Published on: 21st July 2015
The first wave of money from a community-based dementia support fund has now been earmarked for a number of county projects.
Nine organisations have been successful in scooping a share of the £167,000 Dementia Support Fund which will now go to help fund 12 projects across Lincolnshire.
The fund has been created by local Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs), Lincolnshire County Council and Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (LPFT), who have also established their own Dementia Support Network.
The network aims to help people with dementia, and those who care for them, to participate in a wide range of activities that will help them to maintain as good a quality of life as possible.
A new Louth-based Dementia Cafe, dubbed Memories Matters, opened up its doors at the beginning of July and has been successful in getting an £8,000 share of the first wave of funding.
Offering a friendly place for dementia patients and their carers to go for a cup of tea and a chat, the cafe also hosts a variety of activities including card making, cake decorating and painting.
Project administrator Jayne Pegg, said the cafe will be a great asset for people in the local community.
We've previously run lunch clubs in Louth and accessed Mental Health Promotion Fund monies in the past, and there is a real demand for something like this in the local area. We run weekly sessions every Wednesday from 2pm to 4pm and once a month go 'on the road' to visit a local attraction.
Community walking group Magna Vitae received a £6,000 share of the fund and have just started running Dementia Friendly Health Walks in the east of the county, one of which will include a walk around the seaside at Mablethorpe.
Coordinator Tracey Richardson said they'll also be organising indoor activities such as short mat bowls and curling if the weather gets a bit too wet.
A walk down to the beach or past the flashing lights of the arcades will hopefully stimulate some memories. We have lots of different people who walk with us including a lady who has dementia whose husband used to be a rambler. Often carers can become very isolated so a healthy walk can be good for them too.
The Alzheimer's Society will be running 'Singing for the Brain' sessions in Grantham, Sleaford and Colsterworth along with activities groups in the west and south west of the county.
Service Manager for Lincolnshire Alzheimer's Society Nasim Minhas, said the singing groups were based on a model which was piloted over 20 years ago.
Singing can evoke memories and help take people back into their past lives. All our groups are supported by volunteers and we also use instruments such as tambourines in the sessions too so people can play along and get involved.
The successful projects were announced at a recent showcase event in Sleaford by LPFT’s Associate Director of Community Partnerships Paul Jackman.
The full list of organisations and projects who have managed to secure funding is as follows:
- Revival Lincolnshire - countywide community connections project
- Age Care Advice - county wide dementia companions project
- Citizens Advice Bureau - county wide citizen's advice dementia support
- Alzheimer's Society - county wide dementia friendly communities project, activity groups in west and south west Lincs, and singing groups in south west Lincs
- Trinity Centre, Louth - Memories Matters Dementia cafe
- Desire Change - Memory Retreat project
- Green Synergy - Dementia friendly garden group
- Magna Vitae - Dementia friendly walks
- Spalding Health and Wellbeing - Dementia café.
For more information on the Dementia Support Fund and any of the projects above contact
The Community Partnerships Team at dsn@lpft.nhs.uk or on 01529 222216.
