On 28 March, residents and staff at the Diagrama run Edensor Care Home in Clacton were delighted to spend a couple of hours with two snakes.
The Edensor nursing and dementia care home in Clacton welcomed two special visitors when one of the Care home’s Senior Carers brought in his two snakes, Kaa a Royal Python and Nemisis a Corn snake.
The residents really valued the experience and enjoyed feeling the texture and warmth of the snakes and exploring more about these often misunderstood reptiles.
Dale Gould, Senior Carer, Edensor Care Centre said. “Bringing my two snakes into Edensor enabled our residents to have a very different experience and most of the residents really enjoyed meeting and holding the snakes. Kaa my Royal Python and Nemisis the Corn snake are eleven years old and can live up to 30 or 40 years, so hopefully the residents will enjoy a regular visit for many years to come.”
Andrew Parlour, an Edensor resident with Alzheimer’s said, “I used to own snakes myself, so this brought back amazing memories of my own snakes and I really enjoyed the experience of holding these beautiful reptiles.”
Sabina Mach, Manager, Edensor Care Centre said, “It was great to see everyone’s reactions to the snakes. Andrew in particular was so engaged, talking about them and his past experiences with snakes brought about many happy memories from his life, which made the whole experience so valuable and worthwhile.”
It is hoped that Dale will bring in the snakes each month and that other reptiles, including tortoises or lizards, will visit the residents.
Sabina Mach, Manager Edensor Care Centre continued, “The visit from Dale’s snakes meant our residents were able to explore these amazing creatures up close and learn more about them. Many of our residents have dementia and there are significant benefits to allowing people to reconnect with past fun memories. Witnessing their interactions, engagement and comments showed us just how many positive things our residents took from the experience. Their smiles and reactions were priceless and they’re already talking about the next visit and looking forward to it. ”
To find out more about Edensor visit
www.diagramafoundation.org.uk/senior-dementia-care/edensorcarehomeclacton
About Diagrama Foundation
Diagrama Foundation is a Kent based charity that supports vulnerable children, young people, and adults to live their best life.
Diagrama has a Supported Living Service across Bromley, three homes for adults with learning disabilities in Orpington, an eight-bed care home for adults with learning disabilities in West Sussex a fifty-bed care home for the elderly with nursing and dementia needs in Essex, and a fostering and adoption service in the southeast.
- The Supported Living Service, cares for 35 adults with learning disabilities, in nine homes across Bromley helping them to develop skills and confidence to live in their own house either on their own or with others.
- At Cabrini House in Orpington the charity promotes the development of core skills for 23 adults with learning disabilities so that they can lead independent lives integrated within their community.
- Duckyls Farm in West Sussex, a care home for eight residents with learning disabilities, joined the charity care provider in February 2023.
- The team at their nursing and dementia care home Edensor in Clacton on Sea, support their vulnerable residents to live life to the full.
- Diagrama’s adoption and fostering service cares for children in South London, Kent, Sussex, and Surrey.
Many vulnerable children and adults don’t get the support they need to develop their true potential, but the Diagrama team know that when someone has time and belief invested in them, they come alive, because that investment has made them feel valued and worthy.
