JANUARY ISSUE 2024
ADLINGTON LIFE Make 2024 the year for easy living
A cup of tea with homeowner Margaret
Time for a change?
A new hobby to try this January
Discover more about a typical
day in the life of our homeowners Watch the video by scanning with your smart device camera
Contents
04 Company news Planning approved We were delighted to gain planning approval before Christmas for our new community in Exeter, bringing Adlington Retirement Living to homeowners in the South West. Site progress Construction is well under way at Newcastle-under-Lyme, with our new Marketing Suite due to open on the 1 st February at Brookfields House. Homeowners arrive at The Newells The very first homeowners have moved into our brand-new community at The Newells in Bedford, just in time to welcome in the New Year.
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A cup of tea with Margaret Kick back, relax, and enjoy a refreshing beverage as we settle in for a chat with homeowner Margaret. Recipe Meet Andy, one of our esteemed in-house chefs, as he unveils a delicious winter creation in the kitchen. January in the garden It might be chilly but it’s a great time to prepare for the warmer months ahead. Monty Don releases his new book and we hear from James, our expert landscape gardener. Time for a change? A fresh start, a renewed self. Have you considered the benefits of life in a retirement living community? Quiz and book of the month See if you can answer our five quiz questions, or get comfortable and delve into our recommended book of the month.
2023 saw us reach a significant milestone as we welcomed our 1,000 th homeowners,
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Q&A with Sharon from AMS Meet a face behind the scenes at Adlington Retirement Living.
to The Woodlands in Heaton Mersey.
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Featured apartments Tempt yourself with our selection our of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom apartments for sale.
Margaret and Peter
Welcome to Januar y Whilst for some, January feels like the gloomiest time of year with the festivities over and long, cold, dark nights dragging on, it can however, also be a chance to get the year ahead in order, with worries resolved and exciting plans in place. This month we’ll suggest things to do and look out for to fill your diary, along with tips and of course a bit of fun over your morning coffee. We’ll also introduce you to one of our executive chefs who’ll share a recipe you might like to try and you can get to know one of our homeowners just like you. We hope you can perhaps make 2024 the year for a fresh, new start. Wishing you all the best and a Happy New Year!
What’s on Call today to reserve your complimentary place: The Sidings 01524 917888 The Woodlands 0161 241 5933 The Spindles 01943 660530
The Sidings, Lytham - Wednesday 17 th January - Wednesday 14 th February The Woodlands, Heaton Mersey - Thursday 18 th January - Thursday 15 th February The Spindles, Menston - Tuesday 16 th January - Tuesday 6 th February
Coffee morninmgs 10.30am - 11.4
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The Spindles, Menston Wednesday 24 th January John Wallace, shares his true story based on a Soho poem and two WWII Spitfire pilots. The Sidings, Lytham Wednesday 7 th February A whistle-stop history of ‘60s British pop music.
Recent events
John Wallac 2.30pm -
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4pm
Dr Ed Gladman Chief Executive Officer
Grand Opening
The Spindles,
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Event
2023
A Cup of tea with
Margaret Margaret moved to The Folds in Romiley, having previously lived in Marple Bridge for 35 years with her late husband Peter and their two children.
ADLINGTON LIFE
Tell us a little bit about yourself My husband was a solicitor in Manchester before he retired. I read law at Manchester University, which is where we met, and then I did a post-graduate course in social administration and became a medical social worker. We got married in 1968, when we were 23 and 24. The first house we bought was a three-bedroomed house where we lived for eight years and then we moved to a bigger house with four bedrooms in Marple Bridge before deciding to build. Building our own house was Peter’s idea and he found the plot. The architect had been one of our neighbours and he used to come over and we’d open a bottle of wine and talk about what we wanted. It was a beautiful house set in half an acre of gardens and I was very fond of it.
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What made you choose an Adlington Retirement Living community?
Move It with Mags - on a Wednesday. That’s a balance and flexibility class but I think my Yoga and Pilates classes cover all of that for me.
Following a health scare in 2020, I read an article in the local newspaper about The Folds winning an award and decided to visit with a friend. My first impressions were that it was like a very exclusive hotel and I loved it!
I have friends from Marple Bridge who come regularly to visit and play bridge. It’s nice to be able to offer them a coffee in the lounge and I enjoy baking, so I often provide tea and cake in my apartment.
What do you enjoy most about your new home? I think the best thing is the stimulus of like-minded people. It’s the social life as much as anything. I enjoy walking and belong to the walking club at The Folds. I’m also a founding member of the gardening club. There are several very keen gardeners. I do yoga on Wednesday mornings and Pilates on Monday. I’ve done yoga for over 40 years and I’ve done Pilates for the last 10 or 12 years. There’s an exercise class here at The Folds –
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I’ve also made some good friends here. There’s a lady that I play Othello, the board game, with. We also play whist here every week on a Tuesday in the activities room. I’m a jigsaw addict and there’s a big board downstairs with wings on either side and you can do your jigsaw in the middle. There are all sorts of other proposals we’re discussing at the moment. There’s talk of ‘gin club’ and a lady who moved here from Spain thinks we ought to have a ‘laughter club’. Hear more from our homeowners by visiting adlington.co.uk/HS
Has it lived up to your expectations? I thought I was happy where I was, but I’m so much happier here. There’s always the possibility of company and I’m a very gregarious person. I settled in like a flash. I felt so at home here.
Chef Andy
FOOD FOR SHARING GREEK LAMB KOFTAS
This dish is really easy to make and always popular with our homeowners at The Sidings, Lytham.
INGREDIENTS •
200 grams minced lamb
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100 grams white breadcrumbs
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½ tsp dried mint
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1 large egg
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½ tsp dried oregano
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Pinch of salt & pepper
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2 crushed garlic cloves
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½ packet greek feta
Wooden or metal skewers as preferred, optional
RECIPE STEP ONE Place all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and bind together
STEP TWO Divide into 12 and roll in your hand in a barrel shape. Mould around skewers if you’re using them. Soak wooden skewers first.
STEP THREE Bake in the oven at 180 degrees for 20 minutes.
STEP FOUR Serve with warm pitta, hummus and perhaps a Greek salad.
Ser ving suggestion greek salad Combine crumbled feta, chopped cucumber, cherry tomatoes, iceberg lettuce, sliced red onion with a squeeze of lemon, olive oil and season to taste.
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January In The Garden January is a great time for planning what you’ll plant ready for the warmer months. Treat yourself to a new notebook to plan your favourites and maybe try a couple of new plants this year, whether that’s for the borders, baskets or pots. Whilst it’s still too cold for the garden why not treat yourself to an indoor plant to enjoy up close. Not sure where to start? Bestselling author and the nation’s favourite gardener Monty Don has released a new book giving a fresh approach to gardening, revealing the sheer joy and fulfillment that gardening can bring. ‘Think of your garden like a meal. When you select a recipe, you’re choosing it based on inclination, experience and circumstance. Making a garden, big or small, uses exactly the same process.’ Whether your ambition is to cultivate your own vegetables, establish a connection with nature, or maximise the potential of indoor plants, Monty will be your guide. Unlocking the potential of your space, he will show you the what, where, and when of planting, making the journey into gardening a rewarding experience.
Our Landscape Designer, James King James has a wealth of qualifications and experience spanning over 20 years and continually gives the ‘wow’ factor to our landscaping. He said: “I love to make visitors to the gardens feel happy and comfortable. I start with a very practical approach: paths, structures and then look at combinations of plantings and spacing, not only for today but for years to come.”
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Time for a change? ‘New Year, New You’ can be a bit of a cliché but for many of our homeowners, life in an Adlington Retirement Living community offers a fresh start and a new lease of life.
Trevor, a retired doctor who moved to an Adlington Retirement Living community, said: “It relieves you
receiving parcels if you’re not in, or arranging for our handyman to change a lightbulb or any other
of an enormous amount of stress and adds a lot of positive social interaction. I enjoy meeting new friends and socialising, and not having any worries about life at all.”
little jobs that you might need doing.
You’re never short of somebody to talk to. Ann & Bill
Our management team are onsite and available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, whenever you need them. They enjoy getting to know our homeowners and help to set up regular activities, based on suggestions from them. They’re there for practical help too, such as taking newspaper deliveries,
You also have the benefit of our outstanding on-site facilities, from the restaurant to the activities room and the hair salon, which are an extension of your own home. The dark, winter months can often feel a bit lonely, but when you visit the coffee bar or the homeowners’ lounge, there’s always a friendly face ready for a chat. Adlington homeowners, Ann and Bill said: “We’re busy, but busy doing things that we like. We have a gardening group, take-away nights, pétanque, a book club, and there’s a local, historical interest group. We have film nights and games nights. You’re never short of somebody to talk to.”
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ADLINGTON LIFE
BOOK OF THE MONTH
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A Wood of One’s Own by Ruth Pavey The trials and tribulations of the main character and city dweller, Pavey, grow into peace and tranquility when she buys four acres of an overgrown orchard. Perfect escapism for nature lovers and gardeners alike.
1) What was the name of the first novel that was ever written using a typewriter?
Are you sitting comfortably? National Storytelling Week starts on the 30 th of January and perhaps now is a great time to think about writing a story. The Society for Storytelling has lots of useful tips at sfs.org.uk •
Don’t begin at the beginning - grab attention and then unravel the story from there.
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Have an intriguing first line - many great books are remembered purely for that.
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Share with friends - if you’re coming to any of our monthly coffee mornings we’d love to hear your story - we’ll bring the cake.
2) Which is the only city to span two continents? 3) Which planet has the most moons in the Solar System? 4) Which individual invented the most new English words? 5) How many letters does the Hawaiian alphabet have? ANSWERS ON THE BACK PAGE
Look out for... Aurora Borealis sightings peak at this time of year when highly charged solar wind particles coming from the sun collide with air molecules in the earth’s atmosphere, transferring their energy into light. On clear nights, keep a beady eye out towards the North. Lancaster university has an AuroraWatch website you can view at aurorawatch.lancs.ac.uk
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Meet the team Sharon Bossons, Senior Operations Manager Adlington Mangement Ser vices Meet Sharon, an integral part of the Adlington Management Sevices team, our Senior Operations Manager. With a background in mental health and dementia care, Sharon continues her passion, delivering a high quality service and making a real difference to our homeowners.
What are the main responsibilities of your role? I oversee all the retirement communities that are managed by Adlington Management Services, the management arm of Adlington Retirement Living. We set up Adlington Management Services as a new company in 2019 to bring the operations of our retirement communities in-house and provide a consistently outstanding service to our homeowners. I’ve been involved with that from day one. We currently have 11 retirement communities and going forward we will manage every new Adlington Retirement Living community. What do you enjoy most about your role? I think it’s the satisfaction that comes from exceeding our homeowners’ expectations. It’s important we deliver everything they hope their move will achieve, and it’s lovely when we get feedback to say that they love living there.
I personally get a lot of satisfaction from the recruitment aspect of my role and ensuring we have the right team in place. What attracted you to this role? To be able to make such a difference to people and to support homeowners enjoying their retirement to the full is so rewarding. Although many of our homeowners don’t require additional care when they first move into one of our retirement living communities, it’s fantastic that they can have a tailored personal care package as and when they need it. It means that they can live on their own terms, in their own home. We also provide homeowners and their families with peace of mind, knowing that if they need help in the middle of the night, somebody will be there in minutes. Having managed a retirement living community myself, I’ve seen first-hand so many individual stories, where moving to a retirement living
community has made a huge difference to the homeowners and also to their family. What gives you the most satisfaction from overcoming day-to-day challenges? The best thing for me is having happy homeowners. The fact that I can walk into any of our retirement communities and feel a positive atmosphere and hear laughter and joy. I love it. That’s when I know we’ve got it right! Having happy staff is also important and gives me a lot of satisfaction. We want to create a place where people want to come to work. It’s a great feeling when they say they love their jobs too. What’s the most important thing that you’ve learned in your career so far? The most important thing is to be respectful to every single person you meet and to be kind to each other. If you can manage those two important things, they help every other aspect of your working life.
Choose from a range of apartments with our limited time offers when you reserve before 29 th February 2024 ^. 12-months’ free Service and Well-being Charge Or Supported Sale Service †
We’ll pay your estate agent’s fees and contribute towards your legal and removal costs.
Find a home Award-winning retirement apartments at The Newells, Kempston Show areas open to view, Monday to Saturday, 10am - 5pm
Apartment 24 2-bedroom en-suite | £329,950 •
Apartment 42 *
First floor
1-bedroom deluxe | £264,950 •
Apartment 59 *
2-bedroom en-suite | £484,950*
Second floor
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Third floor South-west facing walk-out balcony
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South-east facing walk-out balcony
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South-east facing walk-out balcony
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Fully-fitted kitchen
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Fully-fitted kitchen
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Fully-fitted u-shaped kitchen
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Level access shower room
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Level access shower room
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Fitted wardrobe to master bedroom
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Easy access to communal areas is available using the nearby lift
Level access en-suite shower room
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Modern separate bathroom
*Other charges apply. ^Terms and conditions apply, see website for details. Images shown for illustrative purposes only. †
Available on selected apartments at specific communities.
Call 01234 988200 Visit adlington.co.uk/KEB The Newells, Manor Drive, Kempston, MK42 8PX Quiz Answers - 1. Tom Sawyer - by Mark Twain | 2. Istanbul | 3. Saturn | 4. William Shakespeare | 5. 12