We are proud to be launching our ground-breaking, transformative support for dementia care, promoting skills of compassion, insight, listening and trust-building.

Culture Change in Dementia Care first formed out of a partnership with PrimeLife care providers in 2024, who had asked us to help reignite human-to-human connections between staff and residents post-Covid. The pandemic had a profound effect on care homes in the UK, with the need for infection control paramount, and PrimeLife was concerned that carers no longer felt confident to connect physically with those they cared for. With over 12 years’ experience working in the Arts in Health arena, we could see that this reflected a wider national situation and through the ongoing partnership with PrimeLife, honed our work to create the Culture Change initiative. 

Championing empathetic, genuine communication, Culture Change brings together well-tested performances, training and talks that  promote skills of compassion, insight, listening and trust-building in dementia care. Highlighting the power of the non-verbal, Culture Change gives permission to play, to hold, to sing, to laugh, to dance. It rebuilds the confidence of carers, re-kindles their creativity and energy, and fosters resilience. 

The initiative is structured around  a combination of vibrant, interactive performances for residents, delivered by our practitioners, which enable staff to see the positive and powerful effect of non-verbal, empathetic techniques in practice. These are supported by training workshops that explore the techniques more deeply - such as Listening with your Eyes, a hands-on workshop in which carers learn the transformative power of eye contact, touch, smiling, laughter and body-language in a safe and supportive learning setting. Culture Change also offers online follow up support and care homes can receive Joy in a Box, a big red parcel containing practical resources for creating positive engagement with residents, plus ideas for specific activities.
 
Feedback has been universally positive. Carers express how they have been re-energised and re-skilled, feel supported and valued, how their confidence has grown and how permission to play brings back the joy and satisfaction in their work. 

Vicki Shaw, Director of Quality Matters at PrimeLife care providers, commented, “All staff that attended training with Vamos Theatre have stated that the impact on them and the home has been huge. You can see it and feel it, the home is a different place now, so many smiles and connections.” 

Hazel Ratcliffe, Vamos Theatre’s Health Connector, commented, “The Lancet produced a review of staff burnout last year quoting the need to foster a supportive work environment, promote teamwork, and provide resources for emotional support and resilience training - Vamos Theatre’s Culture Change in Dementia Care does just that. We believe that carers, paid or unpaid, need to be inspired to support people living with dementia in a compassionate and loving way, which doesn’t take from them but enhances everyone’s quality of life. Our aim is to provide transformative support that helps this happen.”

To support the launch of Culture Change in Dementia Care, we are running a CPD webinar on October 23rd, 2025, presented by our Artistic Director Rachael Savage, exploring how listening, connection, playfulness and acceptance positively impact people living with dementia. The webinar is open to anyone who would like to grow their skills of empathy, insight, listening and trust-building in dementia care, whether as a professional or home carer. The company hopes that the webinar, and Culture Change in Dementia Care more widely, will empower carers to discover the positive impact of compassion and creativity in their caring roles, and offer tools to enable it in practice.

For more information about Culture Change in Dementia Care and attending the webinar, visit our Culture Change page.