Dementia advice and support at Oswestry Library
Oswestry Library and Alzheimer’s Society are joining forces in a special, free event to highlight sources of help for those with dementia and their families.
Dementia-Friendly Day, taking place at Oswestry Library on Wednesday 21 May 2014 from 10am to 1pm, will see representatives from organisations such as Alzheimer’s Society, Age UK, the Memory Service, Red Cross, RCC Carers’ Support and CrossRoads on hand to provide one-to-one advice, information and support. A collection of helpful books will be on display and available to borrow.
In Shropshire there are approximately 5,000 people living with dementia. People with dementia commonly lose their memory and, as a result, can start to lose their way. They also often lose their friends; friends who don’t understand what’s going on or how to deal with it.
The special event is in support of Dementia Awareness Week and coincides with the national Dementia Friends Campaign, which aims to raise awareness of dementia and encourage as many people as possible to become a ‘Dementia Friend’.
Shropshire Council is a member of the Dementia Action Alliance, a movement with one simple aim: to bring about a society-wide response to dementia. It encourages and supports communities and organisations across England to take practical actions to enable people to live well with dementia and reduce the risk of costly crisis intervention.
Gwilym Butler, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for leisure, libraries and culture, said;
“We want individuals living with dementia, and their carers’, in Shropshire to know that they are not alone. Dementia Awareness Week provides the ideal opportunity to demonstrate that libraries, placed as they are at the heart of communities, can work with partners to offer support, information and a dementia-friendly space.”
During the event, the library’s meeting room will also play host to an Alzheimer’s Dementia ‘Pop Up Dementia Café’ drop-in session, offering tea, coffee and cake, plus reminiscence and singing activities for those with dementia and their carers.
Martin Bennett, a local Shropshire Councillor for Oswestry East, said:
“Oswestry Town Council has endorsed the aim of a number of groups and individuals for Oswestry to become a dementia-friendly town. I would encourage everyone who can attend to come along and learn more about a condition which, while it is usually associated with the elderly, can in fact, affect young and old alike.”
Alison Humphreys, Alzheimer’s Society Dementia Support Worker in north Shropshire, commented;
“There are approximately 5,000 people living with dementia in Shropshire; this is estimated to rise to 6,620 in 2021, but with the right support people with dementia and their carers can live well. Dementia cafes offer information, advice and support for people with dementia and their carers’ in a safe, informal environment. One carer said ‘I always enjoy the group, it’s really nice to know that others understand’” and remarked how happy she was to see her husband, who has dementia, talking and laughing with other people.”
For more information about Dementia Friendly Day, contact Heather Rodenhurst at Oswestry Library on 01691 677388 heather.rodenhurst@shropshire.gov.uk or Alison Humphreys on 01743 362322 alison.humphreys@alzheimers.org.uk.
For information about the national Dementia Friendly Campaign and to watch the video on how to become a Dementia Friend visit www.dementiafriends.org.uk.
For more information about Dementia support in Shropshire click here.
Further information
For further information about Oswestry Library visit http://new.shropshire.gov.uk/libraries/find-a-library/oswestry-library/
A link to Shropshire Council’s Dementia Action Alliance action plan can be found at www.dementiaaction.org.uk/members_and_action_plans/1356-shropshire_council
