Sunderland care home residents transform communal garden in quest for coveted title

HC-One is the UK’s largest care home provider with more that 275 care homes specialising in dementia, nursing and residential care for older people - including at Falstone Court.

After donning their gardening gloves and wellies, the pensioners created series of flowerbed themes based around the decades of the 1960s, 70s and 80s.

As part of the ‘Back in Thyme' floral display, flower beds were accompanied by plaques containing horticultural themed lyrics from groups including the Beatles and The Foundations.

HC-One promotes gardening as a way of improving the physical and mental health of residents.

Falstone Court’s Care Manager, Emma Critchlow-Riley, said: “Residents, colleagues and the local community really enjoyed transforming the garden area of the home in a bid to enter this year’s HC-One Gardens in Bloom competition.

“I would like to thank all of our residents and colleagues for the hard work they have put into transforming the garden.”

Celebrity gardener and TV presented Rachel de Thame visited Falstone Court in her role as competition judge.

She said: “I thoroughly enjoyed being a guest judge in this year’s HC-One Garden in Bloom competition and it was my pleasure to review the entries submitted by HC-One care homes.

“There was such a high volume and standard of entries. Thank you to everyone who participated and well done to Falstone Court on the amazing transformative work they’ve carried out on their garden area.”

Five regional winners will be announced before one care home will take the coveted title.