Robin Hood House |
Little Gaddesdon
About our home
Description of home
Robin Hood House is a small friendly residential care home offering long term care to people living with dementia who are aged 65 years and over. We are also able to offer short-term respite breaks. The home has 20 single bedrooms and 1 double. It has 2 large lounges, a dining room and a lounge/diner with patio doors, which open onto a secure paved patio area with access to a large lawn area.
Location
Robin Hood House is situated in the village of Little Gaddesden, surrounded by the beautiful countryside of the National Trust Estate of Ashridge.
The environment
Robin Hood House is a beautiful old building set within peaceful, scenic grounds.
The front garden, which is readily accessible via patio doors in the main dining room, has been made secure with an attractive picket fence, in keeping with the surrounding area, to provide a safe and attractive outside area for service users to enjoy.
The House is set on 3 floors. Each floor is accessible by either a lift or stairs. Link doors to the stairs have been fitted with digital key pads to eliminate the risk of slips, trips or falls on the stairwells. Codes for the key pads are made available to service users should they require them.
There is an assisted bathroom on each floor. Robin Hood House does not have en-suite facilities, but each room does have a wash basin/ vanity area, personal commodes and are within close proximity to a toilet.
The first thing you notice the moment you step into Robin Hood House is everyone’s positive and friendly approach. Staff and service users alike are always given a warm welcome and we work hard to ensure there is a happy and family atmosphere to the place. To add to this homely feel, Robin Hood House is decorated and furnished in a style fitting the age of our service users, to avoid the home appearing to be a hospital or hotel, this ensures a ‘homely feel’. If they wish, services users can have their room decorated and personalised to their own liking. They are also encouraged to bring items such as photos, treasured ornaments and favourite pieces of furniture.
Activities for residents
There is a wide programme of organised activities at Robin Hood House, overseen by our full time activity organiser. These are designed to cover a range of interests, from sing-along’s and arts and crafts to cooking and reminiscence sessions. Singers and musicians come to entertain. For those who are able, we take small groups in our own minibus on shopping trips and to the local pub for lunch. We also organise summer outings to the seaside. We also encourage ‘meaningful activities’ that our service users particularly enjoy, for example, ironing, peeling vegetables, hanging out the laundry, to name but a few.
Wholesome tasty food
Every day there is a choice of menu, we serve meals that are both tasty and nutritious, using local produce where possible. Menus are changed on a regular basis and our cook likes to meet with residents to discuss their personal preferences. We cater for individual dietary requirements and, for those special occasions. We also take our service users out for lunch and enjoy fish and chips from a local fish and chip shop, the service users especially enjoy this.
Friends and family
We always extend a warm welcome to friends and relatives into the life of Robin Hood House, we operate an ‘open house’ visiting policy and offer refreshments to all visitors. We invite friends and relatives to accompany their loved ones on outings and to events held at the home. Relatives often tell us that they feel entirely at ease when they come here, as if they were visiting their loved one in their own home.
Garden setting
When the weather is fine, service users and their families can relax outdoors in our spacious and secure grounds, complete with garden seating and patio area. In the summer, we organise a garden fete, which relatives and friends are invited to.
Professional services
We have regular visits from District Nurses, hairdresser, chiropodist, opticians and mobile library, and we can arrange appointments with a dentist, a GP and physiotherapist, etc as required. To ensure service users spiritual needs are met, we hold monthly church services within the home and can arrange services or visits of other denominations as needed.
Community spirit
Ensuring our service users remain involved in the life of the community helps keep them independent and active. Because of this, we ensure we maintain ties with the local church, local residents and with outside entertainment groups, enabling our residents to spend time interacting with a variety of different people.