This month we chat with Carol who cares for her husband Ken. Carol has been a member of our Natural Yarns activity club, which connects people with dementia and their carers with nature and the outdoors. Carol and Ken have an amazing positive attitude towards life, taking each day as it comes.
Can you tell us a bit about yourselves?
My beloved husband Ken has been ill since 1994 and 6 years ago was diagnosed with both vascular dementia and inoperable spinal stenosis. Continue reading
This month we chat to Rose Pickering – dementia project lead at Sydenham Garden. Rose works to improve the quality of life for people living with dementia by incorporating nature and the outdoors.
Can you give a brief outline of what you do at Sydenham Garden and the type of people you work with?
Sydenham Garden is a unique wellbeing centre utilising its gardens, nature reserve and activity rooms to help people in their recovery from mental and physical ill-health in Lewisham, London. Continue reading
We chat with Ellie Robinson Carter who, as a student set up Penryn Memory Cafe.
Why did you decide to set up Penryn Memory Cafe?
As a student at York University I led a memory café for people living with dementia in the local area. This came about when I lost my grandfather to dementia; I sought to understand his journey, and help others whose lives were also affected by dementia. On moving to Penryn, to study for my MA I wanted to continue volunteering with people living with dementia. Continue reading
As autumn approaches it can often feel like the garden is winding down for the winter. While there are many clearing and pruning jobs to be done it is also important to remember that the garden and in fact any outdoor green space can be an important indicator that the seasons are changing. Gardens provide us with a wealth of sensory experience, and when caring for people with dementia, gardens can be used Continue reading
We have recently been running some sessions in London exploring textiles and natural objects. We have been using these materials to encourage reminiscence and conversations in a very hands on, sensory way. Continue reading
We ran a course last week for care home workers and had some great discussions regarding top tips for running nature based activities. Although our course was aimed at engaging and inspiring care home workers to incorporate nature into care plans, these tips work for anyone caring for someone. Continue reading
A few months ago I was fortunate to be contacted through this blog by Michael who works for National Autistic Society, and runs Forest School sessions. Micheal has started using our resource gofindit to maximise the benefits of sensory learning and kindly agreed to write about his experiences for this blog. Continue reading
