Bield’s Braehead Gardens recently hosted a day of reminiscing for their tenants with music and stories from the 1960s.

The event featured a talk from Fay Smith, who travels around similar community groups on a one-off basis.

Fay, from Kirkcaldy, also set up a stall with various items found in grocery shops in the 1960s, including old pennies and shillings, washing powder, biscuits, lager cans and penny toffee.

She said: “I travel locally to do presentations like these – it really is lovely to see people looking back on things and remembering their past.

“Everywhere I go, they always join in. They speak up and get involved, answer questions and tell stories and it seems like it helps them to bond.

“It’s especially helpful for those with dementia because those are the times they still remember clearly.

“The tenants from Braehead Gardens were even singing old TV advert jingles together by the end of the day.”

Organised events such as the reminiscence day are an example of Bield’s ‘free to be’ ethos, which allows older people to make their own choices on how they live their lives with support on hand.

At Braehead Gardens, there is a communal lounge where tenants, families and friends can meet and socialise, as well as take part in activities, clubs and celebrations.

Tenant Fiona Ednie, 60, said: “It’s a really good place to socialise – people get together and bond over shared memories.”

David Gardner, a 78-year-old tenant from the development, said: “It reminds you of all the things you had previously forgotten about and gets everyone involved.”

Braehead Gardens is a retirement housing development for people aged 50 and over, set in attractive landscaped gardens near the centre of Buckhaven.