Posted 04.10.12
A new report published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) outlines how York and other cities can become truly dementia-friendly communities. It follows the launch earlier this year of the Prime Minister's Dementia Challenge.
The York Dementia Without Walls project looked at what is needed to make the City 'dementia friendly' - meaning a good place to live for people with dementia and their carers. The practical ideas in the report were shaped by local people affected by dementia.
The most difficult things for people with dementia are everyday activities that most take for granted, such as withdrawing money at the bank, paying bills, shopping and using public transport.
Trying to carry on daily life as before becomes much harder. People start to feel disconnected from their old groups, friends, activities and places, and slowly 'give up' because they worry about the reaction of strangers and encounter too many difficulties.
The research looked at four areas where real change is achievable:
The full report and findings - Creating a dementia-friendly York by Janet Crampton, Janet Dean and Ruth Eley, from the AESOP Consortium - is available to download for free from the JRF website. A brief film and a short accessible report for people with dementia are also available.
Edited by Trace Copeland
Reforming Elderly Care Is Not the Biggest Priority Says Danny Alexander
Posted 05.10.12
Speaking at the Liberal Democrat conference in Brighton, Treasury Minister Danny Alexander denied reports that the Treasury is blocking elderly care reforms but provided little reassurance that the issue was a pressing priority for the Government.
He did, however, confirm there was a commitment 'to take forward the Dilnot plan' for an individual cap on costs, to help stop elderly people having to sell their homes to pay for care.
His comments come after a former Health Minister accused the Treasury of stalling plans to put a cap in place. He stressed there were many other 'social care pressures' and many competing priorities including the needs of vulnerable people with low incomes.
It is estimated that up to 40,000 people are forced to sell their homes each year to pay for long term care. Costs can run into hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Source: The Telegraph - click here to read the article in full.
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Crisis in Social Care Costs Britain Billions
Posted 05.10.12
Britain's fragile economy is losing more than £5 billion a year as a result of a crisis in funding for social care aggravated by local cuts to care services.
Age UK and Carers UK have claimed in a report that people are leaving work to care for their elderly relatives, leading to a £4 billion hole in the economy. They estimate more than 300 000 people left their jobs in 2010-11 to look after loved ones and that numbers are rising. Many claim benefits themselves after leaving employment to help make ends meet.
Citing one of the reasons for this as town hall cuts to local services, they said the problem would worsen unless cuts were reversed and the issue of long term funding for care was resolved.
Social care chiefs estimate budgets have been trimmed by £1.9 billion in the last two years in England.
Source: The Independent - click here to read the article in full.
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Bidding Opens for Care and Support Specialised Housing Fund
Posted 26.10.12
Bidding is now open for up to £240 million of capital funding aiming to widen the housing options for older people and adults with disabilities, by delivering thousands of new affordable and market sale homes.
The Care and Support Specialised Housing Fund, launched by Minister of Care Services Norman Lamb, marks the first time that the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) - which will be administering the Fund - has run such a programme on behalf of the Department of Health.
The Fund is split into two phases, focusing on affordable housing in Phase One, and market sale homes in a later second phase and run over five years from 2013/14.
It will be managed as a separate programme to the HCA's £1.8 billion Affordable Homes Programme, and will build on the existing good practice identified by the HCA with the Department of Health and the Department for Communities and Local Government through the 2009 HAPPI Report.
