Dementia is a progressive and irreversible condition that represents a major challenge to health and social care services both in the UK and globally. A 2010 report commissioned by the Alzheimer’s Research Trust and carried out by the University of Oxford revealed that there are just over 820,000 people living with dementia in the UK. This figure is predicted to rise to over one million by 2021 and over 1.7 million by 2051 due to the ageing population. The prevalence of both early and late onset dementia increases with age.

One in 14 people over 65 years old have dementia, rising to one in six over 80 years and one in three over 95. It is more common in women than men. Over 17,000 people under 65 years of age in the UK have dementia, which is known as early or young onset of dementia. Around two-thirds of care home residents have some form of dementia.

However, two-thirds of all dementia patients live in the community. At any one time, around a quarter of hospital beds are occupied by patients over 65 years old with dementia. In 2010, the financial cost of dementia to the NHS, local authorities and families was £23 billion – more than cancer (£12 billion/year) and heart disease (£8 billion/year) combined. This is estimated to grow to £27 billion by 2018.