Dementia services
Shared Lives can be an amazing resource for people with dementia and their families. Find out more by watching Pat and Roger’s story.
Our short breaks services for people with dementia
Specifically trained Shared Lives carers can offer short breaks (typically a day time service or a 1-3 day overnight break) to someone with mild to moderate dementia who is living in the community, usually supported by family carers.
Shared Lives South West has developed two specialist services for people with dementia, one in Torbay and one in Cornwall. We also have a small number of carers in Devon offering support to people with dementia.
Our short breaks for people with dementia are listed in both the short break vacancies and in the SPECIALIST SERVICES vacancies for each geographical area. To go to the vacancies page – please click here
The National Dementia and Shared Lives project
Shared Lives South West and an organisation called Innovations in Dementia are jointly delivering a national project all about how Shared Lives can support people with dementia and their carers. Funded by the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation for three years, this project is working with four Shared Lives schemes on five sites, and with the wider network of Shared Lives schemes in England. The projects main objectives are
- to gather evidence about how Shared Lives services can support people with dementia and their carers
- to collate and enable the sharing of good practice amongst Shared Lives schemes who are actively supporting people with dementia
- to develop training materials for schemes and Shared Lives carer about how to support someone with dementia in a Shared Lives setting
- to produce information for commissioners of adult social care services about the benefits and cost effectiveness of Shared Lives services.
If you would like more information about this project, you can contact Jane Bell at Shared Lives South West or Rachael Litherland at Innovations and Dementia.
SHARED LIVES AND DEMENTIA EVENT
THURSDAY 9TH MAY
The FINAL end of project event with Shared Lives South West and Innovations in Dementia
Thursday 9th May 2013
McDonald Burlington Hotel, New Street, Birmingham
A national event about Shared Lives as a support service for people with dementia. The aim of the day is to increase awareness and stimulate interest in using Shared Lives to support people with dementia and to share the learning from the three year National Shared Lives and Dementia project.
The event is aimed at Shared Lives scheme managers and workers, commissioners of services for older people and people with dementia, and professionals working with people with dementia and their carers who wants to help develop Shared Lives services.
The day will include
- A presentation of the film “Pat and Roger’s story”
- The findings from the National Shared Lives and Dementia project
- a presentation from the Alzheimer’s Society in the South West
- Information about the comparative costs and benefits of using Shared Lives to support people with dementia
- Discussion about how to develop the service more widely in the region
The event is free of charge, and lunch is provided. 80 places are available. Please ask for full terms and conditions. If you would like to attend, please email sbaxter@sharedlivessw.org.uk and ask for a booking form and further information. Closing date for bookings April 29th 2013.
To find out more about the work of Innovations in Dementia, please click here