About Us

Dementia Friendly Sandbach - About Us

Dementia Friendly Sandbach started as a project sponsored by Sandbach Partnership in 2018 and was formally established at an inaugural Annual General Meeting in April 2019.

Our objective is:

To create a dementia friendly town, where residents, visitors and carers living with dementia are supported and accepted.

A Vision of Dementia Friendly Sandbach

Imagine you were travelling up the M6 and intended to exit at junction17 for Sandbach. The signpost would read Sandbach and underneath you would see Dementia Friendly Town. As you continue your journey into Sandbach you will quickly become aware of the distinct features that makes Sandbach a Dementia Friendly Town.

Firstly, the environment is Dementia friendly. Pavements and street signs are distinctive and easy to use. Good street lighting encourages a feeling of safety. The Town Park is well maintained with accessible seating for locals and visitors to take in the beauty of the Town.

The Town Council Offices are welcoming and friendly giving advice on local sites to visit and enjoy. The public amenities such as public toilets are clean and accessible for people with dementia and their carers with locals who are willing to help people who get lost.

Local Businesses which are the heart beat of the Town display Dementia Friendly logos in their windows and all staff have an awareness of Dementia and are trained to support disabled and vulnerable people. These businesses recognise the value of customer loyalty and care which is pivotal in establishing Dementia Friendly Sandbach.

Local children of all ages are aware of dementia as part of their schools’ outreach programme and are taking dementia friendly actions in the community such as writing letters to and/or visiting residents in local care homes.

Public services like the Town Council, the local library and Ashfields Primary Care Centre play a critical role in the provision of information about Dementia and the availability of local support groups and activities for both people living with Dementia and their Carers.

Most people living in Sandbach will know someone either in their family or living in their street who has Dementia and our challenge is to support people with Dementia to live in their own homes where possible for as long as they wish to with the right level of support.

We adopted a number of target areas for focus:

• Ascertain through discussion with those living with dementia and their carers what their priorities are

• Improving public and local groups awareness through public information campaigns and targeted campaigns

• Improving business awareness through information giving and to promote dementia friendly businesses

• Supporting the distribution of good quality information about services and activities to service users and carers

• Helping to provide, with others, specific activities to support those living with dementia

• Helping to provide, with others, specific activities to support carers of those living with dementia

• Helping, with others, those living with dementia have better access to local services, events and activities

• Achieving recognition as a dementia friendly community
  
  

In July 2019 DFS was registered by the Alzheimer’s Society as a Dementia Friendly Community Group aspiring to create a dementia friendly community in Sandbach.

DFS is a not-for-profit community group, funded mainly through local donations, supplemented by financial support from Sandbach Partnership and Sandbach Town Council for which we are very grateful.

DFS is directed on a day to day by a steering group of local residents, including some living with dementia, elected at the annual AGM.

Dave Whitworth is the (2023-24) Chair of DFS

Sue Wood is the Secretary

Richard Hovey is the Treasurer