Suitable social and peer support groups are locally available for people living with dementia and carers.
For extra information, evidence and best practice please scroll down to the bottom of the page.
Regional offerings
LGBTQ+ Online Support Group for People With Dementia and Their Carers in Greater Manchester
Contact Maggie Hurley - to get the details to join the meeting.
Email: Maggie.Hurley@ageukoldham.org.uk
Weblink: https://dementia-united.org.uk/news/2021/07/13/new-gm-lgbtq-online-dementia-support-group/
Dementia Carers Expert Reference Group (DCERG)
Email: gmhscp.dementiaunited@nhs.net
Dementia Awareness Community training package
There is growing evidence to suggest that art, music and leisure activities can offer physical and psychological benefits to those living with a dementia and their care partners, benefits which can improve their brain health and help them maintain independence for longer: (https://arts4dementia.org.uk/sp/).
This is why Trafford and Wigan councils have come together with Dementia United and GreaterSport to fund an exciting piece of work which will empower community groups, businesses and leisure providers to support people living with cognitive impairment and dementia in their communities.
Working in partnership, Made by Mortals and Together Dementia Support have developed an immersive training experience co-produced and shaped by people living with dementia and their care partners.
The complete training package can be accessed here: www.madebymortals.org/dementia-resource/. This resource includes an immersive audio experience and PDF training materials. Dementia United are currently seeking expressions of interest from localities who would like to work with us to coordinate a train the trainer package for their communities, this will include a 3 to 4-hour workshop hosted by instructors with significant training and dementia experience and individuals who have lived experience of dementia.
IDoService
National offerings
Age UK
Telephone: Advice line 0800 678 1602 free to call 8am - 7pm 365 days of the year
Weblink: https://www.ageuk.org.uk
Alzheimer’s Society
Telephone: National Dementia Helpline: 0300 222 1122. Open 9.00am. – 5.00pm. Monday to Friday & 10.00am. – 4.00pm. Saturday and Sunday.
Weblink: https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/
Arts 4 Dementia
Weblink: https://arts4dementia.org.uk/
Deep
Telephone: The phone number at Innovations in Dementia is 01392 420076; who host DEEP
Weblinks:
https://www.dementiavoices.org.uk/
https://dementiadiaries.org/
Dementia UK
Telephone: 0800 88 6678
Email: direct@dementiauk.org
Weblink: https://www.dementiauk.org/
Lewy Body Society
Telephone: 01942 914000
Weblink: https://www.lewybody.org/
Making Space
Telephone: 01925 571 680
Email: enquiries@makingspace.co.uk
Weblink: https://makingspace.co.uk/
Music for Dementia
Weblink: https://musicfordementia.org.uk/
Together In Dementia Everyday (TIDE)
Weblink: https://www.tide.uk.net/
Young Dementia UK
Telephone: Dementia UK Telephone: 0800 88 6678
Email: direct@dementiauk.org
Weblink: https://www.dementiauk.org/about-dementia/young-onset-dementia/
Living with Dementia Toolkit - downloadable guide
The Guide is available in English and in Welsh. It introduces the toolkit and the resources available. For the full experience of the toolkit, you need to look at the website. QR codes link you back to the website at various points. There is a 'How to use QR codes' video lower down the page.
This can be downloaded here: https://livingwithdementiatoolkit.org.uk/home/living-with-dementia-toolkit-downloadable-guide/
Living with Dementia Toolkit - downloadable guide
Welcome to the Living with Dementia Toolkit for people with dementia and their carers. This set of resources is based on research, and the expert experiences of people with dementia and their carers. If you would like to learn more about how we developed them click here. These resources are here to:
- give you hope for the future
- inspire you through examples of real-life experiences
- offer ideas to help you live your life as you choose
Do you support someone living with dementia? Click here to read our Message for Carers.
Not everyone has access to the internet so we have produced a Guide to the Living with Dementia Toolkit that can be downloaded and printed off. We encourage peers, family members, and health and social care professionals to make use of this.
The Guide is available in English and in Welsh. It introduces the toolkit and the resources available. For the full experience of the toolkit, you need to look at the website. QR codes link you back to the website at various points. There is a How to use QR codes video. In this video, Steve Milton from Innovations in Dementia shows you how to use your phone camera to scan QR codes and open webpages. This is from the 'Virtual connections' resource https://livingwithdementiatoolkit.org....
We have some boxes of Guides for groups or services to distribute. Please contact IDEAL@exeter.ac.uk if you need these.
Dementia Tip Share
Dementia Tip Share Are A Treasure Chest of Tips: to help you to keep living as well as you can
From people with dementia, for people with dementia
If you want to learn from and share with others ‘in the same boat’, you’re in the right place!
Dementia Tip-Share website is bursting with Tips, work-arounds and short cuts. All from people with dementia themselves. And these will grow and grow.
The website aims to be clear, easy to use, searchable and informative. We’d love you to use it, contribute – and even become a Tip-Sharer yourself!
Ready to get going?
We need to know which Tips people are finding most useful. So, if you like a Tip, please click on the ‘Like this Tip’ icon.
Our Tips
This is where you will find all sorts of Tips which we hope can help you live with your dementia more easily. There is a whole range of topics covered, such as ‘Tips for Life at Home’, ‘Tips for Money and Legal Matters’, ‘Tips for Connecting and Communication’… and many more. There are even Tips for coping with the Coronavirus situation.Share a Tip
We’re sure that many of you out there will have lots more great Tips and examples of things you do to manage your day-to-day life more easily. Use this page to tell us about them so we can add them to the site.Contributing will really make a difference to how Tip-Share grows and helps others. So we really hope you’ll join in, get involved and become part of the Tip-Sharer community.
Ask for a Tip
If you aren’t able to find a ‘Tip’ on the site that relates to the specific issue you are looking for, then the Tip-Share Community may be able to help. Just give us the details which we will pass on to our Tip-Sharers and wider resource team. Hopefully they will be able to highlight an existing solution or possibly even come up with a new idea or approach.Meet the Tip-Sharers
Meet (and hopefully join) our ever-expanding community of people who contribute Tips, work-arounds and short-cuts. These can help to make a real positive difference in the lives of those of us who live with dementia.The content of this website is solely and intentionally made up of Tips shared by people with dementia themselves. Innovations in Dementia is not able to take any responsibility for these, or to give ‘professional’ advice, information or sign-posting ourselves.
Dementia Diaries
Dementia Diaries gives a voice to people with dementia through more than three thousand audio and video diaries.
Why am I a Dementia Diarist?
"I'm Agnes...
and I share my Dementia Diary because I can share my happy, sad moments and I’m a part of something wonderful and I call them my pals.”
"I'm Tommy...
the only way you can truly learn to know what it’s like to live with dementia is to listen and learn from my peers who are here everyday living with it.”
"I’m Lorraine...
what inspires me to make Dementia Diaries is to record the passion and emotions of the moment.”
We bring together the many different experiences of living with dementia.
Diarists want to change the way people think about dementia, and about people with dementia.
We hope that the diaries inspire and inform people affected by dementia, and their wider communities and organisations.
Diaries can be used publicly in awareness raising and by researchers looking for insight into the lived experience of dementia.
How does the project work?
Diarists record diaries in a number of ways. Some record their diaries over the 'phone. Others send in audio or video they have recorded themselves. Our team of volunteers then transcribe the diaries, so you can read as well.
We then publish the diaries here.
Listen to some diary entries
Meet our diarists
Interested in becoming a diarist?
Dementia Friendly place of worship
Making your place of worship dementia friendly - Temple
This leaflet is also available in alternative formats and additional languages.
Please email: communicationsmanchester@nhs.net or call 0161 213 1750 for more information.
Small changes that make a big difference It’s really important to make your place of worship dementia friendly and to continue to use mosques and temples.
Lighting; improved lighting can help to prevent dark areas and shadows forming on the floor which can be confusing for someone living with dementia. Flooring; different colours can represent something different for someone living with dementia, e.g. dark carpets or rugs can look like an object that needs to be stepped over, it may look like a hole in the floor. Blue carpets/tiles may look like water and green carpet/tiles may look like grass. Use different coloured flooring/tiling to the colouring on the walls. Wall paper/wall coverings; try not to use stripes or strong patterns. Electrical Appliances; trailing cables or wires can cause confusion and fear for someone living with dementia e.g. these wires can appear like a snake. Furniture/furnishing – living with dementia can cause confusion particularly when trying to remember where things are kept. Use pictures and labels on cupboards so people can find items easily. Mirrors – someone living with dementia may find looking in a mirror quite distressing as they may not recognise their own reflection. Limit the number of mirrors or where possible remove mirrors
Evidence
- coming to terms with a diagnosis of dementia
- maintaining your social life and relationships after diagnosis
- reducing stress and improving your mood, for example, if feeling worried, anxious, or depressed
- thinking and memory (cognitive function)
- living independently
- quality of life – maintaining health and happiness, and control over your life
- support for your partner and family
Best Practice Resources
The Meeting Centre (MC) ‘club’ is usually offered 3 days per week, supporting 10-15 people plus families on any one day in easily accessible community locations. People attend according to their need and preference three or less days a week.
Evidence-based post-diagnostic psychosocial interventions relating to information and psychoeducation and emotional, social and physical well-being are provided in a friendly manner, tailored to the needs of the local members by a small team of staff and volunteers trained in the ethos of person-centred dementia care. A moderately positive effect on sense of competence and the greater mental health benefit for lonely caregivers was demonstrated.
Guidebook for Setting up and Running a Successful Meeting Centre: - https://reshare.ukdataservice.ac.uk/852791/98/MCSP_Guidebook_V1.pdf
A guide to psychosocial interventions in early stages of dementia: - https://www.dementiavoices.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/a_guide_to_psychosocial_interventions_in_dementia.pdf