Henpower

22/05/2025

When & arrive at the same time!! Everything we do at Equal Arts focuses on the benefits of creativity for wellbeing as we age.

There's no wrong way to be creative, while other cognitive functions can decline, creativity remains - it's something we see time and time again during our artist-led workshops in care settings and community venues.

With free, inclusive groups taking place across Newcastle & Gateshead for people 55+ there's never been a better time to have a go at something new!

Message us to find out more.

Gateshead Carers Alzheimer's Caregiver Support Independent Age Carers Trust Caregivers Connected Gateshead

14/05/2025

"It's about writing books people with dementia can read, enjoy and share."

That was the clear message coming out of the ideas & comments we heard today at the launch of the new book from Equal Arts - Dorothy Wordworth's Grasmere Days.

Lots of talk in the packed room ranging from whether 'accessible' books should have a dementia label and how do you reach people with what's available to how can books like these be readily available to readers & book clubs through libraries?

All food for thought! Plus ideas for new partnerships

Northumberland National Park North East National Trust Age UK Bristol Age UK Age Scotland Independent Age North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust

01/05/2025

We've been hatching something new this Spring! Here at Equal Arts we're just weeks away from launching our second dementia-friendly book - Dorothy Wordsworth's Grasmere Days.

Her love of flora, being in the moment & getting out in the garden amongst nature are the same things we seeing bringing moments of lightness to people in our workshops.

Nationally, there's a huge gap in the provision of books supporting people living with to continue reading for enjoyment.

See our reels for more about Dorothy, the benefits of reading and why more needs to be done to improve what's on offer for people living with dementia.

Together with Newcastle City Council City Library we hope our Reading with Dementia project funded by Arts Council England will go someway to breaking down the barriers to reading.

Alzheimer's Society Age UK Cheshire Age UK Bristol Independent Age Age UK Northumberland Beamish Museum Northumberland National Park Dementia UK Groundwork South and North Tyneside National Trust Wordsworth House and Garden Age UK North Cumbria Groundwork NE & Cumbria

07/02/2025

Looking for something new for 2025? Have you heard about Reading with Dementia? Equal Arts is teaming up with Newcastle City Council & the library service to address the national gap in books available for people living with dementia who want to continue reading for enjoyment.

Workshops are open to people 55+ with lived experience of

Starting on Tuesday Feb 18 at the city library, the new group will take part in creative workshops to create and develop dementia-friendly books, information and poetry.

Alzheimer's Society The Reading Agency Waterstones

14/01/2025

Have you heard about the 14 risk factors? Here in the North East one of our Equal Arts trustees, Prof Andrew Newman at Newcastle University has carried out an arts project with Cap-a-Pie and schoolchildren about the relationship between brain health and dementia. You can find out more here: https://www.cap-a-pie.co.uk/professor-andrew-newman-on-the-importance-of-brain-health/

Included in the risk factors are diabetes, cholesterol, weight, alcohol, smoking, depression, hearing, sleep, exercise and socialisation.

07/01/2025

Equal Arts are teaming up with GemArts The Lawnmowers Independent Theatre Company Chilli Studios & Curious Arts for Drawn Together, a new training programme for North East

Register your interest by Jan 20!

Drawn Together
A new Creative Ageing training scheme for North East artists by Equal Arts, Chilli Studios, Lawnmowers Theatre Co, Curious Arts and Gem Arts, to help people 55+ and those living with dementia to age well through creativity.

Funded by Arts Council England, Drawn Together will develop artists’ skills and confidence in creative ageing to enhance the cultural sector’s understanding of the diversity of older people living in the North East.

To register your interest in joining the scheme please complete the form below by January 20, 2024.

Artists will receive bursaries for time spent on the scheme which includes;
Six half-day training sessions
Eight half-day Shadowing opportunities
Eight half-day project delivery opportunities.

👉🏽 https://www.equalarts.org.uk/projects/drawn-together-new-training-scheme-for-north-east-artists

30/08/2024

Last Friday saw the hanging up of Lynne’s pinny for the last time in her role as Sheltered Scheme Officer at Wood Green. She’s retiring after 47 years as chief, cook, carer, bottle washer, chicken keeper, bingo caller, raspberry grower, potato planter, bun maker, conference participant, student teacher, human hugger and all round multi-talented human that she is.

Lynne has been a fundamental ingredient in the success of HenPower over the last fourteen years, not just because of her willingness to try new things and her enthusiasm to engage others but because of her innate belief that HenPower and creativity work to improve the lives of older people.

Always a grafter, always the first to roll her sleeves up and get stuck in, always the first to lead by example and sing the praises of others, encouraging residents to have a go, she will be a massive miss to our work.

Lynne has supported so many older people as part of the HenPower Project. We have had adventures all over the UK, speaking at conferences, and sharing the joys of hen keeping and improving the lives of older people. She’s always been a great advocate of the work we do and has helped on hen road shows in care settings, schools and universities every year, teaching nursing students about the positives of creatively engaging older people in later life.

Lynne’s easy going, try anything, chat to everyone, easy demeanour has made seamless links with people and organisations. It’s easy to sometimes just accept people’s skills and good points as ‘the way they are’, but being organically a warm, inviting, caring, proactive person takes thought and skill. We have benefitted so much at Equal Arts from all Lynne has to share with others over the years and will miss her immensely. Our lives are better for having had Lynne in them.

Thanks Lynne, for all the love, care, encouragement and chocolate cakes over the years. There is no one like you, and your boots are entirely unfillable!

We wish you love and happiness in your retirement and as you always say Lynne, ‘Bye for now”.

23/05/2024

We had a lovely first ceramic session with the women's Wednesday group at Scotswood Natural Community Garden...a lovely bunch of people!

The group are involved in a garden show next year and they wanted to explore some creative ceramic ideas to plan and map out their designs.

We experimented with the pinching technique, using our hands and fingers to make some garden pots. Denise said "I'm loving this. The clay is so versatile and there's so many things you can make with it"

Janet had always wanted to try pottery and was happy to have the chance to try something new. She was happy to have her daughter to support her, "I've got the chance to do this here with my daughter as she helps and supports me, which is great." We love it when families get involved and roll up their sleeves too.

During the session the group discussed some designs over a cuppa. It's really important to them that their design plans reflect what the gardens at Scotswood means to them.
Sustainability and wellbeing was at the top of the list.

Next week were looking to make our own impressed patterned pieces from nature and found objects in and around the garden. They'd like to use these pieces to repeat patterned styles on future work. If they have time, they're going to find a way to squeeze in some hens and bees! Yes please...the garden is full of them!

23/05/2024

All Bar None!

We're underway with our brilliant Beaky Blinders at Housing Team at Gateshead Council's Pleasant Place and what a team!

When you've got a plan...stick to it and look what happens. Many hands make light work!

The Beaky Blinders discussed what they would like to achieve. Given the time scale available, concentrating on building an outside bar and tidying up around the seating area in the garden were thought to be the priorities.

The planning's been fruitful. They've come up with ideas for the bar and a sketch was produced of what it should look like.
Yesterday they spent time cleaning up the outside seating area and installing the posts for the lighting. Then after, we all had tea and scones provided by wonderful Gemma, the sheltered scheme officer who always rolls her sleeves up and chips in. She's a diamond! A great way to end the session and much needed since digging the holes for the posts proved hard work.

We're all looking forward to seeing how this outside space develops!

08/05/2024

Over at Wood Green we've been proving that life's a piece of cake or in fact, a marvellous meat and vegetable pie, or a really ravishing risotto or a canny Kofta Kebab!

Our Wood Green Grafters have been working with their pals, 'The Friendly Felling Foxes' from The Drive Community Primary School under the cookery queen capabilities of our lovely Hannah from The Pickle Palace.

Building on bonds developed in previous creative work together, some of the children sought out familiar faces and clearly enjoyed the close cookery companionship with the residents at Wood Green.

It's been wonderful working with each other, creating meals we can all then sit down, and eat and enjoy together.

Everyone learned new skills and chattered on together, sharing experiences of dishes we’d tried, things that made our toes curl, and we weren’t keen on, and generally talking about and enjoying a fantastic food experience.

Making a main course and dessert each week, and focussing on what the residents would like to try, we really challenged ourselves to try new things and think about food differently.

Angie said that the project had changed her view of food and how she managed her own meals; "I tried new and different foods and was more conscious of thinking about how I used food and not just throwing stuff out."

It really was a truly valuable experience for residents, staff and the children and their parents. Sheltered scheme officer Lynne Walker said "Well I had never made a risotto. Hannah made it so easily. It's one of my usual dishes at home now. And we love having the kids from school. They are like little sponges with what they learn and remember."

The children benefited from being supported by the residents both in developing their practical skills and in giving new things a go, while the residents could enjoy passing on their own experience and giving confidence.

George said "I enjoyed it all. Hannah was amazing with the kids and had them cutting and chopping and cooking things they hadn’t eaten before and actually trying them"

It's been so lovely to watch.

30/04/2024

We've been having the time of our lives with Johnnie Johnson Housing residents at Blenheim Court and children from Windy Nook Primary School working on the fantastically bubbly 'Bubble Trouble' story by Margaret Mahy as part of our 'Learning In The Lounge' Project.

Fridays have never been so much fun; learning to move and groove to the themes and characters of the book.

When little Mabel's bubble gets away from her, it's her baby brother who gets into trouble. Soon he's floating out of the house, above the fence, and all over town! It's up to Mabel, Mother, and the rest of the townspeople to get him safely back down. Who knew that so much trouble could come from one little bubble?

Surrounded in a cloud of bubbles, children and older people have been pairing together to bounce and bobble all over the lounge.
Everyone's feeling fitter and more floaty after our weekly workouts and dance sessions.

Thanks to Sport England for this lovely opportunity for Equal Arts to help rescue the baby in the bubble with the residents and children in tow!

11/04/2024

This week we drop the pop-hole one last time as we say goodbye to our old friend and head Hensioner, Owen Turnbull.

Owen was a friend to many and my poultry partner in crime for the last thirteen years. Many people will recognise his cheery chops and his cheeky banter from our many henny jaunts and journeys over the last decade.

I met Owen as a youngan of 81. He’d kept budgies and banties as a lad in a shed and was happy to be asked to roll up his sleeves and lend a hand on the land at Gateshead Council's Wood Green. What Owen didn’t know wasn’t worth knowing. He kept his years old chicken checklist on a scrap of A4 folded many times in his back pocket.

Owen was known far and wide as The Head Hen Man. He was like the pied piper with the bairns and if you ever dared to say kids, he gave you a sharp glance and reminded us that “Kids is baby goats”!

You can’t say Owen without Bell…Bell and Owen were like a dippy egg and soldiers; just meant to go together. Better for being together.

Owen met Bell before he joined the army. She would pop her head over the drystone wall at the farm where Owen’s brother worked and would proposition him for a jug of fresh milk. The pints led to a proposal, and in 1955 they got married. In Bell’s parents’ crowded house and with no home of their own, Owen spent their wedding night sleeping with the dog and then year in and year out they loved and cherished each other for the longest time…a whole lifetime of loving the same person.

And then when Bell developed dementia and deteriorated, with love and strength and the pride of peers, everyone cuddled her up and lent arms to lean on.

Owen said “I want to keep her at home as long as I can. As long as I’m here I’ll look after her.” And he did just that with courage and careful conviction.

We danced to Tina Turner to celebrate sixty years of them loving each other, and we felt proud of them both and cherished their happy hearts ‘til last orders when no one wanted to leave!

I’ve a gladness in having known Owen. His dry wit and glinty eyes filled with a bit of badness, but his mischief-making always underlying a warm and well-meaning heart. He was up with the larks and often wrestled Lynne to be the first to lift the pop hole. And woe betide if you didn’t meet his chicken caring standards. You wouldn't be asked twice!

Owen showed no signs of slowing down and was as adamant as ever in his nineties to care for his hens. Scooping various headlines in national newspapers, and sharing his story on TV, Owen was the best advocate for keeping healthy and engaged in later life. He won Gateshead Council’s Carer of the Year and was part of a team of Hensioners who won a Pride of the North East Award as part of The Pride of Britain.

He’s the last of the original Hensioners. His leaving us is the end of an era. He’ll be a big miss but he’s been such a big part of our HenPower journey.

We once went hen shopping in a minibus on a dreich wet Northumberland day. I intentionally drove through the puddles to make a splash, and Owen’s little voice chirped up from the back seat “Ye naaaa what it is? It’s throwing it doon oot there, but in this bus, it’s filled wi sunshine”. Happy days to be remembered with our head Hensioner Owen…a ripe 94 years of hen keeping and high jinx!

Scroll through to the end to see Owen's Sunny Side Up film 💕