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Welcome...
Welcome to a special IDOP Community Events ebulletin from Leeds Older People's Forum about the events that took place to celebrate International Day of Older People (IDOP).
LOPF staff were out in full force attending different events across the city based on this year's theme of 'Health and Wellbeing.'
All of the events were for older people, some aimed at the general public, others open to members of the host organisation.
These events helped promote Leeds as a 'City for all Ages' and demonstrate the wonderful contribution that older people make to Leeds
Positive images from the Community Events for IDOP 2015 were shared on Twitter using the hashtag #IDOPLDS, the LOPF Facebook page and on the Blog Page of the LOPF website.
We've pulled together write-ups and reports from most of the events, in their own words, and some reviews from LOPF staff that attended the events.
Enjoy!
Jim and Sean
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Celebratory Day of Dance for Older People, Leeds Dance Studio
By Jim Garside, Leeds Older People's Forum
The Dance Studio Leeds held a Celebratory Day of Dance for Older People, with two afternoon dance workshops led by Leeds Creative Contemporary Dance, as part of the International Day of Older People celebrations.
The first workshop ‘Dance for People Living with Dementia’ was a dance and movement session led by Kim Glassby and by all accounts a resounding success.
I was fortunate enough to attend the second workshop, a Creative Contemporary session led by Rosemary Spencer, which gave people of all ages the chance to experience their inclusive dance approach.
Rosemary took the opportunity to chat with me about how the event celebrates body wisdom, community and respect for older people.
“It’s about an intergenerational community moving together,” she said. “We’re all older people and they’re us.”
Dancers ambled barefoot into Studio 2 – around fifteen women, of all ages, dressed comfortably in t-shirts, sportswear, joggers and sweatpants.
The group included Leeds Creative Contemporary Dance members, dancers of mixed abilities, members of the public and an enthusiastic toddler with mum in tow.
The studio was hot, but the atmosphere was warm and friendly, with a sprung dance floor, Ballet Barres, and full-length mirrors along the left-hand side of the room.
Rosemary gathered the women into a circle and welcomed them to a participatory dance and movement workshop on the theme of seeing.
After a quick warm-up she got them to walk round, make eye contact and turn their walk and gaze into a dance.
The women were enthused and she soon had them dancing in response to each other’s movements.
Eye contact led the dance as dancers opened up their partnership, from duets to groups, and danced with other people.
Rosemary asked the group to imagine a horizon, keep their eyes to that imagined horizon and start to move in simple ways.
She took them on a guided meditation that led each of them from hushed stillness into a natural dance that one participant described as a trance-like experience.
As a young mum held an elegant position upside-down on the floor her child carefully balanced a toy on the back of her head.
Next they had to pick a fixed point in the room – such as an inanimate object – and dance in relation to that before switching focus to a point on someone else’s body.
Rosemary asked the group to pretend they had eyes on different parts of their body and let them lead them around the room.
They incorporated movements with eyes in the palms of their hands, on top of their head, on front of their knees, on the soles of their feet, and all along their spine.
The dancers came to rest with a heightened awareness of the space around them and how they moved within it.
Rosemary sat with the group in a circle.
She outlined the rest of the session and explained how they’d build upon the workshop exercises to share their work and perform their ideas together.
The room bustled as dancers improvised in small groups – it was lovely to see their camaraderie as they experimented and played with ideas.
The dancers split into three groups to work out their routines and get ready to perform.
The groups danced in turn as the others sat with their backs against the full-length mirrors and watched.
Each performance was unique – from witty and dynamic to and poised and choreographed – and the other dancers applauded and responded to their work.
The session ended as everyone joined together in a circle, raised and lowered their arms in time with their breathing, and thanked their bodies for being there for them.
Rosemary said: “It has been a pleasure to dance with you all.”
Some dancers hugged Rosemary and each other before leaving; others stayed to chat after the event.
It occurred to me that we move through time like dancers move through space – always in relation to each other.
I’d like to thank The Dance Studio Leeds, Leeds Creative Contemporary Dance and all the participants who kindly allowed me to sit in on the day.
As someone who lives in his head most of the time it was a joy to witness so many gifted people express themselves through movement and dance.
www.thedancestudioleeds.com
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Belle Isle Elderly Winter Aid's IDOP Event
By Steve Brewer, BIEWA
 This year's event, held by Belle Isle Elderly Winter Aid, took place at the Belle Isle Family Centre.
Belle Isle Elderly Winter Aid is a registered charity whose primary function is to assist older people (over 60 years of age) to live independently in their own homes for as long as possible.
One of the factors in achieving this is the combating of social isolation and this event forms part of a rolling social programme.
At the start of the day the 30 attending members were collected by taxi or the organisation's minibus and brought to the Centre.
Winter Aid have a weekly Gentle Exercise Group and to start off the event members of the group gave a demonstration of the kind of exercise they enjoy every Monday. The purpose of this demonstration was both to have a light-hearted show and to encourage other members to join.
After the demonstration the members were given a 2 course hot meal provided by Health for All.
The event continued with a quiz, bingo and a raffle with 11 Christmas Food Hampers as prizes.
In keeping with the Fitness and Sport theme for this year's IDOP there was a stand available throughout the event relating to sporting memorabilia for Leeds United, Hunslet Rugby Club and Leeds Rugby Club. Some of the memorabilia was kindly loaned by members and consisted of books, photographs, a signed Leeds United football, match day programmes and scarves.
Member comments:
"the photographs took me back to watching Hunslet years ago"
" coming to the exercise class has helped me to get up my home stairs easier"
" not sure I would get out of the house without Winter Aid"
"wish I had joined years ago"
"love coming to these events because its not just Bingo like some places I go"
At the end of a very enjoyable few hours transport home was provided.
www.belleisle.org.uk
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Chapel Allerton Good Neighbours
By Sue Johnston, Royal Voluntary Service
Chapel Allerton Good Neighbours celebrated older people's day on the 7th October at the Chapel Allerton Methodist Hall.
Councillor Dawson joined in our celebration with a ceremonial cutting of the cake to open the event. We had various local organisations including Carers Leeds, Specsavers, Inkwell, Fire Service, Feel Good Factor and Health Trainers from St Martin's Practice came to provide information and advice.
One of the highlights was a show stopping taster session in Bollywood dancing by Kath Morgan Thompson. This was so much fun that we didn't actually realise we were exercising! Kath followed this by a wonderful relaxing Yoga session.
Our very own Colin Hamilton performed a taster session with his regular Tai Chi group. This was fantastic as everyone could have a go. whatever their ability. We have had several enquiries about the Tai Chi group as people could see what the session involved and how accessible it is.
Sylvia Rudge, one of our volunteers showed us how to make beautiful paper flowers and butterflies. A technique I shall definitely be using for Christmas decorations.
The Fruit Stall at Chapel Allerton kindly provided wonderful fresh fruit and vegetables for the event which we used to make tasty treats. Heather Thompson, a volunteer and star baker, made an array of healthy, tasty bakes.
The event was a fabulous celebration of older people and the contribution they make to our communities.
www.royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk
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‘Hawthorn Mill Olympics 2015’ - Hawthorn Mill Sheltered Housing
By Sue Hendry, Hawthorn Mill Sheltered Housing
Flags were flying, hearts were beating and fingers were itching to take one of the prized medals, whether it be Gold, Silver or Bronze.
The Competition Tables were named after countries that had hosted the Olympics in previous years.
The day started with gentle exercise in the chair to limber up those muscles, muscles long-forgotten but soon remembered. The joint sing-a-long ensured quality breathing.
The games began. Beetle Drive, Dominoes, Bean Bag in the cheese and Hoopla.
Tempers ran high, sweating temples raged and staring eyes tried to intimidate other players. Tables of four battled to find the finalists and then we had to break for a very healthy lunch.
The Championships began. It was a fierce battle but those who stood their ground, were victorious.
Jenny Brierley Chief Executive of Connect Housing attended to present the medals to the victors.
The Hawthorn Mill March, composed by Eddie Ogden (tenant of Hawthorn Mill) and played by The Wetherby Silver Band (on CD), echoed through the Lounge and corridors of Hawthorn Mill.
Thanks to Leeds Older Peoples Forum and Connect Housing for their support. The theme of the day, ‘Keeping Healthy and Active’ was certainly achieved!
www.connecthousing.org.uk
Some of the competitors International Day of Older People
‘Hawthorn Mill Olympics 2015’
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Horsforth Live at Home Scheme
By Hilary Taylor
Horsforth Live at Home Scheme celebrated The International Day of Older People on Tuesday the 6th of October with a great party.
It was held in their base, Central Methodist Church Church – opposite the Library.
Although this was a departure from the usual Tuesday Bacon Buttie luncheon club, members wasted no time in settling down with their coffee to dominoes, jigsaws and a variety of board games.
Rather more active games were on offer in the hall: indoor bowls, in the morning and table tennis in the afternoon. The more daring could even try their hand at archery. If you had always fancied skiing down a mountainside a Wii was available to make your dreams come true.
In one corner of the dining room a table was set out with photographs medals, trophies the precious memories of members and reminders of times past. There was also a Wall of Fame where members could record their own sporting achievements ranging from winning the egg and spoon at 6 years old to representing Leeds in national sprint finals.
A lavish healthy buffet was supplied which was available all day. Everyone skilled or less skilled really enjoyed themselves: there were some real surprises too, especially in the table tennis, where one rather quiet gentleman exhibited style and skill and played everyone off the table.
Members of Live at Home will see one another in a different light next time they meet, both for their past achievements and for the skills they can still reveal.
All this was made possible with a grant of £185 from Leeds Older People’s Forum.
Many of the board games and jigsaws which the scheme was able to buy will from now on be available for members to enjoy. More memorable days are ahead.
www.mha.org.uk
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Afternoon Tea Party and Race Game - St Augustine's Court Leeds
By Angela Barker, Sheltered & Supported Housing, Leeds City Council
Our Older Peoples Day Event was wonderful.
We decorated the communal lounge with colourful bunting & tablecloths. We also managed to borrow some lovely teacups & saucers and tableware for the event. We made flyers to advertise our event so everyone was aware of the day so it wouldn’t be missed.
All the food was bought or made fresh that morning. We specifically catered for all our residents to reflect their religious or dietary requirements to ensure that no one was felt to be excluded.
We prepared all the food and set it out on the decorated tables and colourful plates & cutlery. We were on hand to make the cups of tea or coffee for the residents, all served in fancy teapots.
Everyone said how nice it was as it felt like a proper party. They all enjoyed the lovely food provided including sandwiches, savories, fancy cup-cakes and gateaux.
The Race Day Event was enjoyed by all.
We explained to the residents how the Race Game worked. The DVD Race Game plays horse races.
We had made a points system so the residents could win points for 1st, 2nd & 3rd Place if their chosen horse were in the first 3, past the post.
Everyone got the chance to see the line- up of horses before having their “bet”. They then chose which horse they fancied. (all the horses had silly names which brought some laughter) eg “Drunk as a Skunk”- “Blind as a Bat” – “Completely Crackers” – “Eat My Shorts” – “Soup Slurper” – “Shut That Door” – “ Holy Mackerel” to name a few.
SSOs kept a record of who had chosen which horse and wrote them a slip. Everyone was helped to make a bet so everyone had the same chances of winning. Then the race (DVD) was played (on DVD player). The residents had fun shouting & cheering their horse to win.
They all had a laugh over the names of the horses and shouting out the horses name to go faster. They also had fun when choosing the horses as they made comical references to each other and themselves.
We had 6 races in total. The residents who scored the highest points could win prizes of £20, £10 & £10 in Shopping Vouchers from Morrisons.
At the end we had 1 clear winner who won the £20 voucher, 3 second place winners who each won a £5 voucher and 2 third place winners who won a £5 voucher each.
Every one said it was a great day and can they do it all again sometime. They all thanked the SSOs for making it such an enjoyable day. We also received a Thank You letter for our efforts from one of the residents.
The Race game event can be used again as there are 10 more games on it so we will look to do another race day afternoon for them all possibly at Christmas.
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The Fun Day for Elderly - Leeds Chinese Community Centre
By Judy Pease, Leeds Chinese Community Association
The Fun Day for Elderly 2015 was held on 10th October 2016 Saturday at the Leeds Chinese Community Centre.
We had 4 different activities during the day:
(1) Feeling well and overcoming loneliness Talk (Speaker: Ms Liu Qing Wang, the acupuncturist, Interpreter: Ms Suk Yee Lee);
(2) Chinese Tai Chi Fan Dance (Dancer: Ms Ming Wang from Manchester);
(3) Healthy Cooking / Taster (Chefs: Mr & Mrs Sung helped by elderlies);
(4) Memory Games (Presenters: Mr & Mrs Pease helped by volunteers).
First of all, Ms Liu Qing Wang explained to us that it is not only old persons who feel loneliness. We learnt from Ms Liu Qing Wang to massage the acupuncture points on the body to help to release the loneliness feeling. She also demonstrated live acupuncture. Ms Liu Qing Wang spoke in Mandarin and Ms Suk Yee Lee translated into Cantonese.
Secondly, we learnt from Ms Ming Wang about the Tai Chi Fan Dance. She explained to us Tai Chi is a very slow movement exercise, very good for the elderly. She taught us how to use the Chinese hand fan and followed the Chinese music to make some moves.
Thirdly, we learnt how to make dumpling wraps and the stuffing; we followed Mrs Sung step by step, and it was not so difficult to make them. Many people joined in this activity, and everyone enjoyed eating them later.
Finally, we learned to sing a lot of old songs, many of the elderly could only remember the melodies and tunes but they couldn’t remember the name of the songs. Younger family members then helped them to guess the names of the songs. This was very interactive between family members.
As a result of this event, our elderly enjoyed the whole day, they all stayed for all the activities. They said an hour for the acupuncture demonstration was too short and wanted to know more; they loved the Tai Chi Fan dance, they wanted us to set up a Tai Chi Fan dance class at the community centre for every Saturday; the dumplings were so yummy; the old songs brought back happy memories for the elderly and they said this event was a great opportunity to let them to have a lovely time with their younger family members.
www.lcca-uk.org
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Keep Happy & Healthy - International Day of Older People
In celebration of International Day of Older People on Wednesday 7th October we hosted a 'Keep Happy & Healthy event.
Participants enjoyed Irish music courtesy of Irish Arts Foundation, light exercises, lunch and health boosting smoothies at St Anthony's Church Hall in Beeston.
A great day was had by all and some great tips on how to stave off coughs & colds in the approaching winter months!
www.lihh.org
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Evening of Dance - Neighbourhood Action in Farnley
By Karen Buckland, Neighbourhood Action In Farnley, New Farnley & Moor Top
For our IDOP Event this year, we chose a “barn dance” theme and decided to hold it in the evening, which turned out to be a lovely experience!
We spent Thursday afternoon decorating the Community Centre where we are based and within a few hours had transformed it with fairy lights, checked tablecloths, bunting, and even bales of hay, to resemble a local “hoedown!”
Our entertainment troupe “Mrs Porter’s Ensemble “arrived and preceded to set up for the festivities ahead. This being our first evening event we were anxious that enough people would come and as we had sold only 10 tickets in advance were unsure of what to expect.
We needn’t have worried, as when the start time of 6.30pm approached, people turned up at the door to buy tickets and join us - around 30 older people in all.
It was a lovely relaxed evening and the troupe performed many classic dances for us such as “tea for two”, the military 2 step” and traditional waltzes…with a smattering of “honour your partners” for the cowgirls among us. Everyone joined in, dancing and clapping along.
A lovely supper of pie and peas was served, washed down with various refreshments and a traditional music hall singalong. We can’t wait for next year.
Neighbourhood Action in Farnley is a Neighbourhood Network for Older people in West Leeds.
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Cross Gates & District Good Neighbours’ Scheme
Cross Gates & District Good Neighbours’ Scheme CIO is one of 37 Neighbourhood Network Schemes in Leeds all working with older people to reduce social isolation and improve quality of life.
We celebrated Older Peoples Week with a third event , thanks to the grant provided by LOPF, using it as the launch event for our T-Days work at its new venue – Cross Gates Working Mens Club.
As part of the launch we were able to provide a two course lunch to 36 older people. Many people said as they live alone they often don’t bother going to the effort of making a homemade hot meal so today was a lovely treat.
We were especially pleased that 13 new members joined us today. Many of them said they will definitely be coming back every Thursday to join our group. We offered a high level of one to one support to all members at this event with a high staff & volunteer ratio.
Here are some quotes from those attending the event:
“We’ll definitely be coming back”
“Groups like this break up the week”
“The meal was exceptional; it’s good to eat with company too”
“Really been a great day thanks”
“It’s so nice to eat with company, I eat alone most of the time and it puts me off cooking to be honest”
We feel this has been a very successful day, we have gained new members and some of these will be sign posted to other activities at our organisation and be less isolated as a result.
For more information on Cross Gates & District Good Neighbours’ Scheme CIO or our T-Days project please go to our website: www.crossgatesgns.org.uk
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Sports Day - South Leeds Live at Home Scheme
On Thursday 8th October South Leeds Live at Home Scheme held a ‘Sports Day’ in celebration of International Day of Older People at St Andrew’s Community Centre in Beeston.
The event was attended by over 70 people including our members and volunteers and a fantastic time was had by all.
We enjoyed sporting reminiscence, including watching the Memory Bank Sporting Memories DVD and shared many memories of sports days from school when we were young.
We then had a sports day of our own where we had an egg and spoon race, walking race and obstacle course, finishing off with walking stick hockey. We decided against the three-legged race and sack race due to health and safety issues.
Refreshments were then served including lots of extra special cakes after all the exhilaration. And a fantastic time was had by all.
South Leeds Live at Home Scheme is the Neighbourhood Network for the Beeston, Cottingley and Hunslet areas of Leeds.
We are a community based charity scheme in the heart of South Leeds, who are here to benefit the lives of older people by providing services to those who are currently living in their own homes. By making a small difference to enhance the quality of their lives, we empower and encourage older people to maintain an independent and healthy lifestyle, which, in turn, sustains their independent living and combats social isolation.
www.southleedsliveathome.org.uk
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Touchstone's Older People’s Day event for people living with dementia and their carers
This year the theme of Older People’s Day was ‘Health and Wellbeing’. Touchstone in partnership with Phoenix Health & Wellbeing organised a day full of relaxation for people living with dementia and their carers.
The day started with some lovely Indian curry which was enjoyed by everyone. After some tasty food, people started having their individual therapies whilst the rest of the group did some gentle stretching exercises with Gill. A handout was given to people to take home to be used in their own time. After some relaxing stretching, foot massage was offered to individuals. Some handy tips were given out to look after their feet in winter.
It was time to have some tea, coffee and biscuits. We asked the group what they would like to see happening more in Leeds to tackle loneliness and older people. The one thing that stood out from discussions was the need for more culturally appropriate social gatherings where people could go and talk about their feelings in a safe environment. Language was also discussed as it could be a hurdle for someone from BAME community to attend activities or groups who doesn’t speak English as a first language.
We finished our day with a mindfulness session. The session was about reconnecting the bodies and sensations we experience. It aimed to make people more aware of thoughts as they happen moment to moment. Everyone felt really relaxed after the session and enjoyed it thoroughly.
Overall, it was a very enjoyable day and we managed to offer health and wellbeing sessions to the ones who deserve it the most.
Some of the quotes from people from the day:
“I nearly fell asleep as I was so relaxed after my neck and shoulders massage.”
“It felt good to be treated as I don’t normally get chance to do anything for myself because of my caring role.”
www.touchstonesupport.org.uk
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