Intergenerational mixing


care is provided, including dementia and nursing support. Members of the wider community can take part in our day care service, known as ‘Experience Days’, and we also operate a registered home care service, which people living independently can benefit from.


This creates vibrant communities, with all the benefits that this brings, including a sense of belonging and reduced feelings of isolation. It also offers flexibility and continuity – people can access home care while living independently, at the village or in the wider community, and if their circumstances change, they can move to a household and receive round-the-clock support. The village approach allows customers to move freely, as you would in your own home.


Benefits


Some of the first residents to move into the village, including those living with


Magical experiences


Planned intergenerational opportunities include weekly stay-and-play sessions, a multi-generational choir, storytelling, poetry and dance workshops, and there are also regular events that are extended to include the wider community. Intergenerational practice facilitator Sophie McKeon works alongside village and nursery teams to create a truly shared environment where children and older people can actively spend time together building meaningful relationships and connections.


Telling stories


Belong Chester residents, nursery children, their parents and siblings came together for an inclusive storytelling session led by internationally acclaimed performance storyteller, Richard O’Neill, assembling around a virtual camp fire, complete with tipi and fairy lights, at The Nursery in Belong. The stories centred around the


adventures of three wooden puppets carved by Richard himself. After delighting audiences with tales of their adventures, children and older people were invited to work together to make their own puppets from twigs and scraps of material and tell stories about their creations. They then paraded their


Interest in this pioneering work is growing, nationally and internationally


dementia, are exhibiting improvements in physical and mental wellbeing and reporting how the nursery has enriched their lives and given them new purpose and meaning. Residents who initially said the nursery was a lovely idea but they would not get involved personally are now regular and enthusiastic attendees at intergenerational events.


This manifests in greater motivation to engage in physical activity, including walking longer and further when they go ‘prambling’ (taking little ones out in their prams with colleagues) and taking part in dance and movement sessions. A resident said: “I haven’t pushed a pram for over sixty years and it felt absolutely


brilliant. I had the best Friday of my life.” Intergenerational living is also contributing to reduced anxiety, with colleagues reporting that being around children is making people with dementia more relaxed.


creations around the care village, led by a drummer. Doreen Barnes, apartment tenant at Belong Chester, who attended the storytelling session said: “It was a lovely time with the children watching their imagination come to life. Storytelling is an age-old way of communicating that will never die. We learn and gain new skills from people’s stories, helping us to relate to others and make sense of the world.” According to Ruth Sandbach, manager at The Nursery in Belong: “Richard’s storytelling was really well received by both children and older generations, and the venue was full. The nursery has been established to encourage connections and friendships between generations, and storytelling is a key part of helping relationships to flourish. Richard is a keen supporter of the nursery and visits us regularly with his puppet friends to tell stories and hear the fabulous stories our children and older people create together.”


By supporting the children’s learning through such things as storytelling, reading, sharing memories, and teaching simple skills, there is improved cognitive functioning and mental wellbeing. Sue Egersdorrf makes the point that it caters for the needs created by changing family dynamics: “Many people living at Belong Chester live a distance away from children and grandchildren, so they welcome the opportunity to interact with the children and their families. Many parents of children attending the nursery have relocated for work opportunities from places such as India, Spain, Nigeria, and Ireland and don’t have older relatives close by, so they value the sustained friendships with residents.”


Measuring the impact Data since opening has been overwhelmingly positive, including feedback from parents and residents’ families. Our customers report that both planned and spontaneous interactions are changing their lives for the better, with their families also commenting on the difference children are making to their loved ones’ wellbeing. Reductions in isolation and loneliness have also been significant.


Tenants Alan and his wife Diana, who


lives with dementia, visit the nursery most days, often taking their pet budgie.


April 2024 www.thecarehomeenvironment.com 21


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