Leatherhead care home residents’ team up with community for a DIY project

A care home in Leatherhead has teamed up with younger generations and joined a nationwide campaign ahead of International Repair Day.

Residents at Liberham Lodge on Rectory Lane, have been rolling up their sleeves and getting stuck into some hands-on DIY all in the name of sharing skills with the next generation of the community.

As part of Care UK’s ‘Fixer Uppers’ programme, residents teamed up with the younger generation in the community to revive traditional repair skills, such as fixing furniture, mending clothes, and tackling small maintenance jobs. The initiative, launched in the run-up to International Repair Day, aims to celebrate the invaluable knowledge older generations can pass on while promoting sustainability.

At Liberham Lodge, residents and visitors bound together to create gifts for The Royal Surrey Children’s Ward. Needles in their hands, they weaved together knitted toys such as pompoms.  

Residents Mary and Margaret have knitted since their childhood, and so took charge, sharing their tips and tricks with the visitors and fellow residents. Brian quickly picked it up despite never having knitted before. 

Brian, said: “I have never knitted before, but I loved being able to learn a new skill in my 80s and making toys for such a good cause!” 

All the residents were delighted to be able to collaborate with the community, rekindle old skills and learn new ones. 

Jagpal Singh, General Manager at Liberham Lodge, said: “Residents have honed their DIY skills over a lifetime, and the Fixer Uppers’ project has been a fantastic way for them to connect with the community and share practical knowledge in a meaningful way.

“It was wonderful to see everyone fully engaged and residents swapping stories, learning from one another, and genuinely enjoying the process.

“We’d like to thank the community for coming to the home to knit with us. It was a brilliant afternoon, and we look forward to many more visits in the future.”

Designed to enable residents to live active and fulfilled lives, while also promoting independence, Liberham Lodge incorporates space for hobby and leisure activities. The layout of the home has been configured to help facilitate the creation of close-knit communities and encourage social interaction among the residents.