From 2019-2023, My Home Life England collaborated with The Linking Network and a network of 11 local organisations to deliver ‘Care Home Friends and Neighbours (Care Home FaNs): Intergenerational Linking’. More than 4,000 young people aged 5-14 from schools and youth groups connected with over 2,000 older people living in care homes. With at least 230 schools and care homes taking part, it was the largest intergenerational project of its kind. It bridged generational divides, boosted wellbeing and brought friendship, purpose and joy to communities across England.
18 months after the original funded project ended, we caught up with the local organisations to see if, and how, the project continues to have impact. Our new research reveals sustained engagement between schools and care homes, development and embedding of our Intergenerational Linking model, and the long-term value of intergenerational connections in social care and education settings.
Widening the reach
‘There’s an appetite from care homes and there’s been appetite from schools… loads of schools wanted to get involved.’ We interviewed seven of the local organisations and, very encouragingly, all of them continue to deliver Intergenerational Linking today, with about 50% of the original school-care home partnerships still active. This is despite the fact that, for the majority of organisations, Care Home FaNs: Intergenerational Linking was their first time delivering intergenerational work.
Beyond maintaining the existing relationships, brand new partnerships between schools and care homes have emerged, expanding the project’s impact to new audiences. This includes partnerships between a school and care home who did not take part previously, as well as situations where one half of the original partnership has now developed a new link with a different school or care home.
Enhanced impact
The original project took place through the COVID-19 pandemic and so face-to-face connections were limited. Nonetheless, people found really creative ways to connect, and we found that virtual connections played an important, possibly previously under-rated, role in preparing younger and older people to meet for the first time, as relationships could be built gradually online. Now that restrictions have eased, in-person engagement has become the ‘norm’, and our latest research finds that these face-to-face interactions have fostered deeper and more meaningful relationships.
Simple, person-led activities linked to seasonal events continue to be an easy starting point for connection. For example, some pupils invited older people from their linked care home to their school assembly on Diwali, followed by joint celebrations. Echoing the original research, our follow-up study also reiterates that sessions designed as a shared experience between younger and older people continue to be the most effective, as they invite conversation and working towards a common goal.
One project lead explained, ‘You have a different conversation when you’re doing something together, or making something together. It’s that reciprocity and equality which is really important. There’s a bond and connection and joy that comes from working together. A connection between the younger and older person – a shared interest.’
Supporting institutional priorities
In fantastic news, intergenerational activities have been cited as evidence of quality and good practice in Care Quality Commission reports, Ofsted inspections and Religious Education frameworks, further recognising their impact and embedding them into the lives of schools and care homes. We found that many of the local organisations have successfully gained additional funding for intergenerational work and have also incorporated intergenerational practice into their organisations’ visions, emphasising its strategic importance.
As one project lead told us, ‘The tangible benefits to older people are enormous and very obvious. Linking with younger people provides that connection, that kind of anti-loneliness, that’s so important. As an organisation that is dedicated to supporting older people’s mental and physical wellbeing, it clearly is a no brainer that we should be investing in that.’
Mutual benefits
‘One chap had joined the care home recently and hadn’t smiled. He didn’t want to be there, didn’t like it… Then, after visiting the children, he was smiling and chatting and talking.’ Our follow-up study reaffirmed the profound impact of intergenerational connections seen in the original project, and we found that schools and care homes have continued to engage due to the widespread mutual benefits for both younger and older people, as well as the community engagement benefits for the institutions themselves.
These benefits include:
- For older people: Social interaction, enhanced quality of life and wellbeing, opportunities for knowledge exchange, joy and renewed sense of purpose.
- For younger people: Skill-share opportunities, active citizenship, friendship, excitement and exposure to different life experiences.
For the participating schools and care homes, Intergenerational Linking gives opportunities for community engagement, strengthened reputations and recognition in inspections. For the local organisations, the project has led to new funding opportunities and has been a catalyst to embedding intergenerational practice into their core aims and work.
The vital ‘broker’ role
‘We step back a bit because want the links to take ownership, but at least we can still advise them on what to do, and if they struggle then we would help them. I think the brokerage role is still absolutely crucial, definitely.’ Each of the 11 local organisations originally appointed a project lead, known as a ‘broker’, who facilitated the school-care home links. A significant learning from our 2023 evaluation was that this intermediary broker role played an essential role in keeping the relationships afloat.
18 months on we found that, while some links have developed to be self-sustaining, the broker role continues to be fundamental to the successful delivery and sustainability of Intergenerational Linking. Brokers are still providing pro-active support, valuable guidance and maintaining momentum when schools and care homes face unexpected challenges, such as staffing changes, a lack of funding and limited capacity in over-stretched workplaces.
In these circumstances, the brokers are the driving forces behind a link which ensures younger and older people can continue to meet. Our 2023 report captured recommended qualities for Intergenerational Linking brokers – being creative, strategic, aware and self-caring. These qualities were evident in our follow-up discussions and are undoubtedly contributing to the brokers’ successes.
We also found that the broker role has evolved to represent a trainer in intergenerational best practice – modelling the conditions for the most effective, impactful linking. This model would benefit from more support, to equip teachers and care home staff with the knowledge, skills and confidence to drive forward meaningful Intergenerational Linking.
These staff members are also participants themselves, and it is important to acknowledge how their perceptions influence the project and lead to additional support needs. This is especially true for school staff who have pre-conceived ideas about what a care home is like, as well as for those who have associations of care homes as places of illness and dying, due to trauma faced previously in their personal lives.
An insightful broker told us, ‘I think that’s where we need to be holding space for enabling wider people to know how to interact with care homes, and how to interact with elderly people, because it’s something that, as a society, we find it really difficult to look at.’
The future
We are so delighted to see the extensive impact of Care Home FaNs: Intergenerational Linking. This has been evidenced in sustained school-care home relationships and ongoing engagement, the new connections and opportunities, the development of the model as it grows, the recognition in inspection frameworks and the embedded intergenerational practices across schools, care homes and local organisations.
Intergenerational Linking continues to deliver wide-ranging benefits to younger and older people, to schools and care homes, to local organisations and to wider communities, enriching lives, fostering understanding and facilitating a stronger, more integrated society.
The need to further develop coaching, training and support within the broker-led model must be a priority for future Intergenerational Linking models. Also important is brokers working alongside fellow organisations for whom intergenerational practice is a key priority. Continued investment and recognition in policy frameworks will help further expand the reach and impact of intergenerational initiatives.
At My Home Life England, this intergenerational research strengthens our best practice evidence-base supporting quality in care services. We remain committed to supporting community engagement initiatives in care settings, and we are seeking further funding to support sustained dialogue between care homes and their local communities. If you are a care setting looking for support with creating community links, we welcome you contacting us at [email protected].
Acknowledgements
Care Home FaNs: Intergenerational Linking was originally funded through the #iwill Fund. The #iwill Fund is made possible thanks to £66m joint investment from The National Lottery Community Fund and the Department of Digital, Culture, Media & Sport. The Dunhill Medical Trust acted as a match funder and awarded grants on behalf of the #iwill Fund. We are grateful for their support throughout the project.
To learn more about the Care Home FaNs: Intergenerational Linking project, click here or catch up on more of CMM’s coverage of the project here.
Amy Simpkins is Communications and Marketing Lead at My Home Life England. Email: [email protected] X @MyHomeLifeUK