They may be years apart in age, but music has brought old and young together in Carlisle for a heartwarming new project.

By dancing together, children and older people have been forming new friendships and building stronger communities.

The intergenerational pilot, at Upperby School, aims to tackle dementia and loneliness.

For the children, they enjoy getting to know older people and chatting about times gone by.

Helena Lockwood runs Dancing Recall sessions for those with dementia in Carlisle, and is also involved with the after school club in Upperby.

She brought the two together, along with Amy’s Care, a north Cumbrian organisation which specialises in social activities for people with dementia.

The initial pilot took place at Upperby School last week, and they are now hoping to secure funding to grow the initiative.

Susie Tate, the Healing arts coordinator at North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust and part of Dancing Recall, was at the Upperby session. She said: “It was a cross-generational project and worked really well. It’s such a nice thing to do.

“We had the school hall full of older people and children aged between about seven and 10, and a mix of girls and boys.

“The children had been learning some basic Dancing Recall sequences with Helena so they knew some basic routines.

“We also used props and scarves, then at the end the children showcased the routine they are working on for the upcoming U Dance festival.

“Then they all sat together and had tea and cake.”

Susie said the older people really enjoyed meeting the children, while the children also got a lot back from them.

She said it was lovely to see the reactions of both generations.

“There was a light on everyone’s face. It was really joyous,” said added.

“It was fantastic to break down those barriers between old and young, bridging the generations.

“There was a mix of music - the Beatles, Elvis and a bit of Shake, Rattle and Roll. The kind of songs that can get everyone up and dancing. It was a lot of fun.”

For those with dementia, dancing is proven to help.

The repetitive nature of the music and remembering different steps help to boost memory.

Movement also helps with both health and wellbeing, while listening to music from the past is great for reminiscing.

Susie said: “Just being out and about, meeting young people is also fantastic.”

The session was so successful, they are already looking to do more in future.

“We decided to try it as a one-off pilot to see how it worked, then put forward a funding bid. Exactly what shape that project will take I don’t know,” she added.