Care home reunites families for the first time in 10 weeks with relative drive-thru

The staff team were able to ensure every resident at the Brookfield Avenue care home received a 30 minute visit from their loved ones.

Each visit was carefully planned by Lifestyle Manager, Emily Waugh, as she ensured that families maintained a safe social distance and complied with government guidelines throughout.

As relatives drove up to the home, they saw their loved ones excitedly waiting for them outside and were able to chat, laugh, sing and play music from their cars.

Families and staff commented on how emotional the visits have been, saying families were cheerfully honking their horns as a sign of their gratitude when they left.

Earlier in the week, residents also wrote special messages of love to their families to send in the post along with small wooden heart shaped ‘pocket hugs’ for relatives to cherish until they are once again able to embrace one another.

Resident, Brian Hobson, 82, who received a ‘drive thru’ visit from his daughter, said: "It was such a fantastic day! I have missed Susanne very much and I am so pleased to have been able to have an opportunity to catch up.

"I am very grateful to the team for organising this."

Barbara Mills, 88, said: "I was so excited to see my daughter Ann I could hardly contain myself! I don’t think I have stopped smiling since our visit."​

Nigel Schofield, son of resident, Roy Schofield, said: "I was so excited to visit when I was told about the relative drive thru, I would not have missed it for the world.

"It was a very emotional afternoon and I cannot wait to visit again. I also loved the pocket hug - it blew us away how such a small gesture meant so much. Both of the ideas that the staff at Newfield have come up with are inspiring."

Jane Stride, daughter of resident, Hazel Walsh, said: "Saying thank you to the team at Newfield just doesn’t seem enough!

"The staff have gone above and beyond to help families keep in touch.

"We have used all kinds of digital forms of communication however, to be given the opportunity to visit in person was incredibly special. I will always treasure my pocket hug I received from my mother, it will serve as a reminder of how much we all pulled together in such a frightening and uncertain time."

Organiser Emily Waugh, said: "It was a pleasure to put this event together for our residents and their families. I am so pleased with the turnout and how many families we were able to bring together.

"Our residents have not stopped smiling all day and neither have our staff!"

Home Manager, Lynn Robinson, added: "We have had such a brilliant time reuniting our residents with their families. It was a very emotional afternoon – watching the cars come round the corner and then looking at our residents faces when they saw their families was amazing.

"I would like to say a huge thank you to my team for organising this and a big thank you to our relatives for joining us."