Braehead is going dementia-friendly

Staff at intu Braehead are to be given training to become a dementia-friendly community.

The shopping mall has a strong partnership with Alzheimer Scotland and employees and retailers have been taking part in Dementia Friends information sessions.

Dementia Friends is a programme run by the Alzheimer’s Society and aims to change the way people think, act and talk about the condition.

A total of 60,000 people have so far joined the Dementia Friends initiative across Scotland.

The charity runs information sessions and also has an online video which shares small ways you can help, from telling people about Dementia Friends to visiting someone you know with dementia.

Lydia Brown, intu Braehead’s community development manager said: “We aim to make intu Braehead as welcoming a place as possible for everyone to visit.

“We appreciate there can be particular issues that face people with dementia when they come to a place like intu Braehead.

“Our staff have been through the Dementia Friends information sessions so they can better understand how they can help make people living with dementia feel more comfortable and relaxed in the surroundings of a shopping centre and a leisure destination like ours.

“We hope by having the Awareness Day at intu Braehead we can give Alzheimer Scotland a platform to get their message across to thousands of people.”

As part of its partnership with Alzheimer Scotland, intu Braehead hosted an awareness day with performances from the Singing Memories group, which meets weekly in Paisley.

Iain Houston, Alzheimer Scotland dementia advisor, who is based in Paisley, said: “People with dementia should be recognised and supported as valued citizens in our communities. We know that people can live well with dementia, but they cannot do so alone. We all have a part to play in making a difference.

“Our mission is to help make daily life better for people living with dementia and their carers and change the way local people think, talk and act when it comes to dementia.

“We welcome intu Braehead’s engagement with our Dementia Friends programme and look forward to working with the shopping centre.”