Partner providing Dementia Friend Information Sessions across Hampshire

After a number of Warner Goodman staff recently became ‘Dementia Friends’, Jane Cox has taken this one step further and has become a ‘Dementia Champion’.  This means she can now deliver Information Sessions to businesses and communities across Hampshire raising awareness of dementia and how we can all take into consideration the impact this disease has on those living with dementia every day lives.

Jane, Private Client Partner, explains here, “In May, Dementia Friends Champion John James from Home Instead, hosted a one hour session with several members of my team and our Financial Services team to explain to us the symptoms of Dementia, the challenges those living with it encounter every day, and the changes we as a business could make to help their time with us easier.  I was overwhelmed after the session by just how many people are living with dementia and how just by making small changes we can change their lives.  I was therefore inspired to become a Dementia Champion myself.”

What are Dementia Friends?

The Dementia Friends programme was created by the Alzheimer’s Society to change people’s perceptions of dementia, transforming the way to nation thinks, talks and acts about the condition.  There are currently 850,000 people living with dementia in England, a figure that increases by 225,000 people every year.  “Last year we wrote about how Dementia is now the biggest cause of death in those over 65 in Britain, overtaking heart disease,” continues Jane.  “This fact still shocks me, and is one of the reasons I was keen to become a Dementia Champion.”

In order to become a Dementia Champion, Jane attended a one day training course of how to deliver the Dementia Friend Information Sessions.  Jane concludes, “There are over 2 million Dementia Friends in the UK and I am so proud to now be a part of that community.  I would highly recommend all businesses in Hampshire consider their employees become Dementia Friends.  In just a one hour session, which is free of charge, I will come to their business and provide important information that can help tackle the stigma and lack of understanding around dementia, as well as simple ways they can change to help their clients.”

If you would like Jane to deliver a Dementia Friend Information Session to your business or community group, you can call her on 01329 222075 or email janecox@warnergoodman.co.uk.  Alternatively you can visit the Dementia Friends website at www.dementiafriends.org.uk.

ENDS

This is for information purposes only and is no substitute for, and should not be interpreted as, legal advice.  All content was correct at the time of publishing and we cannot be held responsible for any changes that may invalidate this article.