Sheppey Community Hub hosts a ‘Silver Sunday’ café to raise awareness for Dementia

Students and Community Hub staff from Oasis Academy Isle of Sheppey have yet again hosted a successful event for the local community in Kent to raise awareness for dementia.

The Hub won the ‘Most Dementia Friendly Community Award’ category earlier this year in May at the Dementia Friendly Kent Awards held at the County Showground in Detling.

Having worked in and around Kent for the last decade supporting people with dementia, the students and community Hub staff continue to give up their weekends to host tea, coffee, and cake afternoons for locals, the most recent known as ‘Silver Sunday,’ held on Sunday 17^th of September, with over 100 people in attendance.

Silver Sunday is a national event/day for older people, initially launched by the Sir Simon Milton Foundation as a local campaign to tackle loneliness and isolation amongst the elderly community in Britain. The event allows people from all generations to come together by hosting free and fun activities.

Academy Community Hub Leader, Paul Murray says: “I am in awe of these fantastic students who continue to show passion for their local community and feel so strongly towards raising awareness for dementia.

“I feel hosting these events and allowing young people to get involved gives them a huge sense of responsibility, as well as a feeling of pride when they see first-hand how much of a positive impact they are making on lives, not only for those with dementia, but for everyone else affected by it, such as family members and friends.”

Joining them with a special performance, were the Fiato Saxophone Quartet and the extended Fiato Ensemble, a group of local musicians. Most of the musicians played together for many years at Sheppey Music Centre run by Kent Music.

The musicians have entertained at a variety of events over the last couple of years, either as the quartet or the full ensemble. These include open days, fetes, private parties, festivals, and afternoon teas. They have also played in supermarkets, pubs, schools, care homes and even on boats! 

The group of musicians played a wide repertoire of music including classical, musicals, pop, rock, folk, big band and party tunes at the Oasis Academy Isle of Sheppey’s community Hub event.

Helen Bridger-Smart, Musician and Music Teacher, also commented on the event: “The Silver Sunday event was a wonderful warm and welcoming occasion. The Fiato Ensemble really enjoyed entertaining such an appreciative audience. Everyone was having a great time chatting, listening to our music, and eating delicious cakes.”

“Paul and Margaret are truly amazing in the work they do, as are the volunteers. They all make such a difference to people’s lives, combating loneliness and giving something for them to look forward to outside of their homes.”

The academy Community Hub have been asked to host the next Swale Dementia Action Alliance event at their Sheerness campus on Friday 27^th of October. Everyone is welcome to join the event for free, more details can be found on their Facebook.