Home is where the art is for Crowborough residents

Home news

Dec 23, 2019

Residents at a Crowborough care home teamed up with local youngsters for a special art project.

Care UK’s Heather View, on Beacon Road, opened its doors to three young volunteers as part of the Life Line Project, a local initiative which aims to turn older people’s stories into art.

Developed by Artytime, a not-for-profit organisation whose aim is to bring art and crafts to all ages and abilities, the project saw Ayla, 12, Kimberley, 11, and Ellie, 14, gathering the residents’ most treasured memories over the course of several visits. These were then turned into personalised works of art.

Created using different techniques, the artworks all reflected the residents’ different life stories and interests. One of the pieces is a collage depicting the resident’s milestones throughout their life, while another is laid out in a jigsaw puzzle, representing the favourite past time of another resident.

Natasha King, home manager at Heather View, said: “We believe it is important to learn about dementia from a young age, and hope that this project will raise awareness of the condition for pupils, as well as their parents, teachers and the local community.

“Art can be a wonderful way to bring people together, while helping older people reminisce about their younger years. Everyone had a fantastic time getting to know each other, and residents were thrilled about the artworks that the girls created using their memories. We’d like to say a big thank you to Artytime for setting up this wonderful project and offering us a chance to get involved, and to Ayla, Kimberley and Ellie for creating some brilliant artistic creations for residents.”

Heather View has been designed to deliver the very best standards of care and to enable residents to live active and fulfilled lives. The home provides full-time residential, nursing and dementia care, as well as short-term respite and palliative care. 

To find out more about Heather View care home, call 01892 883 574 or email customer relations manager, Caroline Thomas, at caroline.thomas@careuk.com

For more general information, please visit careuk.com/heather-view