On Monday last week I was delighted to join a march from Town Hall to County Mall as part of a local campaign I have supported to turn Crawley into a dementia friendly town.
The Crawley Dementia Alliance, which is made up of the NHS, local council, voluntary groups and carers, joined with the Alzheimer’s Society to mark the start of the local campaign to coincide with Dementia Awareness Week aimed at better supporting people living with dementia.
There are currently around 1,200 people living in Crawley who have been diagnosed with dementia, however, there are likely to be many others who have not yet been diagnosed and so the total number could be just over 2,000.
The Prime Minister’s Challenge on Dementia has put dementia at centre stage. It has worked to promote dementia-friendly communities and to raise the bar for quality of care and for early diagnosis with currently only 44 per cent of people with dementia receiving formal diagnosis. The Government has also invested significant funds to support vital dementia research.
The Prime Minister’s commitment will be met locally by the Crawley Dementia Alliance through its ambition to ensure that people with dementia are able to live independently for as long as they can. Through utilising a wide range of adaptations and alterations people can make to their homes, suitable accommodation can be designed to meet the needs of individuals with dementia so that they can continue living in their home.
As well as supporting peoples’ independence, the scheme will enhance the coordinated approach that local services – such as police, local government, public transport, health staff etc – take towards providing dementia support. With extra support for families and greater awareness of the condition within local communities, the overall aim of the Alliance is to improve the health and general wellbeing of people living with dementia.
The Crawley Clinical Commissioning Group secured a £125,000 grant from the Prime Minister’s Dementia Challenge Fund to turn Crawley into a dementia friendly town. The alliance will bring much needed support to people in Crawley.
I note that the Government has publically recognised that there is still yet more to be done but it has fully committed to improving both diagnosis and understanding of the condition and to making England one of the best places in Europe for dementia care. I will continue to assist the Government and the Crawley Dementia Alliance in improving the support available for people with dementia.
Henry Smith MP