To celebrate International Women’s Day on Friday 8th March, one female care home resident from Sutton Coldfield has been sharing the advice she’d give to her younger self.

Jean Tabberer, resident at Care UK’s Mercia Grange on Lichfield Road – joined residents from across the UK to share what they think young women today should know.

The advice overwhelmingly focused on being yourself and enjoying life to the full. Jean, 96, said: “I would tell young women to get the most out of their life and be as active as possible.”

Adding that the most important life lesson was to stay in control of your life and treat other people as you’d expect to be treated – she said she would advise her younger self: “Do the things you enjoy and don’t be pushed into anything. Money matters but doing something you enjoy matters more.”

International Women’s Day is a global day which has been marked since 1911, and celebrates women’s achievements while calling for a more gender-balanced world.

Shirley Gibbs, home manager at Mercia Grange, said: “We wanted to celebrate International Women’s Day, and what better way to mark this special occasion than by asking residents to share their words of wisdom and advise for young women today. It has proved to be a valuable opportunity for reminiscence, and has already got everyone talking at Mercia Grange among residents, and their friends and family.

“Jean’s positive words are just some of many that we’ve captured as part of the project and we hope they will motivate women across the country to share their own achievements and successes. We are very proud of all our inspirational women at Mercia Grange and I’m sure women today will benefit greatly from some of the life lessons they have been sharing.”

Mercia Grange is a state-of-the-art care home which provides full-time residential, nursing, dementia, and short-term respite care. The three-storey care home, which features 67 ensuite bedrooms, has been designed to enable residents to live active and fulfilled lives, while also promoting independence. The care home incorporates space for hobby and leisure activities, and includes its own cinema, hair salon and café.

For more information about how Care UK is taking part in International Women’s Day, visit: careuk.com/care-homes/IWD

For more information, email customer relations manager, Rachel MacKay, at rachel.mackay@careuk.com, or call 0121 314 3196.

For more general information, please visit: careuk.com/mercia-grange