"Maybe one of the most important things we do in our training is to help participants understand the perspective of the person with dementia - to see things from their point of view and recognise how they're feeling" Buz Loveday



However severe the dementia might be, people still have strengths. Recognising and maximising these strengths is an essential part of the care process.


Passionate about improving dementia care

The mission of DementiaTrainers is to raise awareness and understanding, to improve skills, to increase insight into the needs of people with dementia, and to promote a positive, person-centred approach towards their care.

Buz Loveday, who has been a leader in the field of dementia training since 1991, heads the team of specialist trainers who make up DementiaTrainers. She is co-author, with Tom Kitwood and Brenda Bowe, of the training manual 'Improving Dementia Care: A Resource for Training and Professional Development' published by the Journal of Dementia Care. Between 2005 and 2007 Buz delivered a nationwide programme of dementia training to inspectors from CSCI (now known as CQC). More recently, Buz has written training materials for the Alzheimer's Society and SCIE (the Social Care Institute for Excellence) and she currently edits a section of SCIE's Dementia Gateway website.

Buz's three associate trainers, Brenda Bowe, Janet Lallysmith and Jo Savill, have a breadth of experience in dementia care and training. Brenda is a qualified occupational therapist with many years experience in social care management and 17 years as a dementia trainer. Janet worked for over 8 years within adult mental health services, and has been a full-time trainer in dementia care since 2004. Jo has 22 years' experience working with people with dementia in residential care and day care services, latterly managing a specialist resource centre for people with dementia; she became a full-time dementia trainer in 2005. All team members are qualified dementia care mappers and have Alzheimer's Society Approved Trainer status at Gold level ('expert trainer').

DementiaTrainers specialise in providing training in person-centred dementia care and leadership, and we design and deliver training on all subjects related to the care of people with dementia. Our training addresses some of the key themes underlying the personalisation agenda. One of our current priorities is to support the implementation of the National Dementia Strategy (Department of Heath 2009) through enabling organisations to develop informed and effective staff teams and explicit leadership for dementia.

DementiaTrainers create training for each commissioner that is highly accessible, engaging and relevant. We enable our participants to develop not only their knowledge, but also their skills, insight, attitudes, motivation and direction. The large majority of our commissioners are repeat purchasers or those to whom we have been recommended.