Following the fourth year of our In Mature Company programme, March 2022 saw us deliver two development days to staff from our partner care homes in Leeds.

Building upon their skills, we worked with care home staff to demonstrate techniques & movements that build strength and mobility; showed them how to set up and pace creative sessions; how to use person-centred music and how to transfer these skills to support more isolated residents 1-2-1.

We shared ways to promote creativity, encourage movement and support social connections to ensure the legacy and sustainability of our creative movement and music sessions.

We started the day by showing ‘Dancing in the Small Moments’ – an IMC animation that shares stories of care home residents who have previously taken part – to give care staff an understanding of what In Mature Company is all about. 

Our lead dance artists and musicians then led a creative session, allowing the staff to experience how it feels to take part. They were then given the opportunity to plan some movement and music themselves – improvising to person-centred songs they had chosen. 

In the afternoon we looked closer at movement, exploring how different exercises can benefit mobility in people who are more frail. We also looked at how props like scent diffusers and LED candles can be used to set the tone of a space, before reflecting on how they had found the day.

We also developed some prompt cards for the staff members to take back to their care homes. They offer ideas for sparking engagement and have been illustrated by Megan Dobbyn, a Leeds based creative.

Staff members from Aspen Hill Village in Hunslet said “The session was better than I had expected, I feel that I learnt a lot of movement and music techniques and the massage element was a bonus” and “I have learnt how to be more spontaneous, how to use improvisation and the importance of touch. I feel more confident that I would be able to run a dance session for residents with different needs.”

Anchor care homes staff said they felt “inspired and energised” and that they had “learnt how to make dance more person centred” whilst “building better bonds between staff and residents”. 

We are now looking for four new partner care homes to work with in 2023, for another 20-week programme. If you would like to be part of In Mature Company then please complete the expression of interest form and email it to Adienivison@yorkshiredance.com.