News from
Liverpool Dementia Action Alliance
and member organisations

CORONAVIRUS - COVID-19

FOLLOWING GOVERNMENT INSTRUCTIONS MANY ACTIVITIES AND SERVICES HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED TEMPORARILY. FOR ADVICE ON RE-OPENING PLEASE CONTACT THE ORGANISERS.

DETAILS ARE BEING LEFT ON THIS WEBSITE FOR REFERENCE ONLY.
Online Exercise Classes

During the coronavirus lockdown Healthiness are continuing to provide online exercise classes, a great way to help stay active in the comfort of your own home.
All sessions are available on their Facebook page. For setup details, see the Healthiness Online website page.

And if you can't make it to a particular class when it is shown live, you can still view the video on Facebook once it has been broadcast at your leisure.
Silver Screen Memories

The Cinema, Memory and Wellbeing project at University of Liverpool have created a Facebook page featuring short clips of films from yesteryear, aimed particularly at people living with dementia.

It's easy to access - you don't need a Facebook account, just click here where you will find  sets of short film clips to trigger positive memories - a new set every Monday - together with some questions aimed at stimulating the sharing of reminiscences.
You can tell the project organisers (Professor Lisa Shaw and Dr Jacky Waldock) about your memories by writing in the 'comments' boxes underneath each clip. Take a look and let them know, by email or via the Facebook page, what other kinds of clips you would like to see or if they can support you in anyway to use the material. 
Supporting independence at home
for people with dementia

NIDUS-Family is a study being conducted at Bradford and UCL which is currently recruiting people living with dementia and their family carers.

 The NIDUS-Family intervention has been developed based on current evidence and discussions that we have had with people living with dementia and family carers. We now want to find out if the intervention can help family carers support a relative with dementia to be independent at home for longer.
Participants will be randomly allocated to either receive the 8 session intervention, or continue as usual without the intervention. Everyone will be asked to complete questionnaires about their health and wellbeing at baseline and again after 6 months and 12 months.

If you're interested in taking part, or getting to know more, click here to download the project leaflet.
Dementia Twitter Chat - an invitation to join in

Thanks to funding from LCR Cares-Covid 19 Community Support Fund, Tommy Dunne and Paul Hitchmough from thred CiC are hosting a weekly twitter chat for 12 weeks for people living with dementia and those who support them; including organisations, care homes and care workers. The aim is to reduce social isolation and they have already completed 3 twitter chats with topics Music & Dementia, Social isolation, Dementia and Communication.

Week 4 on Wednesday 20th May at 8 pm is: ‘Tips for Dementia Carer Support’ and all are welcome to join in @thredCiC
Tide Carer Activities during Covid-19

Keeping Carers Informed
  • If you’d like to get involved, you can sign up at www.tide.uk.net
  • Details of our latest work can be found in the news section here
  • Additional information about changes in legislation or policy are communicated to carers & former carers. Members can receive this information via the newsletter
Keeping Carers Connected
  • Join our private peer support group on Facebook here: Facebook Group
  • We have a Whatsapp group to connect & support BAME carers in Rochdale. For further information or to join this group, please click here
  • Join in with our Zoom Grow & Glow sessions on Tuesdays from 2.00 - 3.00pm. In these sessions, you will have the opportunity to connect with other carers, find new coping strategies & improve your well-being. Email Beau for a list of topics & to book on.
  • Take part in our Zoom Coffee & Connect sessions on Wednesdays from 10.30 - 11.30 am. Please email Beau for the link to join.
  • We will continue to share the experiences of carers through our social media channels & website. If you would like to share your experiences please do so on our Facebook & Twitter
  • Talk to Sarah (Carer Involvement Lead for Merseyside & Cheshire). She will be very happy to talk you through what we do, answer any questions, & generally keep in touch. She can be contacted on:  07704 168867 or SarahB@lifestorynetwork.org.uk
 
Trustee Callout
We are looking for people who have experience in any of the following areas - caring for someone with dementia, marketing & fundraising, Human Resource management, finance, & business acumen to join our Board as Trustees. The deadline for applications is 28th May 2020. You can find out more & apply via the website: https://www.tide.uk.net/trustees-wanted/

Merseyside Dementia Friendly Radio is now online and broadcasting !!

Nat Gavin reports that MDFR , the one and only local radio service for and by people affected by dementia, is now live ! Just click on the link here.

"It's a little bit earlier than planned as I thought it might be nice for those that are stuck at home to have some music to listen to.

I'm hoping to make it a bit more interactive very soon, with requests and dedications and I'm still ironing out some technical issues, but for now, there's a steady stream of music for you to enjoy 24 hours a day. As time goes on, we'll add interviews and features etc too. 

If you have any requests, suggestions or any kind of feedback, please let me know either on the site, or text/whatsapp to 07981752525

Stay safe and enjoy the music !!"

Fire Safety
Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service aims to help and protect groups that may be vulnerable to a fire or escaping a fire, including people with Dementia, Hard of Hearing and those with Mental Health conditions.

If you know of anyone who may meet this vulnerable person criteria please download and complete the referral form here and send it to fireservicedirect@merseyfire.gov.uk  or call 0800 731 5958.

Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service can, if appropriate, offer a not for profit, pre-arranged service to carry out a Home Fire Safety Check (HFSC) and provide smoke alarms to reduce the risk of having a fire and how to stay safe if one occurs. A Home Fire Safety Check includes fire safety advice and the importance of having working smoke alarms installed on each level of your home.
 
For more information visit https://www.merseyfire.gov.uk/aspx/pages/prevention/campaign.aspx
Introduction to dementia -an invitation from
House of Memories

Are you a family member, relative, friend or community volunteer whose life has been touched by dementia? Museum of Liverpool invite you to attend a free half-day dementia awareness workshop.

This four hour session is an introduction to dementia, using powerful and very personal video stories to explore the challenges presented when supporting someone living with dementia.

The session will provide you with a number of practical approaches to enhancing communication and building positive meaningful relationships, including an opportunity for you to:

- try out our innovative My House of Memories app
- learn about things you can do at home with your loved ones
- find out about the range of dementia-friendly activities you can attend at the museum.

To book please visit our website http://bit.ly/2Qvyitc or call 0151 478 4240.

You can stay up to date with the latest House of Memories news and events by signing up to our e-newsletter: http://houseofmemories.co.uk/newsletter-sign-up/