✅ Purpose and ethos

• The blog is authored by Simon O’Donovan MBE, a retired consultant nurse in dementia care (NHS Wales) who created the site as a free, open-access resource for people living with mild to moderate dementia, their care partners, and CST group & activities facilitators. 

• It supports the use of Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST), which is recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) as a non-pharmacological intervention to promote cognition (memory and thinking), wellbeing and social engagement. 

• The ethos emphasises person-centred, engaging, enjoyable and socially connecting activities (quizzes, creative tasks, reminiscence games & music based activities) rather than purely clinical or dry exercises. 

• It is not commercial: the site is described as a personal, unpaid commitment, and it invites donations (via Ko-fi) to cover hosting and upkeep. 

• The tagline for the 'Simon's CST Activities' resource is "Boosting brain power together to benefit well-being of people with dementia."

🧩 Key features & structure

• Extensive activity library: One standout is the volume of themed activity pages (the blog states “over 350 themed cognitive stimulation therapy activity pages”. 

• Person-centred tools: The site offers templates such as “Snapshot Assessment” and “Getting to Know Me” to help tailor activities to individual interests and abilities. 

• Educational and linked resources: It links out to other learning resources (for example, UCL’s 'The Many Faces of Dementia') and provides a “Creative Arts Gallery” showcasing artwork by people with dementia. 

• Accessibility and digital outreach: In addition to blog pages, there is a YouTube channel (CST vlogs) aimed at people living with dementia at home who may not be able to attend (or wish to attend) group sessions. 

• Navigation & content structure: The homepage shows menu items like “Home”, “Contents”, “Creative Arts Gallery”, “About CST”, “Person centred assessment”, “Feedback”, “Resources”, “More”. This suggests clear segmentation of content. 

• Recognition & listing: The blog is listed on directories such as 'Infoengine' (Welsh voluntary/community services) and appears as a recommended resource within the dementia‐support landscape infoengine.cymru

🎯 Strengths / Why it stands out

• High volume of targeted, themed resources ready for activities facilitators and carer partners to use in planning and delivering their own sessions. Strong musical memory focus. High quality images, mostly made using ChatGPT.

• Free and open access: removes financial barriers for individuals, groups and carer partners.

• Practitioner-led: The author’s background suggests professional credibility (dementia nurse consultant NHS Wales).

• Bridges different settings: Useful for both face-to-face groups (care homes, day centres) and home-based users via the YouTube vlogs.

• Seasonal and culturally relevant themes: The activity examples show current themes (Halloween, Movember, 1960s singalongs, local statues in Cardiff & Vale etc) which helps keep sessions engaging. 

• Strong visual/creative dimension: The inclusion of a Creative Arts Gallery and emphasis on creative expression helps diversify from purely cognitive quizzes, aligning with humanistic care approaches.​

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