Memory Makers

29/05/2026

Over the next few weeks, you may begin to notice a few changes across our social media pages, email addresses and wider communication.

Memory Makers is becoming part of The Community Story Hub CIC.

This is not a move away from the work we have been doing. It is a way of giving that work a wider home.

Memory Makers will continue as one of our core programmes, especially around life stories, family memories, care settings, dementia-friendly storytelling, hospices and reminiscence work.

The Community Story Hub CIC allows us to grow the wider mission too — supporting community storytelling projects, local heritage work, schools, sports clubs, Memory Trails, intergenerational projects and organisations that want to help people preserve the stories that matter.

So, while you may see the name change, the heart of the work remains the same. We are still here to help people, families, organisations, and communities capture, preserve and share real stories.

Same purpose. Wider home. More stories saved.

28/05/2026

Dementia Awareness Week may have passed, but the need to see the person behind the condition continues every day.

That is something we come back to again and again through our Memory Makers work. Because a person is never just a diagnosis, a care plan, a list of needs or a set of symptoms. They are their stories. Their voice. Their humour. Their habits. Their favourite songs. Their old sayings. Their family moments. Their working life. Their childhood memories. Their places. Their people.

And sometimes, those stories need a little help to come forward.

A gentle question. A familiar photograph. A piece of music. A shared cup of tea. A conversation that is not rushed. A moment where someone is given the time and space to be more than the condition they are living with.

That is why this work matters.
It is not just about preserving memories for the future, although that matters deeply. It is also about dignity in the present. It is about helping people feel seen, heard and valued now.

As Memory Makers becomes part of the wider Community Story Hub CIC, this belief remains at the heart of everything we do.

Every person has a story.
And every story deserves to be met with care.

27/05/2026

One of the things last week’s dementia awareness conversations made clear is that memory is not just personal. It is social, emotional and deeply connected to the people and places around us.

We remember through conversations.

We remember through family stories.

We remember through photographs, music, familiar streets, old workplaces, football clubs, schools, community groups and the people who shared those moments with us.

This is something we have been learning through Memory Makers.

What started as a way to help people preserve life stories, voices and memories has grown into something wider. We have seen how powerful storytelling can be in care homes, dementia groups and families, but also in schools, sports clubs, local communities, heritage projects and intergenerational work.

That is why Memory Makers is now sitting within The Community Story Hub CIC. The Community Story Hub has been created to help individuals, families, organisations and communities capture, preserve and share real stories. Memory Makers will continue as one of its core programmes, especially for older people, people living with dementia or memory loss, care settings, hospices and families.

But the wider hub allows us to do more.

More community conversations.
More intergenerational projects.
More local stories saved.
More people feeling heard, valued and remembered.

Whether a story comes from a person, a family, a care home, a club, a school or a whole town, it still matters.

And too many stories are lost simply because no one asked.

26/05/2026

Last week’s focus on dementia awareness was a timely reminder of something we see again and again through our Memory Makers work.

A person is never just their diagnosis.

They are their stories, their voice, their humour, their favourite sayings, their old routines, their family memories, their working life, their songs, their photographs, their friendships, their little moments and their big ones.
When someone is living with dementia or memory loss, it can become very easy for conversations to become centred around care, appointments, medication, risk and routine. All of those things matter, of course they do. But so does the person behind them.

That is why storytelling matters.

A familiar question, a photograph, a piece of music, a place name, a childhood memory or a gentle conversation can open something up. Not always in a neat or predictable way, but often in a deeply human one.
Through Memory Makers, we have been exploring how stories can help people feel heard, seen and remembered, whether that is in families, care homes, dementia groups, hospices or community settings.

And as this work continues to grow, Memory Makers is now becoming part of a wider community storytelling organisation: The Community Story Hub CIC.

The name is changing around the work, but the heart of it remains the same.
Helping people preserve the stories, voices and memories that matter.

22/05/2026

This Dementia Action Week, one of the simplest things you can do is ask someone a question.

Not a complicated one. Not a formal one. Just a question that gives them permission to talk.

What was your first home like?
What music did you love when you were younger?
Who made you laugh the most?
What was your proudest moment?
What is something you would like your family to remember?

Sometimes we wait for the perfect moment to have meaningful conversations, but often the best moments are ordinary ones.

A cup of tea. A car journey. A quiet afternoon. A bench in town. A few minutes with someone who has lived a life full of stories.

At Memory Makers, we believe those small conversations can become something much bigger.

They can comfort families.
They can help carers understand the person behind the routine.
They can preserve voices, memories and moments that might otherwise disappear.

So this week, ask the question.

Then listen.

21/05/2026

This week, we are talking about dementia because Dementia Action Week matters.

But Memory Makers is not only about dementia.

We work with the simple belief that stories are important at every age and in every community. They matter in care homes, yes. But they also matter in schools, clubs, families, community groups, hospices, local history projects and places where people simply need to feel seen and heard.

A memory can be a legacy.
A conversation can be a connection.
A voice can become something a family treasures forever.
A local story can become part of a community’s history.

Dementia reminds us how fragile memory can be, but it also reminds us how powerful it is to capture stories before they are lost, forgotten or left unasked.

That is the heart of Memory Makers.

Not just preserving memories at the end of life, but helping people recognise the value of their stories throughout life.

20/05/2026

One of the most important things we can remember during Dementia Action Week is this:

A diagnosis is not a full stop on someone’s story.

Before the condition, there was a childhood. A first job. A favourite song. A place they loved. A family saying. A moment that made them laugh. A lesson they still carry. A version of themselves that deserves to be known.

At Memory Makers, we believe stories help bring the person back into focus.

They help families hear things they may never have asked before. They help carers see more than daily routines. They help communities remember that every person has lived a life full of detail, feeling and meaning.

Dementia can affect memory, but it does not remove identity.

That is why we ask questions. That is why we record voices. That is why we create space for stories to be shared, saved and honoured.

Because people are more than what they are going through.

19/05/2026

Today, Gareth is in Nantwich on the Memory Bench with The Thursday Club Nantwich, inviting people to sit, chat and share a memory.

It is a simple idea, but that is exactly why it matters.

A bench. A conversation. A familiar place. A question that opens the door to a story.

Not every memory has to become a film. Not every conversation has to become public. Sometimes the value is in the moment itself — being asked, being listened to, being reminded that your life has mattered and still matters.

During Dementia Action Week, this feels especially important. For people living with dementia, and for the people who love and support them, conversation can become one of the most powerful ways to connect.

But this is bigger than dementia, too.

It is about community. Belonging. Local history. Human connection. The kind of memories that make a town feel like more than buildings and streets.

If you see us in Nantwich today, come and say hello. You might just have a memory worth sharing.

18/05/2026

This week is Dementia Action Week, and for Memory Makers, it feels like an important moment to pause.

Memory Makers was never created solely for dementia. It was created because every person has stories, memories, moments, sayings, lessons, laughter and little pieces of life that deserve to be heard.

But we also know that dementia brings this into very sharp focus.

When memory changes, the person does not disappear. Their voice still matters. Their story still matters. Their identity still matters. Sometimes what is needed is simply the right question, the right person listening, and enough time for a memory to find its way out.

That is why this week matters to us.

Not because memory-making only belongs in dementia care, but because dementia reminds all of us how precious stories are while they are still here to be shared.

11/05/2026

Last week, one of our fantastic pilot partners, Louise Newton from Brookside Care Home in Bamber Bridge, was invited onto the 'Magic Moments' show on Radio Leyland to talk about piloting Memory Makers.

It's on around 1:38 into the show if you'd like to have a listen.

Thursday's Magic Moments is presented by Colin Horniman and features songs from the 1920s to the 1970s plus a Top Ten from 1971 and an interview with Louise Newton from Brookside Care Home in Bamber Bridge about a new project they are trialling!

07/05/2026

Our long-term ambition is to help preserve one million memories.

It is a big goal, but the heart of it is very simple.

Every memory belongs to a person. Every person has a story. Every story has the potential to connect families, support care teams and preserve something that might otherwise be lost.

Memory Makers exists to make story capture easier, warmer and more accessible across care homes, hospices, community settings and families.

Through guided prompts, audio, video, photos, Memory Paths, Every Natter Matters sessions and shareable digital outputs, we are helping people record the moments, voices and experiences that make a life feel known.

This is about more than nostalgia.

It is about dignity, identity, connection and person-centred care.

One million memories may be the ambition, but the work starts with one conversation.

One person.

One story worth saving.