RESIDENTS at a care home in Irvine had a special guest visitor last month.

Ruth Maguire MSP dropped into Fullarton Care home at the end of June, as she officially opened their new sensory garden.

Her visit also coincided with this year's Care Home Open Week, which ran from June 26 until July 2.

The MSP for Cunninghame South was one of a number of visitors and guest from the local community welcomed into the home as part of the celebrations.

Care Home Open Week is a national event hosted by Championing Social Care, designed to connect care homes with their local communities. 

The week provided care homes with the opportunity to showcase what they have to offer, their fantastic facilities, activities and services, and to remind their neighbours that they are there if they need support.

Residents and Colleagues of the HC-One owned home enjoyed meeting Ruth Maguire MSP and chatting to her about what life is like at Fullarton – which is an integral part of the local Irvine community.

It was also an excellent opportunity to show off their new sensory garden.

Ms Maguire commented: “I was delighted to visit Fullarton Care Home and am grateful to the residents and staff who took the time to speak with me.

"It was a real honour to formally open the great new sensory garden which I’m sure will provide a wonderful, peaceful space for residents and their families to enjoy.”

Fullarton also had a chosen theme for this year’s Care Home Open Week was ‘Celebrating Together’.

Throughout the week, residents, colleagues, families and friends enjoyed a variety of fun-filled activities - some of which their local MSP got involved in.

Visitors also enjoyed learning from colleagues in the home about what a rewarding career in care looks like and finding out about opportunities for community engagement and volunteering roles to support their local care home.

Charlotte Beaumont, home manager at Fullarton Care Home, added: “We were delighted to welcome MSP Ruth Maguire to our home and open the doors of Fullarton again to welcome in our local community and bring everyone together to celebrate Care Home Open Week 2023. Everyone had an amazing time.

“We are proud to support Irvine and our Open Week celebrations provided a great opportunity to reconnect with our local community after the challenges of the pandemic, to support community engagement, and to remind our local community that our kind care teams are here if they ever need support for themselves or a loved one.”