March care home residents bop to silent disco

A Cambridgeshire care home brought a modern dance phenomenon to residents by staging a silent disco.

Aria Court in March put on the event and said it was a great success.

Residents said the music, mainly from the ’50s and ’60s, brought back happy memories.

Margaret Ingham, 90, said: “I enjoyed every bit of it. I danced too with the help of my frame and loved singing along. Belting out ‘Let’s Twist Again’ brought back the good old days.”

Staff member Kanina O’Neil said: “We are always looking for new ways to engage with our ‘VIPs’, as we call them, during our activities.

“With music being an incredible tool for enhancing the quality of life and for evoking memories in people living with dementia and sensory impairments, we just had to give it a go, and what a success it was.”

Pauline Sexton, 78, had the “time of her life”.

“I loved just watching the people bopping and jiving, they didn’t realise how loud they were singing with their headphones on.”

Pat King, 91, said: “I had never heard of a silent disco; I had no idea. Music brings back so many happy memories. It was such fun and I can’t wait to do it all again.”

The home looks after more than 70 live-in guests and deals with dementia, residential and nursing care.

Activity co-ordinator Christine Lilley, said: “They listened to music from the ’50s and ’60s mainly. Some of our residents have hearing issues, so with headphones they really could feel the beat. We hired the equipment, but are thinking of investing in our own set-up.

“We like to do things differently. We have had llamas and donkeys visit our home and watched eggs hatch from chickens and ducks, which the residents thought was brilliant.”