A state-of-the-art residential care and nursing home has opened in Portsmouth.
The Royal Naval Benevolent Trust marked its 100th anniversary with the opening of Admiral Jellicoe House for RN and Royal Marines veterans and their spouses or widows/widowers.
The sister home to Pembroke House, in Chatham, Kent, Jellicoe House offers multiple levels of care and includes 66 ensuite rooms, a library, cinema room, bar, community dining and a balcony overlooking a neighbouring cricket ground.
The home also has a dedicated dementia unit, meeting the varied emotional and physiological needs of people on their dementia journey.
Within the home, there are two sensory destinations including a seaside destination with a mural of a beach scene, which features the sounds and smells of the sea, and a woodland destination with a mural and a park bench with birdsong and the sounds and smells of a wood.
Built to mark the centenary of the RNBT and in honour of Admiral and 1st Earl John Rushworth Jellicoe, the RNBT founder, Admiral Jellicoe House provides a familiar and welcoming environment to those who have served.
Rob Bosshardt, Chief Executive of RNBT said: “I am so proud of our achievement in delivering this project for naval veterans, despite the challenges of the pandemic. Our dedicated dementia unit is an example of how we should be supporting our incredible veterans, creating a safe space for them to reminisce on some of their proudest moments in life.
“Admiral Jellicoe House is a fabulous building, a really appropriate home for those who have served their country in peace and war, and a fitting and permanent symbol of RNBT’s century of care and support for the naval community.”
Guest of Honour, Nick Jellicoe, grandson of RNBT’s Founder, renowned naval author and broadcaster and the Vice-Patron of RNBT added: “John Jellicoe, my grandfather, the Trust’s founder and first benefactor, would have been honoured - and touched - that such a worthy cause carries his name. It is a legacy to his humanity and his vision.”
The opening ceremony included hoisting the White Ensign, by kind permission of the First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Ben Key, to illustrate the strong links between the Home and the Royal Navy.
