone on our Jubilee parties at Woodley Grange and Barton Lodge earlier this month, making them the perfect celebrations fit for the Queen!

At Woodley Grange, Romsey’s Mayoress, Celia Dowden, opened the street party for the residents, their family members and our neighbours. Guests were treated to an afternoon of traditional games, entertainment from a local singer Mike Sideway, as well as a pop-up bar!

One of our Woodley Grange residents said: “It was the best day ever. The music, the food and the decorations were all fantastic.”

Another said: “It was a lovely day indeed – what an amazing thing to do!”

We also held a raffle which raised £137 for the Alzheimer’s Society.

Our Jubilee street party at Woodley Grange was even featured in the Romsey Advertiser! Click here to read more.

Leading up to the celebrations, the residents at Barton Lodge helped with preparations, colouring in different decorations and accessorising different T-shirts. On the day, everyone had a fantastic time wearing crowns and dancing away to guest singer Stephen’s tunes.

Rizwan Walji, Manucourt’s Director of Operations remarked: “We would like to thank the families and local residents who joined us for our Jubilee parties, it was great to celebrate together.

We must also give a big thank you to all our wonderful staff, who worked incredibly hard to make the day so memorable. The residents had a fantastic time!”

top-secret science and technology laboratory

Roy relives top-secret MOD days

/in /by

Roy relives top-secret MOD days

The team at Woodley Grange were so pleased to see resident, Dr Roy Fitzgeorge, return to the MOD’s (Ministry of Defense’s) top-secret science and technology laboratory for the first time in almost 30 years, as part of the Wish Maker Initiative.

As a former MOD microbiologist, Roy enjoyed revisiting Porton Down, near Salisbury, accompanied by his daughter. Roy, aged 92, toured the facility and met with current staff members to speak about his time with the MOD, as well as meeting some familiar faces from his old team!

 

MOD’s (Ministry of Defense's) top-secret science and technology laboratory

Woodley Grange’s Manager, Liliana Macieira, said: “Roy is so proud of his time with the MOD and is always talking about it and showing off his old pictures and stories to staff and residents.”

Since his visit, Roy remarked: “Well it’s been very nice to come back to this. I don’t think many people can say, ‘that was a lovely place to work’, but I think this is. And still is, by the looks of it. I hope it stays that way.”

Roy was amazed at how the place had expanded, continuing; “I’m so pleased that Porton Down has kept its place. It’s three or four times the size it was. I think you ought to be proud of yourselves. I’m proud I worked here.

“Thank you all for a nice episode in my life. Quite a big one.”

Woodley Granges’ Activities Coordinator, Erica Orchard, said: “He’s lived an incredible life and has done so many amazing things and we were all delighted to be able to arrange this trip for him.

“Reminiscence therapy forms a key part of what we do here at Woodley Grange and it’s so important for our residents to engage in these activities and spark such brilliant memories.

“I want to say a huge thank you to our wonderful team who arranged this for Roy as well as to the MOD for facilitating this experience. I’m sure we’ll never get him to stop talking about it now!”

Roy’s story made it into the Romsey Advertiser, click here for more details about his inspiring life.

Margaret makes her musical debut at Salisbury Cathedral thanks to Wish Maker initiative

/in /by

Margaret makes her musical debut at Salisbury Cathedral thanks to Wish Maker initiative

Prior to joining Woodley Grange in December 2021, Margaret was an accomplished former music teacher, with over 50 years’ experience as a church organist. Throughout her amazing career, Margaret had one wish; to play at Salisbury Cathedral.

To help make her wish come true, Woodley Grange’s activities team organised a special visit to Salisbury Cathedral as part of the home’s Wish Maker initiative, where Margaret was given the chance to wow her daughter and care staff with a private performance on the cathedral’s organ.

As well as playing the organ at the cathedral, Margaret had the opportunity to visit a local music shop to watch her violin being repaired and gave a violin lesson to Erica, our Activities Coordinator, who really got into it.

Following her day out, Margaret said; “I had a wonderful day, I always really appreciate going into the cathedrals as they are beautiful, and it felt great to play in there.

“The sound of the organ was much lighter, and the keys were lighter than the one I play at church. It has a lovely tone.”

To read Margaret’s full story in the Romsey Advertiser, click here.

We’ve loved seeing Margaret in her element and can’t wait for the next time she shares her talents with our staff and residents! Keep an eye on our Facebook pages to see which wish will be granted next!

 

 

Woodley Grange residents get the full Burns Night experience

/in /by

Woodley Grange residents get the full Burns Night experience

On 25th January, Woodley Grange residents were treated to a very special Burns Night, a well-loved Scottish tradition that celebrates the life of Scottish poet Robert Burns.

We were very lucky to welcome talented piper, Jim Stanley, who joined us in his kilt and full regalia and played several sets for us outside with the doors open. The residents thoroughly enjoyed singing along to familiar favourites of ‘Old Lang Syne’ and ‘It’s a long way to Tipperary’, whilst wrapped up warm in their blankets.

Jim then came in to address the haggis, which amazingly he did all from memory! The drinks trolley was brought in to toast the haggis and in full voice the residents cheered; “To the haggis!” before sampling it. Several of our residents tried haggis for the first time and liked it so much they had it for lunch and dinner, served with neeps and tatties.

Woodley’s Activities Coordinator, Erica, remarked that “it went down really well! We had a wonderful time.”

The residents all had a fantastic time. Sheila said; “That was splendid! You wouldn’t normally get to see something like that, as good as that, outside Scotland!”

Annette remarked; “Oh it was lovely! It’s so nice to see something like that so down to earth – see it live, you know.”

Everyone at Woodley Grange would like to say a “special thanks to Jim. You were brilliant!”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The residents are already looking forward to next year’s Burns Night celebrations! If you would like to know more about the events held at Woodley Grange, please click here.