Tony Husband is best known for his regular cartoon strip in Private Eye, Yobs, that has been published since the late 1980s. Tony is an active dementia campaigner and openly speaks of his own experience of the joy that music brought this father whilst living with dementia: “I know the importance of, and the pleasure, music brings to those living with dementia. My dad was a brilliant boogie woogie player and he took his keyboard into the care home. One day I was in his room, and he was playing something I’d not heard before, I said ‘Dad, is that your tune?’ Without stopping playing, he said ‘Yes, music gives me freedom’ And it did, I know that.”
About #JustOneHour
#JustOneHour is inspired by research which suggests that people living with dementia in a care home can receive as little as two minutes a day social interaction. Increasing this to just one hour a week significantly improves quality of life by decreasing agitation and improving wellbeing. What better way to do this than through music!
#JustOneHour is a revolutionary campaign, we want to start a movement of people making the world a better place for those living with dementia by improving their overall quality of life through music. Taking one small step, one person at a time, just one hour.
Sign up to pledge to provide at least one hour a week of meaningful music for the individual(s) you care for. You will receive a free digital pack with information and ideas to do this, as well as access to our online community. We’re here to support you every step of the way.
2,400
Individuals supported
through #JustOneHour
6000
Caregivers taking
part in #JustOneHour
600
Care homes taking part in
#JustOneHour
3
Countries taking
part in #JustOneHour
Sponsor
Supporters
Ambassadors
Tony Husband
Marc Riley
Marc is a musician and presenter. He joined the Manchester band The Fall in May 1978 aged 16. After 5 years in the band left to spend time split between another band (The Creepers), run a record label (In Tape), music journalism (Record Mirror) and enjoyed a stint as a cartoonist for a national kids comic (Oink!).
A few years spent as a Record Plugger saw Marc being invited to join the fledgeling BBC network Radio 5 Live network as a contributor, co-presenter and producer. It was here that Marc formed a partnership with Mark Radcliffe which would see them broadcast together for 14 years. This included a stint at presenters of the Radio1 Breakfast Show. The duo split in 2004, and since then Marc has been a presenter on BBC 6 Music.
Jim Sanger
After starting off as a guitarist and songwriter in rock and Indie bands Jim now works from his home studio writing and producing music for film and television. He has written music for several films, working with directors in the U.K and America.
He particularly enjoys recording sounds from nature and the surrounding environment and taking these samples back to his studio to manipulate before incorporating them into his scores.
Although Jim plays many instruments and spends much of his time at a piano keyboard it's always playing the many guitars that lie around his home where he feels most comfortable.
Doves
Doves are an English alt rock band formed in Manchester. The band is composed of twin brothers Jez Williams (guitar, vocals), and Andy Williams (drums, vocals) and Jimi Goodwin (bass, vocals, guitar). The band released four studio albums between 2000 and 2009, two of which reached #1 on the UK album charts
Our Community
Submit your photo, share a meaningful song with us using the hashtag #JustOneHour and tell us why this song is meaningful to you. By sending your photo and story you are giving us permission to use the image and text on our website and in social media promotions.
Sign Up
Complete the form to join the #JustOneHour community
By pledging to provide at least one hour of meaningful music a week for individual(s) living with dementia, you will officially become part of the #JustOneHour community, and you will receive a free digital welcome pack with information and resources to support you to use music in your daily care.
Why Sign up to #JustOneHour?
_________
It’s free
You’ll be part of our community
It’s easy – less than 9 minutes a day
You’ll receive free resources from us
Including a digital pack with all information and resources you need to provide just one hour of music a week, certificate, regular email updates and more.
The "contact email address" field is the email address for the #JustOneHour contact in your setting and where we will send a welcome pack, newsletters, and more.
Stories
We’re excited to share your stories of #JustOneHour in various settings! If you want your story to be featured on our website, you can submit your #JustoneHour story using the following template
Your comments
"One resident in particular is at a very late stage in her journey and isn’t really responsive to anyone or anything, her family brought in an ipod with a speaker for her room so we could play some playlists designed by her family. Since this the resident has slowly started to talk a bit more, shout a little less and acknowledge the team in small and simple ways when they are with them."
- Katriona Beeton, Lifestyles Lead, Alexandra Grange
At Hallmark Care Homes we've seen from our own experiences how music has the power to create connections and build relationships - particularly for people living with dementia. Our teams recognise the value of using music as part of everyday care, not just as one off sessions or events, and the learning we're taking part in with Musica is helping to embed that practice in all Hallmark Care Homes. Our aim is that every person's care plan should include a way to use music therapeutically in a way that is meaningful for that person.
- April Dobson, Head of Relationship Centred Care, Hallmark Care Homes
Our partnership with Musica will help us achieve our aim to embed music into every residents’ care plan and ensure that our focus remains always on every single individual. Music enriches people's lives in so many ways by bringing joy, fun, and opportunities for a shared experience, which is why we're so proud to support the 'Just One Hour' campaign.
- April Dobson, Head of Relationship Centred Care Manager, Hallmark Care Homes
FAQs
What is #JustOneHour?
The #JustOneHour campaign is an initiative led by Musica Music and Wellbeing CIC to encourage every caregiver in the UK to provide at least one hour of meaningful music a week for individuals living with dementia. By signing up to the campaign, you are pledging to provide at least one hour of meaningful music a week for the individual(s) you care for. In return you will receive a digital pack full of information, tips and resources to help you fulfil your pledge.
Is the campaign only for care homes?
No, the campaign is for every caregiver, whether you operate a care home, hospital, or are an unpaid caregiver, we would love to see you pledge.
Someone else from my care setting has already pledged on the setting’s behalf, can I pledge too?
We are asking that only one contact from each care setting makes the pledge. However, if additional members of staff would also like to receive the digital pack and emails please do drop us an email – and we will add you to our mailing list
Do I need special equipment to take part in #JustOneHour?
No, that’s the beauty of it. We will provide you with information on many different ways to use music with the individual(s) you care for whether you have access to certain technologies (i.e. Spotify, iPads etc) or not.
Do I need to provide a whole hour of music in one go?
No, we would recommend that you spread the hour over the week, ideally offering music daily, but as a minimum offering it 3 times a week
Is one hour a week enough?
We recommend that one hour a week is a minimum, of course many people are providing more than one hour a week, but research also shows that some people living with dementia receive as little as 14 minutes of social interaction a week, and so we want to encourage everyone to provide AT LEAST one hour of meaningful music a week
Why Music?
Music if used meaningfully, can provide enormous benefits in dementia care. Below we share 10 different ways that music can support the wellbeing of individuals living with dementia:
Mood – Listening to or participating with music can help to regulate emotions and increase experience of positive emotional states
Agitation – Familiar music can help to reduce experience of agitation by meeting social needs and supporting a sense of self
Mealtimes – playing background music at mealtimes has been shown to support an increase in food and water intake
Sleep – Listening to music around 60-80bpm can help to lower blood pressure, relax muscle tension and support a good night’s sleep
Exercise – Listening to music can be a great way to engage with physical movement releasing endorphins as a result
Self Identity – Listening to music that we associate with meaningful memories can help to support feelings of self-identity
Memory Recall – Music that is meaningful can often help to bring back long-lost memories, and as a result can help caregivers have a deeper understanding of the individual(s) that they care for
Communication – Music can be used as a communication tool if verbal communication is limited. Likewise, you might find that individuals who find it difficult to communicate may still be able to sing familiar songs word for word.
Anxiety – Studies have found that listening to music can lower your body's levels of cortisol, a hormone that can contribute to feelings of stress and anxiety
Social Interactions – Experiencing music together can help to provide meaningful connections and improve social interactions which are much longer-lasting than the music itself
Visit us on social networks: 
