Let's Talk Dementia 2025 Programme

The event is taking place at the Watershed, 1 Canons Road, Bristol, BS1 5TX. On Saturday 17th May, you can arrive at any time between 10.30am - 4.30pm and stay for as long as you would like.

All event spaces are open 10.30am - 4.30pm

Seb Choudhury and Alex Lovell from ITV News West Country will open the event at 10.30am!

Seb Choudhury and Alex Lovell

Exhibitor Room - also called Waterside 3

A chance to speak to experts about health, care, research and the practicalities of dementia. Learn more about services available from charities and the NHS, and opportunities to volunteer in dementia research. Have your questions answered in a friendly setting.  

The following organisations will be exhibiting:

All Saints Church 

Age UK  Bristol

Autumn Years 

Bristol Brain Centre 

Bristol Dementia Wellbeing Services  

Bristol Robotics Laboratory, UWE 

Care Campaign for the Vulnerable (CCFTV) 

Centre for the Deaf  

Chinese Community Wellbeing Society  

Creative Dementia Arts Network 

Dementia Community 

Harold Stephens 

Home Instead  

Time for dementia 

Trinity Home Care 

ReMemBr PPI and University of Bristol 

Wards Solicitors  

Host Charities Room – also called Waterside 2

Alive Activities, Bristol Dementia Action Alliance and BRACE Dementia Research, the event charity hosts, will be sharing more about their important work in and around Bristol and the West Country. 

There will be free tea and coffee available in this room, donations welcome.  

The activity room – also called Waterside 1

The activity room is a creative space for people living with dementia.

The following activities will be offer:

Armchair travel experience - interactive box with a sensory experience to help you travel to a new city.

Seated exercise - engaging exercise with simple movements suitable for everyone.

Reminiscence - a opportunity to share and connect with memories.

Music juke box - a chance to enjoy your favourite music in a group setting.

Wellbeing and nature - a chance to bring the outside in.

Alive Activities, one of the host charities, will be running the sessions during the following times.

  • 10.45 -11.15 am Reminiscence - an opportunity to share and connect with memories. 
  • 11.45 – 12.15pm Armchair travel - interactive box with a sensory experience to help you travel to a new city, 
  • 12.45 – 1.15pm Wellbeing and nature - a chance to bring the outside in. 
  • 1.45 -2.15pm Seated Exercise - engaging exercise with simple movements suitable for everyone. 
  • 2.45 - 3.15 pm Music Jukebox  - a chance to enjoy your favourite music in a group setting. 
  • 3.45- 4.15pm Wellbeing and nature - a chance to bring the outside in. 

Waterside Hallway

Chairs and tables to sit and relax with a tea or coffee from the Host Charities Room.

There will also be a small number of exhibitors.

Talks in Cinema 3

The Cinema space is away from the main spaces – it will be signposted with hosts to show you the way if unsure.

Please arrive 5 - 15 minutes before the talks start. There are steps to take you into the cinema room, if you have access needs, please use the lift and ask the usher on the door for help if needed.

11am -11.30am: Professor Andrea Tales - The less well-known symptoms of dementia

This talk will cover some of the ‘less well-known symptoms of dementia’ that can take place when living with dementia, such as changes in vision, taste and more.

Professor Andrea Tales is a dementia expert and researcher from Swansea University, her work has been supported by BRACE for several years. Her research focusses on the non-memory aspects of brain function in ageing, cognitive decline, vascular cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease.

Andrea is an elected Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales and of the British Psychological Society and is the Swansea University School of Health and Social Care Research Lead (I’ve changed this too as my other roles have just finished).

Andrea has published extensively and co-ordinates an extensive ageing and dementia research network and has supervised many PhD students.

12pm -12.30pm: Jayne Connery - How to chose the right dementia care

Are you unsure about the best way to support your loved ones and their care? Jayne will share her expert care knowledge, tips and insight in this short talk.
Jayne founded Care Campaign for the Vulnerable (CCFTV) after bringing her mother, who was living with dementia, home from residential and nursing care. Seeing the lack of support for families navigating the care system, Jayne left her job to create a platform for advocacy.
A decade later, CCFTV is a leading voice in dementia and elderly care, offering support through reviews, assessments, NHS meetings, and more. Jayne’s hands-on experience drives her commitment to improving communication, transparency, and care quality. She is also a prominent media commentator and speaker at care exhibitions.

1pm - 1.30pm: Bristol Dementia Wellbeing Services and Alive Activities -  Empathy in dementia - increasing our understanding

Introducing the Empathy Suit, a simulated experience used to promote a deeper understanding of what it might be like to be living with elder frailty and/or symptoms of dementia.  This 13-piece suit puts the wearer in the shoes of people living with such challenges and has been used nationwide as a training tool in collaboration between Alive Activities and Bristol Dementia Well-being Service.  Hear about how the suit works and the impact that it is having in influencing best practice for people working with or caring for people living with dementia. 

2pm -2.30pm: Beth Britton - Dementia and Wellbeing

Beth Britton is a former carer to her father who had vascular dementia for 19 years. She is an expert content creator who won ‘Best Independent Voice on Older People’s Issues’ and is the author of D4Dementia, one of the foremost dementia blogs in the world. Beth also provides consultancy services to social care providers, including training and mentoring, and she is also a BRACE ambassador.
Beth’s campaigning, including being a speaker and media spokesperson, centres around improving dementia care and support, the challenges in social care and issues facing family carers. Beth was the winner of Outstanding Contribution to Dementia Care at the 2024 Dementia Care Awards.
Her talk will cover a simple wellbeing structure that offers an easy and free approach to supporting wellbeing in people living with dementia. This talk is suitable for anyone caring or working with people with dementia.

3pm- 3.30pm: Ariana and John ‘Pops’ - Turning negative into positive

Ariana (aged 10) and her grandfather John, ‘Pops’ Hyde will be telling their extraordinary story of resilience amid sadness and revealing how just a short question from Ariana, when aged only 6, lifted John from a dark place and back into a purposeful life.
Yes, John journeys with dementia but that wasn’t going to stop Ariana starting a YouTube Channel with her ‘Pops’ to turn his ‘negative’ diagnosis into something fully positive! Learn how to ‘engage’ in a better way with someone journeying with dementia, you may be surprised, but you will definitely be lifted.

4pm -4.30pm : Voices of Dementia

Short interviews with people living with dementia and those caring for them, to give insight into the reality of dementia – from the joyful to the challenging.

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