£225K grant for dementia work
Plan for special ‘neighbourhoods’
Organisations in the Stirling and wider Forth Valley area have been awarded £225,000 by the Life Changes Trust to help keep people with dementia involved in their communities.
A partnership including Artlink Central, University of Stirling, Stirling Council and NHS Forth Valley, will use the funds to involve people with dementia, their families and fellow residents, to create ‘participatory neighbourhoods’.
These neighbourhoods will enable communities to become more supportive of people whose lives are affected by dementia.
Research shows that inclusive and supportive communities enable people with dementia and their carers to stay involved in the things that matter to them, which keeps them socially, physically and politically active.
The project will create more dementia-inclusive environments, improve dementia services, and give better access to online resources.
It will also support people with dementia and their families to come together with friends and neighbours to take part in a number of creative activities that will raise awareness about dementia. This will include a ‘Neighbourhoods Festival’ that involves the wider community.
The funding is part of a second phase of Dementia Friendly Communities investment from Scottish charity, the Life Changes Trust. The Trust invested £3 million in 14 dementia friendly communities in 2015, the success of which has led to a further investment of £2 million. Dementia Friendly Communities are places where people affected by dementia, including carers and family members, are included and supported to do the things that matter to them. They also help empower those whose lives are affected by dementia so that they remain integrated in society, live as independently as possible and participate actively in decisions that affect their lives.
Some dementia friendly communities are geographical communities, relating to a specific location. Others are communities of interest that bring people together because they are interested in similar activities, for example, sport, art, or walking outdoors.
Kevin Harrison, CEO of Artlink Central said: “A neighbourhood based approach will challenge and inspire communities to work more closely and creatively with people living with dementia to support independence, inclusion and access.”
Professor Judith Phillips, deputy principal (research) at Stirling University, said: “This is a unique opportunity for the university to contribute the expertise and knowledge we have built over the years on dementia, care, design and the environment.”
Anna Buchanan, director of the Life Changes Trust dementia programme said: “Ensuring people with dementia and their families remain included in their communities, and in society more generally, should be the ‘norm.’ People should not become isolated and lonely because they have been diagnosed with dementia, and yet this is often the case.”