Welcome to Applegarthās inaugural
newsletter. We have an exciting 2024
ahead of us!
Since becoming the Registered Manager
last September, weāve introduced lots of
changes in the home, and Iām delighted to
share these with you. Weāre also keen to
let you know plans afoot.
I would like to take the opportunity to
thank the outstanding staff, residents,
friends, and family for their support and
in helping to make Applegarth the special
home it is.
Whatās new? We continue with new
refurbishment projects including īooring,
decoration, and two new wet rooms.
We are now 90% paper free! Itās been
a liberating exercise and enabled us to
further professionalise our processes with
greater efīciency.
We are also
integrating into
the local community. We have
some fabulous volunteers who are gaining
experience with our wonderful residents,
and we are gaining valuable input from
them. In 2024 we are reaching out to day
centres to visit and in return welcome
others to join in activities at Applegarth.
We also are planning excursions out of the
home throughout the year and will keep
you posted.
Applegarth is growing in recognition. Our
carehome.co.uk rating is now 9.6! With
your support and recommendation, we are
aiming for an award in 2024. Please see
the back page for more information.
I hope you enjoy the
Newsletter. We are always
open to suggestion
and feedbackā¦ we
welcome your
comments.
Best wishes
Mike Fuller
Registered Manager
Happy
New Year!
January Newsletter
George is a keep īt
enthusiast, an avid reader
and chats with everyone.
George celebrated his
birthday with a wonderful
family meal out and
then back to enjoy a
homemade birthday cake at
Applegarth, for everyone to
sing his birthday song.
Mary is our gracious
Residentās Ambassador,
always willing to help and
always part of the party,
whether its ball games,
crafts, group discussions.
Maryās birthday was
celebrated with her
close family, Mary, John
and Brian, and of course
Applegarth staff.
Maureen lights up the
room with her eyes and and
beautiful smile. She enjoys
art, music and īlms, in
particular the classics.
Maureen celebrated her
birthday amongst her
Applegarth family, with
lots of family cards and
beautiful īowers from
her son.
George Baxter
01/11/1925
Mary King
2/12/1924
Maureen Watson
05/01/1940
2
98 years young!
99 years young!
84 years young!
3
Kathleen was a music teacher.
She still plays the piano and
enjoys listening to music.
Kathleen is already part of
the family and enjoys chatting
with the other residents, plus
having 1-1 time.
Jan was an actress ā you may
remember her as a barmaid in
Coronation Streetā¦and more.
Jan enjoys dancing, loves an
audience and group discussions.
Jan is very independent
and happily settled in to the
Applegarth family.
Kathleen Thomson
November 2023
Janet Wild
November 2023
WELCOME TO
Applegarth!
4
January 2024 is the launch of our
āResident of the Dayā
MEET
Poonam Pithwa!
W
hen a resident joins the
Applegarth family a thorough
understanding is always gained about
their history. This will include details
about their current and previous health
issues, medication, nutritional and
hydration needs.
At Applegarth we are also keen to
establish all residentās likes and dislikes
so that they feel welcome, comfortable,
and relaxed. However, these preferences
are subject to change ā after all, it is oneās
prerogative to change oneās mind!
And thatās what Resident of the Day is all
about. We capture all the little changes
and nuances that are meaningful for
our resident, on an ongoing basis. It
may mean the food they like or the way
it is served, the toiletries they prefer,
new favourite hot or cold drink, and
whatever else is important to them. On
their special āResident of the Dayā
we make note of their wishes and
implement any changes.
Resident of the Day is also a
personal pamper day! Not
only does the resident get
their favourite off-menu meal
cooked especially for them,
but they also get to choose
what activities theyād like to
do; a favourite game, quiz, hair styling,
hand massage, group chat, whatever the
chosen desire.
One to one time with a carer will cover
all medical and clinical observations:
weight tracking in line with MUST,
oxygen levels and blood pressure. (It
goes without saying, in the event of
anything untoward, monitor and tracking
will be at timescales speciīed by health
professionals)
Every āResident of the Dayā will be a īxed
date in every month so that everyone is
aware, and family and friends can be part
of the special day ā to make it even more
special!
Every month, each resident will have a special
day devoted to them!
January 2024 is the launch of our
āResident of the Dayā
MEET
Poonam Pithwa!
W
e are thrilled to have Poonam
join the team as Activities
Manager. Poonam joined Applegarth
in September 2023 and what a
difference sheās made already!
Poonam bursts with enthusiasm and
passion for her role which has helped our
lovely residents gain conīdence in many
aspects including open communication.
Poonam is bubbly, creative and is a
natural talent for the job.
At Applegarth we have activities planned
throughout every day. We also have
themed events, parties, visiting
entertainers and external
outings. We believe varied
stimulation is not only necessary
for improved cognitive function
but also for mental and physical
well-being.
Thatās why we also include
seated yoga, some dancing,
different games, group quizzes
and discussions daily. Itās a busy
itinerary at Applegarth!
There are times when we all
like a bit of quiet and thatās
when Poonam spends valuable
one-to-one time with individual
residents. Poonam also has been
instrumental in encouraging
some residents to go out into the
community, whether itās to an event or to
the local shop or post box. At īrst, some
residents have been apprehensive about
their walking ability but with regular
practise their conīdence is increasingly
growing.
Look out for the monthly activity planner.
An itinerary of activities is mapped out at
the beginning of every month.
Poonam is also training to be a Wellbeing
Manager. A perfect combination for her
valued contributions at Applegarth.
5
Apart from our daily chats,
quizzes, ball games, board games,
guessing games, group reading, group
discussions, īlms, pamper time, external
excursions, you name it, we also have
national days where we discuss different
themes, history and culture.
We are also fortunate to have talented
external entertainers who bring joy to us at
Applegarth.
Some snaps of what weāve been doingā¦.
BUSY, BUSY!
We havenāt been sitting idle!
6
Sing-a-longs
7
G ītness with Ben
Trips out to the
community
Local library
Crafts with Sue
8
What a wonderful opportunity
to walk down memory lane with
Mary King
M
ary has resided
at Applegarth
Care Home since
September 2021 and is a favourite
within the Applegarth family; residents
and staff alike.
Mary has recently celebrated her 99th
birthday! A joy to share it with son, John,
daughter, Mary and son-in-law, Brian.
Mary spent early childhood in Lincoln
with her parents and sister Beryl. Beryl
was the quiet one, Mary the extravert
and gregarious one. Mary still recalls her
address of 27 St Andrews Drive, Lincoln!
In the 1920ās it was a rural area and Mary
was very much a country girl.
Mary disliked school but assures she
was well behaved! Mary was creative
and sporty. Also, a keen needleworker,
her seamstress skills extended into adult
working life.
Maryās mum kept home, and her
father worked on the railway.
This was a great asset
resulting in free travel
for summer holidays
to Mablethorpe which
conjure happy memories.
Mary was 12 when
the family moved to
Cranbourne Rd, Slough. Her
father joined her uncleās business, Crane
Packing on the Slough Trading Estate. A
big change but surrounded by relatives
they settled well. Mary attended
Montem School until she was 14 and
then worked as a machinist at Berleiās,
the underwear manufacturer on Bath
Rd. Mary enjoyed great camaraderie
and local excursions with best friend Ivy
throughout sixteen years of employment.
9
Mary
has recently
celebrated
her 99th
birthday!
10
Mary met her future husband Mervyn on
one of the Windsorian Coach trips. He
plucked up the courage to ask for a date
and the rest is history!
Mary spent the war years at home with
the family. Fond memories of Sunday
walks and picnics at the Brockers
in Windsor; roller skating down the
Farnham Road, tennis on the courts at
Berlei and cinema trips with mum to the
Adelphi. All time favourite? Humphrey
Bogart!
Mary reminisces īre watch duty in
Cranbourne Road. At just 17 years old
she patrolled the street in a tin helmet,
ready to alert of enemy strike.
She recounts the huge street party on
D Day. It was special because everyone
knew each other. Apparently they had
many street parties thereafter!
Mary continued to live in her mumās
home throughout her whole adult and
married life. Mary and Mervyn married
in 1948 and shared the house with mum
until she died in 1969. The 3 bedroomed
house had a large garden; fortunately a
shared passion with Mary in charge of
lawn and īower beds, and Mervyn the
vegetables.
Mary and Mervyn celebrated the birth
of Mary in 1954 and John in 1959. They
were a united family and enjoyed outings
to the Brockers and Burnham Beeches
(the adults frequented the New Inn pub
whilst kids played in the grounds!)
Nan ruled the roost in the house! But
she wasnāt party to family summer
holidays where they spent two weeks
in Cliftonville in a beach chalet. John
explained that dad would huddle
the children into his car at 4.00am
so that they woke to the seaside.
Mary continued to sew and made
dresses for herself and casual
shirts for Mervyn. Also, a keen
Mablethorpe 1932.
Mary at 8 years
Mary and Mum
cook she made īne stews with veg and
dumplings (leftovers from Sunday roast).
Mary continued to keep īt with tennis
and swimming, latterly at the Copthorne
Hotel.
Mary worked for ten years at the Three
Tuns on the Bath Road, īrst in the
kitchen and then as bar lady. She also did
stints as landlady. It was a fun, social job
with the bonus of a free tipple here and
there!
For over 40 years the two Maryās (mum
and daughter) shared an annual holiday
together and it was only at age 92 that
spirited Mary decided sheād prefer to
stay on home turf! Just a few name-
drops, Seychelles, Kenya, Florida, Cyprus
and the Canaries.
Sadly, Mervyn died in 1995 and Mary
remained in Cranbourne Rd until she
started to worry about her knees and
stability and believed sheād have greater
support in a care home. Applegarth
was a choice option for its friendliness
and proximity to John who also lives in
Huntercombe Lane.
Applegarth is now home. Whilst still very
independent, Mary enjoys the company
of others, meals cooked for her, and the
variety of activities within the home.
Favourites are arts and crafts, quizzes
and movement exercises (sheās still
active!)
Best of all is when John visits each
week and Mary (living in Coventry)
calls regularly. The mobile is poised in
readiness!
Thereās time to sit and watch the world go
by... day end is at 9.00pm when Bradleys
Chase has īnished. This year will be
Maryās 100th year ā what a celebration
that will be!
11
Mary, Michael and
Nan, Cranbourne
Road
Happy Moments!
Mervyn and Mary
Pumpkin time!
MEET
Balanced nutrition, nourishment and enjoyment of food is at the
core of our freshly prepared, home cooked meals at Applegarth.
t
h
e
c
h
e
f
s
!
O
ur two fabulous chefs are always
enthusiastic to create meals
based around our residentās
preferences and dietary requirements
with enticing īavour and variety. Lots
of fresh and healthy herbs are also
used for medicinal gain ā (e.g parsley
provides a lot of Vitamin C!)
Originally from Poland and Ukraine,
both Magda and Inna also add an
exciting inīuence on meals on occasion.
Magdalena Holka
Magda has been at Applegarth for
over 13 years. She started off as Care
Assistant, progressed to Senior Carer
and in recognition of her culinary skills
she took over the kitchen in 2022.
Having achieved NVQ Level 3, Magda
is wonderfully equipped to help care,
assist, and inspire our residents at
mealtimes. She is also currently studying
her Food and Safety Level 3.
āI really enjoy my work. It is satisfying
to see residents asking for 2nd helpings,
even for a recipe! For residents with
dementia, we create pictures of
different meals or show them meals on a
plate to help them choose. We also assist
and talk whilst encouraging residents to
eat, creating an enjoyable experience.ā
Inna Basova
Inna joined Applegarth in 2022 as a
Care Assistant. Her wonderful calm
demeanour makes her a pleasure to
be around and attributes to her caring
skills. However, when Inna helped in
the kitchen her cooking skills were
immediately identiīed! From thereon
in, she has become a permanent chef
alongside Magda.
āCooking for the residents and seeing
them enjoy my food is very rewarding.
I try to adjust recipes to meet our
residentsā tastes and preferences.ā
Food and Hygiene Inspection
rating 2023
12
MEET
Employee of
the Quarter
Every quarter we ask all the staff
to vote for a staff member most
deserving of this accolade.
Many congratulations to Charlotte Tearle
who was the convincing winner; attributed
to her outstanding progression in the
company.
Charlotte has worked at Applegarth since
April 2021 and has been a passionate
member of the care team throughout.
Charlotte started work as a Carer and
now has progressed to Acting Senior
in recognition of her ability to lead
by example and mentor other team
members.
Charlotte is commencing her Level 3 Diploma in Health and Social
Care and is ambitious to train and develop further. Charlotte has completed her
medication course and can now administer all prescribed medications to our
residents. She is also working with other professionals to enable an effective
continuity of care for the residents.
Charlotte has recently been appointed Applegarthās Infection Prevention & Control
(IPC) champion and will work in partnership with local authorities and implement
government legislative changes when applied.
This is certainly a just and well-deserved award!
13
āCharlotte is a dedicated member of the Applegarth family and is
always committed to her role. She is a valuable team member who
is always enthusiastic and positive. Charlotte demonstrates a great
work ethic and strives for the very best for our residentsā.
Mike Fuller, Registered Manager
A
t Applegarth Care Home
we take great pride in the
level of knowledge, care and
service that we deliver. Our culture is
to upskill and develop all of our staff to
provide exemplary care to our residents.
As a requirement of Quality Care
Commission there are regulatory training
modules that need to be passed on a
regular basis, but we like to go one further
than that. Not only do we assist in funding
our staff to individually progress through
the care level qualiīcations, but we also
carry out in-house training and invite
external trainers.
Recently we invited Syma Jabeen of
Caring for Care, to Applegarth for
medication training. We share her
feedbackā¦
āIt was a pleasure to train staff at
Applegarth Care Home in Safe Handling
of Medicines. The team were very
knowledgeable and the synergy between
them was supporting and encouraging.
The team were able to effectively explain
how they demonstrate Safe Handling of
Medicines whilst providing person centred
care within their real work settings.
They showed Empathy, Compassion
and Competence throughout the day
of delivering high quality care services.
Itās fantastic to see providers with such
authentic values providing quality
provision by meeting individual needs.ā
14
We want to be the best, to give you the best
Training Update
OCTOBER 2023
COSHH by Excedo
Fire Training by Tower Fire
NOVEMBER 2023
Infection Control by IPC
DECEMBER 2023
Moving & Handling by Revathy
Jayakumar
Safe Handling of Medication by
Caring for Care
Other training completed:
Other training completed:
Every month we have a Residents Meeting
where we sit with all our residents and discuss
different topics ranging from whatās going on
currently in the home; mealtimes; activities;
events to plan; new ideas; new wishes and
anything else each resident would like to raise
or talk about (openly or privately)
This is the ideal forum to speak! We encourage
friends and family to join also ā your added
input and feedback is always appreciated.
Weāll have the tea and biscuits ready!
Easter party time!
Saturday 23 March
11.30am ā 3.00pm
We welcome you to feast on our Easter
buffet, enjoy our entertainer and hope-
fully win our Easter rafīe!
See you there!
15
DATES FOR THE Diary!
Residentās Meetingsā¦.You say, we listenā¦
Residentās
Meetings
DATES
23 January 2.00 pm
23 February 2.00 pm
22 March 2.00 pm
26 April 2.00 pm
24 May 2.00 pm
25 June 2.00 pm
26 July 2.00 pm
27 August 2.00 pm
27 September 2.00 pm
25 October 2.00 pm
29 November 2.00 pm
27 December 2.00 pm
Rated: Good
Care Home Award for
2024 carehome.co.uk
We have made changes at Applegarth,
but we believe in always moving
forwards and striving to be the very the
best we can for our residents, families,
and staff alike.
And this is where you can help! On
Page 15 we have detailed dates for our
Residents Meetings to which you are
invited and welcome.
You speak, we listen;
you ask, we respond.
We want our residents, families and
friends to tell us how we can make a
difference so that we deliver an overall
service worthy of a 10 rating.
Your home with
everything and moreā¦.
Our current carehome.co.uk rating
is 9.6, an improvement over the last
quarter in 2023 and thank you for the
reviews submitted.
However, we have a goal for 2024 and
this requires a joint venture! We intend
to deliver 5* service in all 11 categories
and hopefully you will feed back 5*
reviews to carehome.co.uk. Our rating
is determined by your reviews, and we
appreciate your contribution.
The link to write a review is as follows:
https://www.carehome.co.uk/
review-submit/29112
Alternatively, you are welcome to
collect a review card from reception
at Applegarth Care Home.
24 Huntercombe Lane
North, Taplow, Slough,
Maidenhead
SL6 0LG
01628 663287
