Phoenix - rising above dementia
Phoenix is a group for people living with dementia who are either current or former service-users living in the Ashford area.
Formed in September 2017, Phoenix now has 15 members, including 10 people living with dementia, and five facilitators and volunteers. We meet monthly at Eureka Place with the aim of raising the profile of people living with a dementia and increasing the understanding of what it is like to live with a diagnosis of a dementia, including challenging stereotypes and stigma.
As ‘dementia activists’, we are hoping to get increasingly involved with projects such as dementia-friendly initiatives to improve built environments, businesses, services, educational and health centres or help with recruitment of healthcare professionals and advise on how to be inclusive to people living with dementia.
In 2018, we became a member of the Dementia Engagement and Empowerment Project (DEEP), a national network of similar groups.
We have our own logo too, designed by a member of Phoenix and the KMPT Communications team. Potential new members meet with a Phoenix staff member to discuss what is involved before attending any meetings.
The Phoenix group meet on the 4th Thursday of each month from 12:30-2:30 at Repton Connect Community Centre in Ashford.
If you want to know more about Phoenix, please get in touch.
Research project
Read the research project by Ashford Phoenix which aims to see if the group, as individuals living with dementia, would benefit most emotionally and cognitively, from creating a piece of music by all learning a new instrument rather than just being participants in music sessions: DEEP Enquirers Research – Therapeutic Values of Involvement in Practical Music Making for Dementia
