Leicestershire home care team calls on community to help create dementia sensory garden

A Leicestershire home care agency is calling on the community to help donate furniture and plants so the team can create a dementia sensory garden where people will feel "safe and happy."

The team from Home Instead (Leicester, Charnwood, Loughborough & Coalville) recently moved to a new office and decided to take on the challenge to transform the overgrown yard into a sensory garden.

After a few months of clearing and stripping back the weeds and hedges, the space is now ready to be developed into something wonderful.

Charlotte Johnson, owner of Home Instead Charnwood, Loughborough and Coalville, said: “As a home care company for the elderly, we understand how important it is for those living with dementia to have somewhere to go where they feel safe and happy.

“The sensory garden will be just that, which is why we are so passionate about making it wonderful!

“With the brambles out of the way, we have discovered some amazing footing, cobbles and bricks. The garden is now ready to add the finishing touches.”

The plan for the garden is to allow the care workers and clients to sit and enjoy as well as allow the local community to use or visit.

Home Instead is planning to install a sheltered area for people to sit in, with plants and different items to enhance smell, touch and hearing.

According to Alzheimer's Society, gardens serve many purposes: they can be for growing fruit or vegetables, used as spaces for exercise and can be a vital link to green space in the community.

A well-planned area can provide exercise and give an opportunity to relieve tension, frustration and aggression, provide personal space for reflection and privacy, give an area to accommodate a different social environment and provide additional stimulation with colours, smells and sounds of wildlife.

Ms Johnson said: “If you have any garden plants, pots or general garden wear that you’d like to donate, please get in touch.”

click here for more details or to contact Home Instead (Leicester, Charnwood, Loughborough & Coalville)