Reading to Ruth

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Presents for a parent or grandparent in care

Gifts for someone in a care home

A room in a care home is small, the days are long, and the family can't always be there. The best presents fit all three: they take up little space, fill some of the hours, and bring a bit of you into the room.

By Tara Button, Ruth's granddaughter and the founder of Reading to Ruth · Updated 11 October 2026

Before you buy

  • Ask the home. Some have rules about plug-in electrical things, candles, or food and drink.
  • Label it. Clothes, blankets and gadgets wander. A name on everything brings them back.
  • Think about who will work it. Staff are kind and busy. A present that needs someone to set it going each day will mostly sit in a drawer.
  • Small is good. There is rarely room for more than a shelf and a bedside table.

Presents that bring the family into the room

  1. Their books, and your voices. I am biased about this one, because I make it. Reading to Ruth is an audiobook player with one big button, on a tablet they already have or one of the home's. The family add books and record voice messages from their own phones, wherever they live. Staff only need to keep the tablet charged, on the wi-fi and within reach. How to give it as a present.
  2. A digital photo frame the family can send pictures to. New photographs arrive without anyone having to visit.
  3. A small album of printed photographs, with names written large underneath. Good for conversations with carers as well as for them.
  4. Letters and postcards, often. A stamp is the cheapest present on this list. Children's drawings count.

Presents for comfort

  1. A soft blanket or shawl in a colour they love, for the chair.
  2. Good slippers with a proper sole and a back, or warm socks with grips.
  3. Hand cream, soap or scent they have always used. Familiar smells are a comfort.
  4. A favourite treat, in small amounts and often, once you have checked with the home about diet.

Presents for the long afternoons

  1. A simple radio, with large buttons and their station already set.
  2. A clock that shows the day as well as the time, in large letters, or one that speaks.
  3. A bird feeder outside the window, if the home is happy to have one, and someone to keep it filled.
  4. A plant or regular flowers. Something living, that changes through the week.
The present most people in care want is company. If you live far away, anything that carries your voice into the room is the next best thing.

Why I made the first one on this list

My grandmother Ruth is 101, almost completely blind and hard of hearing. One day she told me, “I'm just so bored.” I built Reading to Ruth for her, and now our family give her books to listen to, and send voice notes, poems and articles.

In a care home, nobody has to be in the room to add a book or fix an app. Each resident has their own player at their own private link, and the family do the rest from their phones.

Ruth's iPad on a tartan blanket on the arm of her chair, showing the player: one large play button and two small ones
The player on Ruth's own iPad: one big Play button, and two small ones.

Giving Reading to Ruth as a present

Reading to Ruth

A present the whole family keeps adding to.

Books and voice messages on one big button, sent from your own phones. Nothing comes in the post, and there is a card to print for the day.

Price from 1 January: £74.99 Founding price now: £49.99 once

Founding price until 31 December 2026. One payment for the whole family. No subscription.

Get started — £49.99Try the player first

60-day money-back guarantee, from the day they first use it.

Questions people ask

What do you buy someone who lives in a care home?

Things that take up little room and ask nothing of the staff: a soft blanket, good slippers, familiar hand cream, a simple radio, a photo album with names, and anything that brings the family's voices and pictures into the room.

What is a good gift for a care home resident with poor eyesight?

Presents to hear and touch: audiobooks on a player with one big button, a talking clock, a radio with large buttons, a soft blanket. There are more ideas in our list of presents for someone losing their sight.

Does Reading to Ruth work in a care home?

Yes, as long as there is wi-fi. It runs on the resident's own tablet or one of the home's, and staff need no login. Families add the books and messages from their own phones.

More to read

Gifts for a parent or grandparent who is losing their sightTwelve presents that don't need to be seen to be enjoyed. Audiobooks for someone living with dementiaWhat tends to help, what gets in the way, and how to set a player up so there is nothing to remember. A simple audiobook player for an elderly parent or grandparentWhat families usually try, why it so often ends up in a drawer, and what to look for instead. All our advice for familiesGuides to audiobooks, players and presents for someone who is older, blind or hard of hearing.