Life story work in care homes
why it matters and how to do it

Life story work is the process of capturing a person's history, memories, values, and personality — and using that understanding to provide better, more human care. In a care home context, it means helping staff see beyond a diagnosis or a care plan to the whole person in the room.

A care home resident might have been a teacher, a mother of five, a keen gardener, someone who played piano every Sunday. Without that context, carers can only respond to the person in front of them. With it, they can connect — through shared reference points, conversation starters, and an understanding of what genuinely matters to that individual.

Life story work is endorsed by the Alzheimer's Society, NHS England, and the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) as a key component of person-centred care — particularly for residents living with dementia. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) specifically looks for evidence of personalised care that reflects residents' histories and preferences.

For families, it's also something much simpler: a way to make sure the person they love isn't reduced to a medical record. A way to say — this person has a story. Here it is.

A life story document for care home use serves two purposes — immediate practical care and long-term preservation. What care staff need day-to-day is slightly different from what the family wants to keep as a keepsake, though the two overlap significantly.

For day-to-day care, the most useful information tends to be practical and specific: preferred name, daily routines, foods they love and hate, music that comforts them, things that cause distress, and the names of family members they're most likely to ask about.

For the wider life story — the keepsake the family will treasure — the focus shifts to narrative: childhood memories, working life, love and marriage, family, proudest moments, and what they want to be remembered for.

A good life story document does both. Tell Me Your Story's 100 questions cover every chapter of life and produce content that works in both contexts — immediately useful for care staff and deeply meaningful for family.

You don't need to wait for a care home to initiate life story work. Families can start the process themselves — and often produce something far richer than what a care home's standard admission paperwork captures.

Tell Me Your Story guides your loved one through 100 questions — by typing or speaking — and turns their answers into a beautifully designed document that works both as a care home resource and as a family keepsake. You can share a private link with care staff or order a professionally printed book to keep at the home.

The best time to start is before they move into care, while they can still contribute in their own words. But it's never too late — family members can fill in answers from their own memories at any stage.