Residents and staff at The Grange Care Home in Newport near Saffron Walden were delighted to be crowned overall winners of Country Court’s group-wide gardening competition ‘Country Court in Bloom’. The nationwide annual event is a hotly contested competition between the 33 care and nursing homes in the Country Court group.
There were four categories that care homes could enter including best flower display, best person-centred outdoor activity, best indoor nature activities and best celebration garden party. Each care home sent in a folder of their entries that were reviewed by the judging panel that included Country Court Chairman, Abdul Kachra and Managing Director Alykhan Kachra.
“We are delighted to be overall winners of Country Court in Bloom,” said Home Manager, Maria Moore. “This has been a real team effort with both residents and the staff team putting a huge amount of effort into our garden this year. Our residents have loved getting outside and making the most of the summer sunshine”.
In addition to being overall winners, The Grange scooped second place in the ‘Best Indoor Nature activity’ category. Residents raised live butterflies to release into the wild and watched caterpillars turn into beautiful butterflies as they learned first-hand about their lifecycle. Resident Eric Simpson, 97, was delighted to be awarded Head Gardener and thanked by Country Court Chairman Abdul Kachra for leading the resident’s gardening activities throughout the year.
“Country Court in Bloom has been a great way for our residents to keep busy, especially during the lockdown when we couldn’t have visitors.” Explained Activity and Wellbeing Coordinator Steffi Marsh. “Not a day has gone by when we haven’t been outside doing jobs and enjoying activities in the garden. We’ve loved planting seeds, growing our own vegetables and preparing them for the kitchen. Our residents have been delighted that they can continue to enjoy their passions and interests here at The Grange”.
For more information about life at The Grange Care Home, contact Customer Relations Advisor Priya Virdee on 01799 243 005 or email Priya.virdee@countrycourtcare.com.
