Top 50 lost skills and hobbies — Chichester care home joins fight to save our hobbies

In a bid to prevent hobbies and skills from being lost over time, Chichester Grange is encouraging locals to join a nationwide campaign to tap into thousands of older people’s expertise and knowledge as part of Care UK's 'Long Lost Hobbies' initiative.

This is initiative is in response to a survey that was carried out by Care UK, who operate the Chichester Grange, in Grosvenor Road. The survey found in the South East 68% of respondents think today’s generations aren’t interested in learning things like identifying plants and insects, sewing on a button or even spelling – while a further 54% said some old-fashioned skills simply aren’t needed anymore and 77% blame this on modern technology. See the list of the top 50 lost skills and hobbies below.

Naomi Butcher, home manager at Chichester Grange, said: “Over time, many of us have become reliant on technology – meaning many hobbies that were once popular are now sadly being forgotten.

“This is why we’re excited to take part in the ‘Long Lost Hobbies’ initiative. Here at Chichester Grange, we know residents have a wealth of skills and hobbies that are now considered to be on the decline – and that is something we wanted to celebrate.

“We’d like to encourage everyone in the Chichester community to join us in our efforts to save old skills and hobbies by reaching out to their relatives or neighbours. We have so much to learn from older generations – and I’m sure they’d be more than happy to share all of their knowledge.”

As part of the survey, it also emerged that 17% of people polled in the South East think it will be just 10 to 12 years before they rely solely on technology to do things previously done without. Yet, 26% are still trying to keep certain skills and arts alive by teaching them to others.

See the list of the top 50 lost skills and hobbies below

TOP 50 LOST SKILLS AND HOBBIES

50 Editing photos yourself

49 Taking photos

48 Fishing

47 Drawing

46 Following a recipe

45 Gardening

44 Caring for plants

43 Following instructions

42 Finding facts

41 Creative writing

40 Budgeting

39 Speaking/learning another language

38 Caring for chickens

37 Time keeping

36 Critical thinking

35 Putting up a shelf yourself

34 Reading

33 Cooking something from memory

32 Storytelling

31 Pottery making

30 Baking a cake by hand

29 Carpentry

28 Reading music

27 Remembering dates

26 Giving directions

25 Using an index in a book

24 Remembering addresses

23 Making your own bread by hand

22 Changing a tire yourself

21 Identifying different plants, trees or insects

20 Knitting

19 Tying knots

18 Making your own cheese

17 Making your own jam

16 Sewing on a button yourself

15 Preserving food – such as pickling

14 Calligraphy

13 Wiring a plug yourself

12 Spelling

11 Sewing/making clothes yourself

Top Ten

10 Stamp collecting

9 Making a fire from scratch

8 Handwashing clothes

7 Handwriting

6 Using a compass

5 Remembering phone numbers

4 Mental maths

3 Knowing proper grammar

2 Map reading

1 Writing letters

For more information about Care UK, visit careuk.com