This year has seen the launch of the exciting Intergenerational Café at South West College – a new social space for the exchange of skills and traditions to help bridge the gap between generations in the local community.
The collaborative project involved students from the Children’s Care Learning and Development (CCLD) programme, working alongside Primary 3 pupils from Dungannon Primary School and service users from an Age NI Day Centre.
The students hosted a seminar where they presented their experiences of intergenerational care to local playgroup leaders and representatives from Mid-Ulster Council and Linking Generations NI.
Opening the event, Fey Cole (Curriculum Manager, SWC) said:
“The intergenerational cafe was very much a project-based learning initiative, with far-reaching benefits to everyone who took part, including our Childcare students and staff at the College, as well as the young primary school pupils and the service users from the day centre.”
Level 3 Childcare student, Daniel McHugh, said:
“Our aim behind the project was to link different generations together to combat against loneliness and isolation. This was an eye-opener for our whole class. We were helping older people who unfortunately have next to no social interaction on a daily basis and it taught us the value of intergenerational care.
“I would highly recommend other settings to get involved in some form of intergenerational care. Everyone involved learned so much from listening to each other and there’s that feel-good factor from helping people come together to chat and learn from each other.”
For further information on the intergenerational café, please contact Fey Cole: fey.cole@swc.ac.uk