PEOPLE living with dementia are being offered the chance to learn more about the condition and how it affects them in a six-week course run by Alzheimer’s Society in York.

The course, which will be held at Acomb Methodist Church, aims to help people with dementia understand more about the condition and its symptoms including the self-help strategies they can use to support themselves.

Penny Gregg, Alzheimer’s Society Dementia Support Worker, said: “During the last course it was great to support people to understand the challenges they may face and to give them ideas about how to live well with the disease.

“The feedback was just amazing and demonstrated the impact the course has had on participants.

“The group had been so helpful and supportive of each other.

“They have been very positive and there has been so much humour with participants laughing at themselves and life in general.”

There are an estimated 2,717 people with dementia in York and this is expected to rise to 3,503 by 2025.

A person living with dementia who attended one of the new workshops recently said: “I wondered how the group had been picked and group members seemed to feel they had been specially selected and were part of something special.”

Dementia is under diagnosed in the Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group area.

The most recent figures for diagnostic rates show a decrease from 55.7 per cent to 55.1 per cent.

The next seven-week course starts on April 27 and will run at Acomb Methodist Church, Front Street, Acomb, York, YO24 3BX.

For more information contact the York office of Alzheimer’s Society on 01904 567701 or email yorkservices@alzheimers.org.uk