Moving on from AT Dementia

The DLF and Trent DSDC today announce the transfer of their AT Dementia information website to the DLF marking the end of the joint arrangement that was established in 2007. The original development project was co-funded by the partners to set up a new and important resource for the public and professionals looking for guided advice on equipment that could help with dementia.

Products featured in the AT Guide have been added to the DLF’s main database so that they can be viewed and purchased on the Living Made Easy marketplace, people who need guidance about suitability can use the AskSARA guided advice tool and choose from a range of over 90 topics dealing with common daily activities and health and wellbeing topics, there are also now a range of Factsheets dealing specifically with equipment to help with dementia.

Over one million people viewed Living Made Easy last year and every month over three thousand personalised reports are produced by AskSARA users. Recent surveys show that almost two-thirds of users of AskSARA are looking on behalf of others underlining the vital role that informal carers, friends and family play in supporting independent living. With the addition of new products to the Living Made Easy marketplace users can now view over ten thousand products from almost a thousand national UK suppliers.

The DLF has also commissioned a new set of topics to tackle the specific challenges that dementia presents and we expect these new topics to debut later in 2020. Commenting on the transfer Janet Seward, Programmes Manager at the DLF said ‘We’re delighted to be taking on the direct responsibility for this programme. Trent DSDC have done a fantastic job of developing and promoting the AT Guide and they are rightly recognised for their work on this and their wider activities. We wish Trent DSDC well as they shift their focus towards research establishing peer support groups, working in collaboration with people living with dementia and their families in projects whose aim is the betterment of their quality of life and their empowerment and policy and we look forward to their anticipated appraisals as we take this programme forwards.’

Trent Dementia charity has responded to the COVID-19 by moving all its projects online and through phone. People living with dementia and their families are welcome to call the charity 01157484220 for a friendly chat. They also have Zoom meetings every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday with people living with dementia and their families. For more info about Trent Dementia’s activities please email deep@trentdementia.org.uk or visit their website: https://www.trentdementia.org.uk. Professor Tom Dening (chair of trustees, Trent Dementia) commented: 'We have been very proud of AT Dementia, which was ground-breaking when it was launched in 2005, and we are delighted to pass this service on to the safe hands of the DLF, which has a great track record of providing resources for a range of different conditions.'

For more information about DLF’s equipment for dementia programme please email marketing@dlf.org.uk or call 0207 289 6111.

Notes to editors

About the DLF

The DLF is a national charity that has been providing expert and impartial advice and training on equipment for independent living for over 50 years. Part of The Shaw Trust since 2014, its mission is to help people live independently at home with dignity. Living Made Easy, AskSARA and a number of other services offer free, impartial advice about daily living equipment, including information on where to buy items, and details of local organisations that can help. Their phone lines are open 9 am to 5 pm Monday to Friday on 0300 999 0004. www.livingmadeeasy.org.uk https://asksara.livingmadeeasy.org.uk/

About Trent Dementia

Trent Dementia is a charity that was founded in 2004 in Leicester. Trent Dementia developed an innovative website www.atdementia.org.uk that helped people living with dementia, their families, carers and professionals to find information about Assistive Technology for dementia. The website and AT Guide were launched in 2007 and continued to serve until 1st June 2020.
Trent Dementia moved to the Institute of Mental Health in Nottingham in 2014.Trent Dementia charity aims to improve the quality of care, support and wellbeing of people who are living with dementia in the East Midlands and beyond. They run projects and events and aim to work alongside people with dementia and their supporters. Their key areas of activity have been dementia care training, regional conferences, projects led by people living with dementia, and establishing three DEEP Dementia peer support groups in Nottinghamshire. As a small charity they are looking to gradually expand their activities. People can reach them by phone on 0115 748 4220 or email deep@trentdementia.org.uk for a friendly chat or to ask for more information about their projects.
Their Facebook page is: https://www.facebook.com/deepnotts/ and their Twitter pages are: www.twitter.com/TrentDementia and www.twitter.com/deep_notts