Northampton Grosvenor Centre to host special dementia awareness event

People who would like to find out more about dementia, memory issues and support available locally, are invited to a free Memory Day being held in the Northampton Grosvenor Shopping Centre on Tuesday 13 September 2016.

The event – to run from 9am until 6pm – will feature a range of information stands to allow attendees to collect information and ask questions. The Memory Day aims to raise awareness of dementia and the services available to support people to live well, with advice available for people with the condition and for their carers.

The event will be opened by Councillor Sylvia Hughes, Vice Chairperson of the University of Northampton’s Board of Governors, and will be supported by the Northamptonshire Carer’s Choir and a local ukulele band.  The stalls will include Age UK, Olympus Care and St Andrew’s Healthcare, and there will be interactive sessions and demonstrations for attendees to take part in. The event will also feature free Dementia Friends training sessions (an initiative started by the Alzheimer’s Society to increase understanding and awareness of dementia), wellbeing assessments and demonstrations of chair based exercises, storytelling and reminiscence sessions.

The Memory Day has been organised by the Dementia Friendly Community of Practice (CoP), a group of local organisations across research, education, and practice who aim to influence the theory and practice of dementia care across Northamptonshire. The University of Northampton’s Institute of Health and Wellbeing is a founder member of the CoP.  Professor Jacqueline Parkes, chair, explained: “It has been a great opportunity to work together with key local organisations to plan for this event; in particular, working with our self-supported former carers group, Qualified by Experience, who have been extremely informative and helpful in shaping the format for the day.”

The University of Northampton’s Alison Ward and Michelle Pyer added: “We’re also keen to hear from businesses interested in becoming dementia friendly and supporting the Dementia Friendly Communities agenda. This is a great opportunity for the county to come together in raising awareness and understanding about dementia and memory issues.”

The Grosvenor Centre offers two hours of free parking for shoppers, and is a short walk from Northampton’s North Gate bus station. To book one of the free sessions, please visit: www.copnorthants.co.uk. For questions about the day please contact:  Janice Jones, 01604 892638. For more information please see our Memory Day leaflet.