Our impact

Music

Music brought her smile back

Musical Minds meets every month at Windsor Close Community Centre in New Ferry, with a different entertainer each time, from talented singers to drumming groups and even chair-based exercise. Friends sing along, dance and join in. One husband told us how long it had been since he had seen his wife so animated and happy, and how much the session meant to them both. All three of our music groups, Musical Minds, Singing Together and New Memories, are run by volunteers.

I can't remember the last time I saw my wife looking so animated, happy and smiling. I thought I would never see her like that again, engaged with people and really enjoying herself.

A carer, husband of a Friend

New activities

You asked for gardening, so we planted

Many Friends told us they would love to get their hands dirty, so in early 2026 we started Gardening Together at Tam O'Shanter Urban Farm in Birkenhead, sowing wildflower seeds and tomato plants in the polytunnels and touring the animals. We also began Baking Together in Beechwood, where eight Friends came to the first sessions. We chose both places on purpose, because they are in areas of higher deprivation on the Wirral, where chances for support and social activity can be more limited.

Volunteers

Volunteers who have been there too

More than 60 volunteers keep our sessions running across the Wirral, and over two-thirds of them have cared for someone with dementia themselves. That understanding shapes how our sessions feel: Friends are greeted by name, with a smile, a cup of tea and a listening ear.

I've been in the shoes of the people who attend the cafés and we offer support and friendship.

A volunteer who cared for her mum

Days out

Days out we could not manage alone

Our monthly coach trips take Friends to places they might not get to on their own, from Cotebrook Shire Horses and Llandudno to the Ellesmere Port Boat Museum and the British Music Experience in Liverpool. Every 2026 trip is paid for before it runs, thanks to our Big Give campaign and a grant from The Price Parry Trust, so trips stay free for Friends. Our theatre trips were so popular that all of them sold out.

The coach trips are brilliant and give us the opportunity for us to socialise with others. Being able to get out of the house and enjoy a change of scenery is good for both of us.

A Friend and carer

Carers

A couple of hours to just relax

Our Saturday café at Popsy's in Hoylake is one of our most popular. There is bingo, quizzes, pottery, crafts, dominoes and nostalgia books, but for many carers the chance to chat with others in the same position matters just as much. Our volunteers see carers swapping tips and passing on information about local services such as Age UK, and some have asked for help with things like Carer's Allowance.

This is a lifesaver, we wouldn't know how to cope without it. It's a couple of hours where we can just relax.

A Friend at our Hoylake café

At home

Activity boxes bring memories home

Not everyone can get to a group, so our volunteers deliver activity boxes to Friends at home, filled with reminiscence materials, games, books and photographs, and swap them for a fresh box each month. We now deliver to 36 members, and West Kirby and Greasby libraries each hold six boxes that anyone can borrow. One Friend told us an old books box had given her and her husband great fun, reliving lots of memories together.

We'd be lost without you. We enjoy everything we go to, the volunteers are amazing.

A Friend

Trips

A good laugh on the canal

Our narrowboat trips run from April to October, with a picnic or pub lunch along the way. On a sunny spring day from Christleton to Beeston, Friends sat up on deck in the fresh air. Afterwards they told us what mattered most: mixing with people who understand, a day out, coffee and biscuits on board, and a good laugh together. Boat hire is supported by a kind donation from Wirral Community Narrowboat Trust, and ten trips are planned for 2026.

Mixing with like-minded people going through the same thing.

A Friend on a narrowboat trip

Singing

Singing again after all these years

Singing Together meets on a Monday morning in Spital, with a singer and keyboard player leading familiar songs. Friends tell us it is not too serious and so much fun, and that they feel free to be themselves. One Friend who used to sing in a choir, and thought those days were over, told us how great it was to sing again. When sessions moved to the afternoon, Friends said they preferred mornings, so we listened and moved back.

I used to be in a choir but can't sing anymore, it was great to sing again.

A Friend at Singing Together

Belonging

A café worth looking forward to

Our memory café at the Floral Pavilion in New Brighton keeps growing, welcoming regular Friends and new faces alike. One afternoon, a Friend busy painting a clay house said how much they look forward to coming. Another Friend brought a cake to share on her 92nd birthday, and her family joined in, to everyone's delight. A Friend who once came on her own now comes with a carer, and it was lovely to see her back.

Oh, I do look forward to coming here.

A Friend at our New Brighton memory café

Community

An afternoon of optimism and hope

In June 2026 one of our lead volunteers organised Midsummer Music at Holy Trinity Church in Spital, a free concert to raise awareness and funds. More than 100 people came, including Friends and their families, church members and volunteers. Local musicians and a well-known jazz singer performed, and a moving slideshow of our activities, trips and events was shown during 'What a Wonderful World'. Donations and a raffle raised money for our work.

A wonderful afternoon filled with optimism and hope, thank you to all the Dementia Together Wirral Team for hosting such a lovely afternoon, Dad loved it.

A family member