March 2015 News - New Chair for Dementia-friendly Alton Action Group

Amber Reed, Alzheimer’s Society Operations Manager for Hampshire, said:

"Terry Eccott has been a great ambassador for us and to see him taking on the chair at Dementia Friendly Alton is fantastic. A dementia-friendly community is a city, town or village where people with dementia are understood, respected, supported, and confident they can contribute to community life.

It is great to hear of the positive work happening in Alton. They are setting a high standard that I hope many more will follow across the country. We want people from all walks of life and backgrounds to join the Dementia Friendly Communities movement.

It is good to see how far we have come but unfortunately there are still too many people with dementia who do not feel supported and part of their local area; they feel trapped in their own home, isolated, lonely and a burden.

Many people with dementia are not able to take part in activities they enjoyed before they developed the condition, they want to engage with society but need support.

It is possible to make small changes that will make their day to day lives much better and being able to stay part of a community for longer, rather than moving into a care home, which will also save society money. I would urge everyone to find out more on how you and your neighbourhood can become a dementia friendly community."

Debbie Morshead Project manager For Dementia Friendly Hampshire said.

"I first met Terry when we started work on making Alton Dementia friendly, he has written numerous press articles and given speeches on how important it is for people like himself, to know that all the community are pulling together to help people affected with Dementia carry on getting out and about in their local area, like they always have done.

Terry gave a fabulous speech at our first Dementia Friendly Hampshire conference held in Winchester in February, it was praised by many, as inspirational, and we feel lucky to have him as one of our ambassadors."

Phil Edwards Deputy Chair of Dementia Friendly Alton said:

"When Terry discovered that he had a form of dementia, he did not take the news lying down as this is not his style.

He has undertaken fantastic work in helping people to understand the issues in dealing with the illness and has given presentations to doctors, nurses, psychiatrists, care workers, and other professionals, not just in Alton and Hampshire, but all round the country.

Terry has worked closely with the Alzheimers Society and is a Dementia Ambassador and he is also the subject of a documentary following his journey with dementia, entitled ‘Eclipse of the Mind’ which, at its premier last year in Alton was attended by over 200 people.

Terry is much respected in Alton and surrounding areas and will bring his knowledge and enthusiasm to Dementia-friendly Alton as we strive to make local businesses and service providers more aware of how to deal with people Living with dementia that they come into contact by training them and their staff. "

Terry Eccott said:

"It is a great honour to become the Chairman of Dementia Friendly Alton, which I hope over a period of time will change from a community group and turn into a Charity for Alton and the surrounding villages, not just for awareness and help for people living with Dementia, but also help for the carers that live with this disease 24/7 as well, who are quite often sadly forgotten, there are many avenues for us to explore as these are early days for our group, but I am sure with the help of the enthusiastic committee members on board and support from the community, Dementia Friendly Alton will be around for many years to come helping people living with Dementia and their families."