Care home residents boldly go - and have fun in space
Hampshire and Dorset Colten Care homes transformed themselves into universes far, far away for International Space Day
Ed Note: Maybe inspired by our Eurovision entry as well (?!), intrepid Colten Care home residents took the chance to boldly go - and have fun! On 12 April International Space Day.
Care home residents’ space odyssey is out of this world
Intrepid care home residents took the chance to boldly go and have fun on International Space Day.
Homes run by Colten Care in Hampshire and Dorset transformed themselves into universes far, far away.
At Court Lodge in Lymington, some clever redecorating turned the lounge into a walk-in space shuttle complete with night sky and lunar background.
One small step inside gave each exploring resident the chance to admire the moon and stars through a galaxy projector.
They also enjoyed launching toy rockets for a friendly space race, meeting a visiting astronaut and sampling homemade space cakes.
At The Aldbury, Colten’s dedicated dementia care home in Poole, residents painted representations of the planets on cards which were used to model the solar system.
An alien visitor made an appearance as residents had their pictures taken against a spaceship backdrop, abducting the home’s gardener Brett Gill in the process.
Companionship Team Leader Sue Miles said: “It was a very creative day - hands-on, informative and lots of fun for everyone.”
Resident Joyce Holden said: “It really was out of this world.” 
Main image: Brett Gill, gardener at The Aldbury, is abducted by an alien. With him, in astronaut helmet, is David Austin, the Poole home’s Senior Administrator
Top story image: Enjoying space cakes at Court Lodge in Lymington are resident Aileen Tulloch and Companionship Team Leader Julia Puia
Below image: Court Lodge resident Marion Shearer receives a visit from an astronaut
Find out more about Colten Care
With more than 30 years’ experience, Colten Care is an award-winning family-owned care home company. It owns 21 quality care homes covering Hampshire, Dorset, Wiltshire and West Sussex and offers a range of services spanning residential, nursing and dementia care. Seven of the homes are rated Outstanding by the Care Quality Commission and Colten Care earns a consistently high group score, currently 9.9 out of ten, on the public review site Carehome.co.uk. Based on such third-party advocacy, Colten Care is the UK’s highest-rated care home group for its size.
All Colten Care homes are registered for nursing care
All homes are registered for nursing care and four are dedicated dementia care homes with Admiral Nurse support. Unlike people who receive domiciliary care in their own homes, residents in Colten Care homes have the reassurance that 24/7 nurse-led care with companionship is on hand whenever they need it. Residents live in the highest standards of accommodation, enjoying homecooked food, fresh laundry and housekeeping services, and safe, peaceful and inspiring gardens. Colten Care also supports residents to raise thousands of pounds for charities of their choice every year. Founded more than 35 years ago, Colten Care has won multiple awards for the quality of its care and remains an independent, family-owned care home provider. For more information, visit www.ColtenCare.co.uk
Three Colten Care homes in the New Forest are rated outstanding
Colten Care operates six residential nursing and care homes in the New Forest, three of which are rated Outstanding and three of which are in Lymington: Belmore Lodge, Court Lodge and dementia specialist Linden House (Outstanding). There are also homes in Brockenhurst -Woodpeckers (Outstanding), New Milton - Kingfishers (Outstanding) and Mudeford - Avon Reach. Click on the links to find out more about each home...
