At Friends of the Elderly, we are proud of the approach we take to supporting people living with dementia. We are committed to embedding a dementia friendly culture across our charity and delivering tailored care that supports people to continue living independent lives.
We offer specialist dementia care across our homes and services, and our approach is to treat everyone as an individual, we believe no one should be defined by a diagnosis of dementia.
We have partnered with Worcester University’s highly regarded Association for Dementia Studies, working closely with Professor Dawn Brooker. This education programme is not only for frontline staff and managers, but it is rolled out across the whole organisation, including our trustees.
As part of our Dementia Education Programme, we have dedicated Dementia Champions across all our care homes. These staff members attend additional training and work with residents, service users and staff to ensure the highest quality dementia care is provided.
There are five main types of dementia including Alzheimer’s Disease, Dementia with Lewy Bodies, Vascular Dementia, Frontotemporal Dementia and Mixed Dementia. Our committed staff are trained to support people living with any of these conditions.
The practical support we offer to people living with dementia includes:
• Activities built around individual preferences. These include arts and crafts, music, cooking, reminiscence sessions, poetry, and themed events. We also encourage people to maintain daily living tasks (helping with serving teas/coffees, washing up, folding laundry, and gardening).
• We provide sensory activities for those people who are living with more advanced dementia. Friends of the Elderly homes practice Namaste Care, which involves gentle massage, hand care and nail care, in a warm and cosy environment with gentle music.
• For people who do not wish to sit down and eat a full meal, we provide ‘grazing plates’. These plates are positioned around the care environment with varying types of snacks. This encourages people to eat as they stroll around – helping maintain their nutritional intake. Water and juice jugs are also placed around our homes – again promoting independence and encouraging people to keep hydrated.
There are funding options available for various types of Dementia care depending on the type of care required and the potential resident’s circumstances.
Your local council may be able to help with the costs associated with Dementia care.
Please contact your council prior to applying with us to see if you qualify for any funding.
Please do contact us at enquries@fote.org.uk if you have any further questions about our dementia care services.
Friends of the Elderly, registered charity in England and Wales (no 226064); registered company in England and Wales (no 133850).
Registered office 40-42 Ebury Street, London SW1W 0LZ. A company limited by guarantee.
