Liverpool mobile museum takes care home residents down memory lane

The bus opens up into an immersive cinema and activity space

Care home residents in Liverpool have taken a trip down memory lane in a new mobile museum.

National Museums Liverpool (NML) designed the bus to create memorable experiences for people who are socially isolated or living with dementia.

It opens up into an immersive cinema and activity space.

John Hilliard, 95, from Oak Springs Care Home, said it brought back "fond memories" of travelling during the war on the Liverpool Overhead Railway.

The House of Memories On The Road tour bus uses digital technology to recreate the sights and sounds of the past through a virtual front door, NML said.

Thirty residents at the Wavertree care home used the bus on Monday, taking a virtual trip on the railway, a day out at the seaside and a visit to a grocery store as it would have looked in the 1950s.

The museum on wheels is being driven directly to care home residents

Mr Hilliard, who worked in construction, said he "really enjoyed" the experience and it "brought back lots of fond memories".

"I used to use the Liverpool Overhead Railway during the war when it first opened," he said.

"I regularly used to travel from Dingle to Seaforth via the Docks on it.

"I particularly enjoyed seeing the different types of ships and the workers going about their day on my own way into work.

"It brought back lots of fond memories for me."

Andrea Lyon said it was great for residents "to discuss their own stories"

The care home's manager, Andrea Lyon, said it was a great opportunity for residents "to discuss their own stories" about the railway.

"Another resident enjoyed looking at the memories from the old corner shops as she used to run a shop," she said.

"She talked to us about how she remembered carefully weighing out butter, meat and sweets for customers."