This project aims to make Gloucestershire a dementia friendly community improving the quality of life for people living with dementia now and those who are affected by dementia in the future.

Our project is about harnessing individual and community assets by adopting a Strengths based approach which supports communities to become more hospitable and supportive of all individuals, providing a natural platform that would enable:

• Raised awareness of dementia, with organisations and individuals learning how they can enable those with dementia to become valuable contributors within the community.
• More opportunities to increase social inclusion, with community networks and PEER support (including Timebanking and Expert Patient Programmes) Building local capacity by recruiting Community Capacity Builders (a form of Community Development Worker) who will work on increasing community cohesion and strengths based development and be trained as Dementia Link Workers (DLW).

The innovations at the centre of our projects are:

• The promotion of social inclusion for people living with dementia
• The use of community development work to build on the infrastructures and existing networks already in position, in partnership with Barnwood Trust and extending the strengths based programme
• The use of social marketing to positively promote and extend knowledge and awareness of dementia

These will be based on evidence and best practice including:

• Asset Based Community Development Pilot project in Thornton Heath which led in particular to local organisations becoming “elder friendly”
• Expertise of the Barnwood Trust in developing community capacity using asset based approaches. The Barnwood Trust currently hosts Asset Based Community Development Europe
• Good practice developed in Gloucestershire in the field of Aphasia peer support.
• Dementia friendly communities toolkit developed by Innovations in Dementia Best practice from the Plymouth and Hampshire Friendly communities in terms of business buy-in.

Objectives

• Raise awareness of dementia, with organisations and individuals
• Enable more opportunities to networks and PEER support
• Build local capacity by recruiting increase social inclusion, with community
• Community Capacity Builders who will work on increasing community cohesion and strengths based development and be trained as Dementia Link Workers (DLW).
• Strengthen opportunities for people living with dementia and their carers to have a voice

Anticipated outcomes

• People living with dementia and their carers feel more part of their communities and able to contribute to the life and wellbeing of those communities
• People living with dementia and their carers can have choice in their life and make a contribution to their community (for instance increased take up of Time Banking by people living with dementia and their carers
• People living with dementia continue to live well and enjoy life for as long as possible in their local communities
• Communities have a better understanding of dementia and feel more confident about including people living with dementia and their carers in activities, achieving hospitable and dementia friendly communities
• Carers have access to more flexible respite choices
• Mapping, connecting and mobilising individual, community, organisational and institutional assets in relation to dementia
• Organisations (public, private and community sector) become more dementia friendly
• People living with dementia and their carers have a better quality of life in their local communities
• Carers report increased health benefits
• Carers are offered more carers assessments

Progress update

• 7 Community Builders have been recruited
• Summer School training programme. This has had exceptional levels of interest, with over 30 Community Builders and supporters attending each day of the five day programme.
• The dementia link worker training will start in September.
• Started in 8 learning sites but expected to influence work in other communities across Gloucestershire.