Wilton Primary School pupils meet care home residents at Wilton Place

Staff and residents at Barchester’s Wilton Place care home were delighted to welcome eight, nine and 10-year-olds from Wilton Primary to the home on Thursday morning, November 16.

The children visit residents every other week and enjoy intergenerational chats and this week's topic turned to Christmas.

Resident Joyce Sims showcased her Christmas crafts to the children while they enjoyed cake, biscuits and squash. She said: “I have always spent time making things. I came up with the idea for the Teasel family myself.

Joyce showed the children her Teasel family. (Image: Barchester Health Care)

"For each character, I removed the stalk and the prickles at the base of the head of the teasel to create a perfectly shaped head and a little snout. I created personality by spacing the eyes either closer together or further apart.

"I think you’ll agree each character has their own expression. During Christmastime at home, I would display the whole family on the mantelpiece.”

Joyce also showed her Dickensian Mice Family and her knitted Nativity. Joyce’s crafts will be on display at Wilton Place over the Festive season.

Another resident, Andrew East, captured the children’s undivided attention when he told them of his rock climbing escapades. He shared photographs of himself and his brother rock climbing.

In his younger days, Andrew was a climbing instructor and was very happy to answer the children’s questions.

Andrew shared his stories of being a climbing instructor. (Image: Barchester Health Care)

The children told us of all the presents they would like to receive this year and when asked what their favourite part of Christmas was, the unanimous answer was ‘putting out the mince pies and carrots for Father Christmas and his reindeer’.

They finished the visit off with a rendition of ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’.

General manager, Antoinette Roberts said: “Christmas is such a magical time and our residents love nothing better than to spend time chatting to the children in the run-up to the festive period.

"We are grateful for their visits, they are so beautifully behaved and are so engaging with their curiosity and openness."

Our residents will be creating decorations for the home and then we all help to put them up together.  It is so special to be able to share these rituals and we all love to see the home decorated and filled with twinkly lights. We are particularly lucky to have Joyce’s decorations as part of our displays.”