People can and do live on their own with dementia and without informal support. These resources offer advice and guidance to enable this, based on our research.
Guide for people with dementia
People can and do live successfully on their own with dementia, even if they do not have family or friends nearby to support them. If you are in this situation, this guide may help you.
It is available in a print version to print and share with people with dementia.
There is also a plain text version that you can download and edit as you need, for example to change the font size.
General guide
People need to be aware that a neighbour or acquaintance may be living alone with dementia and without family and friends nearby, and may need a bit of help. This guide gives information about how to support someone in this situation.
This is available in a print version.
There is also a plain text version that you can download and edit as you need.
Important questions
These questions are about areas that need to be addressed so that people can
live on their own with dementia, even if they do not have family or friends
nearby to support them.
- People with dementia can ask the questions to find out about the support
they need. Your GP surgery is a good place to start asking questions. - Local services – such as from the Council, NHS or voluntary organisations – can use the questions to think about how they support people who live alone and don’t have informal support.
The questions are also available in a plain text version that you can download and edit as you need.
Guide for commissioners
This guide provides Golden Rules about how commissioners can help ensure good support to people living alone with dementia and without family and friends nearby. There is information for each golden rule about why it matters and what’s needed. The guide then has a pathway to help you think through how to support people, followed by examples of how this is being done.
Guide for people working with people with dementia
This guide provides key principles about how to offer good support to people living alone with dementia and without family and friends nearby. There is information for each principle about why it matters and what’s needed. The guide then has an approach, based on NICE guidance, to help you think through how to support people, followed by examples of how this is being done.
To develop the resources, we shared the research with stakeholders – including people with dementia, providers, practitioners and commissioners – and co-developed key messages, produced draft resources and then gathered feedback from stakeholders before finalising this resource.
Please note: Not everyone uses the word ‘dementia’. We mean people who have a diagnosis of dementia or symptoms like difficulties with memory or cognition.