Live Longer and Prosper success in Pride of Place
The Westmeath Live Longer and Prosper programme was a runner up in this year’s Pride of Place national awards in Limerick. The programme, which is heading into its fifth year, is designed to support older people living in rural communities across the county.
Programme co-ordinator, Aleysha Hennessy, said it was fantastic for the programme to get such recognition at national level. She found it humbling to be in a room with 540 people from across the country who are contributing to making their communities better places.
Aleysha explained that Live Longer and Prosper is a unique programme designed to support older persons living in rural communities across Westmeath.
With the support of funding under SICAP (Social Inclusion Community Activation Programme) and Healthy Ireland, this programme is delivered directly within communities by Westmeath Community Development.
Its primary targets are those living alone and experiencing social isolation, as well as members of Active Retirement groups. The programme focuses on activity, education and social engagement.
The 40 or so participants enjoy a diverse range of activities including musical entertainment, tailored exercise sessions, IT training and informative talks on topics such as healthy eating, general well-being and support services. It ran for five weeks in five rural venues across the county this year, and will be run in new venues next year.
Aleysha pointed out that by combining meaningful activities with opportunities for social interaction, the Live Longer and Prosper programme has a significant positive impact on both the mental and physical health of its participants. It also supports accessibility and inclusivity for older persons in their own communities.
The impact the programme has on the physical health and mental well-being of the participants is measured over the five weeks. Aleysha said that participants report feeling physically and mentally better and welcome having something to do each week.
Aleysha, who attended all of the sessions, observed improved mobility in participants and said they reported how different they felt after exercise and movement.
Emphasis is on “those tiny little movements” like squeezing your hands, shaking your legs out or rolling your ankles while you are having a cup of tea: “Move it or lose it,” Aleysha advises.
The programme also puts participants in touch with groups such as the Healthy Age Friendly Homes programme, Citizens Information and MABS.
Representatives talk to the participants about what is available to them and help them fill out forms: “We had an Age Advocacy speaker this year too.
“Everybody thinks an advocacy group is about wills or death, but it is actually just about having someone to speak up for you,” Aleysha explained.
Westmeath will host the national Age Friendly Council event next year: “It will be a huge thing for Westmeath to be hosting”, she said. She will be using the opportunity to promote a “toolkit” for anyone who wants to implement the Live Longer and Prosper programme in their own county. It will advise on what to do, how to do it and what pitfalls to avoid.
“It can be quite daunting coming in and running quite a large programme because we do have quite large numbers, up to 40 people per session, and when you’re dealing with a lot of people, it can be it be nice to have guidance,” Aleysha concluded.