Stay young at heart
RETIREMENT villages are changing. The days when they were dozy enclaves of elderly people who seldom went out or received visitors are well and truly over.
Today’s retirement communities encourage youngsters to call as regularly as possible in the belief that mixing with young people benefits everyone.
And activities are being laid on which can be enjoyed by everyone from two to 92.
Pat, 68, and Norman Fuggle, 70, who live in the Wadswick Green development in Corsham, Wiltshire, have ten grandchildren, aged between four and 21, who enjoy fun-packed visits ( wadswickgreen.co.uk).
The indoor swimming pool, which can be booked for family-time, is a main attraction and there is a children’s menu in the restaurant, which operates a take-away service. The staff recently ran a mini-Olympics and in November, there will be a craft market with children’s entertainment and face painting.
‘The grandchildren love visiting,’ says Norman. ‘We had a chat before moving here and made it clear that we wanted their company.’
Psychotherapist, Corinne Sweet, who regularly appears on BBC Breakfast, believes the Fuggles are wise to have taken this stance.
‘The more you stimulate the brain in old age, the better it is for you,’ says Sweet. ‘ Chatting across generations is a great way to keep the mind sharp,’ she adds.
Research shows that only 5 per cent of people over 65 have contact with younger people and this, say the experts, is harmful to their health. Just as the damage done by loneliness is comparable to smoking 15 cigarettes a day, it is now widely believed that ‘ age apartheid’ can make elderly people physically and emotionally unwell.
New draft guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence ( NICE), said intergenerational activities improve health outcomes.
Few grandchildren would need much encouragement to visit
Lifecare Residences’ new luxury development near Battersea Park, which opened in April ( lifecare residences.co.uk).
‘Children can use all the leisure facilities, provided they are accompanied by a resident,’ says chief operations officer Craig Percy. ‘These include the theatre, the 21seater cinema, the restaurant and the 15 metre pool. And the sights of London are on their doorstep. A visit to Battersea Park next door offers the chance to go boating on the lake, biking on the cycleways or take a trip up the river.’
For a retirement village to be truly welcoming to children, it requires enthusiastic staff as much as exciting amenities.
Clive Jecks helped his parents Roy, 96, and his late mother, Beryl move into the Charters Village Development at East Grinstead in 2014 so that they could be near to the rest of their large family ( retirementvillages.co.uk).
Sadly Beryl died a year later. ‘Apart from the considerable upset, my father was put at a disadvantage when it came to entertaining the youngsters,’ says Clive, 64.
‘Men of his generation aren’t used to entertaining family groups. But all the staff and carers joined in and as a result he has been able to have some wonderful barbecues in the grounds with his grandchildren.’
THE young, too, benefit from mixing with the oldest generation in the family.
Children who visit their grandparents at McCarthy & Stone developments, mccarthy
andstone.co.uk, can even stay the night. Guest apartments can be hired for about £25 a night.
The communal lounges are comfortable and have wifi — a must for young people. Best of all the social committees run events.
‘We have Wimbledon parties with strawberries and cream, Christmas markets, Halloween parties and Easter egg hunts,’ says Geoff Bates, of McCarthy & Stone.
‘More recently we have had bakeoffs with the children helping their grandparents to make cakes, which are then judged by a local master baker.’ Mary Berry would surely approve.