Blog

Greenwich Civic Awards – 6th March 2026

by Peter, posted in Friends Group

Peter and I are honoured that on Friday night at the Royal Borough of Greenwich’s Civic Award ceremony, our charity won an award in the Community Category.

It was a wonderful evening and humbling to be amongst so many people who are doing good things for their community.

When setting up our charity 10 years ago come July this year, our aim was to create a community where people with dementia and their family carers could come together at a difficult time in their lives, to find friendship, fun and support. That our work has been recognised is an unexpected reward.

Whilst we may have set up the charity, our success would not have been possible without our wonderful team of 11 people.

As part of the citation for the award, they said:

“They and their fantastic team of volunteers go above and beyond to make people who attend the group feel reassured and happy”.

In addition to the volunteers, we also have 4 wonderful trustees who support our work. 

The event was very well organised. Here we are with Councillor Anthony Okereke, the leader of the council and Mayor, Councillor Linda Bird. Jamie, a member of the council’s team did a great job as host announcing all the winners. Alison who works in the Mayor’s office did a fantastic job, meeting everyone and ensuring things ran smoothly.

Our fabulous award certificate.

In the interval 2 wonderful musicians performed.

You can see details of the other award winners here.

To our volunteers, trustees, working partners – Oxleas, Mindcare and the Greenwich Carers Centre who have referred people to our group,  – and every person with dementia and their family carers who have chosen to spend their Tuesday afternoons with us over the years, we say a heartfelt thank you for being part of our success.

Tom Carradine – 3rd March 2026

by Peter, posted in Friends Group

We had a guest entertainer today, Tom Carradine. Tom excelled with a cockney sing along moving into popular songs from recent decades. The group members loved him.

You can hear a sample of Tom’s style at ‘Top of the Music Hall Pops – The Top 10 Music Hall Songs as voted by the British Music Hall Society’ – YouTube link here.

The lovely team from Creative Companion Collaborations were back again today offering massages. The team were in demand with members.

In the first hour word searches were as popular as ever, and members were pleased team member Dave was back to run the bingo.

By the end of Tom’s entertainment hour, he had us all putting our left arm in and out to do the Hokey-Cokey.

Getting to know Dot

Dot is an avid reader. She inherited her lifelong love of reading from her Dad. She loves crimes novels and her favourite authors are Peter James and Michael Connolly.

Years ago Dot did a lot of sewing, making all her own clothes, and was a keen knitter. These days Dot would rather spend time in her garden. She has recently bought 5 scented roses to plant and she hopes they will have a gorgeous scent like old fashioned traditional roses.

The Reflections Friendship Group is next at Shrewsbury House on 17th March 2026 at 1pm when we will have Julian with a non-stop medley of top tunes.

Please note: in our uploaded photos we blur the faces of all group members. You do see the faces of our wonderful volunteers.

Tony Martin – 17th February 2026

by Peter, posted in Friends Group

Tony warmed up the room on a very cold day. Janet and I were sadly unable to be at the group today as we were both unwell. The group ran as usual in the good hands of our team.

The group enjoyed a medley of 50s/60s and 70s tunes including Tony favourites.

Tony dedicated Ring of Fire to Janet and Peter. So thoughtful of him and lovely to know we were missed.

Fitness for life

Today we launched a new initiative, our Fitness for Life Workshops. It is a well known fact that older people gradually lose strength and balance which puts them more at risks of falls. In an effort to help our members hold onto and build up on their strength, this year we are working with Julie, an Older People’s Fitness Coach who will be running short monthly workshops. There will be two 20 minute workshops in the first hour of up to 16 people per workshop.

Today’s workshop focused on leg strength, in particular movement patterns to build strength getting out of chairs. Adaptions were given to suit individual abilities. Julie can be seen here explaining to the group what they will be doing.

Introducing Julie

Introducing Julie: “During my 34 years working within the fitness world I have taught a wide range of classes, both in Clubs and independently, from crazy spin (where I first met Janet and Peter) through to peaceful stretch, run my own personal training business for 25 years, managed Health Clubs and more recently taught people in their homes via Zoom. As much as I’ve loved jumping up and down and shouting – or should I say ‘encouraging’ – people, very early on I realised that I enjoyed working with those people who wouldn’t necessarily be heading to the gym but who could benefit from being shown exercise that would both relate to and help them in their day to day living, so I began running classes and workshops within the community, working alongside local Community Nurses, Doctors Surgeries and Osteopaths. I feel very honoured to be now advising and helping people at Reflections.”

The Reflections Friendship Group is next at Shrewsbury House on 3rd March 2026 at 1pm when we will have Tom Carradine with his famous Cockney Sing-a-long.

Please note: in our uploaded photos we blur the faces of all group members. You do see the faces of our wonderful volunteers.

Jamie Steen – 3rd February 2026

by Peter, posted in Friends Group

Jamie was in good form performing his Rock ‘n’ Roll show. As usual, he was a man of many outfits completing 12 outfit changes in an hour!

A selection of Jamie’s range of outfits matched to appropriate songs.

Without exception there was plenty of dancing.

Andrew, from the University of Greenwich and his colleague Gill came along today along with Angelika from the Royal Borough of Greenwich, as they are working on a joint project to find out how Greenwich can be made a great place to live and care for people as they get older. They held a workshop during the first hour so that group members had the opportunity to share their views and experiences.

Jamie’s outifts and performance looks to have had a similar effect on our guests.

Getting to know the team

Previously we told you about what team members do within the team. Now it’s time to find out a bit more about them.

Starting with Peter. Peter started getting involved with health and fitness in his 40’s. He used to love cycling, running and going to the gym. Though health issues for many years have meant he has had to change his fitness routines, it is still very much a part of his day as he knows how important it is to undertake daily activity.

He also loves to read, work on self improvement and watch a good film.

The Reflections Friendship Group is next at Shrewsbury House on 17th February 2026 at 1pm when Tony with give us another excellent sing-a-long.

Please note: in our uploaded photos we blur the faces of all group members. You do see the faces of our wonderful volunteers.

Dementia Friends – 27th January 2026

by Peter, posted in Friends Group

We were delighted that Andrew, the Services Manager for the Bexley branch of the Alzheimer’s Society, was able to come along to provide our members and some of our working partners, with the recently updated Dementia Friends session.

Dementia Friends aims to increase understanding of dementia, transforming how the nation thinks, acts and talks about dementia, so reducing isolation for those living with the condition. Small every day actions can make a big difference to those living with dementia such as being more patient in shops.

The interactive session was delivered by Andrew in a relaxed and friendly way. Everyone who attended was given one of the new Dementia Friends badges at the end.

Andrew spoke about the Bookcase analogy. This is a simple way of understanding how dementia affects a person over time. To watch a video explaining the bookcase analogy see here [links to YouTube video]

For more information about Dementia Friends or to book a session visit their website: https://www.dementiafriends.org.uk

Janet introducing Andrew to the group.

Andrew going through the answers to the broken sentences exercise. Working in small groups, people had to match the half sentences about dementia on the left hand side of a page with the correct second part on the right. For example Dementia is …….. Not a natural part of aging.

The Alzheimer’s Society has lots of excellent information factsheets and booklets about dementia that can be accessed via their website see here.

Thank you Andrew for an engaging and informative session.

Please note: in our uploaded photos we blur the faces of all group members. You do see the faces of our wonderful volunteers.

Julian Garman – 20th January 2026

by Peter, posted in Friends Group

Julian was back with a fast and fun hour long medley of memorable tunes.

Julian tried out some new equipment and his sound was even better than usual.

The dancing became a bit of exercise, with a few high kicks. Some members are surprisingly mobile!

Yvonne and her colleague from Creative Companion Collaborations were back providing more hand massages.

Team member highlight

Introducing New Team Member Paola. Paola came to the group last time as a guest to see what happened at the Friendship Group. She enjoyed it so much she asked if she could become a volunteer. We snapped her up! Paola is our second retired Occupational Therapist to join our team. She brings with her a wealth of knowledge and is another Reminiscence facilitator. So far she has enjoyed leading Herd Mentality, using it as an opportunity to get to know people. She also loves to take to the dance floor.

The Reflections Friendship Group is next at Shrewsbury House on 3rd February 2026 at 1pm when Jamie will entertain us with his Rock ‘n’ Roll Party Show.

Please note: in our uploaded photos we blur the faces of all group members. You do see the faces of our wonderful volunteers.

Tony Martin – 6th January 2026

by Peter, posted in Friends Group

Happy New Year and welcome back!

Tony energised the room with a great playlist. Yvonne, the lead from Creative Companion Collaborations displayed her hidden talent by joining him for a couple of duets. A nice surprise.

Creative Companion Collaborations were back with us offering free massages to members. Members said how lovely and relaxing they were.

New for this year we introduced the Herd Mentality game. This was led by Peter and guest Paola. More about her next time. As with other board game Call to Mind, it is limited to 6 people playing so that everyone gets the chance to join in.

Group members moving into the Library ready for the entertainment and taking the opportunity to catch up with each other after the Christmas break.

As usual there was plenty of opportunities for dancing. When Tony plays Ring of Fire it always brings people to the dance floor to join in with the actions.

Today we had three visitors. Paola, who is a friend of team member Lucia came to see what the Friendship Group is about. Ella and Jen from Oxleas, came to talk to members to find out what they thought about the diagnosis and post diagnostic support services at the Memory Clinic.

Team member highlight

Introducing Marilyn. Marilyn is a versatile, young at heart team member. She is always cheerful and can be relied upon to help out wherever needed. Regular duties include putting out biscuits on the tables, and wiping down the table cloths at the end of the first hour to ensure they are clean and ready for next time. She loves talking to people, is helpful and friendly and is an enthusiastic dancer.

The Reflections Friendship Group is next at Shrewsbury House on 20th January 2026 at 1pm when Julian will entertain us.

Please note: in our uploaded photos we blur the faces of all group members. You do see the faces of our wonderful volunteers.

Vikki Melrose – 9th December 2025

by Peter, posted in Friends Group

It’s Christmas party time!

Vikki once again came along to our Christmas party ensuring everyone had a great time.

Before the festivities got underway, the team had a rare get together to enjoy lunch together and celebrate another successful year of the Friendship Group.

We were pleased to welcome back Mayor Linda who popped into wish members a Happy Christmas before going onto another event. It is a busy time of year for a Mayor.

We were delighted the ASDA Foundation gave us funding for our Christmas party. A total of 52 members and 12 team enjoyed a sandwich lunch and hot drink.

While members were having their lunch, there was a surprise visit from Father Christmas and Dominic the Donkey, aka lovely Kath, the Shrewsbury House Manager, seen here with Mayor Linda, who came in on her day off to dress up as Dominic. Father Christmas and Dominic were followed around by Peter with his phone and a speaker playing the Dominic the Donkey song sung by Lou Monte. It’s a catchy song. Father Christmas handed out a small goodie bag to all the members.

As is tradition, we held a raffle from prizes donated by group members. All members were able to buy a ticket and win a prize. We are grateful to trustee Sarah who took a day off work to come and run the raffle table as she has done since we started this tradition.

Once lunch was over, it was time for singing and dancing but not before another tradition of everyone joining in an interactive sing a long of the 12 Days of Christmas led by Janet and the team. Everyone had a lovely afternoon.

The Friendship Group will now take a break until 2026. We look forward to more socialising and fun next year. Happy Christmas.

The Reflections Friendship Group is next at Shrewsbury House on 6th January 2026 at 1pm when Tony will entertain us.

Please note: in our uploaded photos we blur the faces of all group members. You do see the faces of our wonderful volunteers.

Mark Sedgwick – 25th November 2025

by Peter, posted in Friends Group

Another great afternoon with Mark warming up the room.

Christmas came early, with lots of our favourite seasonal tunes.

We were pleased to welcome Jen, the Older People’s engagement lead from Oxleas, and welcome back Gill from the University of Greenwich who has visited us a few times.

Bingo is becoming more popular every week. Regular bingo caller Dave was not able to attend today so elf Tony was happy to step in and get involved.

The Creative Companion Collaborations massage team returned to provide hand, back and even one head massage. This time we had three lovely ladies who came along. Members said how much they enjoyed having a massage.

Once Mark got going the dance floor was packed and the singing loud.

As is tradition with the penultimate session of the year, it was elf week. Our team of wonderful elves did a great job keeping everything running smoothly and bringing enthusiasm and energy to the afternoon. The elves also check if group members have been good this year. Of course, they all have.

Team member highlight

Introducing Pearl. Pearl is our Health & Safety lead. She likes to ensure things run smoothly and she does this very well. She ensures group members register with her at each session and issues them with their name badges. She also ensures the chairs are set out to accommodate everyone including dedicated spaces for our wheelchair users.

The Reflections Friendship Group is next at Shrewsbury House on 9th December 2025 at 1pm when Vikki will entertain us with a Christmas Party performance.

Please note: in our uploaded photos we blur the faces of all group members. You do see the faces of our wonderful volunteers.

Julian Garman – 11th November 2025

by Peter, posted in Friends Group

What an afternoon!! There was so much going on today.

Julian was in top form, playing plenty of powerful well known tunes on his guitar, harmonica and cornet.

Dave has now attracted quite a bingo crew. In our games, everyone gets a small prize whether they win or not. Dave is learning the bingo phrases, though everyone shouts out the phrases as the numbers come up even if he doesn’t know them.

We welcomed two therapists from Creative Companion Collaborations who were giving free hand massages to group members. There was even time towards the end for some team members to have one too. Members reported the ladies were very good and the massages were relaxing. Thank you for coming along ladies.

Karlee, our local ASDA Community Life Champion came along to present us with a cheque for £1,000 from the ASDA Foundation. This money will be used to fund our Christmas party on 9th December. Thank you Karlee so much for nominating our group for this award and for the donation of some biscuits and squash that you brought along today.

We also welcomed Andrew, Service Manager Bexley from the Alzheimer’s Society. He came along to see what happens at the Friendship Group and kindly topped up our supplies of Alzheimer’s Society publications which Helen, our Librarian, gives out to new members. He plans to come back in the New Year to deliver an updated Dementia Friends session for the team and anyone who would like to join us.

As always, great music stimulates the group members to take to the dance floor. I’m sure they will all sleep well tonight.

Team member highlight

Introducing Helen. Helen is our resident Librarian. Since taking on this role her warmth, keenness and willingness means she has also acquired two other roles. She is our Playlist for Life lead and has volunteered to run a reminiscence table with the Call to Mind Game if there is demand. Helen loves all of these roles as she enjoys chatting to group members and finding our more about them.

The Reflections Friendship Group is next at Shrewsbury House on 25th November 2025 at 1pm. Mark will entertain us and the elves will be in town.

Please note: in our uploaded photos we blur the faces of all group members. You do see the faces of our wonderful volunteers.