Intergenerational initiative that helped residents through pandemic now supports 2,000 care homes

A charity which helped boost care home residents’ spirits during the pandemic, by getting young people to send letters, art and videos, is now running the initiative with 2,000 care homes.

It even has a global reach, partnering with a care home in Australia.

Prior to the pandemic, the charity YOPEY (Young People of the Year) worked with around 12 care homes, recruiting and training older school children to befriend older people living with dementia, and support them to visit a care home near their school.

When care homes were closed to visitors at the start of the pandemic, YOPEY founder Tony Gearing was worried the charity would have to fold.

“But I came up with the idea of showing our young volunteers how to write letters – something many of the internet generation have never done before. And the young people themselves suggested making crosswords and word searches for the locked-down residents to do, as they had seen the elderly doing these when they were able to visit.”

As well as emailing packs of letters and activities to care homes, YOPEY and the young people have also made short variety shows that can be seen on YouTube and have shared their art and even painted portraits of residents from photos supplied by their care homes.

All materials are shared digitally to avoid transmitting the virus on surfaces.

“Everything is aimed at stimulating conversations in care homes and sparking reminiscences,” said Mr Gearing.

“And the reports we are getting back from care homes suggest we are achieving that.”

One of the early joiners to the initiative, which care homes can participate in for free, was the ExcelCare care home group.

“The people living at ExcelCare homes have been thankful for the relationship that they have cultivated with YOPEY over the last few years,” said a manager. "The YOPEY Befrienders have sent the people living at our homes so many letters, quizzes, drawings and puzzles each month, and the residents always look forward to their deliveries. They have been such valuable resources over the pandemic and have helped everyone in the home feel connected and loved."

A spokesperson at Cambridge Manor, a TLC care home in Cambridge, said: “We think that YOPEY is wonderful and all of your young people are so kind, generous and inspirational.”

Bigger groups have also got involved, including HC-One and Four Seasons. “You have really helped our residents through this awful lockdown pandemic,” according to a manager at Harper Fields, a Barchester care home in Coventry. “We have enjoyed reading your lovely letters to each other over a nice cup of tea and a slice of cake. The puzzles have really helped to keep our minds active. Your pictures have been fabulous. You’ve helped make us all feel very special.”

A few residents are able to reply to letter writers and penpal friendships have become established. Other residents give feedback with the help of care workers. When a care home feeds back for the first time, it is awarded a Partnership certificate by YOPEY, which it can show to residents' relatives and the care regulator.

YOPEY materials have also got residents out of their chairs and moving, with Delves Court care home in Walsall, revealing: "Our residents loved the singalong video on YouTube, especially the Hokey Cokey which they danced and sang along to."

The number of care and nursing homes that YOPEY sends the young people's materials to grew to several hundred in the first lockdown. It passed 1,000 by early 2021 and now it has reached 2,000.

Founder Tony Gearing said: "We are looking for one more round of care homes to join for free. After that we will be charging a modest monthly subscription fee. We are thinking £5 as we need to generate income to keep this service going.”

• If your home would like to receive this free service, email its name and the person you wish to receive the materials to hello@yopey.org.