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1 May 2026

We’re Highly Commended at the UK Dementia Awards 2026!

We have some wonderful news to share. On 30 April 2026, the Halesworth Dementia Carers’ Fund attended the UK Dementia Awards ceremony and came home with a Highly Commended in the Respite Care and Carer Support category, a national award that recognises the very best in dementia care across the United Kingdom.

About the UK Dementia Awards

Run in association with the Journal of Dementia Care, the UK Dementia Awards bring together outstanding organisations from across England, Scotland and Wales to celebrate excellence in dementia support. The ceremony is one of the most prestigious events in the sector calendar, and this year’s attendance reflected the breadth and depth of dementia care happening across the country.

To be named Highly Commended in such a competitive national field, competing against established organisations from across the UK, is something we are enormously proud of. It is a powerful testament to the quality and impact of the work being done right here in Halesworth and the Blyth Valley.

What the award recognises

The Respite Care and Carer Support category recognises organisations that go above and beyond for unpaid carers, the family members and friends who dedicate themselves, often around the clock, to supporting someone they love who is living with dementia.

At HDCF, our weekly Day Centre at the Patrick Stead Day Care Centre in Halesworth gives people living with dementia a warm, safe and stimulating place to spend time, whilst giving their carers a vital, regular break. We know from the families we support just how much that breathing space means. This award feels like a recognition of their resilience, as much as our own work.

A heartfelt thank you

This Highly Commended award is not ours alone — it belongs to every person who makes HDCF what it is.

Nicky Kelly, Chair of Trustees

We are also deeply grateful to the local businesses, trusts, grant-makers and individual donors whose ongoing support makes our work possible. Without you, none of this would happen.

Support our work

If this news has inspired you and you’d like to support the Halesworth Dementia Carers’ Fund,  whether through a donation, volunteering, or simply spreading the word, we’d love to hear from you.