On Friday 23rd April we celebrated St George’s Day. Despite St George’s Day not being celebrated as widely as it used to be throughout the country, for many of our residents this is a day they will have celebrated for many years and we love to follow traditions and ensure our residents get to too.
We celebrate St George’s Day every year – but this year given the pandemic we have faced and limitations on visits and outings we wanted to make it extra special for our residents.
We decorated the Hub and put on a party! We made flags and the residents were visited by a couple of special guests – 2 Shetland ponies escorted by one of our Manager’s children dressed in traditional attire. Bringing in animals, or ‘pet therapy’ as it is known, is something we do regularly at the Manor House with carefully selected animals. Animals are known to bring joy and happiness and petting an animal can have a very calming influence. For residents with dementia, those who have perhaps owned a pet in their life, visits from animals can help them recall memories and experience a feeling of joy and happiness by their presence.
A really great day was enjoyed by everyone, as well as the decorations and ponies, we turned up the music for a sing and dance and enjoyed lovely food. We’re very much looking forward to our next celebration. Hopefully, it won’t be long and we can invite all relatives to join in too.
