Day ponies came to visit Still Me group in Skegness

With dogs already having visited sessions of the award-winning ‘Still Me’ group, it was the turn of two miniature ponies to trot happily into the ground floor community area of Barratt

Court.

The venue, on Lyndhurst Avenue, is used by the Magna Vitae Trust for Leisure and Culture for its weekly Still Me sessions in the resort.

With continued support from Louth and District Hospice Limited, the Still Me programme has national recognition – winning the Championing Diversity Award at the 2019 Alzheimer’s

Society’s Dementia Friendly Awards.

The aim of the sessions is to get out and about across the community of East Lindsey – ensuring that help and support is taken to those who need it.

From Louth’s Meridian Leisure Centre to Spilsby Methodist Church and the Marisco Surgery in Mablethorpe – the team visits all the district’s main towns for its Monday to Thursday free sessions.

With friends and relatives joining in, people enjoy a range of workshops and visits, all of which are planned to assist those living with dementia or other life-altering conditions.

Community Lifestyle Consultant with Magna Vitae, Lizzie Atkin, explains: “We organise a whole range for activities, for example we have just started a dancing session which can be

done either seated or standing and alone or as a pair.

"Everything is designed with the people in mind, to get them up and active and to gain positive responses while having a bit of fun.”

Exploring the way in which animals can stimulate reactions, Lizzie and the team engaged the services of East Lindsey-based Rainbow Dreaming, which trains its ponies for the

purpose of such visits.

“When we organised the visits from the dogs, you could see peoples’ faces simply light up.Animals seem to switch a light on that was not there before,” said Lizzie.

Kaf Barriball of Rainbow Dreaming uses trusted miniature ponies to visit those living with dementia – a venture that was started when her mum was diagnosed with the condition.

“We do parities and special occasions too, but I would say that more than 90 per cent of our work is with people living with dementia, the elderly and in care homes.

"I saw the impact the pony had when we visited my mum and I see it time and time again. Their presence calms people down, and they start to interact,” said Kaf, who takes the animals into the venues – even visiting peoples’ upstairs bedrooms, but only if the lifts are miniature pony friendly!

Magna Vitae’s Lifestyle Partnerships Lead Tracey Wilkinson was delighted by participants’ reaction to the ponies.

“The ponies were so calm, and you could see the reaction of people just by looking at their faces. There was one lady who was so proud of herself. After initially not wanting to go near

the ponies, she ended up stroking them, it was wonderful,” she said.

The free Still Me sessions are held regularly at Barratt Court, and other venues in Louth,

Horncastle, Spilsby, Mablethorpe and Alford. For all the details please go to the activities section (health) at www.magnavitae.org or email [email protected]