Four awareness-raising
Music4Wellbeing is an organisation (CIO registered in October 2023 though has been doing this sort of work for two decades working in partnership with organisations) that provides musical opportunities for those with Dementia and Parkinsons and other neurodegenerative conditions.
Between 1 December 2024 and 28 February 2025, funding from Chatham Maritime Trust enabled the organisation to deliver:
- Four awareness-raising and opportunity-building workshops
- Four music / creative activities-for-wellbeing sessions evaluated with the help of older people of Medway
The benefits of such workshops:
- Improved mental and physical health
- Improve social connections
- Provides a sense of meaning, self-confidence and achievement
- Gives greater understanding of those living with ill-health conditions and social ill being.
Target audience:
- Age-related challenges to wellbeing
- People in need of companionship
- Those living with ill health or disability
- Those dealing with bereavement or family caring
These workshops took place at the University of Greenwich and Capstone Dementia Day Care, which offered their venue free-of-charge.
The organisation worked with:
- Staff at Capstone Dementia Centre, Gillingham
- Lead personnel at Medway Adult Education
- Lead personnel and members of: – Medway Can Sing community choir – Singing for COPD
– aligned with ‘Breathe Easy’ pulmonary rehab groups – Nucleus Arts and Medway Music Association - Organisers and participants of Medway Choir Festival
Their Code of Practice reflects the Music Education Code of Practice for Music Practitioners. The charity is made up of professional art practitioners, health professionals and academic researchers who design and deliver a wide range of creative activities. They are committed to improving the quality of life for all participants as well as contributing to growing research evidence that demonstrates the impact/value of creative engagement not only to individuals but to society as a whole.
“Music4Wellbeing sincerely thanked Chatham Maritime Trust for this grant award. The Director of M4W was invited to give a keynote speech at Medway’s Choir Festival on the benefits of singing-for-wellbeing and the development of POMM.
The funding has enabled us to:
- gain a good foothold in building the Power of Music Medway network
- plan a project that will combine young people from Medway Music Association and people living with dementia in a unique music-making project.”
