On Monday 5th December, Residents from HC-One’s
Market Lavington care home took a trip to St Barnabas Church of England Primary School to watch the dress rehearsal of their nativity!
Riaz Ali and Michaela Powell, Wellbeing Coordinators, supported four residents of the care home to the school, one of which, Kathleen Cox, had actually been a teacher there in the 1950s.
“It hasn’t changed much, well, I don’t think so,” smiled Kathleen, looking at the building. “It’s hard to remember! The school was only built in 1949 I think, so I was here in its first days!”
Everyone was met by Head Teacher, Lindsey Clough, and other teaching staff. Hot drinks and snacks were kindly provided to all Residents by the school staff, which was very much appreciated!
The children slowly came in and the nativity commenced with aplomb! Teachers were dotted around the room as this was a dress rehearsal, and so cues were given to the children if they were stumbling over their lines or not knowing where to hit their mark.
A little doll of the baby Jesus was lying in a small cot and the children – mostly from the nursery classes – were so energetic they often accidentally bumped into the cot, causing one of the teachers to exclaim, “Please stop kicking the baby Jesus!”
It was an absolutely wonderful event, and the Residents would like to thank Lindsey Clough once again for involving the care home in the activities of the school. Absolutely everything the children did brought smiles and laughter to the Residents! Oh, and they also loved the mince pies that the school provided too!
Resident, Dennis Scurrell, said, “They were really good, and funny! They have lots of confidence, some are only six or seven aren’t they, but the way they were on stage showed a lot of confidence!”
Jill Jeffery, a Resident, added, “They were all darlings, all of them. How lovely it is to watch them.”
Resident, Kathleen Cox, had a great time, she said, “It was very good! I don’t think when I was in school, I had the confidence to be up on stage like they did today! They were all very good!”
Lindsey, who is the Head Teacher at St Barnabas School, commented, “We always enjoy having you here, and we look forward to bringing some of the children to your care home soon to sing Christmas Carols!”
Market Lavington’s, Wellbeing Team are very conscious of the importance of inter-generational contact and long may it continue!