Gillaroo Lodge Nursing Home celebrates after scooping ‘Best of the Best’ accolade

The award recognises the outstanding efforts Gillaroo Lodge has made in protecting and enhancing the natural environment in which the nursing home resides.

The competition, which is run by the Northern Ireland Amenity Council (NIAC), attracted almost 100 entries. A panel of judges inspected each facility for general tidiness, cleanliness and evidence of environmental improvements.

The results were announced at a ceremony at Clady Villa, Knockbracken Health Park recently, with a winner and runner up chosen in each health trust area in three categories; Best Kept Residential, Best Kept Daycare and Best Kept Healthcare Facility.

The ‘Best of the Best’ trophy is awarded to the facility that achieves the highest score from the judges across the five health trusts.

Liz Rowan, Director at Gillaroo Lodge said: “We are overwhelmed and very proud to accept this award. It is a fitting tribute to the effort put in by my dad Tom Boyle, Donald Eastop and the staff team here.

“Gillaroo Lodge was our family home for almost forty years before we turned it into a nursing home and my father has been instrumental in developing the garden from back then.

“The staff and residents all love to use the garden and really appreciate the mature planting, great big copper beech trees and all the interesting and quirky areas we have established over the years including our water features, Belfast sink planter, our greenhouse, the shed at the top of the garden and our vegetable patch where we grow vegetables for the residents to eat.”

Speaking at the event, Health Minister Edwin Poots said: “I extend my warmest congratulations to all the winners in this year’s Best Kept Health and Social Care Facility Awards. A well-cared for environment makes a real difference to the well-being of service users, which is so important in a health and social care setting.

“These awards highlight the hard work of Health and Social Care teams, along with their clients, as it is very often a joint effort, and their commitment to making the very best of their shared surroundings.

“Special congratulations to overall winner Gillaroo Lodge Nursing Home on winning this prestigious award, well done, it is a great achievement to all involved,” the Minister concluded.