A NEW, £900,000 fund has been launched to help those living with dementia in the North East and Cumbria.
A NEW, £900,000 fund has been launched to help those living with dementia in the North East and Cumbria.
The Northern Rock Foundation has joined forces with Comic Relief and Ballinger Charitable Trust to form the North East and Cumbria Dementia Fund and now wants to hear from projects and organisations that help people living with dementia to continue to live in and play an active part in their community.
Comic Relief, Northern Rock Foundation and Ballinger Charitable Trust have a long history of working to improve the lives of disadvantaged people and are coming together to drive positive change for people affected by dementia in the North East and Cumbria.
In 2010, 31,840 people were living with late onset dementia in the North East and 7,000 in Cumbria – figures predicted to rise, respectively, by nearly 60% to 50,840 and by 85% to nearly 13,000 by 2030.
The North East and Cumbria Dementia Fund is looking to assist organisations to develop new ways of supporting people with dementia and their carers and to identify models of best practice that could be adopted more widely across the UK.
“We want to support projects that are working with people with dementia who are living in the community either in their own homes or in sheltered accommodation and work that changes the way people with dementia are viewed and treated by society,” said Programme Manager Louise Telford from Northern Rock Foundation.
Comic Relief’s UK Manager, Clare Kiely, said: “Dementia is an important and growing issue that touches many people’s lives across the UK. Comic Relief is pleased to be able to support the development of new and innovative ways to support people diagnosed with dementia and their carers to continue to live happy and fulfilling lives for as long as possible.”
The North East and Cumbria Dementia Fund is also interested in supporting projects that help people with dementia who live alone, are from minority communities – including the Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) and Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) communities – have learning disabilities or are experiencing early onset dementia.
It is particularly keen to hear from projects that give people with dementia a voice, or which offer new ways of enabling them to continue to live rich and fulfilling lives in the community.
The North East and Cumbria Dementia Fund has also been formed to support carers and applications are being sought from projects that either equip them with the skills to carry out their caring role or aim to challenge stigma and improve the way people with dementia are perceived.
Nikki Crowther, Trustee of the Ballinger Trust, said: “We are delighted that Comic Relief will be working with ourselves and the Northern Rock Foundation in the North East and Cumbria to improve the lives of people affected by dementia. I think this is testament to the innovative approaches already taken here, and to the need for further support in this area.”
