Nursery visits to care home 'hugely beneficial' as resident says 'I couldn’t wish for anything more'

Children from a nursery school in Kent have been meeting up with residents at a nearby care home for an intergenerational project, with one resident saying ‘I couldn’t ask for anything more’.

Children from Northfleet Nursery School have been making Christmas cards with residents from Dene Holm Residential Care Home, with different groups of children visiting in the morning and the afternoon.

The visits have been such a success that the nursery school and the care home have decided to continue the visits next year.

Margaret, a resident at the care home called the visits “wonderful”, saying: “I couldn’t ask for anything more”.

As well as making cards together, the children sang Christmas carols to the residents.

The residents will be visiting the nursery this Friday to watch the nursery nativity play.

In addition, two of the care home’s residents have undergone training to be Beanstalk Volunteers, which means they will be able to visit the school and assist with helping children learn to read.

Panna Nagar, headteacher of the school said: “This is something we’ve wanted to do for a long time, so we’re delighted to have started. Some of the children don’t have grandparents, or they live far away, and some of the residents don’t have grandchildren, so it’s really special to see all the smiles on everyone’s’ faces.”

Christine Hutchinson, general manager of Dene Holm added: “I’m so excited that we’ve been able to start developing this partnership with the school. Intergenerational relationships are proven to be hugely beneficial for the children and the residents and already we have seen the joy it can bring, we’re all very excited to watch it grow.”