Charity singers perform wartime songs at Warwick's Lord Leycester Hospital to celebrate VE Day and lift spirits

Singer from a charity performed wartime songs at the Warwick's Lord Leycester Hospital this week to celebrate VE Day and to help lift residents' spirits.

The Lord Leycester Brethren, who are all ex-servicemen, watched the performance by the Kissing it Better singers from a safe distance in the courtyard, and many sang along to classics such as 'We’ll Meet Again'.

"It brought back memories, which was nice,” said veteran Bill Bradford.

The performance was filmed by national ITN News, and featured in their lunchtime and evening bulletins.

“It was a wonderful afternoon,” says Kissing it Better founder Jill Fraser. “Our singers enjoyed it just as much as the former servicemen.”

The Mayor of Warwick, Cllr Neale Murphy was also at the performance. He said: "I thought the singing at Lord Leycester was tremendous and the joy it bought to all was so nice to see.

"Your ladies were fantastic and thank you for providing a little cheer at this time."

Warwickshire-based Kissing it Better runs many projects in Warwick, but also works across the country.

The charity aims to reduce the isolation of old age by bringing the generations together.

Jill said: “We give young people the chance to use their talents sensitively to make a profound and lasting difference to the lives of older people.

“Our work is all about combating loneliness. As a trained nurse, I’ve seen first-hand the devastating effect that social isolation can have on older people’s health.”

Before the Covid-19 outbreak, the charity worked inside hospitals and care homes, taking in students from schools, colleges and universities, and showing them how to use their talents – from music to pampering skills – to engage with older people and spark conversations.

“The challenge now is for us to continue to work safely, keeping our young volunteers at a two-metre distance or more at all times,” said Jill.

“So, we either sing at a safe distance outside a window or in a garden as a new way to reach older, vulnerable people to send the message that they have not been forgotten during lockdown.”

For the past five weeks, Kissing it Better singers have been performing from care home gardens and through open windows at hospitals.

Every session is carefully planned with healthcare providers, and carried out within government guidelines.

Jill added: “The response has been incredible. As well as ITN national news, we’ve been featured on Sky News and had lots of local coverage. All these pieces have captured the joy and hope our sessions create, not just for older people, but also for the hard-working staff who look after them.

“A Kissing it Better singer is like a modern-day Vera Lynn, raising morale at the front line, and sending a message that we have not forgotten the people inside. We will meet again.”

For more information about the charity go to: www.kissingitbetter.co.uk