Coda Music Trust Sibyl King with Phil Hallett, Chief Executive
Coda Music Trust is celebrating success for its ‘Dementia Notes’ project, which works across Bournemouth, after the project received second place prize at the Arts & Health South West awards on 8 June.
From over 50 organisations competing, eight innovative arts in health projects based in Bristol, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset were shortlisted for a first prize of £5000 and a runner up prize of £1000 in recognition of their outstanding contribution to arts, health and wellbeing in the South West region in the last year.
The shortlisted organisations were Coda Music Trust, Az2B Theatre Company, Encounters Arts, Mean Feet Dance, Misfits Theatre, North Bristol NHS Trust, Plymouth Music Zone and Shallal.
Plymouth Music Zone took the first prize of £5000, whilst Coda received the runner-up prize of £1000 in recognition of their work.
Phil Hallett, Chief Executive of Coda Music Trust said “It is lovely to have this acknowledgement of our work. I am really, really proud to be in the company of all the organisations who were shortlisted. The musicians we work with at Coda are incredibly inspirational, but it is the people we meet and work with in the residential homes and other settings who constantly drive us on to create and continue our work.”
Coda devised and delivered an inspirational programme of activities across Bournemouth using music to address the health and wellbeing of older people in care, including many with dementia. The ‘Dementia Notes’ programme provided a rich breadth of participatory music to residential care homes and lunch clubs across the town. Alongside this work, Coda offered a series of training sessions for carers and created a unique box of resources, The Music Box, to support carers to deliver basic music activities with the people for whom they care.
The programme was developed in partnership with Bournemouth Borough Council and reached over 1500 older people in the town through 150 music sessions.
Coda’s “Dementia Notes” work aims to support the ability of patients with dementia to live independently following their time in hospital and uses music to offer a positive and creative means of expressing and sharing emotions, and to encourage self-awareness, confidence, initiative and creativity.
The prize was awarded by Arts & Health South West (AHSW), a nationally recognised, registered charity which promotes the use of the arts to encourage health and wellbeing. The AHSW Prize is kindly sponsored by the Fine Family Foundation.
Coda Music Trust is a unique local resource, based on the Dorset/Hampshire border, providing inspirational and innovative music services. Coda uses music in powerful ways as a tool for learning and change in the community and as therapy to help make life better for people of all ages and abilities.
To find out more about Coda Music Trust visit the website www.coda.org.uk or contact Coda on 01425 276161 or via email contact@coda.org.uk
