Together Dementia Support

Carers Manchester is a network of statutory and voluntary organisations who work together to provide support and improve services for Manchester’s unpaid carers. Together Dementia Support is a valued member of our network. As we approach national Dementia Action Week, CEO, Sally Ferris, tells us more about her organisation…

Together Dementia Support (TDS) is a local dementia-specialist charity that provides services both for people who have a dementia diagnosis and for carers/families.

Altough based at the Kath Locke Centre in Hulme, we do home visits and run Dementia Cafes and Friendship & Activity Groups across the city, from Wythenshawe to Blackley.

The charity was started to offer more opportunities for people with dementia to get out and socialise and exercise. Early activities were a weekly Walk & Talk Group, a Dementia Choir and an activist group, called the Fabulous Forgetful Friends. However, it has grown to provide support in many ways to carers, because their struggles with dementia are equally important – although different.

For carers, TDS provides a 4- week Carers Training course, Dementia Cafes in Moss Side, Blackley and Wythenshawe (with massage appointments), Carers Breaks – walks, meals, therapeutic activities, and a very active Carers’ WhatsApp group in which carers offload and ask each other for advice 7 days a week, when services are often closed. We also enable carers to participate in research and teaching sessions for health professionals, and we encourage former carers to become Carer Champions, helping the charity in a number of ways.

The people with dementia who attend our weekly Friendship & Activity Groups have a wonderful time and make great friends. Minibus transport is provided and this means that carers can stay at home and have a break. One of our groups is specifically for South Asian elders with dementia, called Pyaari Yaadein Group. And for people with dementia who struggle with talking, we jointly run two Music Cafes, where members enjoy listening to and making music together.

For those who prefer a one-one service, we provide a volunteer-led Together At Home activity service and a bespoke Together Out & About service, in which our Support Worker takes 2 people out for a social trip – to the park, a museum, gallery or a café.

With Dementia Action Week approaching (18-24 May) we are running 2 Pop-Up Café sessions, with lunches prepared and served by our members with dementia. We will also be exhibiting artwork at Arcadia Leisure Centre in Levenshulme. And we’re involved in running 2 public meetings – 4 June about ‘End of Life Care and Dementia’ and 18 June about ‘Dementia and Brain Health Research’.