School Pupils Become Dementia Friends

Residents at Hartismere Place care home in Eye were joined by pupils from St. Peter and St. Paul CEVA Primary School to take part in a Dementia Friends information session.

A class of 30 eight and nine-year-old visited the Care UK home to take part in a number of activities to learn about how the brain works, the effects of dementia and how dementia can have an effect on everyday tasks. The session was centered round the five key messages of dementia, set out by the Alzheimer’s Society, and the children all committed to carry out one action to help people living with dementia.

At the end of the session all the children were presented with a Dementia Friends badge. The Alzheimer’s Society’s Dementia Friends programme is an initiative to change people’s perceptions of dementia. It aims to create more dementia-friendly communities, by helping people understand what it is like to live with dementia.

Customer relations manager at Hartismere Place, Angela Hodge, said: “We have a commitment to encourage others to learn about dementia, and we are really proud of the progress we have made by supporting Dementia Friends. We want to educate people, but also help the community turn their knowledge into action by making our community more aware of those living with dementia. The pupils have become frequent visitors to the home and the residents always love having them around.

“We thought this visit was a brilliant opportunity to teach the children about dementia to ensure they grow up with an understanding of some of the changes they may see not only in the residents here but their only families, friends and the wider community. We look forward to working with pupils at St. Peter and St. Paul CEVA Primary School on future projects and further building on the inter-generational relationship we’ve forged together.”