A Packed Itinerary for Birchmere House Residents
At Avery, we take great pride in cultivating a warm and welcoming environment across our homes, where residents feel part of a close-knit community and can create strong companionship with their peers and the care team surrounding them.
Our team takes the time to engage in Life Story Work with each resident, learning about their past interests, routines, and hobbies and creating daily positive engagement opportunities. They are dedicated to creating meaningful activities and incorporating them into our fun-packed weekly activity calendars.
Residents at Birchmere House Care Home in Solihull have been celebrating regular themed events and venturing out on the home’s minibus to visit local areas of interest.
All Aboard
During May, residents took a minibus trip to Lichfield Cathedral, a treasured landmark in the heart of the country with a splendid setting and over 1300 years of fascinating history. It is the only English medieval three-spired Cathedral with fine examples of stained-glass windows from the 1530s. Residents enjoyed seeing a medieval wall painting, the famous Herkenrode stained glass, the Lichfield Gospels and Lichfield Angel. Resident Sheila said, “Lichfield Cathedral holds the most treasured memories for me. I used to visit there with my husband and would you believe my grandfather would take me there as a child! I have been many times and it never gets old for me, it’s just wonderful.”
Another memorable day trip included visiting West Midlands Safari Park, home to some of the world’s most beautiful and exotic creatures. With a four-mile drive-through safari adventure trail, it’s perfect for those wanting to sit and admire the views. One of the day’s highlights was feeding the giraffes. Resident, Patricia stated, “Since I came to live at Birchmere I have been on so many trips. The safari park was just a wonderful day. The last time I went there was when it first opened. I never thought I would be going back there now I am in my 90s, not every day you hand-feed a giraffe you know.”
Our residents enjoy many fantastic day trips that provide them with fascinating stories to share with their loved ones.
The Perfect Pairing
For years wine and cheese have been considered a perfect pairing. Birchmere House’s delightful Cheese and Wine evenings are popular with many, with friends from the community and loved ones invited to join in the festivities, all dressing to the nines for the occasion. Their dedicated team of chefs serve a range of artisan cheeses, crackers, and grapes accompanied by a selection of red and white wines. Needless to say, everyone thoroughly enjoys themselves, and it’s always a joy to see residents and their loved ones spending quality time together.
A Spanish Fiesta
Following their successful cheese and wine evenings, residents gathered with staff, friends and their loved ones to celebrate a Spanish Tapas and Sangria Community evening where the home was decorated, ready for a Spanish fiesta, with balloons and bunting. Residents wore sombreros, listened to Viva España, and tested their knowledge of Spain with a quiz. A Spanish-themed celebration wouldn’t be complete without sangria, a drink traditionally consisting of red wine and chopped fruit, often with other ingredients or spirits, residents sipped away. The highlight of the evening was undoubtedly when residents tucked into a delicious range of tapas, a famous Spanish Cuisine carefully prepared by their talented culinary team.
Speaking of the evening, guest Michelle commented, “Superb night fantastic atmosphere great food and lots of lovely sangria. What more could you want?” Already planning the next event, Well-being and Activities Co-ordinator Kerry said, “It was a wonderful evening. Thank you to everyone who joined us.”
