Far from being removed from farming after retiring from the land, the lifestyle and the memories remain, however, the chance to meet up with like-minded people to share the stories, the laughs, and discuss the characters remembered, is perhaps missing.

Graham Galloway, from KirrieConnections, based at Kirriemuir, in Angus, has been running a successful farming memories project in the dementia support hub there. Graham has put together the group with the aim of giving those that worked the land, in any capacity, the chance to get together and have a chat about their way of life and enjoy some social interaction with people on the same wavelength.

Graham says: “Working with the local Community Mental Health Team we had identified that farmers were quite hard to engage with through more traditional activities. Now we have a session every Friday morning that is specifically about farming and working the land. We've had six people attend the sessions so far and every week there are lively discussions about farming techniques, old technology and shared memories. Our participants often bring in personal books, photos and objects that will trigger further discussions and shared reminiscing.”

Everyone is welcome to attend the sessions, it isn’t specifically geared towards those living with dementia, it is fully inclusive of anyone with an interest. The sessions are held every Friday morning at the Kirriemuir Community Hub, which is at 5 Bank Street, between 10am and 11.30am. If you wish to go along, there is no need to book, just drop in, and you are welcome to bring along any objects that would be a good talking point, eg, books, photos, implements.

In order for the group to be successful, Graham would ideally like some more volunteers to come along to help out at the sessions; he adds it would be helpful if you had some farming or rural knowledge, as his is pretty limited. If you would like to volunteer to help, contact Graham, details below.

What: Farming Memories Group

Where: Kirriemuir Community Hub, 5 Bank Street, Kirriemuir, DD8 4BE

When: 10am-11.30am

Website: www.kirrieconnections.com Email: graham@kirrieconnections.com

Tel: 01575 573805 Mobile; 07900 490959