Freya puts residents in the picture

An artistic Somerset girl whose mum works at a Bridgwater care home is putting her time at home during lockdown to good use by producing unique hand-drawn pictures for the pleasure of the residents her mother works with.

Fourteen year-old Freya suggested to mum Jess Hawker, deputy manager at Avalon Nursing Home, that the people with dementia who Jess supports might be cheered up during the current lockdown if Freya were to draw some pictures especially for them.

Jess said: “My manager and I thought this was a lovely idea, so we worked together to draw up a list of the things our residents take pleasure in, asking for personal favourites wherever possible and drawing on our knowledge of their likes and dislikes in other cases.

“Freya is a really talented young artist and she has been working so hard to produce individualised pictures that will bring pleasure to the residents at Avalon.

“Many of her sketches are now adorning the walls in the home, with some on display in shared spaces such as the lounges and corridors, others in residents’ own bedrooms.”

Freya, who lives in Taunton, said: “This has been a lovely project for me while I’ve been confined to the house over the past few weeks.

“I love to draw, and it’s really nice to think that the pieces I’m producing are bringing smiles to the faces of the people with dementia who Mum supports.

“Coronavirus has made life hard for lots of people, and I think it’s particularly cruel for people living with dementia who find it difficult to understand why social distancing is so important.

“Mum and the other people who work at Avalon are doing everything they can to keep life as normal as possible but lots of residents are missing visits from family and friends so anything we can do to make life happier for them is good.”

Avalon Nursing Home on Taunton Road in Bridgwater is run by Camelot Care. The Group has other homes in Wellington and Plymouth. For details see www.camelotcare.co.uk