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7 Educators providing Poetry courses in Harlow

Dementia Club UK

dementia club uk

5.0(9)

London

Dementia Club UK is a well-established UK charity, working hand in hand with the local community since 2013 to support people living with dementia and their carers and works in partnership with Barnet Carers and Barnet Council.  Dementia has become a growing concern and is unfortunately the leading number one killer. The main aim of a dementia club is to provide much needed respite to carers and those living with these conditions; to give our members the chance to meet socially in a relaxed atmosphere over a cup of tea and coffee and cakes and make new friends; take part in gentle exercise and fun activities.  Dementia Club UK welcomes those living with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia and also provides advice and information to their carers and families and also welcomes those who have lost someone with dementia and are now lonely.  Our founder and Chairman of Dementia Club UK and also former Mayor of the London Borough of Barnet and local councillor, Lisa Rutter, wrote a paper called ‘The Dementia Club UK Model’ which outlines the core principles that have come together to form our Dementia Clubs. The charity commissioned an independent research study in May 2015, conducted by Middlesex University London, which “showed (demonstrated) that the dementia club as having a positive impact on those living with or caring for a person with dementia, based on the techniques and the model used in its cafes.”   The dementia club sessions run for 2 hours in the afternoons and provide various activities from quizzes, bingo, singing, poetry reading, arts and crafts and indoor games liking putting golf or table tennis. We then have about 30 minutes of fun exercise to music including yoga and in the final part of the session we have live music entertainment performed by various professional singers including Opera singers and Elvis and Abba impersonators.  We often invite professional speakers to attend to provide information and advice on current topics related to dementia. Our members attend our dementia clubs with their families which is something we like to encourage as it creates a friendly and welcoming atmosphere. Our members come from many faith communities and backgrounds which makes for exciting times when we celebrate events throughout the year.  Dementia Club UK now runs 6 dementia clubs across the Borough of Barnet and also continues to run the popular online Zoom carers group meeting every week on Tuesday evening for carers. We often have guest speakers, typically from either a medical or political background, discussing relevant topics and allowing for a question-and-answer session too. We also use this session to provide training sessions in areas of health, wellbeing and mindfulness.   Dementia Club UK has recently been recognised by the Barnet Group and was awarded Charity of the Year 2020.  We have also featured as a WHICH Support Group. A radio and video documentary was produced by the BBC to help showcase the charity and all it does for the community, both of which aired on national radio and television.   Most recently in November 2022, we are very proud to have won the tender from the London Borough of Barnet to provide training online around Understanding Dementia. The aim is to help Barnet Council as they work towards their target of becoming a Dementia Friendly Borough.  We are now delivering online training to individuals and organisations, businesses, faith communities etc with the aim of creating more dementia champions and also to help organisations to become dementia friendly. Lisa has written the one-hour training course which is CPD Certified. The course is provided online using Microsoft Teams in the mornings and ZOOM in the evenings to give people a choice.  Lisa is happy however to organise bespoke training dates if any of the dates through Eventbrite are not convenient.   We aim to continue raising awareness to reach as many people as possible in all communities, to ensure people living with dementia feel safe, included and involved while retaining control over their every day life and having the scope of choice they need to live well.

Retune Charity

retune charity

Bishop's Stortford

Retune was founded by Tom Ryder. Tom is a musician and journalist, and has a diagnosis of bipolar disorder. He was hospitalised for poor mental health multiple times during his late teens and early twenties, which eventually forced him to withdraw from university and begin again from scratch. While in hospital, Tom noticed that patients were finding creative outlets to cope with their predicament. These outlets included drawing, painting, writing poetry, dancing, singing and cooking. Tom wrote songs and, despite those dark times, he realised creativity’s tremendous potential to improve mental health; it is crucial to have an outlet for feelings and emotions. A few years later, Tom started hosting live gigs. He also ran workshops in schools, connecting with young people who were experiencing mental struggles. In 2018, Retune started to take shape: in addition to live shows and schools, Tom now visited prisons and hospitals, and produced online content. Tom’s cousin Kathryn Bailey – a photographer, videographer and all-round creative – joined the project in 2019. As well as sharing Tom’s view that creative outlets are powerful tools for mental wellbeing, Kathryn had a personal attachment to Retune's mission... When Tom was first admitted to hospital, 11-year-old Kathryn was shielded from the truth, as she was considered ‘too young’ to know what was going on. Being involved with Retune allows her to be part of a cause that is close to her heart, especially as Retune’s workshops discuss mental wellbeing with all ages, from primary school pupils to adults. Open conversations around wellbeing are more commonplace nowadays, but there is still a long road ahead. Through its workshops and live shows, Retune is creating a community based around mental wellbeing, underpinned by creativity. When we retune something, such as a musical instrument or a radio, we make small adjustments in order to achieve harmony, clarity and balance. Retune believes that the same theory can be applied to mental health. Harnessing creative outlets that engage the imagination, and following the principles of the SCALES model, can help all of us to make small adjustments. As a result, our mental wellbeing will be more in tune.

Oasis Academy Enfield

oasis academy enfield

Enfield

Everything within Oasis Community Learning is framed by our ethos. Our ethos is rooted in what we believe and who we are. Grounded in our story, it is an expression of our character; a set of values that inform and provide the lens on everything we do. A passion to include A desire to treat people equally respecting differences A commitment to healthy, open relationships A deep sense of hope that things can change and be transformed A sense of perseverance to keep going for the long haul It is these ethos values that we want to be known for and to live by. We are committed to a model of inclusion, equality, healthy relationships, hope, and perseverance throughout all the aspects of the life and culture of every Oasis Hub and academy community. We encourage every member of our family, be that staff or student, to align themselves to these ethos values. The values themselves are inspired by the life, message and example of Jesus but we make it clear that we will not impose on anyone, the beliefs that underpin our ethos values. We recognise and celebrate the richness that spiritual and cultural diversity brings to our community, respecting the beliefs and practices of other faiths in the hope that we will provide a welcoming environment for all. The Oasis 9 Habits The Oasis Ethos is aspirational, inspirational and something that we have to constantly work at. It is important to remember that every organisation is made up of its people, and people don’t always get things right. This means that there can sometimes be a dissonance between what we say we are, as stated in our ethos values, and what we actually do and experience. Recognising this is helpful because it reminds us that we each have things to work on; we have space to grow, develop and change to become the best version of ourselves. To help us in this process of personal growth and development we have the Oasis 9 Habits. It is our bespoke and unique approach to character development. We know that by living the way of the Habits, the Oasis Ethos will become second nature to us. We also believe that this process of continually developing our character and being transformed to become the best version of ourselves is really important for every student and staff member alike. Therefore, we actively promote and practice the Oasis 9 Habits which are an invitation to a way of life characterised by being compassionate, patient, humble, joyful, honest, hopeful, considerate, forgiving and self-controlled. We believe that by becoming people who live this way, by becoming the best version of ourselves, whether we are a staff member or students, we are transformed, and we are also able to play our part in bringing transformation locally, nationally and globally.