As always, there are a number of special days to keep an eye out for this month. Find our tips and activity ideas below. If you’re already a subscriber of ours, don’t forget that you can access ready-to-use session plans linked to this month’s Featured Events in your Activities Booklet. Enjoy!
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1st February – Dignity Action Day
Find out information about this important awareness day here.
Dame Joan Bakewell, Dignity in Care Ambassador said:
“Dignity Action Day highlights a more respectful way of behaving towards vulnerable people. The very old and the very young clearly need our respect, but it wouldn’t do any harm to spread the dignity message across the population then we can all benefit.”
Find some ready-to-use activities relating to this awareness day within our Activities Booklet this month. We would love to hear how you take part in Dignity Action Day. Submit your stories and photos to Reader’s Corner by emailing
4th February – Six Nations Rugby Tournament begins
The Six Nations Championship is one of rugby unions biggest and most prestigious tournaments. Also known as the Guinness Six Nations, after the tournament’s main sponsor, the competition is held annually and is contested by six teams: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales.
You will be aware of the residents who are fans of rugby, and any that have experience playing the game. Involve these residents in choosing activities linked to the event. Other residents may not be fans of rugby specifically, but will enjoy watching the live action, so ensure that everyone is aware of when the games are being televised, and are able to view in a group environment if they wish.
Find various rugby-themed ideas within this month’s Activities Booklet.
13th February – World Radio Day
World Radio Day is an international awareness day, celebrated annually on 13th February.
Radio, often referred to as “the wireless” pre 1960, will have played a huge part in the early lives of many of your residents, particular between the 1940s and the late 1960s. This was the ‘golden age’ of radio, before most people owned televisions. During this time the BBC Home Service and BBC Light Programme were the most popular radio stations.
You’ll find numerous radio-themed features and activities within our resources, which you can use today.
Run a reminiscence session on the theme of radio. This is an effective, easy way to spark memories and a great opportunity for residents to take part in an activity that feels meaningful and social.
Here are a list of questions to get the conversation flowing.
- What are your earliest radio memories?
- Who did you listen with? Where did you listen?
- Which programmes or stations did you listen to?
- How many radios did you own?
- How did the radio / wireless sound?
- What was the reception like?
- Did you ever build a crystal set?
- Which were your favourite radio programmes?
- Who was your favourite voice to listen to?
- Do you listen to the radio today?
- What are your favourite programmes now?
- How different is your radio now, to the one you had when you were growing up?
14th February – Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day should be handled sensitively, as for some residents it will evoke feelings of sadness. However, there are plenty of ways to celebrate the day appropriately, by focusing on friendship and the general theme of love.
Our resources for February contain multiple ready-to-use, love and friendship-themed activities and session plans.
Additional ideas –
- Make friendship cards in your art and craft session. Encourage residents to personalise their card and write a message for one of their friends, family or loved ones – it might be a relative, or a fellow resident, or a member of staff.
- Hold a fun love-themed music and movement session. Keep it upbeat – get out the shakers and pom moms and ask residents for requests of their favourite songs.
The Beatles’ “All You Need Is Love”, The Monkees’ “I’m A Believer”, Cliff Richard’s “Living Doll”, Tom Jones’ “It’s Not Unusual” and Elvis Presley’s “Wooden Heart” are all tunes which your residents will enjoy singing along to. Many will remember the words, but it’s a good idea to print some large-font lyrics out if you wish to hold a singalong.
14th-21st February – National Nest Box Week
National Nestbox Week takes place every year from 14th – 21st February. The event marks the beginning of the breeding season for birds and asks members of the public to set up nest boxes in their own gardens to help with this.
This is a brilliant event for care settings to get involved with; it connects residents to nature, encourages time spent outdoors, utilises key skills and knowledge that they will recall from their younger years, such as identifying birds and working with wood.
Our Activities Booklet is full of brilliant ideas and ready-to-use session plans relating to this event, and the theme of birds. Find out more about the event and ways to be involved here.
21st February – Shrove Tuesday / Pancake Day
Making pancakes is easy, tasty and the perfect way to celebrate Shrove Tuesday together. Cooking provides cognitive stimulation, is multi-sensory and provides great emotional satisfaction for residents when they see others enjoying the finished product.
If cooking with your residents is too much of a challenge logistically, focus on the experience of choosing and tasting toppings instead. The most traditional topping is lemon juice and sugar, but many residents will enjoy tasting pancakes with honey, maple syrup, golden syrup, Nutella, toffee sauce, fresh fruit, whippy cream, or even ice cream. Allowing choice and variety is key to a fun, stimulating session.
Additional ideas –
- Precook pancakes, or use ready-made versions, and hold a pancake tossing contest!
- Hold an egg-and-spoon-style pancake race! Print off and laminate images of frying pans and pancakes, then balance the images on top of one another and challenge residents to walk (or be wheeled) across a room.
23rd February – Ash Wednesday
Ash Wednesday is a religious day of prayer and marks the beginning of Lent.
Reach out to your local Church to ask if they are able to visit your care setting to hold a prayer session to mark Ash Wednesday.
27th February – Elizabeth Taylor’s birthday (b. 1932)
Elizabeth Taylor was a very famous film star of her age. Most of your residents will know of her and remember watching her in films. Taylor was famously married eight times to seven men, marrying Richard Burton twice.
Activity ideas –
- Ask your residents if they have a favourite film starring Elizabeth Taylor. Here are a few to suggest: Cleopatra, National Velvet, Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, Suddenly Last Summer. Arrange a film viewing session when you have voted on the favourite!
- Elizabeth Taylor had her own collection of perfume fragrances marketed through Elizabeth Arden. Passion was launched in 1987 and White Diamond followed in 1991. In total she had 11 fragrances in her name. Try to obtain some of these perfumes (and other classics, such as Chanel No. 5, Opium, etc) to test, through relatives, staff, or by asking your local department store for samples. Ensure you involve male residents by asking their opinion on the favourites, or sourcing some aftershave samples to smell.
- Elizabeth Taylor loved jewellery and famously amassed a huge collection. Print off images of her jewellery online (simple run an image search in any of the search engines) and explore these photos with your residents. Make a list of the auction prices and challenge residents to guess the price that her pieces were sold at. You could use Higher and Lower cards to turn this into more of a game.
We hope you find these suggestions useful. We always love to see and hear what our readers have been up to – please email photos and stories to for your chance to be featured in our Reader’s Corner!
