The Greater Moments Christmas Concert will be streamed from 20 December at 3pm and feature a professionally produced singalong performance, a school production and messages of recognition and hope from across the Greater Manchester community.

The concert will be streamed via the Greater Moments app, that has recently been launched. The app aims to help people living with dementia share their experiences of the condition while also directing them to local support and activities. The app was commissioned by Dementia United, Greater Manchester’s programme for dementia, and developed by Social Sense and Hitch marketing.

The Christmas concert is being supported by Hitch Marketing, Media City production company Badger and Coombes and will be recorded at The Met in Bury. Acclaimed musical theatre singer Roy Locke will be leading the show, having previously performed in theatres and opera houses across the world.

Those tuning in will be invited to ‘score’ how they are feeling before and after the event in order to support the app’s wider aim of learning more about the day-to-day lives of those affected by dementia and to help improve the current support on offer to them.

Gary Lovatt, co-creator of Greater Moments and managing director of Social Sense said:

“The vision for Greater Moments is to provide a single access point for all activities, events and services in Greater Manchester so that it’s possible for older residents in particular to bring key moments of their lives into one place. By measuring in real time those experiences we can adjust and adapt our response, maintain independence for longer and hopefully support carers in a way that works well for them.”

Mayor of Manchester Andy Burnham said:

“During the pandemic many of us have felt isolated and missed seeing our friends and family in the normal way. This has been particularly hard for people living with dementia, who have the added problem of not being able to get the personal contact that makes a huge difference to their lives and mood. The Greater Moments app is one of the ways we’ve been able to maintain that social link and have been able to help people find alternatives to activities they enjoyed before the pandemic. The Christmas concert is a great example of how despite the barriers we can still come together and collectively celebrate the festive season as a community”.

Warren Heppolette, executive lead for strategy and system development, Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership, said:

“Unfortunately, Christmas will be very different for most of us this year. However, with a little inspiration and the help of technology, we can still come together and share a festive moment or two. The Greater Moments Christmas Concert will bring music  into the homes of older people through our new Greater Moments app. Since its launch, the app has been helping people to find support and activities during this challenging time. The Christmas concert is a perfect example of how the app can create connections between people living with dementia.”

Professional carers, family carers or anybody living with dementia can register for the show at www.greatermoments.org.uk

Anyone else who’d like to watch the concern can do so by registering for our free on Eventbrite: www.eventbrite.com/e/greater-moments-christmas-event-tickets-132274142521