Hop to it! – Mobberley care home residents revisit favourite hobbies

Residents at a care home in Mobberley have been revisiting their favourite hobbies and shared their skills with the younger generation. 

Residents at Care UK’s Cranford Grange, on Hall Lane, have been stepping back in time to enjoy traditional games from their childhood, including skipping and hopscotch, as part of a nationwide initiative – Long Lost Hobbies. 

The ‘Long Lost Hobbies’ initiative sees residents in Care UK homes across the country share their favourite hobbies and try new pastimes with younger generations after a national survey found 77% of adults feel technology is the cause of traditional skills being lost, including flower arranging, knitting and woodworking.

To ensure the hobbies of older generations are not forgotten, residents at Cranford Grange have been getting to the knitty-gritty and unwinding what makes their favourite pastime so enjoyable. 

As part of the initiative, residents reflected on games they enjoyed during their childhood, with many highlighting hopscotch, marbles, and skipping as their favourite games to play at school. Keen for the residents to revisit their favourite pastimes, the team at Cranford Grange recreated the games in the home’s garden, with residents and team members competing against one another. Team members also created a tree swing for residents to enjoy in the warmer months – with many residents saying how much this reminded them of their childhood. 

Lisa Burrows, Home Manager at Cranford Grange, said: “We had a fantastic time recreating traditional playground games here at Cranford Grange. 

“For those living with dementia, revisiting a past hobby, such as hopscotch or skipping, can help bring back memories, as well as providing an enjoyable way to connect with others through a familiar activity that once brought joy. These positive feelings gained from revisiting fond memories can help decrease stress, reduce agitation, and provide a feeling of success and confidence. 

“Residents and team members at Cranford Grange have loved revisiting their favourite hobbies and discovering new ways to pass the time from younger generations. It has been wonderful to hear residents talking about how they first discovered their favourite hobby and the fond memories this interest created.”  

For top tips on how you and your loved ones can revisit forgotten pastimes or discover new ones, please visit: careuk.com/long-lost-hobbies.

Designed to enable residents to live active and fulfilled lives, while also promoting independence, Cranford Grange, which remains open to potential residents, incorporates space for hobby and leisure activities. The building has been configured into a series of neighbourhoods to help facilitate the creation of close-knit communities and encourage social interaction among the residents.

For more information on Cranford Grange, please call Director of Community Relations, Dawn Williams on 01565817553, email Dawn.Williams@careuk.com or visit careuk.com/cranford-grange.