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Here at L4A, we believe that there is a first time for everything and, when we strive to enhance quality of life in care homes for older people, we are keen to ensure that people think outside the box and remain able to try new things.

To this end, we were delighted to host a recent RVS (Royal Voluntary Service) ‘First Time for Everything’ session bringing together residents from Agnes House care home and William House sheltered housing recently in a shared autumnal painting activity.

As well as learning new painting and colour techniques, the session was a huge success in bringing people together, helping people to share new learning experiences and having lots of fun.

At L4A, we always love to work with other charities and organisations too so please do get in touch with us (here: info@l4a.org.uk ) if you have some areas of shared interest that we could work on together.

RVS (Royal Voluntary Service) is a national charity built on local volunteering, giving support to people who need it in NHS hospitals and communities.

We were featured in the Daily Mirror on 10th May with our Baking a Difference funding win. Here is a link to the article and below are photos of this page.

We also featured in the local paper, the Leicester Mercury, on the same date and photos of this feature below too.

Thank you to both publications for focusing on positive news stories from care settings for older people and for sharing the great news about our charity winning £50,000 of funding to “dough good” work with!

Baking a Difference started last year when L4A received a small amount of funding from Awards for All to trial it in three places, Wyggeston Hospital, Harley Grange and Scraptoft Court.

“And it was absolutely fantastic,” says Fiona. “The principle is that through creative bread making sessions it brings people together. It sparks conversations, it keeps hands and minds busy, it offers physical activity and fun. It has something for everybody. People have a choice to be involved however much they wish, whether it’s in helping to make the bread from the start – or just eat it.

“We worked with a professional baker to offer group sessions, going through the process from the grain to the table. The baker, Michelle Stratford from Planet Leicester Bakers, would provide dough each week, and also look at a different part of the bread baking process. She even set up experiments, for example, to show what happens when fermentation creates gas, putting a balloon over a bottle to see it blow up.

“Bread baking appeals to many senses, from the smell to the touch and feel with kneading the dough and, of course, the taste when the bread is baked.

“It was really successful, enjoyed by everybody who engaged with it.”

Over the weeks interest grew. Fiona continues: “Some might have noticed sessions going on in the first week but not participated, in the second week they might have ‘come a little closer’ and enjoyed eating the bread and by the fourth week they were in the middle of it all!

“It got people talking about so many memories – the bread strikes, how their mothers used to make bread and the whole essence of family life really.

“Although for some conversation is impossible, there is a non-verbal element of bread baking where they can touch and feel, smell and taste. This means it is a very inclusive activity which engages people who could otherwise be left out.”

The £50,000 will help to widen the project to other care homes and sheltered housing in Leicester and Leicestershire and pay for the time and materials of the professional baker, as well as train and mentor volunteers from the community to offer Bread and Conversation sessions, so that the project has a sustainability and longevity.

“The idea will be to bring people into the homes and create ties with the community,” adds Fiona, “to create bonds of friendship and reduce any feelings of loneliness, isolation or boredom.

“We are so grateful for the support, that people appreciate and value what we do, and that we can continue to make a difference to so many older people’s lives.”

 

(This article is based on articles in the Leicester Mercury and The Daily Mirror on 10th May 2018.)

Baking a Difference is a project pioneered by L4A to bring older people in care homes and sheltered housing together with local communities, using bread baking activity. Following public voting the project has been awarded £50,000 from The People’s Projects and L4A’s project manager Fiona Smith couldn’t be more delighted.

“It is exceptionally lovely to have been chosen and voted for,” says Fiona. “There was a huge cheer when we found out we’d won. It is amazing how word can grow for an idea and we are really grateful to everyone who backed us.

“We are excited to get funding for Baking a Difference because, although it is a simple idea, there are so many ways to explore it – for example, discussing memories of bread at home, exploring bread from other cultures or bringing communities together to share bread.”

And she adds: “The news has arrived as L4A marks its 10^th anniversary so it couldn’t have come at a better time. What a way to celebrate!”

 

L4A is really excited to be one of the five organisations shortlisted in the Central East ITV region to compete for £50,000 in this years Peoples Project competition. This is being decided by a public vote online and we would very much like your vote!

We want to help ease the feelings of loneliness and isolation that older people in residential care can experience – and bring some of the outside world in to them. We could win £50,000 for our ‘Baking a Difference’ project; taking participative bread making into care homes and sheltered housing and involving the local community as well with regular ‘Bread and Conversation’ sessions.

We are going to be featured on the ITV Central 6pm News tonight, at some point between 6 and 6.30pm. (The film is also available to watch online here).

Voting is open now and runs through until Monday 30^th April at 12 noon.

All you need to do is to go here and click on ‘SELECT THIS PROJECT’

It would be great if you could help – we need as many votes as possible, so please do feel free to pass this on to your friends and family, like us on Facebook or retweet us as much as you can!!!

THANK YOU.

L4A is really excited to be one of the five organisations shortlisted in the Central East ITV region to compete for £50,000 in this years Peoples Project competition. This is being decided by a public vote online HERE and we would very much like your vote!

Voting is open from Monday and runs through until Monday 30^th April at 12 noon. It would be great if you could help by voting for us. We will need as many votes as possible, so please also pass this on to your friends and family. You could also help us out by liking us on Facebook, sharing our posts and retweeting us on Twitter us as much as you can! THANK YOU!

Our pitch for your vote will be shown on Central East ITV news between 6pm and 6.30pm on Monday 16th April 2018.

(More information about how to vote will follow on ASAP on Monday!)

Experience met imagination recently with beautiful results – all thanks to retired architect and L4A volunteer Nigel King.

Below is Nigel’s watercolour painting, capturing the faded charm of Evington Park House, in Leicester. This was the inspiration behind the ‘Painting by Numbers’ workshop he organised and expertly led at a ‘Keep Calm and Get Creative!’ Wellbeing Day, held at Evington Park House itself.

Nigel has been participating in L4A’s Social Prescribing project since June 2017 – first exhibiting his artwork at our patient-led community events within the Evington area.

Coming from an architectural design background much of his work is naturally influenced by buildings in both urban and rural settings, including pencil drawings and paintings of local landmarks.

On viewing his work, L4A’s Social Prescribing project coordinator Anita Barrand had a ‘light bulb moment’ and suggested to Nigel a ‘Paint by Numbers’ activity which would recreate the image of the Park House. Anita says she was aware it was ambitious – “but given Nigel’s consummate skill, both as draughtsman and artist, I instinctively knew this could work!”

Nigel commented “There are no rules in art and the concept of deconstructing and recreating something new appealed to me. Also, painting doesn’t have to be a lonely, solo exercise. This workshop was devised to be inclusive, enabling people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds to work together.

I was originally reluctant to get involved in the workshop because of the time commitment but although it did involve a lot of work I found myself looking at the historic building with new eyes and in more detail.

I enlarged the original artwork, re-drew and gridded it up then divided it into individual pieces so everyone could paint a square in their own way. Combined together, this produced a completely new, colourful work of art. It was a very sociable day and great to work with old friends and new acquaintances in a relaxed and happy atmosphere.

Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves; many said they would like to do this again. It felt very satisfying to be a part of such innovative activity with successful outcomes. Feedback during and after the session was extremely positive, with over 25 local people contributing to this collective community painting. Seeing my artwork make the front cover of the Evington Echo was an added bonus and a very pleasant surprise too! My thanks to all.”

This special event was run by a partnership between L4A’s Social Prescribing project, WEA and Friends of Evington, and was part of the wider Leicester Ageing Together festival ‘Celebrating Older People in Leicester 2017’. It provided an ideal opportunity to showcase the invaluable contribution older people can make to the life of their local community – something which is at the heart of L4A’s Social Prescribing project.

To find out more please contact Anita Barrand on 07964 091693 or email: anita.barrand@l4a.org.uk .