Residents at Mountview care home in Leicester have been enjoying a spot of retail therapy as staff revealed the newest addition to their home: the residents’ very own on-site convenience store.

The Mountview care team and residents welcomed the Lord Mayor Councillor David Snartt, who joined the team to officially cut the ceremonial ribbon and declared ‘The Mountview News’ store officially open.

He said, ‘I enjoyed my visit to Mountview care home immensely, the whole experience was a delight. It was a real honour to be asked to open the new ‘Mountview News’ shop within the care home and meet the residents, who, I must say were very friendly and happy! We all enjoyed some cake together in celebration of the launch and it is fair to say I didn’t need much lunch afterwards!

I truly hope that the shop is a great success, I think all of the items for sale were well thought out to meet the needs of the residents. I look forward to visiting again in the Future’.

The store has been a huge hit with residents who have been heavily involved in the renovation from the start, helping to pick the name, colour theme and decoration for their store by creating mood boards which saw them settle on a ‘vintage’ layout.

Residents can shop at their leisure and purchase newspapers, magazines, clothing and accessories, toiletries, stationary and greeting cards, cosmetics, DVD’s, homeware and decorative trinkets. The store also has a retro confectionary aisle which staff hope will give residents a taste of the past.

Prior to the launch, residents insisted that they would like to be in charge of the shop and with so many willing volunteers, the care team held small, informal ‘job’ interviews for the store manager position, declaring Liz Banks the official manageress.

Liz Banks, said, ‘I am thrilled to be given the manager role at Mountview News, it means a lot to me to have a role to fulfil and it makes me really happy to greet customers. The team made sure all the residents got to be involved in the project, which was great, I feel like my opinion truly mattered. I am so pleased with the decoration of the store, which I was able to help arrange, seeing the bright wallpaper every day really makes me smile!’.

Home Manager, Stacie Weaver, and driving force for the creation of the ‘Mountview News’ store said, ‘I am delighted with how our store turned out, it looks beautiful inside, and our shopkeeper Liz has fantastic attention to detail with the layout of our stock! I believe the store will truly enrich the lives of our residents allowing them to maintain their freedom of choice, dignity and individualism. I also think the vintage sweet section is a wonderful addition, simulating memories of residents childhood with retro sweets on offer! I would like to thank Lord Mayor, Councillor David Snartt, for his time, our residents loved his opening speech, and it means a lot to have his seal of approval!’.

Mountview care home, operated by Ideal Carehomes, provides 24-hour residential and dementia care, offering high-quality personalised care on an inclusive fee basis. The home is currently welcoming new residents for short and long term placements and loved ones are able to visit in dedicated Covid-safe social rooms (subject to current guidelines). For more information about Mountview, contact Stacie Weaver on 0116 303 3303 or visit https://ichlive1.wpengine.com.