The Priory is now an adored retirement village in the beautiful South Devon village of Abbotskerswell. But having been built over two centuries ago, there’s so much history to uncover. And that’s exactly what the Residents’ Association and historian Peter Wade have done!…
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The Priory’s new Village Manager, Jane Ward, has over four decades of experience in the retirement industry and loves what her new job role can bring to both herself and the village residents. We had a chat with Jane to find why she chose to work…
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November has got off to a busy start for the residents at The Priory. Residents, friends and family enjoyed a birthday party on the 4th November to celebrate the 80th birthday of Pennie Stinton! Refreshments were served along with a lovely cake and…
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Residents recently enjoyed some cake and a glass or two of fizz to celebrate Mrs Beryl Ellis’ 90th birthday, who all wished her a very happy day. Beryl has been living at The Priory since 2015, having lived in Cornwall previously and was…
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The weather couldn’t have been better for the garden open day organised by residents at The Priory for the National Garden Scheme 2018 (NGS). Residents helped with refreshments and chatted to visitors, remarking on the wonderful work carried out by groundsman Russell Skinner….
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Russell’s dedication is rewarded The Priory’s groundsman, Russell Skinner has been awarded the Retirement Village Star Award, presented to members of staff who demonstrate excellent working practices and who make an outstanding contribution to the wellbeing of residents at the village. Shirley Buckley,…
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Every year there is some sort of competition in Abbotskerswell for the garden opening season. Last year the theme was ‘Owls’, this year it’s ‘Scarecrows, with a Royal Wedding theme’. The Priory residents got their thinking caps on for this challenging theme and…
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The residents at The Priory in Abbotskerswell, Devon, celebrated the Royal Wedding in style. A party organised by the Priory Residents Association, was arranged for the evening, as an extension of the weekly Saturday Night Socials where they enjoy drinks and canapés/nibbles and…
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To celebrate the upcoming Royal Wedding the residents at The Priory held a small ceremony and planted a new cork oak in their woodland on a sunny but very windy day! The original Manor House was once owned by Charles Braine, a botanist…
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Totnes – a huge favourite with residents at The Priory – has just been named one of the best places to live in the UK by the Sunday Times. Popular with many residents, the village mini bus is always full on the monthly…
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The residents at The Priory have had a wonderful March despite the wintry weather. In fact they really made the most of it! The recent heavy snow inspired resident Gillie, to make a wonderful snow statute of Queen Victoria, who was not amused…
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The residents and staff at The Priory always pull out all of the stops when decorating the village, in particular when decorating their 12ft Christmas Tree. With mulled wine and mince pies at the ready, all of the residents made the decorating a…
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The Priory held a Remembrance Service on Saturday 11th November. A number of residents at this village have military backgrounds and many lost relatives in the two World Wars. To commemorate such a day, each resident made a poppy which were then used to…
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On Saturday 30th September, The Priory opened to the public, hosting a special touring exhibition focusing on 60 years of naval training at Dartmouth. The oral history exhibition – ‘Britannia’s Voices’ featured two residents from The Priory, Lt Cdr Pearsons and Cdr Joe…
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Two residents of The Priory at Abbotskerswell will be featured in a special touring exhibition focusing on 60 years of naval training at Dartmouth. Lt Cdr Ian Pearson and Cdr Joe Young both served in the Royal Navy and now currently live at…
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An afternoon tea at The Priory, attended by approximately 30 residents, has raised £300 for ShelterBox, which provides vital aid and shelter to victims of disasters around the world. Tim Hedges, the son of one of our residents and an employee of ShelterBox,…
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Priory resident Vivien Lobham celebrated her 98th birthday recently, so on behalf of the retirement village we would like to wish her many happy returns! Vivien, along with nearly 20 of her closest friends from The Priory, celebrated over morning coffee. There were…
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Early in January Priory resident Gillie Byrom gave us a talk and illustrated show about her recent trip to Japan, which was by invitation to further her teaching experience of making enamelled images on metal. This was a very interesting afternoon, full of…
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Our Christmas season got off to a cracking start on Tuesday. We lit up the Christmas tree, enjoyed mince pies and mulled wine, then sang our favourite carols. This is just the start, with many more Christmas and New Year events to follow!…
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Approximately five years ago, before Retirement Villages owned The Priory and well before I was here, there was an art and craft exhibition. Shirley Buckley, our Village Manager, suggested that we should think about another this year. I decided, as I knew nothing…
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On 08 October we held a charity coffee morning, raising £400 for Cancer Research UK thanks to the generosity of our residents and staff. On the day we sold coffee, tea and a selection of beautiful cakes baked by people who live and…
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MP visit: Anne Marie Morris, our local MP, made an informal visit to The Priory recently after Teresa Baverstock, the chairperson of our Residents Association, made contact with her. After enjoying coffee and mixing freely with The Priory’s residents Anne Marie made a…
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Saint Augustine’s Priory Graves 1861 – 1983 The new vitreous enamel plaque installed on the wall in the Priory graveyard records the names of the nuns who lived and died at the Priory over the 122-year period that it was a religious order….
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We have raised over £200 for Torquay’s Rowcroft Hospice, which is struggling to maintain its current levels of care and support to local people due to a shortfall in funding. Peter Byrom and Adrian Addington, who live in our village, organised putting and…
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Talented horticulturists at The Priory raised over £2,000 for good causes and had a lot of fun in the process, when over 250 visitors flocked to see our stunning gardens. Teresa Baverstock, Ursula Hunt and a number of other residents have spent years…
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Despite some slightly chilly conditions, eager residents at The Priory were determined it would not thwart their first croquet match of the season at the start of April. Dressed to fight the elements, these croquet players were captured talking tactics! Here’s to an…
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St Patrick’s Day Supper was a huge success in the Great Hall. Food, fun and plenty of laughter with a full range of Irish jokes to reflect the celebration! This montage from the event has been kindly provided by village manager Shirley Buckley….
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Residents at The Priory in Devon have restored a historical statue of the Virgin Mary – just in time for Christmas! One of The Priory’s residents, Sandra Braznell, repaired the statue of the Virgin Mary, in readiness for a restoration project to start…
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Since 1927, The National Gardens Scheme (NGS) has donated more than £45 million to nursing and care charities. In July 2016, our wonderful village in Devon, The Priory, will be taking part in the NGS scheme and opening its beautiful the gardens to…
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March came and went in the blink of an eye for residents at The Priory. The daffodils are now in full bloom and the village social calendar had a spring clean, benefiting from a number of new activities. Rested and rejuvenated after the…
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Wearing hints of Mediterranean colour, residents gathered in the Forum to enjoy an evening of Moroccan cuisine. The former chapel provided a fantastic backdrop for the grand dinner and the food did not disappoint. The adventurous menu attracted a large number of…
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It’s a Priory tradition that residents join together to decorate the village Christmas tree and this year was no different. The main village tree was traditionally decorated and took pride of place in the Old Chapel, while a more modern approach was taken…
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Residents of the Priory this week enjoyed a demonstration of Short Mat Bowling in the forum. We are hoping that if this activity proves to be popular we will be able to introduce it as an established activity. Everyone who attended thoroughly enjoyed the…
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This week the residents of the Priory along with Groundsman Russell opened the new Putting green. The old bowling green has been converted to the new putting green and is already proving extremely popular among residents bringing with it much joy and laughter….
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Whilst the weather is this beautiful we took the time out to enjoy a competitive game of Croquet in our village gardens. There was lots of heckling in the crowds from the spectators and players waiting there turn and this all added to…
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We thought it would be good for visitors to our village website pages to get a real flavour of what life is really like at The Priory. I’ve put together this brief round-up from last week, it paints a busy picture! Monday saw…
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Themed suppers are a monthly feature at The Priory and always enjoyed by everyone involved. In the spirit of Spring and the first glimpses of warmer weather coming our way, we set about making some bright and attractive table settings for April’s supper….
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It was spades and trowels at the ready on a particularly sunny April day when residents got together to plant a tea rose in the garden of The Priory. The hybrid chosen was the Rosa ‘Peace’, a small shrub with dark, glossy foliage…
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The Priory, a Grade II listed building, is a modern retirement village steeped in history and these pictures show just that. The Monstrance (pictured) was originally placed in the high altar (pictured) at The Priory many years ago. When the Priory closed as…
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Throughout the summer residents have been trying their hand at growing vegetables in the grounds of The Priory. Some of the residents have green fingers and have been very active in tending the vegetable garden while others enjoy the garden as an opportunity…
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