Last Updated on June 26, 2023
Care Home Open Week begins today and will run from 26th June – 2nd July 2023 and is hosted by Championing Social Care.
Care providers across the country will be opening their doors for people in the community to find out more about their services and social care as a whole. The annual event celebrates the valuable contributions of care homes and promotes transparency, understanding, and engagement within the care sector.
Professor Martin Green OBE, Chief Executive of Care England, said, ‘Care Home Open Week represents an opportunity for care services to champion their work by opening their doors to local communities across England and demonstrate the fantastic work they do. This week is an opportunity to enable local communities to understand the important role social care plays in supporting residents and families. The sector is brimming with innovation, energy and commitment. Now is our chance to celebrate everything that makes our sector so special and show the public what we have to offer.’
The National Activity Providers Association (NAPA) and the Care Workers Charity (CWC) are excited to announce their partnership for a special fundraising campaign during Care Home Open Week 2023.
NAPA, is dedicated to promoting meaningful and engaging activities and believes that activities play a crucial role in enhancing the wellbeing and quality of life of residents in care homes. By partnering with CWC, a charity committed to providing financial support to care workers during times of need, this partnership aims to offer assistance to those who tirelessly work to bring joy and enrichment to the lives of individuals living and working in care homes.
Karolina Gerlich, Chief Executive at The Care Workers’ Charity, said, ‘Care Home Open Week is a wonderful chance for care homes to open their doors and have some fun with their teams, those who draw on care, relatives and loved ones. We hope that everyone has a wonderful week, and we are so grateful for all/any donations to our fundraiser. Every £100 raised goes towards supporting care workers’ wellbeing when they need it most. Your donations make a huge difference in helping the CWC be there for care workers in times of crisis. The CWC has awarded over £5m in grants and mental health support to over 9000 care workers since 2020.’
UK not-for-profit care group Greensleeves Care has launched Keys To Open Minds this week to conincde with Care Home Open Week – a campaign to de-bunk common myths about life in care homes. The campaign comes after reflecting on the perceived divide between public understanding and the reality of care home life.
Teams and residents from Greensleeves Care’s homes all over the country are going out into their communities, placing keys in landmarks and public areas and sharing them with businesses. The sustainably-produced wooden keys carry tags with messages that spell out common myths around care homes, and challenge them with facts. The keys are designed to create intrigue and to encourage people of all ages to engage with the reality of care home life, join the conversation on social media at #KeysToOpenMinds or visit their local Greensleeves Care home to see first-hand.
Shona King, Director of Business Development at Greensleeves Care, said, ‘Long-standing myths are damaging not only for the sector, but for the thousands of families looking for specialist, 24-hour care for their loved ones. They want to feel confident and empowered in the choices they make. At Greensleeves Care, we believe that feeling empowered starts with having a myth-free, more accurate idea of what it is like to join a care home community.’
On Wednesday 28th June, in support of this year’s Care Home Open Week, charity Friends of the Elderly’s residential care home Orford House in Coulsdon, Surrey is opening its doors to host an interactive, inclusive and fun Open Day. The Open Day will give visitors, prospective residents, respite guests and their families the opportunity to see and experience, first-hand, the wide range of activities and great facilities on offer at the care home.
Michelle Kennett, the Registered Manager at Orford House, said, ‘We have a fun-filled and informative day planned which will give visitors, prospective residents, respite guests and their families the chance to see what we have to offer; everything from tours of our great facilities to joining our residents in a selection of our inclusive and person-centred activities.
‘In addition to tours of Orford House and its facilities, visitors to the Open Day can watch – or take part in – a range of activities with the residents including Crazy Golf and Darts. For those who would prefer a less active day, we have complimentary refreshments available and Mary’s Ice Cream Parlour will be open for anyone wanting to indulge in a delicious, cooling ice cream.’
Hartford Care is celebrating the week with a theme of ‘Around the World in Seven Days’ and its Burnham Lodge care home in Slough is launching its very own ‘cruise’ to mark the occasion!
On Tuesday 27th June between 12noon and 2pm, people are invited to join the home for an American-style barbecue as they visit the USA. Across the week, the cruise will also be docking in India, Italy, China, England, Spain and Mexico, and residents will have the opportunity to celebrate the different cultures by tasting their cuisines, dressing up in traditional outfits and taking part in fun activities.
Daniella Johnson, Home Manager at Burnham Lodge, said, ‘We have many exciting things planned across the week for our residents, including Indian inspired arts and crafts, English garden games, Italian pizza making and creating Spanish fans. We’re particularly looking forward to inviting the local community to join us for the American barbeque on 27th June – please call us to book your place.’
Visit the Championing Social Care website to download resources and for more information about getting involved this week.
In other news, The King's Birthday Honours List 2023 has recognised the extraordinary contributions and service of individuals working in adult social care.