National Intergenerational Week

National Intergenerational Week is all about celebrating those moments and places where different age groups come together for shared benefit.

In changing times, parents are having children later in life, and living greater distances from their own parents. Given current impacts from Covid-19, we are having to segregate and isolate, with a particular focus on 70+ year olds being forced into self-isolation, there is a need now, more than ever, to focus on positive communities. How can we bring together older and younger generations safely in a way that supports friendship?

St. Monica Trust think it’s about time we change the way we do things.  They aim is to get as many people talking about existing intergenerational projects in their local area as possible. Find out how to get involved in National Intergenerational Week.

Let’s pool our collective experience into sharing ideas for tackling social isolation – whether through in-person events or via online sessions and emails, phone calls and social media. Share your ideas for supporting intergenerational connections on the hashtag #IntergenerationalWeek

Intergenerational projects and cinema

Cinema can be an inspiring and powerful tool for developing intergenerational projects. Find some inspiration on this page about previous and existing projects, or information for further research and planning ideas. Share your organisation’s projects or those local to you with the online world during #IntergenerationalWeek

Online ideas

Could you:

  • set up a watch party between younger and older individuals and have a chat on Zoom/Skype after the film?
  • run an online drawing, poetry or drama workshop, using a film as a theme?
  • watch some archive film available through BFI Player or a regional archive website, and run a reminiscence workshop online?
  • buddy up a younger person and an older person to have a chat online each week about a short or feature film they’ve seen?

Share your experiences

We would love to know about your Intergenerational film or cinema project at Inclusive Cinema. If you’d like to submit your own case study, please download this Inclusive screening case study template and submit it to toki[at]filmhubwales.org, so we can share your experiences, too.

Local 12: Generation to Generations uses film for intergenerational mentoring

Accessing Community Cinema: Driftwood Cinema

Project overview Community Cinemas operate on a tight budget and primarily screen from DVD using equipment aimed at the “home” market or a little better. Venues also are multi-use and not purpose built and therefore often suffer from poor acoustic qualities and do not offer tiered seating. However their audience demographic includes a significant proportion … More

Derbyshire Film

Project overview Derbyshire Film is a network of voluntary promoters who use digital projection equipment to provide film screenings in village halls and other alternative venues, particularly in rural areas where cinema is not otherwise available. Why the project matters The project arose following research with local people, who said that the one artform they … More

TAPE Community Production Facility

Project overview TAPE is a community arts charity which specialises in presenting inclusive opportunities for people of all ages. Along with a timetable of weekly projects and clubs, TAPE works through film production and screening to support people from across the community to engage, socialise, learn, train and find employment and opportunities. For over 10 … More

Statistical Digest of Rural England

The Statistical Digest of Rural Statistics is a collection of statistics on a range of social and economic subject areas. The statistics are split by rural and urban areas, allowing for comparisons between the different rural and urban area classifications. The Digest includes high level statistics which present an overall picture for England. However, there … More

The New Creative Rural Economies

The report outlines how the rural cultural strategy and creative rural economy initiatives were initially developed as a response to two major economic shocks and related rural crises, provoked first in 2001 by the Foot and Mouth (FMD) epidemic, which cost the country c. £8 billion in compensation and lost tourism revenue. And later, in … More

Rural Cultural Strategy – Independent Study Report

In July 2010 the Rural Cultural Forum (RCF) www.ruralculture.org.uk produced a report,Creative Rural Communities (CRC), that sets out why a Rural Cultural Strategy (RCS) is needed and the form it might take. The report was intended to stimulate and inform public debate and to provide the basis for RCF, statutory agencies, and other interested parties … More

Bookable – Britain on Film: Rural Life

The second programme from Britain on Film on Tour is an evocative exploration of the countryside of the UK, taking in the diverse and beautiful landscapes of all our home nations.