Creative Befriender

Description

Come join us as a Creative Befriender and be at the heart of making a difference to a person living with dementia

Are you creative, patient and a good listener? Do you have personal experience of supporting people or working as a carer?

Resonate Arts produces a pioneering programme of creative activities and experiences for and with people living with dementia in the boroughs of Westminster and Kensington & Chelsea.

The charity is currently looking for volunteers to join its award-winning* Creative Befriending service. This has a unique arts focus and gives volunteers the opportunity to share fun creative arts activities with a person living with dementia. Regular creative befriending sessions can help increase a person’s confidence, boost mood and motivation and help to reduce loneliness and isolation following a dementia diagnosis.

As a volunteer, you will be matched with a person living with dementia in Westminster or Kensington & Chelsea who has similar interests. Together you will spend time collaborating on creative projects that reflect the interests and life experiences of the person living with dementia. The medium could be visual arts, music, creative writing, dance/ movement or a combination of creative practices that allow the person to explore their own creativity while building a strong social connection with their befriender.

Depending on the individual, this could be in the person’s home environment or out in the community going to exhibitions, concerts, or museums. Resonate Arts can also link you to their own programme of dementia friendly sessions with partners such as Wigmore Hall, the V&A and the Royal Academy of Music.

*Outstanding Approach to Supporting People Living with Dementia using Creativity and the Arts Award (National Dementia Care Awards 2024)

What do we offer?

• A full induction with supporting materials, including Dementia Awareness training and Safeguarding Adults training.
• The opportunity to gain experience at our creative group activity sessions in Westminster
• Ongoing training, mentoring and support from a dedicated Projects Manager, including a joint visit to meet your befriendee
• Fun, quarterly catch-up sessions to meet other Creative Befrienders for peer-to-peer support (in person)
• Reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses (travel, refreshments and materials)
• A free Enhanced DBS check

What do we expect?

We are looking for someone who is:

• Flexible, reliable and willing to build a meaningful relationship with a person living with dementia
• A clear and confident communicator over the phone and in person with good conversational skills
• Friendly, empathetic, patient and a good listener
• Able to work with others to create an artistic output. This could be creating a picture, writing a poem, playing music, taking photographs…
• An arts enthusiast (this could be visual arts, music, dance/movement, creative writing, etc.)
• Willing to make notes and help Resonate Arts with its evaluation processes (with full support)
• Living in Westminster or Kensington & Chelsea, or able to travel easily to these boroughs

Commitment required:

• Total number of sessions: Creative Befrienders often volunteer for 1-3 years as the benefits of befriending are mutual, the minimum number of sessions considered is 15.
• Duration: home visits: 1-2 hours per session; trips out: 2-4 hours (depending on the individual & event)
• Frequency: Weekly, Fortnightly or Monthly (depending on your availability)
• Days & Times: Monday to Friday only (days and times can be flexible)
• Location: Westminster or Kensington & Chelsea (depending on where your befriendee lives)

Main Duties

To regularly visit a person living with dementia at home to collaborate on creative projects that reflect the interests and life experiences of the person living with dementia. To encourage and support the person to explore their own creativity while building a strong social connection with them. Sessions will be 1 to 1 in the person’s home and you will need to come up with creative ideas and prepare activities and materials for each visit. You will also need to report on the outcomes of your visits in a monthly report throughout the period of the volunteer role.

What will the volunteering role offer the student and what will they learn while they are with you?

This is a long-term volunteer role that offers a deeply rewarding experience and the opportunity to build a strong bond with a person living with dementia using different creative practices. The volunteer will learn skills to encourage and support older people to express themselves creatively, improve their own creative practice, as well as gain an understanding of how dementia affects people and how creative arts can play a crucial role in improving wellbeing and reducing loneliness and isolation. They will learn skills that help them to work in the moment, to problem solve and be flexible. All volunteers receive a full induction, dementia awareness training and safeguarding adults training.