Oswestry charity ‘Connect for Life’ revealed as Mayor's February Community Champions

Connect For Life is a volunteer led local charity, that provides specialist day support for older people living with dementia and undiagnosed memory loss.

The charity’s coordinator, Alison Humphreys, founded Connect For Life in 2016 in response to a growing need for local quality day care in Oswestry.

Alison, who once worked in the NHS, witnessed care for dementia patients and felt that there had to be a better way forward. This fuelled her vision and, Connect For Life was born.

Connect For Life has grown 10-fold since 2016 and is now a respected community asset aimed at increasing peoples' self-esteem and sense of wellbeing and providing carer respite. The team of volunteers deliver a variety of creative activities including music, dance, arts and crafts, reminiscence, quizzes, discussions and physical activity.

During the pandemic, the Connect For Life team adapted the service in very difficult circumstances and deployed virtual volunteers, made phone calls, delivered activity and cheer-up packs and kept their community thriving during some of the hardest times.

From a single weekly session, each week delivered by a team of three, the team at Connect For Life has grown to 25 volunteers providing two support sessions a week and two cognitive stimulation sessions each month.

Oswestry Town Mayor, Councillor Jay Moore is a passionate supporter of the charity and comments, “I have been lucky to spend time with the Connect For Life family. My first civic event was at Connect for Life during the Jubilee celebrations and although II was a little nervous in my new role.

"I was warmly welcomed and made to feel at home amongst the volunteer and service users. A couple of months ago, I was invited back with my drums to provide a workshop and it is during that workshop that I knew we’d found our next Community Champions."