IT’S not always easy to get your five a day, but residents at a care home have been given tips about how to boost their fruit and veg intake.

Staff at Iffley Residential and Nursing Home hosted a healthy eating day, which featured a wide range of exotic fruit and winter veg.

To start the day residents at the home – which is run by Sanctuary Care – took part in an armchair exercise class.

This included light movements to help improve mobility and was followed by a refreshing treat.

Residents and the staff then peeled and sliced watermelon, blackberries, kiwis and other colourful fruit and vegetables before turning them into delicious smoothies.

Home manager Sue Stubberfield said: “We are very health conscious here so thought what better way to promote the fun and easy ways to live well – especially as many people will be trying to stick to new year’s resolutions this time of year.

“Eating healthy often has a bad reputation for being boring and we wanted to change this, we wanted to show everyone that if we can do it so can you.”

Charles Clapton, a 102-year-old resident who was once a farmer, said: “Eating healthy food and being active is so important and the smoothies were great – “I’ve always eaten healthily, I’ve never smoked or drank and others should try to be healthier if they can.”

The home in Anne Greenwood close regularly hosts events such as the healthy eating day for those who live there.

Resident Ethel Moffit, 89, said: “I really enjoyed the exercise, I felt much better for it.”

Sanctuary Care has operated since 1995 and aims to provide older people with high quality nursing and residential care.

It operates under a not-for-profit umbrella, with surpluses reinvested into providing affordable housing, maintaining existing properties and developing new services for customers.

In addition to the home in Iffley it has more than 100,000 units of accommodation across the country.