In recent years, the concept of an intergenerational care facility has become more of a buzz. Nursing homes have gained a bad reputation as places where people dump elderly relatives, especially those with dementia, to avoid caring for them anymore.
Senior retirement homes can also get a bit lonely and monotonous because the routine is the same almost every day. The staff can’t provide 24-hour care, and the new surroundings without family can be intimidating, especially for older people with dementia.
However, a new intergenerational center has found a way to solve this problem and make two generations happy. This place, called “Belong,” combines an elderly care home with a nursery school. It’s a place where the young and the old come to share and have fun.
The intergenerational dementia care facility
Dementia may not be a regular part of aging, but it’s a disorder that plagues more than 55 million people worldwide. Sadly, every year, more than 10 million new cases are reported, and the most common type of dementia is Alzheimer’s.
This pioneering center in Northwest England is helping the elderly delay the onset of dementia by providing the essentials: fun, stimulation, and learning. Belong partnered with the UK charity Ready Generations to bring children from the local village to the elderly home.
It’s a win-win situation. The kids enjoy experiences such as singing, dancing, and storytelling with older adults, and older people get companionship and joy. They also share mealtimes, art and crafts, and exercise together.
This place has been around for about a year, but when the Lord Mayor of Cheshire, Sheila Little, visited it, she found it refreshing to approach old age and dementia.
“This is a fascinating and innovative development as it includes a nursery, which benefits both the children who attend and the residents,” said Sheila.
A unique care village
Besides creating a place where children and the elderly spend their day interacting and learning, Belong is also a unique care home because it encourages independence and vibrancy. The care home is an innovative complex that breaks away from “traditional” care homes.
It’s an ultra-modern, Euro 24.5 million apartment with 23 independent living apartments, six family-sized 24-hour care households, and the revolutionary kids’ daycare.
But that’s not all. The place has a specialist exercise studio, a cafeteria, and a hair salon. It is also open to the public, creating an energetic environment where visitors from the surrounding villages can enjoy the fun.
What do both parties gain from this interaction
Some people picture older adults as grumpy and uncooperative. They believe that they want to be left alone. But Belong has added a beautiful twist: Older people can decrease loneliness, gain a sense of purpose, learn newer technology, and improve their physical and mental health.
On the other hand, kids benefit from their senior friends. Older people are a hub of wisdom; children can improve their cognitive skills, participate in baking and knitting, learn respect and patience, and foster creativity.
‘Growing up and growing old’
Belong has several dementia care facilities in West Midlands and Northwest England, including Macclesfield, Crewe, and Warrington. Still, the Cheshire Senior Preschool Care facility is the first in England. This facility may be the first of its kind in England, but a similar facility has been thriving in the U.S. for several years.
In 2015, Mount St. Vincent Nursing Home in Seattle opened the Intergenerational Learning Center for older people and children. Today, about 400 elderly people enjoy this collaboration, where they engage with preschoolers to stay strong and lively.
A filmmaker named Evan Briggs immortalized this facility in a documentary called The Perfect Presence. Briggs called this innovative arrangement a “very real experience of aging in America — both growing up and growing old.”
In this documentary, Briggs lauds such facilities as a hub to promote compassion and reduce depression and loneliness. This may be the next step in providing care for the elderly and reducing the progression and devastation of dementia.
