Salisbury care home invites community to honour VE Day

A Salisbury care home is opening its doors to the community to mark 80 years since the end of World War II. 

On Thursday 8^th May, from 2:30pm–4pm, Care UK’s Salisbury Manor, on Shapland Close, is welcoming local people to honour the 80^th anniversary of VE Day with its very own 1940s-themed street party.

VE Day was celebrated on 8^th May 1945, after Prime Minister Winston Churchill made an announcement on the radio that the war in Europe had come to an end. This emotional news sparked celebrations across the country, with many taking to the streets for spontaneous parties.

At Salisbury Manor, the team has been hard at work organising their own special commemorative event, which will see residents and guests enjoy an afternoon of delicious food and entertainment from local singer Charlie Greenwood, who will be performing wartime songs – a prime opportunity for a singalong and a spot of dancing. 

The Mayor of Salisbury and children from Chafyn Grove will be joining residents for the celebrations, alongside their family members and other people from the local community, as they gather to embrace the spirit of the 1940s.

The home will be decorated with bunting, flags, sandbags and nostalgic wartime pictures, to provide opportunities for reminiscence, while the Royal British Legion will also be on hand to share information.  

Resident Tony Child, said: “As Winston Churchill said on his VE Day speech, ‘This is your Victory’, Lest we forget.”

Skye Williams, General Manager at Salisbury Manor, said: “We love building and maintaining intergenerational relationships here at Salisbury Manor, so we’re pleased to be opening our doors to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day for a special day of sharing memories with children from Chafyn Grove and the wider community. 

“Intergenerational relationships can be incredibly beneficial to both younger and older people alike and can help provide residents with a stronger sense of wellbeing and purpose. It will be inspiring to see the residents sharing their experiences and memories from wartime Britain – and hopefully a fascinating history lesson for the children, too.

“We’re looking forward to marking such a significant milestone on what we anticipate will be a nostalgic and enriching day at our VE Day street party!”

Salisbury Manor has officially received ‘Veteran Friendly’ status for meeting eight standards laid out in the Veteran Friendly Framework (VFF), a collaboration between Armed Forces charities Royal Star & Garter and Royal British Legion, and NHS Veterans’ Covenant Healthcare Alliance (VCHA), with funding support from the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust.

The VFF framework involves noting Armed Forces status within residents’ care plans, addressing social isolation, and signposting residents and their relatives to relevant support services, such as their local Royal British Legion branch and other charities that provide support for veterans and their partners.

Designed to enable residents to live active and fulfilled lives, while also promoting independence, Salisbury Manor incorporates plenty of space for leisure activities and hobbies. The home provides full-time residential, nursing and dementia care, as well as short-term respite care. The layout of the building is configured into a series of individual suites, each having a dedicated lounge/dining room to help facilitate the creation of close-knit communities, and the home has its own cinema, hair and beauty salon and café.