What was it that inspired you to work closely with older people in your job?I’ve worked at Big Pit for over 20 years, originally as a student studying adult education. I’m now the learning manager for Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales. I work across all seven sites, but Big Pit is still my base.

Museums put a lot of resources into children and school groups. Sometimes it feels like older adults can be neglected, so I try to rebalance that. I’ve always been interested in involving adults and older people in our work. Older people can shine a light on our collections so it’s really important that we involve them in everything we do.

Sharon is the Learning, Participation and Interpretation Manager for Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales, and has been leading the work to make National Museum sites more age-friendly.

“Older people are the gatekeepers of everything we do as museums. It’s about their stories and their history.”

What do you see as the role of museums in supporting the wellbeing of older people?Museums provide a space for positive social interaction and learning. Museums are an opportunity for people to connect - with an item or an object, or with each other.

We have a role to play in creating a platform for the voices and stories of older people, and sharing them with people of all ages. Museums can provide a context for older people’s stories, making them interesting and relevant to others, which can help young and old to connect.

You run Dementia Friendly underground tours at Big Pit. How did this come about?We started by having a group of people with dementia do a tour of Big Pit. We thought their feedback would point out some simple adjustments which could make the site more accessible, and help us develop a Dementia Friendly surface tour.

What we found was that people actually wanted to take part in the underground tour. My initial reaction was “how on earth can we tackle that?” and I’m sure some colleagues felt the same. I was worried that it might be a big risk and that it could be dangerous.

I started to discuss the idea with colleagues. A lot of our staff had already been on Dementia Friends sessions. This really helped open their minds to the potential of what could be done, and we started to look for solutions rather than finding problems. The staff have been brilliant. They’re used to dealing with so many different types of people, and everyone came on board from the outset.

We run the tours during times when the museum isn’t too busy and where we can slow things down a bit. It’s really important that everyone has the opportunity to get to know the guides, and to ask questions. It’s about giving people the opportunity to decide what they can do and what they want to do. We make it about them, not us.

How do people with dementia respond to the underground tours?It’s been brilliant, really well received. A gentleman who was an ex-miner came on one of the underground dementia tours. At first, he didn’t really engage with anyone in the group. As soon as he went underground, he became more animated, and he started to talk to the people and the guides about his experiences as a miner. In the space of an hour, he went from someone who was barely speaking to someone who could have led the tour himself!

Afterwards, we found from his wife that he rarely speaks in group settings, and that the tour had a massive impact on him. He’s now started to regularly attend a group of ex-miners. She wouldn’t have thought before that this was something he would get much from, but the visit to Big Pit changed her perceptions.

It was heart-rending and also really inspiring. We helped provide the setting and the environment for him to connect. It shows what can be achieved with just a little bit of effort, and makes you want to do more.

What other age-friendly work is Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales involved with?Recently we’ve been developing the Oakdale Miner’s Institute at St Fagans as a Dementia Friendly space. We’ve been developing Memory Boxes which have been really successful. The Memory Boxes let people see and touch items from their past that they can relate to. It’s really beneficial, not just for people with dementia, but for older people generally. It allows people to open up and tell their stories, and sometimes it’s a story that’s never been told before.

We’ve just started to put together an intergenerational steering group for Big Pit, where we get young and old people together to work with us on developing our future activities.

We’ve also helped launch the Age-Friendly Culture Network. There’s a lot of great work taking place around Wales, and it’s not always done by the big organisations. Sometimes smaller initiatives and good practice can get overlooked. We wanted to provide an opportunity to bring people together from different sectors and different backgrounds and to create opportunities for us to work together. It’s really exciting. Loads of people, from health boards, housing associations and care homes are really eager to work together with us.

How would you like to see this work develop?Organisations and places have become increasingly disability aware in recent years, and it’s made a big difference. I’d like to see more people and organisations be age aware, and for age-friendly initiatives to become more mainstream. We should have a greater focus on intergenerational activities that can bring people together of all ages. We shouldn’t be putting on separate programmes for people of different ages, but making sure that everyone has the opportunity to get involved with all of our activities. We need more older people working and volunteering with us, so that they’re part of our thinking and planning from the very start of everything we do.

What do you get out of involvement with this work?It’s opened my eyes and I love it. It’s the best part of my work. There are so many people who are willing to help you. I’ve made some brilliant friends - people of all ages. It’s really rewarding. If I could work exclusively on age-friendly projects full-time, I would!

What would you say to someone working in an organisation thinking about making something more age-friendly?It doesn’t have to be complicated. Don’t be reticent, just go ahead and do it. Remember the old adage of “nothing about us without us”. Talk to older people, talk to people with dementia. They’ll tell you what to do and what is important for them.

Just look at what you already do and what changes you can make. It might be something as simple as how you provide information or changing a light. People understand that you can’t do everything. Staff awareness is critical. Your staff are your most valuable resource and the main way that you can change things.

For more information on Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales, visit www.museum.wales or phone 0300 111 2 333.For more information on the Age-Friendly Culture Network, visit www.agefriendlyculturenetwork.co.uk.