Nick Clegg joins Dementia Friends scheme

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has announced that he has officially enrolled in the Alzheimer's Society's national Dementia Friends scheme.

Launched last year, the initiative provides people with awareness sessions and special badges to aid them in understanding how the disease works, with the ultimate aim being to help patients feel better understood and more included in their community.

The Alzheimer's Society is aiming to have one million people in England signed up to the Dementia Friends scheme by 2015, with more than 10,000 – including Mr Clegg – having done so already.

Mr Clegg said: "With support and understanding from the public, people with dementia can live well. We need to raise awareness of dementia and build genuinely dementia-friendly communities."

Dementia Friends is funded by the Department of Health and the Cabinet Office as part of the government's ongoing Challenge on Dementia project.

It includes initiatives to improve early diagnosis of the condition and make wards and care homes more comfortable for people with dementia, while also improving understanding of the disease among the general public.