Care England has supported a leaflet informing care homes on ways to safely lead singing and music activities in line with Government COVID-19 guidance.
The leaflet Keeping Singing in Tune with COVID-19 Restrictions can be accessed here and includes points for care homes to consider when deciding whether and how to lead singing and music activities, and to inform planning and risk assessing in advance.
Singing can be a useful tool for lifting residents’ spirits, however, recent research has shown that there are risks associated with the transfer of COVID-19 through build-up of aerosol droplets during group singing activity in indoor spaces.
The leaflet provides steps to mitigate some of the risk surrounding singing including:
- Avoid encouraging loud singing which can lead to droplets travelling further
- Anyone leading singing, and therefore singing more loudly, should have at least a three metre distance between them and participants
- If working with a group, use a large and well ventilated space, with a two metre distance between anyone taking part
- Keep singing activities short.
Professor Martin Green, chief executive of Care England, said: “In amongst so much uncertainty we know for sure that singing and music are really important to people’s wellbeing. Keeping Singing in Tune with COVID-19 Restrictions will help care homes to be able to continue to bring the joy of singing and music to their residents.”
For the full details on how to safely conduct singing and music activities in your care home, access the Keeping Singing in Tune with COVID-19 Restrictions leaflet here.
