In this one-to-one activity participants create a story or poem that they can keep and share with family and friends. It is designed to be relaxed, supportive and flexible to meet the needs and feelings of everybody who takes part.
Credit:
Nicola Abraham and Victoria Ruddock / Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Developed in partnership with Imperial College Healthcare Trust, Dementia Care Team.
This activity has been successfully used at the Royal Exchange Theatre’s Elders Coffee Mornings on Zoom. It is a fun and engaging way to start conversations and get people involved.
Credit:
Royal Exchange Theatre Elders Company / Graham and Tony.
Familiar, well-known tunes can be used to facilitate singing together, even when you don’t know all the words. By changing or completely removing the ‘original’ words to the song, you can make it fit any circumstance!
Credit:
Manchester Camerata / Music in Mind.
This versatile communal activity combines visual art with movement, through live or recorded music. You can adapt this activity in different ways depending on your context and resources.
Credit:
Entelechy Arts / Florence Peake, Shane Waltener, Sarah Jarman, Malcolm Buchannan-Dick, Rainer Knupp, Cai Tomos. Developed in partnership with Tower Bridge Care Home, and as part of Lewisham Creative Ageing Festival.
There is nothing like a tambourine round to focus a group of people and bring their attention into the here and now. It is suitable for everyone and can be repeated and practised for as long as the participants are enjoying it.
Credit: Manchester Camerata: Music in Mind.
This activity invites participants to design their own superhero characters, then create a percussive sound effect or rhythm to go with their superpower. The sounds can then be added to a live narrative or individually recorded and added to a podcast, for example.
Credit: Andrea Vogler. Developed in partnership with Made by Mortals, who are part funded by Action Together, in partnership with Hearts and Minds Theatre Company.
Our campaign
It is anticipated that there will be 1.14m people living with dementia in the UK by 2025, according to Alzheimer’s Research – up from around 885,000 in 2022.
What’s the change we’re seeking to make?
We believe that everyone living with dementia should have access to music as part of their care from diagnosis to end of life, whatever their age, social or economic status. This is not currently the case.
Bring singing into your care home, quickly and easily, by streaming a pre-recorded singing session from our free library. You will be joining a community of over 850 care homes across the UK who engage with our virtual singing sessions.
Read More This activity is an ideal way for facilitators and participants to find out about each other, sharing their identities and stories through music as well as being introduced to, and discovering new music.
Credit: The Orders of St John Care Trust, Monkscroft Care Centre: Sarah Davis and Beata McLean, Developed in partnership with Live Music Now: Douglas Noble and Julia Turner
Launched in May 2015, A Choir in Every Care Home is an initiative to explore how music and singing can feature regularly in care homes across the country.
The Toolkit for Care Homes, aimed at care homes and musicians, provides practical tips and advice on how to bring music into the lives of care home residents.
Watch 5 videos made by Live Music Now on how to lead a music session.
Live Music Now work with a very diverse range of people in different settings including care homes.
Live Music Now has eight regional branches. To find a professionally trained musician to come and do a session in your care home see listings in a wide range of different genres and then contact your regional branch for their contact details.
Music in Hospitals & Care improves the health and wellbeing of children and adults through the healing power of live music.
Every year, the charity’s professional musicians share live music with people across the UK who may not otherwise get to experience it. This includes those living with dementia, who have mental health problems, or who are seriously ill.
