Talks are underway for a club helping people with mild and moderate dementia to continue in Cliftonville at buildings vacated by Trinity Resource Centre.
The Cogs Club is one of the organisations that used the building which was being managed by the resource centre business.
Sadly the impact of covid led to the announcement last month that Trinity Resource Centre was shutting permanently and making its staff redundant.
The buildings have been handed back to Holy Trinity Church.
The church is now in talks with practitioner Jackie Tuppen about reopening Cogs at the building.
Rev Clifford Stocking previously confirmed talks were also taking place for Sunshine pre-school to continue at the site with the aim of reinstating full community use, covid-safe dependent.
Rev Stocking said: “In time, as and when we can under covid guidelines, we hope to offer community use. At the moment we are a church hall again, so the hall can be hired, and there are negotiations for the pre-school.”
Ms Tuppen said: “Whilst the Trinity Resource Center is no longer able to run Cogs Clubs, these clubs are independent of organisations so that I, as founder, can continue to open clubs anywhere an organisation/ private person wishes to take on the vision.
“To that end I am working with the blessing of, and in partnership with the Holy Trinity Church Margate to reopen the Cogs Clubs in their buildings, recently vacated by the Resource Centre.
“It is my wish and expectation that we will continue to have a dementia presence at this venue to support the community and parish of the church.”
Cogs Club sessions are not therapy but are based on Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST) and are a non-drug related treatment for memory problems. The programme is normally run as a two-hour session, twice a week, over seven weeks but instead of two hours a COGS Club offers a day of activity, stimulation, music and fun for a person with mild dementia.
The sessions are from 10am to 3pm, every week, for as long as a member can benefit from the activities.
It provides the opportunity for people to recall or develop new skills in activities and to transfer these skills to activities at home. It also provides the family/carer/significant other with a day’s respite.
Most clubs are run by volunteers of an organisation like a church or Age UK or Crossroads Care or a Care Home.
Subscriptions are from £8 – £25 depending on the overheads for the organisation running the club
There are five clubs looking to reopen in Thanet. For more information see the Cogs website: www.cogsclub.org.uk or contact: Jackie Tuppen RN, BSc Hons, Specialist Practitioner Textphone: 077 435 934 13 or email: [email protected]