News
Spring Planting
To celebrate the Spring Equinox we planted seeds, bulbs and beans in
pots, watered them, and put them safely in our greenhouse. Lots of
residents were involved, handling the soil, gently pushing the beans
inside, carrying them indoors, and giving them water. At William
Blake House we like to be in touch with the seasons, and to remember where
our food comes from. Being involved in the planting, watching the
growth, and then finally preparing and eating our own crops is a potent
and rewarding way to be connected to the Earth.
Thomley
Thomley is an exciting activity centre with plenty of opportunities for
exploring, relaxing, socialising, and being creative. Our residents
always enjoy visiting Thomley.
Valentine's Day
At William Blake House we love to get together and celebrate as many
festivals and special occasions as possible. For Valentine's day
this year we decorated our homes, baked heart-shaped biscuits, and enjoyed
a disco in the local school hall where we danced to folk music and
romantic pop songs.
Burns Night
For Burns Night we decorated the table with hand-coloured placemats,
read a poem to Call the haggis to the table, and then tucked in to a
delicious feast of haggis, neeps, and brussels sprouts.
Our Christmas party
We all got together in the local village hall to celebrate Christmas
with poems, readings, songs, and a festive feast. Our residents
received gifts and we all enjoyed a warm sense of community in the
beautifully decorated hall, filled with Christmas music and excited
chatter and laughter. Included here are also some photos of the
decorations in our houses and the biscuits and chutneys we made for
Christmas.
Our November gathering
After celebrating Hallowe'en in our three houses, with autumnal
displays and home-made pumpkin soup, we came together on November 1st to
connect with the origins of this festival, which lie in the old autumn tradition of
reflecting on those who've gone before us. We gathered to sing a
song and hear a reading and a poem before sitting quietly together by the
light of 40 candles to respectfully remember loved ones.
Thomas Centre Holiday, October 2017
The Thomas Centre is located in the heart of the Lincolnshire
tourist region. It offered some wonderful on-site activities such as
swimming, an outdoor adventure playground and green space, a sensory room
and some super arts and crafts spaces. The residents also visited Lincoln
to enjoy its tea rooms, country parks, and churches.
Butlins Holiday, October 2017
Butlin’s Minehead resort is located in the heart of Exmoor in Somerset
and offered our residents activities such as exploring the beach, visiting
the zoo, attending theatre shows, and socialising in the local
restaurants.
Stackpole Holiday, September 2017
Stackpole’s resort is located close to the Pembrokeshire Coast
Line and offered our residents activities such as coastline walks, beach
adventure, and trips to the waterpark. There was also time to
explore the nearby towns and villages, visiting a few fascinating churches
along the way.
Harvest Festival at William Blake House
We celebrated Harvest this year with a big get-together in the village
hall. We danced, sang songs, and the whole community enacted a
delightful story about the cycle of the year from sowing to harvesting.
Afterwards we ate home-made soup and cakes together. The hall was
beautifully decorated with our own produce from the Blakesley garden as
well as other fruit and vegetables, floral displays, and six scarecrows
we'd specially made for the occasion.
Birds of prey at William Blake House
Some owl keepers visited us in April and gave our staff and residents
close-up encounters with their fascinating birds.
Our new fundraising page at Just Giving
We now have a page on the Just Giving website via which one-off or regular donations can be made towards our ongoing projects such as our garden and our sensory room.
We'll keep you updated as we move towards the completion of these exciting new developments.
Here is the link to our Just Giving page:
Spring at William Blake House
Spring flowers, first blossom, sprouting beans, and watercolour
paintings - some of the signs that spring is here!
Robin Hood and the Archery Competition
Here our storyteller leads a group of residents and staff through a
dramatic reenactment of one of Robin's most famous adventures.
Pancake Day 2017
We celebrated pancake day with an indoor sports session in which the
prizes for each event were... pancakes!
The Wednesday Music Club
We have monthly discos, relaxation music sessions, and folk dancing in
our Wednesday Music Club, plus special events like our recent Valentine's
Day dance, pictured here.
Indoor Sports at William Blake House
We have an indoor sports session every week. Activities include
football, throwing beanbags, passing games, relay races, ball rolling, and
stretches. It's good fun for all!
Our houses, Autumn 2016
We've had some beautiful interior and exterior photographs taken of our three houses for a magazine feature. We thought we'd share some of them with you here.
Stretton Lakes Holiday 2015
Two male residents enjoyed a week's holiday at Stretton Lakes in May 2015.
Accompanied by a small group of staff and volunteers, they explored the surrounding area and took a trip on the Nene Valley Railway.
Getting out and about in spring
Fresh air and exercise are essential elements of the healthy lifestyle enjoyed at William Blake House.
Here are a few photos from our visit to a bluebell wood, a healthy walk, feeding geese, petting rabbits, our quails and chickens, walking with animals, and a morris dance in a nearby village.
The Gruffalo
As part of our Easter celebrations, we put on a performance of The Gruffalo.
This fun story was read, sung and acted by several of our staff and residents for the enjoyment of the whole community.
