In an effort to make this Christmas special, the team at Aliwal Manor Care Home in Cambridge named the week before Christmas ‘Christmas Party Week’ and organised a week of Christmas tea parties.
Each unit in the home had their own individual day where they could come and enjoy a tea party, and you could hear the fun and enjoyment from unit to another.
A lot of preparation went into ensuring that the parties would be as great as possible, from both the team and the people living in the home. At the beginning of the week, everybody helped make mince pies. Then they made some Christmas pomanders using oranges and cloves, which were hung up all around the manor. Finally, before each party the residents helped make sweet treats, by not only decorating gingerbread men, but also icing their unit’s own personalised Christmas cake.
The people living at Aliwal said that they loved being able to help prepare the food, decorations and games, as it brought them back to Christmas’ in the past. Many cited the preparation for Christmas as one of the parts that they used to really enjoy. They said that Christmas Day is always over so quickly, but as you get older you realise how fulfilling and rewarding the preparation and build up is. Sarah, the Lifestyle Coordinator at Aliwal Manor always makes sure to include everyone with upcoming events, so that they feel special and involved.
Many hilarious games were enjoyed during the parties, and they even cracked out the parachute they recently purchased! The popular Christmas Bingo was enjoyed with resident Ann enjoying a winning streak and eventually going on to win the entire game! Everybody made a spectacle of themselves, wearing themed Christmas glasses and singing and dancing away. Sarah had also brought in a humorous toilet roll, which had lots of jokes on it to share.
Christmas Party Week was a great success. The people living at the home thanked all the staff for their hard work and look forward to what they plan next year!