A series of maritime themed reminiscent events are being launched at an Extra Care facility in Hull.
From June 2022, volunteers along with the Hull Maritime team are running events to spark memories and conversations at Redwood Glades, an Extra Care facility ran by housing association Riverside for people aged over 18 with care needs, based on Leads Road.
In March 2020, a group of volunteers completed the Alzheimer’s Society ‘Dementia Friend’ training, and now these volunteers will work with residents to host regular community drop-in sessions with access to the onsite restaurant, Flavourz.
The monthly sessions, developed in partnership with The Fisherman’s Mission, will focus on sharing memories, stories, and life experiences from the city’s seafaring past as well as handling artefacts from the Maritime Museum’s handling collection. There will also be net mending, readings, craft activities and archival footage to stimulate talking points for residents.
The reminiscent sessions are part of Hull Maritime, a locally led project funded by Hull City Council and The National Lottery Heritage Fund to transform the city’s key maritime treasures. Elements include the refurbishment of Hull Maritime Museum and Dock Office Chambers, the creation of a new visitor attraction at the North End Shipyard and the restoration of two ships, the Arctic Corsair and Spurn Lightship.
Councillor Mike Ross, Leader of Hull City Council, said: “Sharing stories and reminiscing is a good way to make connections and ignite conversations as well as improving people’s wellbeing and mental health. This is more important than ever right now.
“By working with residents from Redwood Glades, this new resource can make a real difference.”
Alan Marples, Area Manager at Redwood Glades, commented: “We’re really pleased to welcome the Hull Maritime team and volunteers to Redwood Glades.
“Museums are usually places to explore and talk about the past, so reminiscent activities brought in-house like this are great opportunities for our residents to socialise and look back together from the comfort of their home.
“Our teams at Riverside work closely with people who have Dementia and their families and these sessions will really complement the care we provide in extra care, especially in knowing the volunteers are Dementia Friendly trained. We’ve been really looking forward to them coming!”
David Renwick, Director, England, North at the National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “We’re delighted to be supporting Hull Maritime in recording and sharing these important seafaring memories, thanks to National Lottery funding.
“Encouraging people to discover and share their history is also great for people’s wellbeing and strengthening communities, and this fantastic intergenerational project is a great example of just that.”
Last year, maritime activity packs ‘Maritime Memories’ to help people living with dementia were created and will be used as part of this resource.
The sessions are also open to the public and take place on the last Wednesday of every month, 2 – 4pm.
If successful, these sessions could be expanded to other Extra Care facilities within the city.
