Southampton care home residents team up with pupils for gardening club

 

Green-fingered care home residents in Southampton have teamed up with children from a local nursery to form a unique gardening club. 

Care UK’s Ancasta Grove, on Barnes Lane, has joined forces with Woodlands Early Learning to create its very own intergenerational gardening group – meeting every two weeks for residents and children to share tips and work on special projects in the care home’s garden. 

Together, the two generations have been rolling up their sleeves to sow seeds and watch them grow, along with planting new shrubs and learning all about different species of plants and flowers. 

The children have also completed various creative activities, including nature-inspired artwork, with the help of residents at Ancasta Grove. 

Resident Hilda Swain, 89, said: “I love spending time with the children – it reminds me of when my own children were younger and used to run around in the garden.”

Joel Ignacio, Home Manager at Ancasta Grove, added: “Gardening is a wonderful pastime and can be incredibly beneficial, particularly for older people – it helps to maintain fine motor skills, provides an opportunity for gentle physical activity, and offers a sense of purpose and responsibility. 

“Teaming up with the nursery children at Woodlands Early Learning gives both generations a chance to get outdoors and inspire one another. The sessions have been truly fantastic so far – long may they continue bringing joy to everyone involved.”

Ancasta Grove has been designed to deliver the very best standards of care and to enable residents to live active and fulfilled lives. The home provides residential, nursing and specialist dementia care, as well as respite and end of life care, and is proud to be able to offer a ‘home for life’ if an individual’s needs change over time.