Primary school pupils send uplifting messages to Sheffield care home residents

Kind-hearted youngsters have sent messages of support to Sheffield care home residents struggling through the Covid-19 lockdown.

By Alana Roberts

Published 24th Jul 2020, 12:00 BST

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Year 4 pupils from Carterknowle Primary School created the morale-boosting letters and drawings in an effort to cheer up those living at Twelve Trees Care Home, in Nether Edge, during these tough times.

The project was the brainchild of Abigail Penman, whose eight-year-old son Ben is a pupil at the school in Millhouses.

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Twelve Trees resident Freda Armstrong holding a drawing which she received from a Year 4 pupil at Carterknowle Primary

Twelve Trees resident Freda Armstrong holding a drawing which she received from a Year 4 pupil at Carterknowle Primary

She was moved to get the children involved after speaking with her aunt, Vivien South, an activities coordinator at Twelve Trees, who mentioned how downbeat the residents had been.

Abigail, a teacher at a secondary school in Chesterfield, said: "My aunt had been mentioning how a lot of the residents had been struggling with their mental health throughout the pandemic – they’d all been locked in, nobody had been able to visit them and they weren’t able to get anything from anyone, and it was making their dementia worse causing serious issues with depression and that kind of thing.

"She was running out of ways of keeping their spirits up so I said how would you feel about receiving letters from the children for a bit of communication.

"With the studies into children and older people and the impact it has on mental health, I just thought it would be a good thing. The kids have just taken the idea and been creative with it which is nice.”

Residents Jean Norris, Anne Curbishley and Jannice Rolton at Twelves Trees care home with letters of support they received from Year 4 children at Carterknowle Primary

Residents Jean Norris, Anne Curbishley and Jannice Rolton at Twelves Trees care home with letters of support they received from Year 4 children at Carterknowle Primary

The children were each paired with a resident for the project, with their creations being sent to the care home on Thursday, July 16.

Vivien South, one of two activities coordinators at Twelve Trees Care Home, said: "Some of the residents don’t fully understand why their families and loved ones can’t visit them and you can explain this to them but sometimes they forget or sometimes it doesn’t go in.

"They’ve been feeling a little bit emotional sometimes so it’s just meaningful for them to get things from the children.

"It also brings the community into the home and that’s important. Just the mere fact that these young pupils are writing to them gives them a sense of wellbeing and that they’ve not been forgotten about under these difficult circumstances.”

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