|
|
| Home About Us Our Work Projects Intergenerational Training Services | |
| News & Events Contact Us Visit Us Fundraising Funders |
| Projects |
| < Back to Past Projects > Creative Ageing |
   Scenes from the Creative Ageing production 'Mothers of Invention', Holmfirth, West Yorkshire 2004     Scenes from the Creative Ageing production 'A View From The High Beech', Cromer, Norfolk 2003  Scene from the Creative Ageing production 'Do As You Damn Well Pleasey', Theatre Museum, London 2003 |
The National Creative Ageing Project 2002 - 2005 This project consisted of direct work with older people and their carers, using a combination of reminiscence and arts skills to enable the older people to develop new forms of expression, and share their learning and life-experiences. The work was based on the development of good relationships built on trust, understanding and respect, between the project workers, older disabled people, care staff, volunteers and managers of services. Our role as reminiscence arts workers and coordinators is to enable and facilitate an enjoyable and creative process with older disabled people and their carers. The work involves risk-taking with safeguards, monitoring and support throughout the entire process. Risk-taking is healthy and developmental with good support systems and individually appropriate activities. Reminiscence and creativity go hand in hand. There are many opportunities for different kinds of creative activities that arise from shared reminiscences. This maximises choice for participants, and gives the added option of sharing the value with a wider audience. The Arts and Health 'Creative Ageing' was an Arts and Health Project that explored the links between reminiscence, creativity, health and well-being. Older people in care settings remain relatively excluded. This project recognised their ability to produce art based on their life-stories that is both entertaining and educational. The rest of society will benefit from learning from these too often neglected talents. We must give them equal opportunities to be creative and to be valued as being creative. Expectations of older disabled people are unrealistically and damagingly negative. They are capable of far more than mere passive acceptance of whatever entertainment is put on offer for them. They are capable of active involvement in and direction of the creative process and creative outcomes. They are at a stage in life that provides the opportunity for a reflective and late perspective on the life they have lived - an opportunity for the distillation of life-experience and the fine honing of shared life-stories. Involvement in projects like this gives older disabled people the opportunity to change attitudes by reversing the conventionally perceived gift relationship of carer giving to older person, with the older person being represented as merely a receiver of care. There are two-way mutual benefits for all concerned in successful reminiscence projects. Our memories are potentially inspirational for ourselves and for others. Components of the Project The project was made up of a nationwide package of reminiscence projects, training workshops, open days and performances, focusing on three English regions. "Creative Ageing" aimed to establish a wide-ranging programme of sustainable reminiscence arts activities in a variety of health and social care settings for older people around England. From consultation with local coordinators and practitioners, we knew that different areas were at different stages of development, and had different targets and ways of moving forward. Some were at the very beginning of their reminiscence developments, some wished to move on to new special interest groups (such as dementia care or schools work), and some wished to move into new creative fields (such as visual arts or theatre). A number of training workshops, reminiscence presentations and theatre performances were offered anywhere in England. The main components of the project were:
The three focus regions were West Yorkshire, Norfolk and the West Country. We concentrated the project work here because of good links with coordinators who were experienced reminiscence practitioners, and who had good networking foundations. In one focus region a year we developed a new locally trained team of reminiscence project workers, ran a series of reminiscence arts projects in care settings, and raised awareness amongst local funders and managers of services about the value of such services. In another focus region we ran a creative arts residency (apart from Year 3 where we worked with different Merchant Navy Associations). By the end of the year the project had produced in the focus region a new team of local trained reminiscence project workers, a series of creative arts reminiscence projects in care settings, and an end-of-year seminar open to practitioners, managers, funders and all interested professionals. Department of Health Section 64 Project Grant Criteria The Department of Health recognised the value of the project proposal for older people in health and social care settings, and gave Age Exchange three-year project funding in order to initiate and nurture further national developments. The Department believed that we met their Section 64 Project Grant criteria in a number of ways. Many 'buzz words' are talked and written about in relation to services for older people: for example, 'Active Ageing and Lifelong Learning', 'Person Centred Care', 'Holistic Care', 'Social Inclusion', and the 'Social Model of Disability'. Reminiscence arts projects, properly conducted with trained and experienced workers, bring these 'buzz words' to life with demonstrably enjoyable and productive activities for older people. Creative Ageing - Final Report A final report on the project, with analysis of findings, is being written now, and will be available soon. For information on this and other aspects of the project contact: berniearigho@age-exchange.org.uk more about our work in Outreach & Care > |
| back to top > |
| < Back to Past Projects |
| © Age ExchangeTheatre Trust Ltd. 2008 (a company limited by guarantee) Registered in England No. 1929724. Registered Office 11 Blackheath Village, London SE3 9LA Registered as Charity No: 326899 Patrons: Roy Hudd OBE Glenda Jackson MP Rt. Hon. Nick Raynsford MP Sir Sigmund Sternberg KCSG JP |