Memory book of activities

The sheer creativity and range of activities undertaken by the Memory Lane group members continues to impress us. As you will see from the fabulous report below (click to read), over the last few months members of the group have tried an array of art forms, including printing with vegetables, sculpting, drawing, printing, weaving, collage making and working with clay.

The Memory Lane Creative Sessions are funded by Boston Big Local and made possible through a strong partnership between Lincolnshire County Council, Boston Mayflower and local artists, including Carol Parker and James Sutton. The partners work together to devise and  deliver arts and crafts activities to people with dementia and their carers. The calming and relaxing effect of the arts and crafts sessions helps to increase mental wellbeing, improve concentration and naturally alleviate depression and stress. Arts and crafts also offer a alternative way to communicate if expression through verbal communication is a challenge.

The Memory Lane group is also of great value to carers, who get the chance to meet other people with dementia and their carers and form positive relationships. The sessions are a place where people whose lives are affected by dementia can discuss their experiences, swap information and advice, and feel supported.

There are usually between 10 and 12 people who attend the group regularly and participants are asked to contribute their ideas for future activities to ensure the sessions are tailored to the service users.

In March, local artist James Sutton attended a session, bringing with him a wide selection of materials for everyone to use. The group began by drawing sketches of a fish that they will then mould from clay using materials to create scales and patterns. James plans to use the models to make metal versions of everyone’s fish which will be put on public display on Sluice Bridge in Boston.