At a summit held at 10 Downing Street on 20 March, Scott Mitchell, the husband of the late Dame Barbara Windsor was announced as People’s Champion for a national Dementia Mission named in memory of the star. The event brought together representatives from charities, academics, investors, business leaders and people with lived experience for a round table discussion on driving forward dementia treatments and research. Alzheimer Scotland Chief Executive Henry Simmons attended this special event.
Henry said:
"On behalf of Alzheimer Scotland and the lived experience members from our Active Voice groups, congratulations to Scott Mitchell on his appointment as People’s Champion for the UK Dementia Mission. It is without doubt that by sharing their personal experiences, Scott and his late wife, Dame Barbara Windsor, have raised the awareness of dementia and challenged stigma often associated with the condition. It was a great privilege to meet Scott briefly at today’s Dementia Mission reception at No. 10 Downing Street, and to also hear first-hand about the wonderful progress in research and the exciting range of new planned initiatives which will explore new ways to improve the lives of people living with dementia, their families and carers. From the innovation of new treatments and therapies to the development of fresh approaches to care and support, research offers hope for the future and the opportunity to achieve the type of progress that can make a real difference. Research has brought us closer to finding new drugs to treat and delay the onset of dementia but we need continued investment and support from people who are willing to get involved to make this a reality."
Join Dementia Research supports people to get involved in research opportunities – find out more at www.joindementiaresearch.nihr.ac.uk/ or call Alzheimer Scotland’s 24-hour Freephone Dementia Helpline on 0808 808 3000 for more information.
