New resources for carers of someone with dementia

Launched to coincide with Dementia Awareness Week (May 19 – 25 2025) the podcasts, produced in collaboration with Remind UK and Dorothy House Hospice Care, draw on the real-life experiences of unpaid carer, Lynda, and are complemented with conversation between staff and volunteers, drawing on their many years of experience. 

Jenny Theed and Alex Hurley run Dementia Cafés – part of the life-changing suite of support services offered to unpaid carers by The Carers’ Centre, where they can connect and recharge – and is where they met Lynda. Lynda’s story is significant, not because it’s unusual, more because it highlights the difficult journey that thousands of people are on when looking after a loved one with dementia.  

“I noticed that he’d say to me ‘Who’s that’? And he started leaving things on in the kitchen, and burning things, and getting angry with me when I intervened,” says Lynda. 

Jenny has worked in the care service for over 43 years. She is Vice-Chair of The Carers’ Centre, a qualified nurse and health visitor. Alex Hurley is a retired nurse, worked as district nurse in the community for 25 years, and works in a dementia care home. 

“The Dementia Cafes have proved invaluable, as they provide carers with a safe space to share their experiences and to explore ways of coping with the group members. This enables them to continue to provide their vital role to their loved ones, day in and day out,” says Jenny. 

In the podcasts Jenny and Alex are joined by Melissa Hillier, Chief Exec of ReMind UK, and Esther Mackillican, an Admiral Nurse from Dorothy House Hospice Care, who joins the final episode that covers end of life care. 

A new Dementia Guide has also been produced by The Carers’ Centre’s knowledgeable Support Team and provides a comprehensive overview of the support available in Bath and North East Somerset.