Berkshire care homes team up with communities for matchday magic

Football fever has officially kicked off at two care homes in Berkshire as residents welcomed their local communities for afternoons of sporting fun. 

Care UK’s Newbury Grove, in Newbury, and Parsons Grange, in Shinfield, took part in a range of football-themed activities to join the nation in celebrating the huge summer of sport. 

At Newbury Grove, residents and children from Fir Tree School got creative with paint and pens to decorate their own football shirts, with winner Alex designing the winning shirt.

Guests also let their competitive juices flow by participating in a keepie uppie competition.  

Adarsh Kurian, Home Manager at Newbury Grove, said: “We had a ball opening our doors to the children of Newbury to take part in designing their own football shirts and some friendly competition! 

“For many residents, football is more than just the beautiful game – it represents a lifetime of treasured memories and traditions. This event allowed us to honour these special moments and bring them to life once again.”

Over at Parsons Grange, team members entered a football tournament at Great Hollands recreation ground to play against neighbouring care homes.

Residents took on roles as cheerleaders and managers and, although the ‘Parsons Rovers’ didn’t come home in first place, their team kit turned heads in the crowd!

Resident Valerie Heaton, 84, said “We enjoyed the day, it was full of fun and thrill. It was a great idea to have competition with other homes and residents. It was a fantastic venture and we thoroughly enjoyed it.”

Rozina Ali, Home Manager at Parsons Grange, said: “It was a wonderful opportunity to bring everyone together for a day of matchday magic. It was truly heartwarming to watch residents reminisce and share their favourite football stories from years gone by.

“We’d like to extend a huge thank you to everyone for joining us and making this a day to remember. With spirits high, everyone involved proved they still have plenty of goal-den skills to show off!”

The events were part of Care UK’s ‘Goal-den Moments' initiative, which aims to bring generations together and encourage residents to reminisce about cherished football memories with the local community while sharing new experiences.

For more information about Goal-den Moments, please visit careuk.com/goal-den-moments.

Newbury Grove and Parsons Grange have been designed to deliver the very best standards of care and enable residents to lead active and fulfilling lives. The homes provide full-time residential and dementia care, as well as short-term respite care.