November News for Home Instead - Care at Home - When only the best will do!

Dementia Activities during November 2025

Our home support and care at home often involves clients with dementia. We take great pride to ensure our team of incredible Care Professionals are trained to understand and support clients and their families living with dementia.

We get involved in lots of community events to support activities for those living with dementia.

Home Instead’s “Memory Lane Activity Cafe”

At our monthly Memory Lane Activity Cafe on Thursday 20th November we were joined by some lovely Level 2 Nail Services students from Darlington College. The students set up their nail care stations and chatted to our cafe guests while they provided manicures and hand massages. It was very relaxing for everyone involved. After the relaxation things got more lively with our ever popular seated exercises!!

This monthly activity cafe is run in partnership with The Salvation Army on Thompson Street East on the third Thursday on every month. It has a great atmosphere and lots of fun is had by all. The activity cafe is for people living with dementia, or memory loss, and their loved ones or carers. There are great benefits for everyone attending from the social and physical activity and joining in with anything you want or just have a cuppa and a biscuit and a chat. Come along, we’d love to see you. It’s only £3 and the carer is free.

Alzheimer’s Society Dementia Advisers at West Park

Earlier this month our Director, Robbie Jones, and our Community Engagement Officer, Molly Broughton, visited the Alzheimer’s Society Dementia Adviser, Denise Whellans, at her drop in session at West Park Hospital in Darlington. It was great to catch up with Denise about the incredible dementia advice she provides to those with a recent diagnosis. There is lots of support available and Alzheimer’s Society Dementia Advisers can point you in the right direction for everything available across Darlington.

Dementia Friendly Darlington Steering Group

At the start of November we hosted Dementia Friendly Darlington Steering Group in one of our meeting rooms at Lingfield House in Darlington. Dementia Friendly Darlington is a group of individuals and organisations from the public, private and charity sectors working together to promote dementia awareness. Our aim is to help make Darlington an inclusive town to live, work, shop and socialise for those living with dementia and their loved ones and carers. The group has been working for a number of years with the support of Alzheimer’s Society and Darlington Borough Council. Several of the group are currently undertaking training to become Dementia Friends Ambassadors so that more of us can run Dementia Friends sessions for anyone in the community – these sessions raise awareness about what it is like living with dementia. Please call Robbie Jones at Home Instead on 01325 467833 if you would like us to arrange a Dementia Friends session for you or a group.

Stronger Communities Awards

At Darlington Borough Council’s annual Stronger Communities Awards we were really proud that Home Instead Director, Robbie Jones, and Belinda Williams from Alzheimer’s Society were both awarded the prestigious Citizen of the Year. Robbie was awarded this for his work producing the amazing show, Dementia’s Got Talent, that appeared on the stage at Darlington’s Hippodrome in January this year. Belinda was awarded this for many years of service raising awareness of dementia and improving the support available for those living with dementia.

“Take A Seat” in Richmond in North Yorkshire

We are delighted to announce that our “Take A Seat” initiative in Richmond in North Yorkshire now has over 50 businesses offering a seat for a rest for locals and visitors as they make their way around this beautiful North Yorkshire Town. Home Instead have set up this scheme in partnership with Richmond Town Council to make the town even more welcoming especially for the elderly. The seats are offered without any obligation to purchase anything – just part of making the town more accessible and welcoming to all. It’s been a pleasure to set up the scheme and work with the local community to make this such a success.