About us

We have been providing housing, residential and nursing care to former seafarers, their widows and dependants for more than 150 years. Our residential and nursing care home, Belvedere House, together with our sheltered flats, is situated within the idyllic grounds of the Weston Acres Estate, near Banstead, Surrey.

Coronavirus update

It is now two weeks since my last note to you and I considered that an update is appropriate to keep you well informed. The COVID 19 virus has since spread widely throughout the Nation and the Government has brought in some very significant, but justified, measures across the country. For us at Weston Acres, we have kept to our initial strategy and plans, strictly following the guidance of Public Health England and occasionally a touch ahead of them with sensible extra precautions. So far we have weathered this particular storm in reasonable shape, and with good fortune have not lost anyone to the epidemic - but I am very mindful of the possibility still. We currently have managed to only have five residents in isolation (two have since recovered) with varying degrees of symptoms and 15 staff members at home with symptoms (just 15%). These latter are a good spread across the departments which means that when they soon return to work (God Willing), we will be in increasingly good order to keep services running; I can assure you that the remaining staff are in very good spirits and working tirelessly, across department borders as necessary, to provide care, cleaning and food within a safe environment. Teamwork is key.

With the "peak" period of infection nationwide widely assumed to be in two or three weeks, our focus is very much on those in our care and tenants in our housing, keeping going in a disciplined manner maintaining good hygiene both personal and collective, deploying traditional nursing standards and isolating or distancing as is necessary. Stocks of food, cleaning equipment and protective gear are sufficient with resilient supply lines in place. Access to the buildings is strictly controlled, and for visitors limited, as previously announced. The Society is well founded and has sufficient reserves to draw on as necessary and for as long as necessary - a full complement of staff are being kept employed.

If I might end with a huge thank you to everyone for their extraordinary efforts and understanding; staff, volunteers and relatives alike. The generation for whom we care will acknowledge that they have been through similarly difficult times before and as a community have always pulled through. There is no reason why we shouldn't do so this time if we maintain our guard and apply ourselves, each and every one of us as a community to the task in hand - maintaining a sense of humour and compassion as we do of course!

God bless and good luck to all.

Chief Executive Commander Brian Boxall-Hunt OBE

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