Through this partnership between NASP and Music for Dementia the organisations will receive grants of up to £50,000, supporting social prescribing activities to promote health and wellbeing at a national and local level.

This new funding will allow more people with dementia to benefit from the power of music through specially designed programmes including singing, belly dancing and drumming.

The projects receiving funds are:

• Musica Music and Wellbeing CIC, which offers music workshops across the country for people living with dementia in care settings and online training for carers
• The Derbyshire Stroke & Neuro Therapy Centre, which also reaches into South Yorkshire and provides a diverse musical programme for its service users
• Arts and community venue The Seagull Theatre Lowestoft, which is planning to extend its Singing for the Brain Groups into an existing area and one new area, and in doing so attract an additional 40 to 60 families
• Saffron Hall Trust, which runs a thriving Together in Sound music therapy group in partnership with Cambridge Institute of Music Therapy Research at Anglia Ruskin University

The benefits of music to people living with dementia is widely reported. Some of these reported benefits include it helping to reduce anxiety and depression, helping maintain speech and language, and enhancing quality of life. John Sharpe who attends The Derbyshire Stroke & Neuro Therapy Centre, spoke about his experience  “My dementia has no cure –  my arms and legs look fine but my brain isn’t.  I love coming to the centre and seeing singers like Claire from Razzle Dazzle and Paper Kite, it brings a smile to my face.”

To learn more about these projects, social prescribing, or music and dementia, visit NASP and MusicforDementia.