For a PDF version of this newsletter click here
Recent events:
Another month has gone and we are now in the summer months.
We are hoping for some weather to reflect that over the next weeks so that we can make the most out of our garden.
We have had a very busy month with lots going on.
We attended the Summer Tea Dance at HG Wells on 4th June. Several residents went there and they had a wonderful time. We still cannot book the Surrey Heath transport which was a shame as more residents can go in the mini bus than a car or taxi.
We had planned on attending the annual Parish Garden Party at the Church but unfortunately the weather wasn’t warm enough for our elderly residents.
We have enjoyed the weekly visits from the School children who are such a delight to have here. We will miss them when it is the summer holidays.
We had our Family BBQ afternoon on 21st June. Before the BBQ we had a gentleman called ‘Geordie’ who brought three of his birds of prey to Elmfield. He brought different owls for this visit and told us al about each of them, the charity work he does rescuing birds and showed us some of their tricks. One owl was over 60 years old whilst another was only 10 weeks old. We had a very interesting afternoon and learnt lots of new facts.
We then enjoyed a scrumptious BBQ cooked by Colin.
Thank- you to all the relatives and friends of Elmfield who attended and to the staff on duty.
On Monday 24th June we had Jasmine from G-Fitness at Elmfield doing a variety of fun, chair- based exercises with our residents. Some people were very engaged in this and thoroughly enjoyed this activity.
On Thursday 27th June we held a Cupcake Day to raise money for Alzheimer’s Society. We had a stall outside the home, one at Bisley school and had fun and games within the home.
We managed to raise a total of £72.75!
We have continued with pub lunches although have missed one due to our BBQ being on the same day.
We have been enjoying the ‘Teas on the Rec’ outings on a Thursday afternoon. The weather has been good almost every week so far so we have been able to go across to the Rec and have had a great time. Hopefully we will have many more afternoons of sunshine to enjoy this weekly event.
On Sunday 30th June, it was the annual Strawberry Fayre on the Village Green. We had additional staff on duty to take a group of residents to the fayre to enjoy the Brass Band, the dancers, school choir and the many stalls. Of course, we had to sample the strawberries and cream. The weather was glorious!
Our lovely PAT dog has continued to visit us regularly to the delight of our residents who love to see and pet Bailey.
Upcoming events:
After the success of our recent BBQ we are hoping to hold another one in July (weather permitting) It will be penciled in for Friday 26th July at 1pm. It will be nice to make the most out of our garden area and the weather when we can.
We will also be hoping to have some picnics on the green if the weather stays nice over the rest of the summer.
We are hoping to arrange weekly trips to the local garden centers for coffee and cake. This will take place in small groups with staff escorts.
Bisley Church were unable to do their June service as the only date which the pastoral assistants were available clashed with another activity commitment we had. However, we look forward to the July service on Tuesday 16th July at 2:30pm.
Staff and resident changes:
We have welcomed Jasmine Turner to our bank staff team who has been helping out with the housekeeping role in recent weeks.
Patricia Willis who came for respite care in May, has now moved into Elmfield permanently and is residing in room 4.
We also welcomed Jean Wood into room 6 who is currently here for respite care.
Birthdays:
On 12th June we celebrated Freda Tobutt’s 94th birthday. Freda spent the afternoon with her two daughters. We had an afternoon tea party in the lounge with residents and staff who care for Freda.
Other news:
We had our annual Health and Safety inspection which went very well.
Every Tuesday afternoon we have a lovely young lady called Emily who spends an hour or so after college volunteering at Elmfield. She is applying for medical school and requires some experience in a Health and Social Care setting. She is excellent with the residents and we value Emily giving up her time to spend with us.
Niccii will be on much needed annual leave for two weeks at the beginning of July.
Employee of the month:
Employee of the month for June has been awarded to Joanna Palkowska for doing an excellent job covering the cook’s role despite still being in her induction period of employment. She was very organised under pressure and had to make changes to personal life to accommodate revised working hours. Well done!
We also had our Quarterly staff prizes awarded to staff who were nominated by their colleagues for differing reasons.
The previous winners were exempt form nominations on this occasion.
There were several nominees which was nice to see as it shows the depth of high -quality workers we have within the home.
Three different staff received the highest number of nominations which were:
Dawn Dorey: for often staying late to prepare and serve tea time meals if the care staff are busy. Dawn was observed to often attend to the needs of the residents when care staff are pre- occupied to ensure their continued safety and well- being. Dawn was reported to be a great team worker and very rarely complains.
Sarah Daley: for being organised, for being a good team worker and having improved significantly in her time at Elmfield. Sarah is knowledgable of the routine and expectations and works hard to ensure her colleagues follow this. Sarah rarely complains and gets on with what is expected even under pressure.
Aga Rahaman: Aga is always willing to help others and will do so regardless of job roles. Aga helps the care staff when needed, will assist the housekeepers with their role and at mealtimes which can be busy. Aga is a great team player and is always eager to help others.
Other staff nominated were Lauren, Natalie, Jess, Lucy, Dannii and Joanna who all received equal numbers of nominations.
One name was picked at random out of a box and this was Natalie.
Natalie had been nominated for her reliability, consistently working a lot of hours week in, week out and for learning the carer’s job role well in a short period of time.
Well done to all of you, keep it up!