Vintage photo competition launched to help support patients with dementia in Stockport

Dementia care and patient experience colleagues at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Stepping Hill Hospital and local community NHS services, have launched the Reminisce Photograph Competition.

The team are calling for local people to submit old photographs of local landmarks to find images for a new therapy book to help support patients living with dementia.

The appeal is for photographs of buildings, housing, transport, and attractions taken between the years 1940-1990. These can be from Stockport, other areas of Greater Manchester, and areas around the High Peak too.

These photographs should be ones taken by the person entering the competition, or from their friends and family with permission. Due to copyright issues, they should not be obtained from publications, unless specific permission has already been given.  

People living with dementia can be disorientated, anxious and scared, and being in an unfamiliar environment such as a hospital this can heighten these feelings. Familiar images from the past often have a calming effect which can be of great benefit to them.

Dementia care and patient experience will be using the images from the competition to create a new book which will help with this support.

The winner will feature on the front cover, and will receive a £30 Amazon Voucher, kindly donated by supporters.

Ruth Terry, Matron for Dementia Care said:

“Being in hospital can be both a frightening and frustrating experience for someone living with dementia. Research has consistently shown that images familiar to these people from their past will often have a calming and therapeutic effect for them.

 By creating this book we hope to create a valuable new resource to help both for them and their carers. We’re really looking forward to seeing the photos sent by our helpful local photographers.”

For full details and rules, or just to find out more, please email the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust Dementia Care Team. Entries need to be in by the close of Friday, 28^th February 2025.