W
L
HELEN NILE
MEET HELEN NILE OF ABBEYFIELD
HOYLAKE & WEST KIRBY SOCIETY
Providing activities for the elderly is something that is close to
Helen Nile's heart. (Pictured above). After taking a complete
turn in career direction six and a half years ago she became
the Activities Co-ordinator at Abbeyfield, Hoylake and West
Kirby Society.
"No two days are ever the same" said Helen. "My previous
background was in the legal profession for fifteen years and I
wanted a complete change of direction which is certainly what
I have had!"
Helen splits her time between Lear House in West Kirby and
the sheltered house in Hoyle Road in Hoylake with the majority
of her time spent at Lear House. She provides a full and varied
programme of activities and entertainment which she believes is
very important to the residents.
"It helps to keep them active, both physically and mentally, and
also promotes interaction between them. I also believe that
maintaining links with the outside world is important and I
try to keep them in touch with people of all ages. Our weekly
programme of activities includes things like music, bingo,
singing, chair exercises, knitting, darts, quizzes and hoopla. We
have regular music therapy sessions and also visits from singers
and choirs – music is an activity which everyone can get involved
in."
The organisation celebrates different occasions during the year
such as Burns, St Patrick’s Day, St David’s Day and any Royal
occasions. They hold a carol service every December at Lear
House and a big event each summer to get everyone together.
Helen says she's always on the look out for ideas to enhance and
improve the lives of all her residents.
20 wirrallife.com
"Another of our popular regular visitors is a Pets As Therapy dog
called Bosun or Bo for short. He loves coming to see everyone
and his visits bring back memories of animals the residents had
in the past."
"We also have close links with a local pre-school and a nursery
and our residents enjoy weekly visits from the children –
anything from one to four years old! They join us for music
therapy sessions, we do craft activities together and our residents
read stories to the younger children."
"We also make regular use of the reminiscence boxes provided the
local library service. These are a wonderful resource and contain
a selection of items focused on either an era or an activity. They
are great for sparking memories and conversations and having a
physical prompt is good to help people think back to something
they used to do or something they have experienced in the past."
Helen is looking forward to spending more time in the garden in
the spring and summer as well.
"A lift has recently been installed which will take our residents
from the main house to the garden area at the rear of Lear House.
We are currently raising funds to create a new sensory garden
which will be fully accessible and safe for our residents and also
have features they can enjoy such as raised flower beds. We are
always moving forward, always looking for new and interesting
activities. I enjoy it so much!"
To find out more about Abbeyfield Care Home, visit
www. abbeyfieldwestkirby.co.uk or
https://www.facebook.com/abbeyfieldhoylake.