The Fremantle Trust supported Alzheimer’s Society in its commitment to making a difference to people’s lives during Dementia Action Week.

This year’s campaign not only served to raise awareness and educate people about living with dementia, but also demonstrated how small actions can have a big impact when it comes to the quality of day-to-day life.

Apthorp Care Centre in New Southgate had a busy programme of activity to mark the week. Poetry readings were a feature, given that poetry has rhythm which a person living with dementia can instinctively respond to. Time was also spent developing and enjoying the sensory garden with volunteers. This activity enabled personal contact as well as sensory stimulation, which is increasingly important for people whose dementia is quite advanced.

Andreas Demetri, a resident at Apthorp Care Centre commented on this:

I enjoy tending the plants and pottering about, it helps me to feel calm.

A visit to local nursery, Little Leo’s, offered residents the valuable opportunity to be in the company of children, celebrating the importance of intergenerational relationships.

Residents at Dell Field Court care home in Finchley participated in a creative painting session. As a person’s dementia develops they are less likely to be able to access language and numbers, so activities using visual and motor skills give opportunity for expression through art and physical exercise.

Commenting on the series of events to mark Dementia Action Week, Fiona Swynnerton, leisure and lifestyle manager at The Fremantle Trust, said:

It is so important that we keep learning and translating those insights to provide an innovative, person-centred approach to caring for people living with dementia. It is not simply about activities, but bringing kindness and compassion, empathy and understanding, which enables people to live as fully and independently as they can, while benefiting from specialist support.