13 Care Homes Across South East England Take Part In ‘National Sports Day’ Event

A group of 13 care homes across the South East of England went for gold in a ‘national sports day’ event covering Kent, Essex and Surrey.

The sky was the limit for residents and staff at Nellsar, a family-run group of residential and nursing care homes, as they enjoyed some sporting competition and took part in a range of socially distanced games and activities.

As part of Nellsar’s core strategy to promote physical wellbeing and exercise, and to make the most of the good weather, residents tried their hand at bowling, darts, archery, badminton and basketball, as well as their favourite sports day classics such as the egg and spoon race, ring toss, and three-legged race.

There was even hook the duck and the infamous sack race, and staff naturally got involved too, with prizes being awarded to ‘Best photograph of the day’ and ‘Best Home Manager sporting effort!’

Of course, no sports day is complete without medals, with residents across all 13 homes giving their all to claim the top prize and above all, have fun.

Viv Stead, Recreation and Wellbeing Manager for Nellsar, said: “The annual sports day was a resounding success. Not only did we have the weather on our side with some glorious sunshine, but the residents and staff had a wonderful time too. While these sorts of events are held so our residents can have fun and enjoy a range of nostalgic games and activities, it’s also important we ensure they get fresh air and exercise to maximise their physical wellbeing.

“I travelled to a number of our homes on the day to cheer on the residents as they took part in some of the activities. Whether they were competitive or just plain silly, each game was designed to ensure fun was had by all. Overall, we’re quite overwhelmed with how well the day went and delighted that lockdown wasn’t able to stop us from safely having fun across all our homes.”

The event was inspired by the success of their I Am Team GB ‘Nation’s Biggest Sports Day’, which took place in the gardens of each home last year. Determined not to let lockdown spoil the fun, this year’s spectacle was tweaked to ensure social distancing, so the games could go ahead safely.