Yate Shopping Centre steps up Dementia awareness
Date Posted:18/05/2015
The Management of Yate Shopping Centre is fully behind the Town Council in Yate becoming a dementia friendly town.
As a key stakeholder in the town, the Centre’s Management team are attending and taking part in all meetings being organised to support businesses and members of the public to recognise and improve awareness about Dementia within the community.
Centre Manager Andrew Lowrey: “We were first approached about the Town Council’s dementia initiative last year and have been working with them ever since. It is very important that we are able to understand the symptoms of dementia and the problems people face within their community, this has been highlighted in recent months by the Governments imitative to improve the lives of people with dementia.
“The meetings have been a total learning curve for many of us who were not familiar with dementia and this is now feeding through into how we cater for people in the Centre. Two thirds of people with dementia live in the community and can face many challenges going about their daily lives. We are looking at many ways of improving facilities in Yate such as signage colours so that over time we can make the Centre a dementia friendly environment.”
As a commitment to the initiative all Shopping Centre staff including security, cleaning and maintenance staff have attended dementia awareness sessions. The Centre is also signed up to the Yate & South Glos Dementia Action Alliance.
Debbie Woolley, the Community Development worker in Yate, said: “I have been in post since January 2015. Part of my role is to support organistaions and members of the public in becoming dementia aware within their community. I have worked with Andy and his staff and from the start they have shown a willingness and enthusiasm to be involved in this work. Many positive things are happening in the town centre around dementia awareness and it is the good work of businesses like Yate Shopping Centre that make this achievable”
