applied research | CARIAD

Wales Festival of Innovation

Posted on June 25, 2016July 20, 2016 by Wendy

CARIAD threw open its doors this month to share its pioneering design research. The LAUGH project team, based in CARIAD, are working with health professionals and the care sector to develop playful objects to be used in the care of people with late stage dementia.

The LAUGH design Challenge took place in PDR at Cardiff Metropolitan University’s Llandaff Campus, and invited the public with an interest in design and technology to get involved as part of the showcase Wales Festival of Innovation, a national programme of events to celebrate ground-breaking activity in Wales.

The LAUGH team, which includes researchers from universities in the UK and Australia, gave participants the opportunity to use their expertise to help develop new products to stimulate laughter and fun for people living with advanced dementia.

This was one of dozens of participants in the Festival, which is organised jointly by the ESTnet (the technology network for Wales), the Knowledge Transfer Network (KTN) and MediWales with the support of Welsh Government and industry partners.

Wychwood Festival

Posted on June 6, 2016July 20, 2016 by Wendy

CARIAD members recently ran a series of Hand i Pocket ‘funshops’ at the Wychwood Festival (3^rd – 5^th June 2016). These sessions offered visitors to the festival the opportunity to get creative and make a sensory textile ‘Hand i Pocket’ for someone with late stage dementia. A Hand i Pocket is a stitched textile pocket that looks colourful, is interesting to touch and comforting to feel that will stimulate and amuse someone with late stage dementia.

Working with Age Cymru and Dementia & Imagination (Bangor Univeristy) at the festival, CARIAD’s Funshops were a great success with many pockets made.

Hand i Pocket Funshops are a global community network making textiles for people with dementia. More information about Hand i Pockets can be found at: www.laughproject.info or www.handsproject.info

LAUGH Project in Australia Jan/February 2016

Posted on January 16, 2016 by Wendy

CARIAD researcher Professor Cathy Treadaway is currently working in Australia at University of Technology Sydney with Dr Gail Kenning (International co-Investigator) on the LAUGH design for dementia research project. This is the first of three visits to Australia, which will enable ideas and knowledge to be exchanged as part of the AHRC funded LAUGH project.

CARIAD dementia research with Gwalia Mynydd Mawr

Posted on November 22, 2015 by Wendy

Bill and Elaine for web

Residents from Gwalia Mynydd Mawr were joined by Prof Cathy Treadaway and the CARIAD dementia research team for a celebration Tea Party on Sunday 22^nd November at the care home in Tumble near Llanelli. The event was held to celebrate the handover of a number of textiles that were developed as part of the Sensor e-Textile design for dementia research at Cardiff Metropolitan University. Continue reading CARIAD dementia research with Gwalia Mynydd Mawr

Tiree Tech Wave

Posted on October 31, 2015 by Wendy

Cardiff Metropolitan University recently teamed up with Alzheimer’s Scotland and the University of Dundee to run a creative community event on the Scottish island of Tiree. Prof Cathy Treadaway and Helen Watkins from the Centre for Applied Research in Inclusive Arts and Design (CARIAD) joined forces with Dr Keireine Canavan and Chris Dennis from the Cardiff School of Art and Design (CSAD) and Dr Wendy Moncur from University of Dundee to run a Hand i Pocket ‘funshop’ in collaboration with the Taigh a’ Rudha care home, Tiree. Continue reading Tiree Tech Wave

Professorial Lecture – Making a Difference: Designing for Happiness

Posted on October 14, 2015 by Wendy

Design is about people; the better able designers are to understand their needs, the easier it is to create appropriate solutions to support them. Using practical participatory approaches, in which people are kept at the heart of the process, it is possible to gain insights into human experience and then design positively to promote human flourishing and enhance wellbeing. Continue reading Professorial Lecture – Making a Difference: Designing for Happiness

Wales Millennium Centre – Hand i Pocket Funshop

Posted on October 3, 2015 by Wendy

CARIAD researchers collaborated with Age Cymru and Alzheimer’s Society to host a creative ‘funshop’ to coincide with Age Positive Week (27th September – 4th October 2015). The Hand i Pocket Funshop was a free public event held at Wales Millennium Centre on Saturday 3rd October led by Prof Cathy Treadaway from the CARIAD at Cardiff Met.

People who dropped in to the Hand i Pocket Funshop were invited to make and decorate a pocket for someone with dementia, using an enticing array of cloth, thread, buttons and beads, with plenty of help and inspiration on hand. The idea was to create textile pockets that are visually stimulating, interesting or soothing to touch and fun to fiddle with. They might have things hidden inside or be a place to put things. Pockets could be made for specific people and include things personal to them and their life story. Continue reading Wales Millennium Centre – Hand i Pocket Funshop

Arts & Humanities Research Council fund design research for dementia

Posted on May 15, 2015 by Wendy

Cardiff Metropolitan University’s CARIAD research centre has just been awarded an AHRC research grant of £500,000 over three years for its work in designing for people with dementia.

The LAUGH (Ludic Artefacts Using Gesture and Haptics) project is an international collaboration with researchers at the University of Technology Sydney and Birmingham City University and is led by Professor Cathy Treadaway from Cardiff School of Art and Design.

This international research collaboration addresses the call by the WHO and the G8 nations for international collaboration in order to address the global challenge of the ageing population.

The research is being partnered by Gwalia Cyf, one of the largest providers of residential social care in Wales, and will bring together people with dementia, their carers and a range of health professionals, technologists and designers. The work is also supported by the leading charities in the field: Age Cymru- My Home Life, Alzheimer’s Society and Dementia Positive.

The LAUGH research project will develop innovative playful devices that amuse, distract, comfort, engage, bring joy, and promote ‘in the moment’ living for people with late stage dementia. It builds on wellbeing research that shows that happy people live longer, have fewer falls and require less medication. It will propose non-pharmacological approaches to improve the wellbeing of people with dementia and their care. Continue reading Arts & Humanities Research Council fund design research for dementia

Dr. Cathy Treadaway and Dr. Gail Kenning presented a paper about the CARIAD Sensor e-Textile project at the International Conference of Design Creativity in India

Posted on January 16, 2015 by Wendy

Dr. Cathy Treadaway and Dr. Gail Kenning presented a paper about the CARIAD Sensor e-Textile project at the International Conference of Design Creativity in India on Wednesday 14th January. The conference was held at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, India. The ICDC is an official conference of the Design Society promoted by its Special Interest Group (SIG) on Design Creativity http://www.cpdm.iisc.ernet.in/icdc2014/#/overview.php

The Sensor e-Textile project is part of the HANDS collaboration with University of Technology Sydney investigating design to support the wellbeing of people with late stage dementia www.handsproject.info.

Breaking Bread Christmas Special a success!

Posted on December 22, 2014 by Wendy

A special festive thank you to all our participants who attended our Breaking Bread Christmas Special at Chapter Arts House this Friday. The team hosted their second official workshop and in partnership with the Trinity Project, Splott, Cathays Community Centre and the Dalton Street Centre. We were part funded by the Tesco Charity Trust which enabled us to host a truly special workshop. Focusing on the mobility of the service we set up in a ‘white space’ with an oven hired from M&M Catering Wales. The recipe was a simple cinnamon loaf divided into mini tins for sharing. We also provided icing materials to let the group add festival decorations.

The workshop focused on testing what was possible with very limited facilities, cooking times with a hire oven, health and safety, practical issues, as well as continuing to establish key links with Community Services and key protagonists across South Wales. The degree of ‘sharing’ provided by the workshop and the possibilites to connect with people in creative and exciting ways was also monitored.

A massive thank you to everybody who helped make the event possible, Happy Christmas from the team and looking forward to seeing everybody in the new year for more events and workshops.