*** Leeds & Sheffield Care Home have 1 ensuite room available ***
*** 4 weeks respite care for the price of 3 at our Leeds & Sheffield Care Homes ***
*** Leeds & Sheffield Care Home have 1 ensuite room available ***
*** 4 weeks respite care for the price of 3 at our Leeds & Sheffield Care Homes ***
Four people in a car with the air conditioning on, heading for the coast. Picnic chairs and a sunshade in the boot. Fish and chips at the other end, an ice cream after, and all included as part of our clients care plan at no extra cost to clients and families.
That is a day out. It is not a coach party and it is not a slot on an activities calendar. For a good number of our residents it is the closest thing to the family trips they used to take, and in some cases have not taken in years.
Getting that right takes rather more thought than it looks like it does, and most of the thinking happens long before anybody gets in the car.
Days out the way they should be — no purse opened, no bill at the end
Everything is included in our weekly fees. The transport, lunch, the drinks, the ice creams, the coffee and cake on the way home, and the entrance fee wherever we are going somewhere that charges one. There is no float to hand over and nothing to settle at the end.
We do it this way because of something lovely and very particular about the generation we look after. These are people who were raised to be careful with money, who will not be any trouble, and who would sooner say they are not hungry than see somebody else pay for their lunch.
So we take the question away entirely. It means we get to say the best sentence in the job, which is some version of "it is all taken care of, have whatever you fancy". And people do. Second cups of tea. An extra scoop. The big fish rather than the small one. Watching somebody decide, quite cheerfully, that yes actually they will have the cake as well, is one of the genuine pleasures of the work.
For families it removes a small worry too. Nobody is topping up a purse each week or wondering whether Mum went without because she did not want to spend.
Trips out and the food that goes with them are commonly charged as extras across the sector, alongside things like hairdressing and newspapers. We understand entirely why homes do it that way. We simply prefer the version where nobody is counting.
The journey is part of the day — close enough to chat the whole way there
We go out in threes and fours with a carer, rather than in one large party.
It changes everything about the day. Everybody is in the same conversation instead of half the group being out of earshot. There is time to give each person proper attention. And the pace belongs to the people on the trip, so if the bench in the sunshine turns out to be the best part of the afternoon, we stay on the bench in the sunshine.
That is really what we are after. Not organised entertainment, but the feeling of going somewhere nice with a few people you know and taking your time about it, which is exactly what family outings always were.
Our wheelchair-accessible VW Caddy means everyone travels together, in the same car, on the same trip
We travel in our own cars and in a VW Caddy fitted with a wheelchair ramp, all air conditioned.
Cars suit the way we like to do this. You are sitting close enough to chat the whole way, you can point something out of the window and have somebody actually see it, and the journey becomes part of the day rather than the bit before it starts. Half the fun of a trip to the seaside has always been the drive there.
The ramp on the Caddy matters just as much as the air conditioning, because it means everybody travels together. Using a wheelchair does not put anyone in a different vehicle or on a different outing. Same car, same group, same day.
Sea air and an ice cream — one of the simple things that makes a day
A medium portion, halved — proper fish, everybody pleased
You are never too old for the arcade
Our Sheffield residents head to Cleethorpes and our Meadowbrook residents in Garforth go to Bridlington, and the seaside trips are the ones the diary fills up for first.
At the seaside we skip the pensioner portion of fish and chips. Smaller appetites are real, but the small portion tends to be mostly batter, so we buy a medium and halve it. Two people, proper fish, everybody pleased. It is a marginal difference in cost and a considerable one in lunch.
We also pack picnic chairs and a sunshade. A comfortable seat with a view of the sea turns a walk along the promenade into a proper afternoon, and it means the people who find the sand hard going get to sit and enjoy the beach like everyone else rather than admiring it from the car park.
Neither of those is a grand gesture. Both of them are the difference between a nice outing and a really good day.
Meadowbrook residents enjoying the promenade at Bridlington
The beach, the fresh air, and the company — that is what a good afternoon looks like
A day at the farm — one of many outings built around what people actually enjoy
Most outings are closer to home, and they are every bit as good. Parks and gardens. Farms. Garden centres. A proper pub lunch. Coffee and a look round the shops. Christmas shopping in December, which is always a favourite. Snooker, for anyone who used to play and would still rather like to.
We build the calendar around what individual people actually enjoy rather than what is easiest to arrange for a crowd, which is why it looks different every month. If somebody mentions they used to love a particular place, that tends to end up on the list.
A cup of tea somewhere nice — simple, unhurried, and exactly right
Not every outing needs a destination with an entrance fee or a full itinerary. Some of the best afternoons are a cafe, a good pot of tea, and an hour with no particular agenda.
That matters too. Deciding on a Tuesday morning to go somewhere pleasant, having a proper lunch out, coming home tired and happy and full of it — that is a large part of what makes a week feel like a life rather than a routine.
Meadowbrook clients out for the day — same approach, same standards, same enjoyment
A day out for the team at Meadowbrook Manor — Bridlington and beyond
Both of our homes — Twelve Trees Care Home in Nether Edge, Sheffield, and Meadowbrook Manor in Garforth, Leeds — run outings the same way. Our day care clients come along too, so if your loved one attends during the week they are just as much a part of the trips as our full-time residents.
Ordinary outings are worth more than they sound. Giving people that back — properly, regularly, and without a bill attached — is one of the things we are proudest of.
Twelve Trees Care has been family owned since 1996 and is CQC registered and rated Good across our services.
If you would like a sense of what this actually looks like, ask us for the last three months of outings rather than the calendar for the month ahead. We would be delighted to show you, and to introduce you to the people who organise them.
Call 0330 1649 900 or get in touch through our contact page to arrange a visit to either our Sheffield care home or Meadowbrook Manor in Leeds.
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At Twelve Trees Care, we believe great care starts with real connection. Since 1996, we’ve been supporting families across South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire with high-quality, CQC-regulated care services — always delivered with heart, respect, and a personal touch.
Our Live-in Care offers far more than just daily assistance. It’s a complete support solution designed to give individuals comfort, safety, and dignity — all within the familiarity of their own home. Here’s what you can expect:
At Twelve Trees Care, we offer a complete range of professional care services tailored to meet individual needs.
CQC regulates Meadowbrook Manor Ltd to provide care at Meadowbrook Manor Ltd
