September is World Alzheimer’s Month, which raises awareness of and encourages support for people living with dementia. In Halton there will be a month of training workshops in creativity, for carers working in the Borough’s care homes.
Imaginative exercises have been shown to have a positive impact on the health of people living with dementia. They can improve feelings of anxiety and loneliness and increase communication and make people feel they are part of a community. This month’s training events will teach carers creative exercises that can be done on a daily basis and include spoken word, poetry, music, singing, drama and improvisation.
The training workshops are based on research, undertaken by North West based theatre company Collective Encounters, on the ways in which theatre can improve the lives of people living with dementia. The research began in 2016 and was updated in light of Covid-19. The training includes exercises that can be done via video call, through the post or even just over the telephone. The training workshops are supported by copies of the 32-page Guide to Everyday Creativity for People Living with Dementia which are left with carers in care homes as reference tools for the future.
Annette Burghes, Executive Director for Collective Encounters said,
“This is the 3rd edition of this Guide. It has proved an invaluable tool for many people living with dementia providing stimuli for activities, conversation and most importantly fun! We’ve delivered these workshop in all corners of the Liverpool City Region, and a Turkish version of the Guide has also been rolled out in care settings in Istanbul, we’re delighted to be working with Halton Borough Council this September”.
Copies of the Guide to Everyday Creativity for People Living with Dementia are available from Collective Encounters. People working in care settings are encouraged to get in touch with the company to find out more.
Contact:
annette@collective-encounters-org.uk
tessa@collective-encounters.org.uk
0151 345 6266
