Orchard Care Homes’ partners with Oomph! on activities programme

Orchard Care Homes has partnered with Oomph! on an activities programme across its 40 homes.

Taking a whole-home approach to activities, staff have undergone training on Oomph!’s Wellbeing Leadership programme, designed to give them the skills to create and sustain a person-centred plan of varied exercise and activities for residents to enjoy.

Tom Brookes, CEO at Orchard Care Homes, said: “My commitment to the residents across all of our care homes is to have hope and optimism for their future and to enjoy life to the full. Activities in our homes are tailored to the wishes, needs, life stories and interests of our residents and our partnership with Oomph! enables us to provide activities that create a genuine connection between the past and present.”

The programme includes a series of skills workshops, including Oomph! Nature, which has been designed in partnership with Kew Gardens. Homes have already completed a range of skills workshops, including those focused on music therapy and on mindfulness and relaxation to encourage residents to try something new – or rediscover lost passions.

Additionally, engaging days out to a range of destinations will be run, with trip experiences created through partnerships with the National Trust and HQ Theatres. The trips aim to connect residents to the people and places that matter most to them and have previously included unexpected locations, such as gin distilleries, monkey sanctuaries and racing tracks.

Ben Allen, Oomph!’s CEO and Founder, said: “Oomph! is delighted to be working with the Orchard Care Homes’ team. It’s a privilege to be an integral part of the organisation’s activity provision. We share the same values and drive for innovation and are delighted to be adding additional fun and engagement to resident activities!”