A CARE home near Chester helped a special resident’s dreams come true.

Charles Eric Plenderleath, a resident at Iddenshall Hall & Beeston View Care Home was a prominent figure in local politics throughout his 40-year career, being elected the Councillor of Tarvin and, most notably, the Lord Mayor of the City of Chester from the year 1999 to 2000.

Since moving to the care home, he had always said his dream was to meet the current Lord Mayor of Chester, so staff at the home made his wish a reality proving the old adage, it’s never too late.

Charles, who goes by the name Eric, has lived at Beeston View since November 2023 and is beloved by staff and residents alike. Staff at the home were delighted to be a part of making his dream come true, as they knew how much it meant to him, and they all wanted to be there to see the smile on Eric’s face when his dream was realised.

Eric said that his time as the Lord Mayor of Chester is something he is immensely proud of and he would love to meet the current Lord Mayor to discuss his time in office, and see what duties, if any, had changed in the 25 years since. Eric has his own scrapbook with photographs and press cuttings of his time as Lord Mayor, and he wanted to share this with the current Lord Mayor and swap stories.

(Image: Barchester Healthcare)

The team at Iddenshall Hall & Beeston View reached out to the current Lord Mayor of Chester, Cllr Razia Daniels, to arrange a visit to make Eric’s dream come true. A visit was arranged, and Eric had the chance to chat to her and reminisce over his favourite times as Councillor and Lord Mayor.

Little did the team know, Eric and the Lord Mayor had actually met back in 2006 when she was first elected as Councillor for Handbridge and St Mary’s Ward and she remembered him!

In her words, Eric was a “great support” to her when she was first elected as Councillor, and she really appreciated the help he gave with getting to know the role. They swapped stories, shared photographs from when they were last together, and were able to create some new memories for both of their photo albums, over coffee and cake.

(Image: Barchester Healthcare)

Eric, said: “My time as Mayor was so special to me, I really enjoyed it and getting to meet new people. I love to talk about it so getting the chance to speak to the current Lord Mayor and reminisce was a pleasure! It is such an amazing feeling to know that such a loving group of people care so much about me that they helped me to live out a dream – and I didn’t even ask.”

Kirsty Jones, General Manager at the home, said: “We believe that every moment is worth cherishing.  We want everyone we care for to know how important they are to us here at Iddenshall Hall & Beeston View. It is testament to the hard work and dedication of the team here in making our residents’ dreams come true.  It was wonderful to see how happy Eric was – and the staff loved being a part of this as well.”

Iddenshall Hall & Beeston View care home is run by Barchester Healthcare, one of the UK’s largest care providers, which is committed to delivering personalised care across its care homes and hospitals. Iddenshall Hall & Beeston View provides residential care, nursing care and dementia care for 93 residents from respite care to long term stays.