Family’s generous gift of mini bus for Home Close

A generous donation will allow residents at Home Close care home in rural Fulbourn to get out and about more easily this summer.

The family of a resident have handed over the keys to a 16-seater mini bus, to the delight of home manager Sujamole Mathai who is now busy getting more trips out planned and training organised to make sure there is a good supply of drivers for their new vehicle.

Suja said, “Our activities team are really excited about using the new bus and trips out are an important part of life for the residents at Home Close. We already have a growing list of places our residents want to go including Duxford War Museum, the beach, Newmarket, Garden Centres and pub lunches to name just a few.”

Previously the Cambridgeshire home shared a mini bus with sister care home Home Meadow – located just a few miles away in Toft.

The new bus, which is able to accommodate up to three wheelchairs, is a gift from the family of resident Jim Bentley who has lived at Home Close for four years, first moving into the home with his late wife Ethel. His daughter Ann is a regular visitor and her mother in law is also a resident at Home Close. His son Alan visits from South Africa when possible.

“We are really grateful to the family,” said Suja. “I just don’t have the words to thank them for their generosity as they have already gifted a ‘magic’ table to the home which is in regular use and very popular with our residents.”

The magic table projects images onto a table top, or any flat surface, allowing residents to play games stimulating physical, social and cognitive activity.

Suja added that Jim is keen to be among the first residents to use the new bus, although he has previously been a little travel sick when out in the bus sitting in his wheelchair.

Home Close provides person-centred nursing, residential, respite and dementia care and is rated Good by the CQC. The home is part of the Healthcare Homes family of 48 care homes and 11 home care branches.

Healthcare Homes has recently been named in the Top 20 care home groups for the eight year in a row by independent review website carehome.co.uk  Home Close  has a 9.5 out of 10 score on carehome.co.uk

For more information about Home Close see our website www.healthcarehomes.co.uk/home-close

Pip Rich