Sporting Memories Network promotes the well-being of people living with dementia by embedding inclusive, accessible, community-based projects that tap into people’s passion for sport. Delivered through city and county-wide projects, activities take place in care homes, day centres, libraries, museums, sports clubs, sports stadiums and pubs.
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Activities include group reminiscence sessions, the sharing of weekly reminiscence newspapers, writing or recording individual memories and group or individual creative activities. Participants are encouraged to record their sporting histories, and their memories can be shared with sports fans across the UK, helping to trigger more memories in groups across the country.
The activities are designed to put the person with dementia at the very centre, to promote socialisation and communication and to enable people to tell their stories through sport. While sporting images, memorabilia and archive reports spark initial conversations about memories of sport, heroes and matches, conversations frequently broaden to include families, communities and many more memories.
To raise awareness and encourage fans living with dementia to engage with their favourite clubs, Sporting Memories Network also work with high-profile Premier League, Football League, rugby and cricket clubs to stage intergenerational ‘memories games’. Each club’s match-day programme features information about dementia and Dementia Friends, reaching thousands of ordinary sports fans of all ages, while the games themselves attract high levels of media coverage.
MORE INFORMATION:
The Dementia Friendly Communities programme focuses on improving inclusion and quality of life for people with dementia. The Alzheimer’s Society’s five year strategy includes a key ambition to work with people affected by dementia and key partners to define and develop dementia friendly communities. Dementia Friends is a key part of the Dementia Friendly Communities programme. The Prime Minister’s challenge on dementia also includes an ambition to create communities that are working to help people live well with dementia.
For more information on Dementia Friendly Communities visit https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/get-involved/dementia-friendly-communities
For more information visit http://www.sportingmemoriesnetwork.com
