Nuneaton MP Marcus Jones has pledged to take action to support the 800,000 people living with dementia across the UK.

Marcus joined 200 other MPs and representatives from Alzheimer’s Society in Portcullis House, Westminster to provide a handwritten statement of the action they will take to support people with dementia and their carers. He pledged to help make their constituency dementia friendly so people with dementia can play a full role in their community.

Commenting, Marcus said: “I was pleased to support the event organised by the Alzheimer’s Society. One in three people over 65 will develop dementia, so it is a health issue that we can no longer afford to ignore. In Warwickshire, there is a lot of very good work happening but I am keen to do all I can to support making Nuneaton more ‘dementia friendly’, so that people with the condition can continue to play a full role in the local community.”

Alzheimer’s Society campaigners were in Westminster to drum up political support for their trailblazing Dementia Friends initiative that launched in February this year. Dementia Friends aims to help people understand what it might be like to live with dementia and turn that understanding into action. Alzheimer’s Society is aiming to have one million Dementia Friends by 2015, to help make England more dementia-friendly and improve the lives of the 650,000 people currently living with the condition.

During the afternoon, 30 MPs from across England took part in a Dementia Friends session. Jeremy Hughes, Chief Executive at Alzheimer’s Society said:  “Most people don’t know enough about dementia. Dementia Friends is the perfect opportunity to be able to invite everyone to improve their knowledge. We are pleased to have been able to engage over 130 MPs in one day. They have a huge influence in their local communities and we hope they will use this opportunity to take action and improve lives.”

If you are interested in becoming a Dementia Friend or helping create more communities that are dementia friendly, go to dementiafriends.org.uk to find your nearest information session or to volunteer as a Dementia Friends Champion.