Lavender Hills Care Home, Ramsbottom – Millennium Care Group
Communities in Greater Manchester are being asked to pull together to help make the festive season extra special for the region’s care home residents this year.
Millennium Care Group – which looks after seven care homes in Greater Manchester – is calling on the public to help brighten up the spirits and “save Christmas” for the residents, staff and families who have struggled throughout the year due to coronavirus (COVID-19) restrictions.
The group raising funds to turn the outside of each care home into their own winter wonderland with Christmas trees, lights and decorations.
Millennium Care Group‘s seven care homes are located in Wigan, Bury, and Chorley.
The group was one of the first to install COVID-safe visitation lodges to keep residents connected with their families through the pandemic, however, plans to temporarily convert the pods into Christmas lodges were scrapped because of the infection control risk.
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A spokesperson said: “It has undoubtedly been a difficult year for everybody during the COVID pandemic, particularly for care homes,
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“As Christmas draws near, what would typically be an occasion full of celebrations and family gatherings, has been dimmed by lockdowns and safety concerns.”
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The homes plan to host special Christmas Light Switch On events.
These can can be celebrated by home residents and staff, shared live over social media for families to be involved, and also host special light drive throughs for the resident’s family members, but, as the group concedes, it “won’t be an easy feat”.
And this is why the homes are asking for support from their local communities to donate and help in any way possible, as “even a small gesture will go a long way to make a big impact”.
A target of £500 has been set and any donations can be made via the JustGiving page here.
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Three tiny ‘chaos potatoes’ have been born at Chester Zoo and they’re so cute
Emily Sergeant
Three tiny ‘chaos potatoes’ have been born at Chester Zoo… and they’re really flipping cute.
Born to parents Maris and Albert in late summer, the three rock hyrax pups – only affectionately known as ‘chaos potatoes’ – have just passed their first vet check with a clean bill of health, and now weigh roughly 350g.
Hyraxes are found across sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East, where they live among rocky landscapes and are most active in daylight.
The litter includes two boys and one girl, and keepers at Chester Zoo have decided to give them potato-themed names – Russ, Spud, and Jackie.
Three tiny ‘chaos potatoes’ have been born at Chester Zoo / Credit: Chester Zoo
Currently, the three pups are a fraction of the size of the adults, which can weigh up to 4kg, but despite their small stature, they have an unlikely relative.
Believe it or not, rock hyraxes are actually a part of the same evolutionary group as elephants, as well as sirenians, which are the family of aquatic mammals that includes dugongs and manatees.
“Hyraxes are one of those species that you have to look for, but once you’ve seen them, they are fascinating to watch,” explained Megan Carpenter, who is a Keeper at Chester Zoo.
“The pups are little chaos potatoes. They are much more energetic than their parents and sometimes get the zoomies, darting about and testing their climbing and parkour skills.
“In contrast, the adults often wedge themselves into corners and grip on to steep rock faces for hours at a time. They’re incredibly well adapted to living among rocks and are much better climbers than you might expect.”
Featured Image – Chester Zoo
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A TV channel playing Christmas films 24/7 is now back on air in the UK
Emily Sergeant
Do you think it’s too early for the ‘C word’? Never mind, you’ve already clicked on this article.
Sure, we may only be into our second full week of September, but given the fact the weather these past couple of days hasn’t exactly screamed summer, it already feels like the festive season is around the corner – but whether or not you think it’s too early to be talking about Christmas, it’ll soon be too tricky to escape from.
Especially not when the famous TV channel showing festive film favourites non-stop is now back on air in the UK.
Yes, you heard that right – Christmas films, 24-hours a day, seven days a week.
If you’re ready to wave goodbye to summer, and in welcome autumn and winter with open arms, then there’s arguably no better way of getting into the festive spirit than with the long-awaited and highly-anticipated return of the TV channel that’s charmed audiences for over half a decade now.
GREAT! Christmas the UK’s biggest seasonal channel, and it’s now live on Sky, Freesat, Freeview and Virgin Media.
You can expect almost four months of back-to-back seasonal movies.
The 24-hour feel-good and free-to-air channel will be bursting with non-stop Christmas spirit, and will be showing a heartwarming lineup of festive films – including some absolute fan-favourite classics that make it to screens every year without fail, alongside some cheesy Hallmark classics, new channel premieres, and so much more.
Emily Sergeant -
23rd November 2020 
