Residents at Castle Ham Lodge in Okehampton, run by housing association The Guinness Partnership, recently took part in an “action day” to improve the communal outdoor seating areas.

Castle Ham Lodge residents and staff worked with contractors from Novus Property Services to paint and refurbish benches, patio tables and chairs. Novus supplied a tiltable parasol and cover for the seating area, and installed a water butt at the front of the property to assist with watering.

Cups of tea and coffee flowed throughout the day, and once all the hard work was complete and the paint was dry, they could all sit back and enjoy their new seating area.

One of the residents who lives at Castle Ham Lodge, said: “I enjoyed planting in the garden, it makes me happy. I feel valued and supported.”

Lilyana Bowell, health and wellbeing co-ordinator from The Guinness Partnership, added: “I would like to thank everyone, especially the staff from Novus, who came along to support our gardening ‘action day’. It's projects like this that make a real difference for our residents’ wellbeing, and it was a fun and productive day.”

Novus has confirmed that it will provide additional seating for residents and visitors in the gardens as part of its social value commitment.

Katie Clarke from Novus Property Solutions said: “It was fantastic to be part of such a community-focused day, with so many residents getting involved and taking the time to speak with us. Seeing and hearing first-hand the positive impact that donations and action days like this have on residents, makes the work we do even more worthwhile.”

The Guinness Partnership, established more than 135 years ago, is one of England’s largest affordable housing providers. The organisation manages over 70,000 homes and serves more than 160,000 residents across the country.