Silver Sunday, the National Day for Older People is Sunday 4th October this year. It's a very unusual time for us all and we are incredibly grateful to all of you who have been in touch with ideas for bringing people together and doing what we can for our older community. We appreciate how challenging and uncertain it is so we thought a helpful 'ideas & inspiration' email may inspire and help with your plans. With safety of guests as always the top priority, we ask you all to do what you can to bring joy and happiness to older people this October.
(Please follow local and national guidance which may change daily. You may find our 'Top Tips' page helpful.)
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1. GO ONLINE
- Host a party Download our decorations from our website and you could even drop off a party bag with props and a cupcake for your guests before it starts.
- Put on a performance Whether you're the English National Opera, an amateur ukulele group or a school band, your talents and passion will be much enjoyed.
- Create virtual classes Art, baking, zoom Zumba, pilates, yoga, dancing and virtual walks are all popular.
- Run virtual tours to bring the outside in. Whether it's a local park, a museum, gallery or national treasure these are especially valuable for those unable to leave the house.
- Share your skills & knowledge Can you teach a language, sign language, craft or IT skills?
- Run virtual games Bingo & quizzes are fun online.
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2. GO OUTDOORS
- Host a garden party Socially distance in the comfort of your own home or local community space.
- Exercise outdoors Tai chi, walking, swimming, tennis, football, boating... these are popular Silver Sunday events every year and they're even more valuable than ever.
- Gather & Guide Walking tours are always popular, including wheelchair friendly ones. Can you organise something in your local community, park or to local points of interest?
- Run virtual tours to bring the outside in. Whether it's a local park, a museum, gallery or national treasure these are especially valuable for those unable to leave the house.
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3. BE SAFE INDOORS
- Host a 'bubble' party Socially distance in the comfort of your own home or local community space.
- Creative capers in care homes Every year staff in care homes blow us away with their creativity, energy and kindness in bringing Silver Sunday to life in their own unique and imaginative ways. We hope that whilst visitors may be restricted this year that Silver Sunday continues to provide a day of joy around the UK care communities.
- Run socially-safe events & activities Follow the national and local guidelines closely when it comes to planning events and remember there may be restrictions on numbers, wearing of masks, social distancing and other measures such as hand washing. Up to date information can be found by following the government links on our 'Top Tips' page.
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4. BE A DOORSTEP HERO
- Bake Cakes Take them round to older neighbours in your street and show them how much they mean to you.
- Create pavement performances Can you bring out your guitar, fine tune your vocal chords and sing some classics from yesteryear? From Vera Lynn to Abba, pick your style and enjoy the feeling it brings to your communities.
- Decorate your doors Bring out the bunting, create Silver Linings for Silver Sunday above your window Rainbows and download the decorations from our website too.
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Silver Sunday 2020 is a very different year to previous where we've worked with hundreds of organisations in creating a national map of over 1,200 events throwing open their doors to visitors. That said, we still encourage you to put your pin on our map and register your events and activities on our calendar so people can find out more about what you're doing for our older communities and we can make Silver Sunday a silver lining of success story in a very strange year.
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Fun Palaces has always been about person to person connections at the heart of community. This year, they are focusing on tiny connections, especially safely including those who are shielding or may be lonely. This year the Fun Palaces weekend overlaps with Silver Sunday from 2-4 October. Sign up: funpalaces.co.uk or hello@funpalaces.co.uk.
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Remember we are always here to help you bring your ideas to life and answer any questions. We are always up for a chat, video call, tweet, post or message. You can contact us via @SilverSundayUK, 07890 380 238 and info@SilverSunday.org.uk. We always love hearing from you.
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Thank you, as always, for helping spread happiness amongst our older communities.
Best wishes,
Christabel, Lucinda, Matthew and Sonja
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