Feathered friends are a flyaway success with care home residents

Home news

Aug 30, 2016

Residents from Littlehampton care home, Darlington Court, were invited to the Rustington Residents Association when a flock of feathered friends dropped in for a fun event. 

Local falconry organisation, Hawking About, hosted the event as part of a sensory activity which was enjoyed by all residents at Darlington Court, but particularly helped to boost the emotional and physical wellbeing of people living with dementia in the home. 

Darlington Court residents were given the rare opportunity to get up close to many different breeds of birds including a kestrel, a Harris hawk, an African spotted grey, a barn owl and a European eagle owl. In addition to watching an indoor display, residents were also given an insight into the different species, with a talk from a local bird of prey expert. 

Fiona Wiederkehr, home manager at Darlington Court, said: “Many residents here have an active interest in wildlife and nature and, following the success of our involvement in the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch earlier this year, we were delighted to have the opportunity to go along and meet and learn about some fascinating, feathered friends. 

“You could see from the residents’ reactions just how engaged and fascinated they were by the chance to get so close to the impressive birds and it was fantastic to see the smiles on everyone’s faces.  The session also fitted really well with our whole ‘activity based care’ approach here at Darlington Court, which is all about ensuring residents can continue enjoying the hobbies they have always loved as well as giving people the opportunity to discover new talents and interests.”