Joint managing partner Jonathan Gater, in our leading Wills, Probate, Tax & Trusts team, highlights this year's Dementia Action Week.
17 May represents the start of Dementia Action Week, hosted by the Alzheimer’s Society.
Today, there are almost one million people with Dementia in the UK and the past year has unfortunately placed significant further pressure on our already struggling health and social care sectors.
The Alzheimer’s Society has described the situation as a “crisis” and the care system as “broken and underfunded,” and “hard to access, expensive and inadequate.”
The charity has called for change and said: “More needs to be done to fix this crisis and help families already dealing with an extremely cruel illness. The Government must recognise the need for reform.”
It added: “Until things change, a Dementia diagnosis will continue to claim more than one life, as families facing Dementia feel its effects. With the right support, people with Dementia can live a good quality of life, doing what matters most to them for as long as possible.”
It is important to remember that Dementia does not only effect older people. There are an estimated 42,000 people, aged under 65, with young onset dementia in the UK.
Solicitors in our Wills, Probate, Tax & Trusts team are trained Dementia Friends, an Alzheimer’s Society initiative, as well as members of Solicitors for the Elderly. We are highly experienced in advising elderly and vulnerable clients, including those living with Dementia, and can provide help and advice in relation to Wills and estate planning, Lasting Powers of Attorney, Court of Protection and capacity related matters.
For further information on Dementia Action Week, please visit the Alzheimer’s Society’s website.
For further information or legal advice, please contact law@blandy.co.uk or call 0118 951 6800.
This article is intended for the use of clients and other interested parties. The information contained in it is believed to be correct at the date of publication, but it is necessarily of a brief and general nature and should not be relied upon as a substitute for specific professional advice. A similar article was first published in Waste Planning Magazine.
