Care home residents have passed their SQA exams in a bid to tackle dementia.

Ten pensioners at Sanctuary Care’s Westwood House in East Kilbride celebrated success after acing their French lessons.

Tutor, Judy Ford, is a specialist in working with elderly residents living with dementia to tackle the condition through language learning.

Following just 12 French classes, Judy invited a group of students to take part in a formal assessment, with four of the residents achieving their Nat2 qualification in French as a result.

Glasgow Times: The residents passed their french examThe residents passed their french exam (Image: Sourced)

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They were awarded their Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) certificate along with letters of congratulations from the House of Commons by local MP Dr Lisa Cameron during a graduation ceremony at the home.

The benefits of learning a new skill in later life include confidence building, creating connections, stimulating the mind and experiencing something new and exciting.

This has been shown to improve the participants’ decision making and multi-tasking skills, heightening their ability to concentrate and communicate.

Glasgow Times: The residents passed their french examThe residents passed their french exam (Image: Sourced)

As the residents confidence grew, they would also sing songs in French during meal times and in shared leisure time.

This level of interaction meant that the sessions were inclusive for all residents - who would sit and enjoy the songs.

 

 

Westwood House’s Activities Coordinator, Kathleen Crymble arranged the project with Lingo Flamingo, an organisation focused on making language and learning interactive and accessible.

Kathleen said: “We love introducing innovative programmes and initiatives that really benefit our residents.

"Part of feeling fulfilled and content in life is experiencing a sense of achievement and it is wonderful to see our residents realising this.

“Everyone that took part enjoyed it so much.

"When I reminded them in the mornings that they had their French lesson later that day, they were always so excited and really looked forward to it.

“The effort they all put in was amazing – some would even go off and practice on their own. They really worked so hard – and as a team, we are all absolutely as proud as punch of each of them!”