Bridgwater residents living with dementia have enjoyed being swashbucklers and scallywags for a pirate-themed party day arranged by the activities team at Avalon Nursing Home.
Activities coordinator Madi Davis said: “People were having a good old laugh and greeting each other with ‘ahoy matey’ or ‘yo ho ho’ and ‘blow the man down.’ They clearly thought it was hilarious.
“Our residents love the dressing-up involved in a theme day, as well as creating decorations for the home and generally entering into the fun and games associated with whatever theme has been chosen.
“On Pirate Day we had a photo session where they modelled tricorn hats and eye-patches, and posed with a cutlass or a toy parrot.
“We got off to a gentle start in the morning, with a session making treasure maps - each resident creating their own unique map.
“This involved them staining their drawing paper with tea bags to give it a vintage appearance and experimenting with stencils to create a sketch showing where the buried treasure – or rum in some cases – was located.
“The afternoon activities involved decorating our lounge with the treasure maps and other nautical creations and – very importantly – we had a music session with sea shanties, which was a great opportunity for a singalong and some movement.
“Sometimes we embrace a national theme day with our residents – such as National Fish and Chip Day - but often we just organise our own theme day with a focus that we know will appeal to our ladies and gents. We aim to do it every month because they enjoy so much.”
The theme days are part of a varied programme of activities available at Avalon which is run by award-winning dementia care providers Camelot Care. The group also runs homes in Wellington and Yeovil in Somerset, and in Holsworthy and Plymouth in Devon.
