Nationwide and Dementia UK are teaming up to offer free face-to-face clinics.

The bank's branch on Castle Street will welcome a team of Admiral Nurses in September, who will be able to offer specialist support in a private space.

The clinics are open to anyone impacted by dementia and will offer practical and emotional advice on all aspects of dementia – from worries about symptoms through to getting a diagnosis and understanding how the condition can progress.

Sarah Cooper, Admiral Nurse at Dementia UK, said: "We're looking forward to returning to Macclesfield to offer support and advice to families affected by dementia in the area.

"Our clinic programme, in partnership with Nationwide Building Society, has now been running for over a year which has enabled us to reach thousands of people across the country who need the support of a dementia specialist Admiral Nurse."

Charlotte Kensett, director of customer experience and social impact for Nationwide, said: "Dementia impacts millions of families and that's why we're incredibly proud to have brought life-changing support into 200 of our branches and helped more than 30,000 people through our partnership with Dementia UK.

"As a mutual we believe we have a role to play in strengthening the communities we serve and supporting those most in need.

"Through our social impact strategy, Nationwide Fairer Futures, we're committed to changing hundreds of thousands of lives for the better."

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Nationwide Macclesfield is located on Castle Street (Credit: Nub News)

Signs and symptoms

 Ahead of the appointments, Dementia UK, the specialist dementia nursing charity, has shared some of the common signs and symptoms of dementia people should look out for in themselves and others.

Dementia is often associated with memory problems, but the first symptoms of dementia are not always memory-related, meaning sometimes people don't recognise the early signs.

The signs of dementia differ from person to person, but the common symptoms include:

• Memory problems – e.g. increasing forgetfulness, difficulty retaining information and getting lost in places that used to be familiar
• Changes in cognitive ability – e.g. difficulties with decision making, a loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities and problems understanding time and place
• Communication issues – e.g. struggling to find the right words, confused or rambling speech and calling people and items by the wrong name
• Changes in behaviour and personality – e.g. becoming agitated, upset or impatient more easily than usual, acting impulsively in ways that are socially inappropriate, experiencing restlessness such as pacing or fighting

 The clinics are part of Nationwide's social impact programme, Fairer Futures, which addresses four of the UK's biggest social issues through charity partnerships – family poverty (Action for Children), youth homelessness (Centrepoint), dementia (Dementia UK) and cancer (The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity).

Nationwide is funding 30 dementia specialist Admiral Nurses and is hosting clinics in 200 branches across the country.

 The clinics in Macclesfield will take place on September 9, 10 and 11.

Too book a confidential and in-person appointment with an Admiral Nurse, click here.

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